travel the world in a year

Ultimate Around the World Itinerary | 1 Year Around the World

By: Author Charles

Posted on August 25, 2023

In March of 2019, I quit my job, packed a couple of carry-on bags, and took a one-way flight to Auckland, New Zealand to begin my around the world itinerary.

Over the course of the next 375 days, I traveled to 20 countries and countless cities in 6 continents. I put together this post to walk you through the exact route, and how it all came together the way it did.

Whether, you are just interested in reading along, or you would like to put together an around the world itinerary for yourself, I hope this can inspire you!

*  Affiliate Disclosure : This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you make a purchase through the links provided, at no additional cost to you. Thanks for supporting the work I put into TripTins!

1) Around the World Itinerary Overview

I knew from early on in my career that travel was a very important aspect of my life. I didn’t know at the time though, that I would have it in me to quit my safe corporate job of 6 years and travel for an extended period of time.

Instead of taking those few 10-day vacations and always looking forward to just taking that next trip, I thought a full year of solo travel would be the right move for me. I could visit places that would have taken years for me to get to, and challenge myself consistently along the way.

So, on March 13 2019, I hopped on a flight from JFK to LAX and then onwards to Auckland, New Zealand (essentially as far as one can get!). Over the course of the next 12 months, I got to experience some of the best travel moments of my life.

Whether it was meeting locals, exploring cities, hiking high into the mountains, trying new foods, engraining myself in new cultures, or hanging out with like-minded travelers. The one year of travel ended up being the best decision of my life, and one of the reasons, this site came to be .

Around the World Stats Days: 375  Countries: 20 Cities: ~100

2) Travel Considerations

As I planned the trip, there were a few “main” aspects that I was sure to plan the trip around. These included – weather, local holidays for & peak seasons, logistics, among a few other considerations.

Probably the most important aspect of the around the world itinerary, was making sure I was visiting countries during the best time of year from a weather standpoint .

I did not want to go through all of this, just to visit countries when it was rainy season or when I couldn’t take part of certain activities.

For example, I made sure to visit Nepal during November when the weather was at its clearest (but quite cold) and there was little risk of rain and clouds ruining the trekking views. I made my way to the Philippines at the tail end of the dry season and Costa Rica at the beginning of their dry season.

At the end of the day, it was all about being able to fully enjoy my time in each place on a day to day basis and not have constant days where the weather wouldn’t allow me to do anything.

With that said, the weather is unpredictable and you never know what it can bring (no matter how much you plan). There were certainly days I was completely rained out of doing anything, and times where I had to move things around last minute to circumvent the weather.

But by initially planning the trip to avoid poorer weather conditions, I feel as I was really able to get the most out of the journey.

Local Holidays & Seasons

Another thing that I considered is to avoid traveling to countries during the local’s national holidays . While dealing with tourists is one thing, dealing with a whole country traveling at the same time is another.

This isn’t across every country out there of course, but for some countries during these holiday times, many locals decide to travel for themselves.

This results in less availability for hotels and more expensive prices altogether . A couple that come to mind are Golden Week in Japan and Holy Week in the Philippines. 

I will caveat that with saying, sometimes it can be a great experience to take part of certain local celebrations if that is what is of interest to you.

In addition to holidays, I also tried to avoid peak season when most tourists are traveling to a certain destination .

Now, this is certainly not avoidable if traveling for a year, but it can help to steer clear of some places during those peak seasons.

Instead, I tried to visit places during shoulder seasons, as the weather is great but just less people are traveling to these places. At the end of the day it is just picking and choosing what works best.

The last main consideration when planning the trip was the logistics side of things. I just wanted to be sure that there was an easy way to get between city A and city B .

Whether that be a plane, boat, train or bus, I just didn’t want to put myself in the position where I would have to go drastically out of my way to continue on with the next city or country.

