Women Travel The World Taking Topless Photographs (And The Internet Loves Them, Obvs)

Taking Topless Photos While Travelling Is Now A Thing, Apparently.

Once upon a time travellers snapped themselves climbing the Great Wall Of China or touching the top of the Eiffel Tower, but now it's all about whipping off your top and showing your bare breasts to the world. Or so it seems.

'The Topless Tour' initiative was originally started by three women and, naturally, the internet loves them.

Brits Olivia Edginton, 20, Lydia Buckler, 21, and Norwegian Ingvild Marstein Olsen, 20, first started the project a few years ago and now people around the world are joining them... by shedding their tops for the camera and posting the photographs online.

Explaining the concept, Olivia, from Manchester, said: "The Topless Tour is the opening of your bare chest and heart to the world.

"It sounds really cheesy on paper, but it really connects you with the people you love. The experience is a whirlwind of different emotions and its so nice to share it with others.

She added: "Our family and friends are really supportive. Most of them have even taken part themselves. Everyone is very proud of the message, our parents think it’s really refreshing for young women to be embracing who they are and love for their body. It is something we don’t hear enough about these days."

The Topless Tour

The girls, who live together in Greenwich and study at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance, have so far posed topless in Oslo, New York, Manchester, Berlin and London.

They have 4,000 followers on their Instagram account and their Facebook page has received thousands of likes and hundreds of picture submissions from 28 countries - including as far away as USA and Australia and even Pakistan and Palestine.

Lydia, from Stratford-upon-Avon, added: "The Topless Tour isn’t just our story anymore, it’s becoming a part of so many adventures and lives.

"It is so humbling to know that we are in someway responsible. We are very excited about its future as it has so much potential and can’t wait to see what is in store.

"Some people are a bit apprehensive when we ask them to join the tour but when it's all over they say they absolutely love it. It's one of those moments where time just stands still. It is so addictive."

The Topless Tour was established in Christmas 2012 while the girls visited Ingvild’s hometown of Brumunddal and were taken for a walk around nearby Lake Mjøsa, the largest in Norway.

Ingvild said: "We had been for a walk around the lake and very spontaneously decided to see how cold we could really feel - it was then we lost our topless virginity.

"It was surprising to see how much your body adjusted to the temperature, it felt so natural, so free. We soon became addicted.

"So far we haven’t got in too much trouble, we get the occasional tut and shake of the head, but generally the response is surprisingly more positive. We still always seem make people smile and laugh - especially when we're on skis."

The Topless Tour is now planning to visit Italy, Croatia and Sweden this summer to further spread the word - and are hoping to have hundreds of thousands of hits by the end of the year.

Close