It looks like this holiday season is going to be one spent at home in Australia, but if you’re travelling this big nation, you might get some free stuff to listen to.
Australia is big. Like really big. Almost as big as the continental United States, and it’s a place many of us haven’t really explored. There are so many places to go, and so little time to do it in, but this year, there’s a greater chance Australians will be exploring their own backyard over the holiday season because they can’t leave.
Yes, thanks to the year that was 2020 and how leaving the country is practically off limits for anyone who is a citizen of this nation, it wouldn’t surprise us if your holiday consisted of jumping in a car, and travelling across the stretch of land in hopes of seeing something new.
And if that’s what your plans look like this year, you might be able to listen to a few free audiobooks along the way, as Audible teams up with tourism group Empty Esky to encourage travellers to take a road trip with free entertainment.
For the ride, Audible is promising almost 60 hours of audiobooks, but you can’t just stump up to the website and expect to download them for you’re driving pleasure. Rather, travellers will be heading through Australia more on a book and podcast scavenger hunt of sorts, finding businesses with Audible posters and a QR code to scan the code and download free audiobooks for the trip.
Empty Esky and Audible have come up with seven road trip itineraries, with each including up to ten local businesses providing one audiobook or Audible-exclusive podcast each, essentially delivering a freebie for each place you visit.
“This year has been difficult for all Australians, but with summer around the corner we’re all looking forward to a getaway,” said Leanne Cartwright-Bradford, Country Manager for Audible Australia.
“As we look to safely holiday in our own backyards this year, Audible has picked some of our favourite road trip listens to keep Aussies entertained on their journey,” she said. “We’re excited to join forces with a community-minded organisation like Empty Esky to offer some comic relief and escapism for the whole family this summer.”
The entertainment ranges from classics such as “Alice in Wonderland” read by Gemma Arterton, stand-up comedy from Australians, and an Audible original featuring First Nations voices in “Debutante: Race, Resistance, and Girl Power”, and it will see travellers finding these titles and more as they travel across Victoria, New South Wales, WA, Wueensland, and Tassie.
Audible is calling it “The Great Aussie Audiobook Adventure”, and while it begins this week, it doesn’t end until January 4, 2021, giving Aussies a good chance at getting as many of those audiobooks as they can, provided they have a car to get them to each location.
Empty Esky has the itineraries online now, so if you’re keen to see just where you need to go to find each title, that may as well start you off.