To the best of my abilities, I attempted to book direct flights when possible . I remember in the Philippines for example, there were not direct flights between certain islands or they were not operating every day of the week. I had to put the itinerary together so I was not wasting full days just to get between two islands. 

If I was renting a car, and I was taking a one way route through a country (such as Austria), I had to be certain that I could pick up and drop off the car in two separate locations without a hefty fee. 

With that said though, there were certainly times where I had to compromise with logistics. If I really wanted to travel somewhere but it would take days of traveling, I had to be fine with that. It all becomes a balance between everything .

Other Considerations

Also considered in the travel planning was the flexibility and having time to just unwind without anything planned. While I put together a list of countries and things I wanted to do in each country, I never had it written out to a tee.

I consistently moved things around as I went and sometimes did not even have a set date to leave a country I was in. Having that flexibility helped big time when things didn’t go 100% according to plan .

I also wanted to be sure that I had time to just rest and recover . For the majority of the trip I was out and about from morning until night. All of that traveling can take a toll on the body.

So, you will see times in the itinerary where I may have stayed longer than one may expect just to have time to do nothing and all.

When I combined the weather, holidays, and logistics, an itinerary began to form that I continuously worked on for months leading up to the trip.

→ Learn more: check out the planning a trip around the world and around the world cost guides for many more considerations when putting together an itinerary, as well as my around the world packing list

With that said though, there were some things that I had to plan around, making this around the world trip a bit more difficult to plan out than initially expected. See the next section for more on that…

3) What I Planned Around

Now, the around the world itinerary didn’t come without any hitches. There were a few things that came up which altered my initial travel planning.

Timing is never perfect to take a full year off from your friends and family. And there were certain events that I just had to come back for. Due to this, you will see a bit of interesting travel plans that the trip goes through.

» I spent October of 2019 back in the US as I had weddings to attend of close friends. Due to this I ended up staying the month back in the US before heading out again (and did get to visit NYC, Philadelphia and Chicago during my time back). Then again in December 2019, I came back again, but this time just for a quick weekend.

» On top of that, my trip was originally going to be closer to 15 months of travel. As we all know though, Covid started to ramp up in March of 2020. The end of my trip was a bit hectic trying to figure out where to go and what to do. But on March 20, 2020 I ended up taking one of the final flights out of South Africa before the world went into lockdown.

4) Around the World Itinerary Details

From start to finish the trip lasted 375 days with 329 days outside of the country. Over the course of those 375 days I visited 6 continents, 20 countries, and upwards of 100 cities. I ended up splitting out my trip in five phases:

Phase 1 : NZ/AU/Asia Phase 2 : Middle East / Europe Phase 3* : Nepal Phase 4 : Central and South America Phase 5 : Asia/Africa -> cut short

→ *I returned home before/after I traveled to Nepal

Below is the country by country route I took along with the number of days (including days to travel to them). Throughout the remainder of the post I will go into detail about where I decided to travel to in each country.

Country #1: New Zealand (29 days) Country #2: Japan (12 days) Country #3: South Korea (11 days) Country #4: Philippines (20 days) Country #5: Indonesia (30 days) Country #6: Australia (21 days) Country #7: Singapore (4 days) Country #8: Israel (17 days) Country #9: Jordan (4 days) Country #10: Austria (10 days) Country #11: Germany (6 days) Country #12: Slovenia (11 days) Country #13: Croatia (15 days) Country #14: Montenegro (10 days) Country #15: Nepal (26 days) Country #16: Belize (17 days) Country #17: Costa Rica (24 days) Country #18: Argentina (21 days) Country #19: Chile (11 days) Country #20: Sri Lanka (24 days)

Bonus : South Africa for 5 days until I had to take an emergency flight back home on my final day

Some of my travel plans would not necessarily look efficient on paper (Chile to Sri Lanka for example). However, given I did need to make some stops back in the US as I spoke about earlier, and with Covid ending the trip early, the trip doesn’t always make perfect sense without knowing the details.

You can see that I did spend quite a bit of time in many of these countries (24 days in Costa Rica). Like I said, when planning the trip, I did not want to rush myself in a country.

I wanted to truly enjoy all different aspects of where I was . I also wanted to be sure to have enough “rest” days, to just spend time to regroup and reset before continuing on.

You may find many itineraries out there that visit double the amount of countries in the same time period. But at the end of the day, each person has their own travel style and what they want to accomplish on a trip like this.

For me, it was seeing the world at my pace and really engraining myself in each country I visited.

5) Around the World Itinerary Map

Below is a map of each and every place I visited all along the year long journey. You not only can see the cities I visited, but you can also see nearly every attraction I got to visit along the way.

Feel free to zoom in for more details!

6) 1 Year Around the World Itinerary

With that all said, below is a breakdown of each country along with the main cities/attractions I got to enjoy along the way.

New Zealand (March 13 – April 10)

I started off the around the world itinerary by taking a one-way flight to Auckland, New Zealand and from there got to explore both the North Island and South Island of the country.

After spending a night in Auckland, I grabbed a rental car, and then began the journey from north to south. Along the way I was able to visit the following places:

• Auckland • Waitakere Ranges • Rotorua • Taupo • Tongariro Alpine Crossing • Wellington • Abel Tasman National Park • Punakaiki* • Wanaka • Te Anau • Queenstown • Mount Cook • Pukaki • Christchurch

* As I was making my way down the western coast of the South Island, a major storm caused mudslides and a collapsed bridge. I ended up missing out on Franz Josef and had to spend a day driving around the island to Wanaka. Always good to have the flexibility to change things on the fly!

Japan (April 11 – April 22)

From Christchurch, I hopped on a flight to Tokyo via Brisbane. After a full day of travel, I arrived to Tokyo, where started my 12 days through Japan .

Since this was my second time in Japan, I did not spend as long as I might have if it was my first time. While I certainly went to some of the same places from my initial trip, I did not go back to places like Kobe, Hiroshima , Miyajima and Osaka.

However, I did get to visit a bunch of new places as well, and took the following journey through Japan:

• Tokyo • Kamakura • Hakone • Takayama • Shirakawago • Kanazawa • Kyoto • Nara

South Korea (April 23 – May 3)

It was then off to South Korea as I flew directly from Osaka to Jeju Island. Over the course of the next 10 days or so, I visited three beautiful places in the country:

• Jeju Island (+ Mount Hallasan hike !) • Gyeongju • Seoul

Philippines (May 4 – May 23)

After a successful time around South Korea, it was then onto the Philippines. It was all about the beaches, water, and island life during this portion of the trip.

As the rainy season starts in June, I got there just in time to fully enjoy the experience. Besides a few nighttime rain showers, it was all clear to enjoy some time in the sun. I ended up spending time in 4 different islands for around 4-5 days each.

Logistics were important here as it can get quite tricky to travel around the country. With a combinations of boats and direct flights, I ended up visiting these places:

• Coron • El Nido • Bohol • Siargao

Indonesia (May 24 – June 22)

You are only allowed to visit Indonesia for 30 days without getting a longer term visa, so that is exactly what I decided to do. I spent a full month exploring the country visiting many places along the way .

While 30 days does sound like a long time, Indonesia is a massive country. I can honestly spend a year traveling around the country and still have things to do. But during my month there I started on the island of Java and then got to visit:

• Yogyakarta • Lumajang / East Java Waterfalls • Cemoro Lawang / Mount Bromo • Banyuwangi / Ijen Crater • Munduk • Ubud • Nusa Penida • Gili Trawangan • Mount Rinjani • Komodo National Park

From Komodo, it was then a quick flight back to Bali , where I headed off to Australia for the next portion of my trip.

Australia (June 23 – July 12)

Australia was one country, where it was a bit tougher to pick a time of year that worked weather wise for various cities around the country. I could have gone right after New Zealand but found some of the logistics a bit too difficult to manage.

Either way though, while I did not have the beach weather for Sydney, all else went great in the cities further up north. Below were the places I traveled to during my few weeks in Australia :

• Sydney • Blue Mountains • Whitsundays • Cairns / Great Barrier Reef • Port Douglas • Daintree Rainforest • Uluru / Kata Tjuta • Kings Canyon • Alice Springs / West MacDonnell Ranges

Singapore (July 13 – July 16)

From Alice Springs I took a flight over to Perth for a quick layover before heading off to Singapore. I decided to split Singapore into two parts.

The first couple days I would spend sightseeing all around the city. For the second two days, I opted for a bit of relaxing and treated myself to two nights at the Marina Bay Sands hotel.

Overall, the four days in Singapore ended up great and got me ready for the next leg of my trip as I traveled all the way to Israel.

Israel & Jordan (July 17 – August 2)

When visiting Israel, I knew that I wanted to spend a few days in Jordan visiting a couple of the top sites.

So, I ended up traveling around Israel for 10 days, and then ended up in Eilat. From Eilat, I traveled into Jordan for 4 days and then re-entered Israel, where I spent another week.

While I could have figured out the logistics to be a bit more favorable, the three weeks between Israel and Jordan ended up something like this:

• Jerusalem • Ein Gedi / Masada • Dead Sea • Mitzpe Ramon • Eilat • Petra • Wadi Rum • Haifa* • Tel Aviv

* After visiting Jordan, I crossed back into Eilat, rented a car and drove all the way north to Haifa. I spent a few days exploring the northern coast and ended the trip in Tel Aviv for a few days of beach time.

Austria & Germany (August 8 – August 23)

After taking a flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna, I spent the next 2+ weeks driving my way through Austria and the Bavaria region of Germany. I spent time in cities and out in the mountains, while visiting several places along the way:

• Vienna • Hallstatt • Berchtesgaden • Garmisch Partenkirchen • Mayrhofen

This is also a time where the weather did not always go according to plan. It was nice to have some extra days here in order to wait out the couple days of poor weather and then get up into the mountains.

Slovenia (August 24 – September 3)

From Mayrhofen, I took the quick drive to Innsbruck, dropped off my rental car and then took a train over to Ljubljana. I spent the next 10+ days driving around Slovenia and enjoying all different aspects of the country including:

• Ljubljana • Lake Bled • Bohinj • Bovec • Piran

Croatia (September 4 – September 18)

A quick train from Ljubljana to Zagreb and it was then time to explore Croatia for two weeks . I opted against renting a car here and just made my way around the country using busses and ferries. Along the way I got to visit:

• Zagreb • Plitvice National Park • Zadar • Krka National Park • Split • Hvar • Korcula • Mljet • Dubrovnik

Montenegro (September 19 – September 28)

Montenegro was the last country on the first portion of my trip around the world . I took a bus from Dubrovnik to Kotor and then rented a car for the next 10 days. During those days I made my way to a few different places:

• Kotor • Durmitor National Park • Lake Skadar • Sveti Stefan

My last night of the 200 th day of my trip was spent in the small coastal town of Sveti Stefan, where I got to enjoy one last sunset before making my way back to the US for the next month.

After heading to a couple of weddings and traveling to cities like NYC, Philadelphia and Chicago, I then made the round trip journey to Nepal. Here is where I took part of the Three Passes Trek + Everest Base Camp.

Nepal (November 11 – December 6)

Visiting the Himalayas had been a life dream of mine, and during this around the world trip, I finally got to experience some time there. I decided to go for the Three Passes Trek , which is essentially a longer version of the standard Everest Base Camp trek .

In addition to EBC, I got to head over the Kongma La , Cho La , and Renjo La passes, visit the Gokyo Lakes , and trek up peaks like Chukhung Ri and Gokyo Ri .

After three weeks of trekking, I had a few days of relaxing in Kathmandu before heading back for a quick weekend in NYC .

Belize (December 10 – 27)

It was then time to explore some of Central and South America, as I headed from New York down to Belize. During my time in Belize I spent several days scuba diving, visiting the inland of the country, and finishing up at the beach .

Technically I actually went to another country during the trip as I also did make the quick one night journey to Tikal in Guatemala. Overall, the trip to Belize (and Guatemala) looked like this:

• Ambergris Caye • Caye Caulker • San Ignacio • Tikal • Cockscomb Basin • Placencia

Costa Rica (December 28 – January 19)

It was then off to Costa Rica , where I got to spend 3+ weeks traveling to all different parts of the country.

It was a great mixture between volcanoes, rainforests, wildlife, hiking, and beaches as I visited the following places:

• Poas / La Paz Waterfall Gardens • La Fortuna / Arenal • Monteverde • Manuel Antonio • Corcovado National Park • Uvita • Cerro Chirripo • San Jose*

*The plan was to visit the Caribbean coast for the final few days of the trip around Puerto Viejo. However, the weather had different plans. So, I decided to just spend a few days in San Jose, rest and recover there before heading off to Patagonia for the next month of hiking.

Argentina (January 20 – February 9)

While I did spend a day in Buenos Aires, the main aspect of this portion of the trip was to hike my way through Patagonia . While, I did visit during what is considered one of the best times of year to go from a weather perspective, I still knew the risk of the Patagonian weather.

One day can be nice and sunny, while the next day could be a complete snowstorm (yes even in their summer months!). I mean, I even had a day when it was sunny and snowing at the same time .

Knowing the unpredictability of the weather, I decided to always give myself extra days in each one of the places I visited . This way if the weather did not cooperate for a day or two, I still would be able to enjoy my time there.

And for the most part, that is exactly what happened. Half the time I was in El Chalten, the weather made hiking impossible. A couple days in El Calafate by the Perito Merino Glacier were completely clouded over. But since I planned to have more days than necessary, it all worked out pretty well in the end as I visited these regions:

• Ushuaia • El Calafate • El Chalten • Huemul Circuit

Chile (February 10 – February 20)

From El Chalten, I bussed back to El Calafate, and then took a bus ride over to Puerto Natales in Chile. From there began the O Circuit Trek in Torres Del Paine National Park (an extended version of the famous W Trek ) .

This was actually one portion of Patagonia, where I could not just add on more days for a weather buffer. Since I needed to book the accommodation in the park well in advance, I was locked into my days.

Although the weather was not perfect for some of the days on the trail, it was more than suitable for some trekking. Some top highlights included the Grey Glacier , French Valley , and Mirador Las Torres .

After 8 days of hiking the “O”, I made my way back to Puerto Natales and flew to Santiago to end my time in Chile.

Sri Lanka (February 21 – March 15)

It was then across the world to Sri Lanka , where I got to see the ins and outs of the country for the next three weeks. Yes, I know not the best flight plan, but I planned to spend the next several months in Asia/Africa. Along the way I got to experience a little bit of everything including:

• Colombo • Habarana • Polonnaruwa • Kandy • Dalhousie / Adam’s Peak • Nuwara Eliya • Ella • Yala & Udawalawe Safaris • Mirissa

And here is where things just started to get a bit crazy. We are talking March of 2020 as the world began to turn upside down. The remainder of my trip I was supposed to go to China (quickly got nixed), India, South Africa and Namibia.

I soon realized though, that traveling was no longer an option. After deciding to go to South Africa, I just lasted a few days in Cape Town, before taking one of the last flights out of the country back to the US. It wasn’t the way I wanted to end it, but I still did get to travel around the world for a year.

But now I have written a ton about the countries I visited before, during and after the trip around the world. I hope you find the itineraries and travel guides up on the site helpful!

If you have any questions or comments about any of it, just feel free to comment down below. Also be sure to check out some travel tips & tricks to help you better plan your next trip.

Have fun out there and safe travels!

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Monday 13th of November 2023

This is very helpful!, thanks so much for taking the time to put it together. Can you expand more on why you didn't go to Australia after NZ? Also, so it was fall when you went to NZ and winter for Australia, any regrets going when you did? thoughts? I've read travelling west, is the best way to do a RTW trip, so it's a given to start in NZ, but when to go to get less tourists but decent weather.

Sunday 6th of August 2023

This is all very inspiring and informative, as I’m considering doing the same. Question, how much did you spend your your entire trip?

Monday 7th of August 2023

Hi Mai - feel free to check out this overview I put together about the costs of traveling the world. Good luck with trip planning!

Monday 26th of June 2023

Hi, love your travel story. Have u visited china ever since u miss the last round? Do you plan to round china? I am looking for a company to go round china. I am 60 years old woman.

Hi Janet - I traveled a long while ago just to Shanghai and Beijing. I have yet to go back but would love to travel more around the country one day!

Friday 23rd of June 2023

Hi, this trip sounds amazing! myself and my husband would love to do this type of trip! How did you manage to sort all this out with transport etc? And how did you budget doing all the travel? How much would you need? Thanks. Katie

Saturday 24th of June 2023

Hi Katie - I just took everything one step at a time. The entire trip was not planned out from day one. While I knew of the overall route for the most part, I did not want to corner myself into making decisions too early. I would recommend writing out the countries that are most interested to you and then doing some research on what an overall route would look like. You can see what is possible and what may be too difficult or expensive to fit in.

As for budget, check out this around the world cost overview up on the site that will walk through it all.

Hope you have an amazing time!

Saturday 10th of June 2023

What was it like coming back to the US and finding work? I want to travel the world for a year or two but it would take me leaving my very stable/promising career.... Which scares me to death! My worry is that I would come home to the US and not be able to get the same type of job.

I also worry that a gap year (0r two) may look bad on a resume. Thoughts?

@hailey, from someone who used to work in Human Resources, the time you spend travelling is an education. Learning language, culture, customs, weather, geography, etc. As a candidate, you bring a lot to the table with this type of experience. It would be a completely different story, if you were just unemployed and laying on the couch for a year. Travel....you won't regret it at all!!!

Tuesday 20th of June 2023

@hailey, The current unemployment rate in the U.S is 3.7%. Anybody who wants a job can find one. As long as the gaps in your resume were doing something interesting and intellectually stimulating (like travelling) and were not spent doing something stupid (like in prison or in re-hab), you'll be fine.

Monday 12th of June 2023

Hi Hailey - everyone is different and I can't say for certain how hard/easy it will be able to come back and find work. I was able to do so within a few months but there are many factors at play such as industry, the economy, demand/supply, etc. I am an advocate of traveling as you can tell, and would recommend doing so if it is something very important to you. There are ways to fill up the gap in the resume - for me it was this site, for others it may volunteering, remote work, etc. It is certainly a tough decision, but hope you make the right one for yourself!! Good Luck!

Love and Road

1 Year traveling around the world – Our costs and secrets

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I can’t believe, 365 days have passed since we started our nomadic life! Love and Road is celebrating 1 year of life, 1 year of traveling around the world. The biggest life decision we have ever made, and we never imagined we would be so happy with it! So raise your glass and have a drink with us! Now it’s time to look back and realize how far we have gone!

In October 2014 I wrote our first Love and Road review, six months traveling around the world. The post was written during a bus trip from Pamukkale to  Cappadocia in Turkey. This time I’m putting my ideas together on a train trip from Amsterdam to Berlin, and from Berlin to Barcelona [you can include some awesome parties between my work]. Not sure why, but long trips make me more thoughtful and the stunning landscape passing by my window makes me realize how lucky I am.

I believe you already know how this story started, our wake-up call, how we sold everything, packed our bags and left Brazil.   So now let’s go to the point: our travel costs and secrets of 1 year traveling around the world. How we did, how much we have spent, best moments, curiosities and misadventures. Laughs, tears, fears, and achievements. A true roller coaster of emotions with breathtaking views from different corners of the world. Now I can proudly say that Rob and I are professional travelers, digital nomads, travel writers, and happy people!

1 year traveling around the world – Love and Road in Figures

A world map, many dreams, and some money in the bank account. That’s how Love and Road started. To celebrate our first anniversary we gonna share with you our best and worst travel moments, and at the end of the post, you are going to find our travel bill. I´m sure you will be surprised by the amazing things we have done and the amount of money we have spent.

Continents – 3 – Africa, Asia, and Europe

Countries – 15 – Cambodia , Croatian Islands , France , Germany, Italy , Malaysia , Mônaco, Morocco , Netherlands , Philippines , Portugal , Spain , Switzerland , Thailand and Turkey .  

Cities – 83

Different Languages – 13 [Arabic and Thai were damn difficult]

How to travel around the world? Always searching for the cheapest and smartest way!

To cross all the 15 countries, we traveled by different methods. Our backpacking trip around the world can be split in:

By Bus – 28 trips

By Car – 2 trips

By Flight – 17 trips

By Train – 11 trips

Hitchhiking – 8 trips

Boat – 7 trips

To search for the best prices for flights we use Skyscanner , it´s perfect to compare routes and fares. Most of our train trips were done in Europe with Eurail Pass ,   super easy, flexible and we could travel everywhere with just one ticket. Bus and boats are usually run by local companies, so the best way is to check with travel agents or at bus/boat terminals. For car rentals have a look at Discover Cars.   What we like about them is that they don’t have hidden fees, so you can book without surprises.

BUY YOUR EURAIL PASS HERE!

Where to stay while traveling around the world? Our home far away from home!

We are big fans of comfy + clean + well located & cheap accommodation. Following these features we stayed in:

Airport – 2 nights [Marseille and Kuala Lumpur]

Apartment – 76 nights

Boat – 1 night

Bus – 4 nights

Campervan – 2 nights

Car – 1 night

Friend’s house – 16 nights

Hotel – 101 nights  (We always use AGODA and BOOKING.COM to book our hotels)

Hostels – 25 nights

House Sitting – 50 nights [Best way to travel and get free accommodation. We wrote a comprehensive guide to introduce you to the secrets of House and Pet Sitting ]

Shared House/Apt – 78 nights

Tent – 9 nights [ Moroccan Desert and SONUS Festival]

Most of our accommodation is booked through Airbnb [be smart and  get 20% off on your first booking] and two of our favorite websites for hotels and hostels: AGODA and BOOKING.COM . They definitely have the best offers, good properties and you can trust in their service.

JOIN TRUSTED HOUSESITTERS TODAY!

Long term travel X Shopping X Packing

The world is our address, but our house is tiny, tiny. Everything needs to fit in two 50L backpacks and two 5L small front bags. That’s it, nothing more!! Clothes, shoes, toiletries and electronic stuff. Talking about shoes, our friend Sarah put together great tips on how to choose the best travel shoes . Said that you already assumed that we can´t buy souvenirs or new clothes everywhere we go. All our purchases need to be done wisely, and every time we buy something new, an old one needs to go away. That´s what I call a minimalist style. 😉

We can’t accumulate stuff, nor carry an extra backpack . Our backpacks can only weigh 15 kg [the weight allowed on most of the low-cost airline companies]. So what did we do with our used stuff? We donated. We put everything in plastic bags and give it to people on the streets. A simple way to help and say thanks for all the blessings we received during the year.

So far, in this 1 year of traveling around the world we bought:

» New clothes:

Rob – 4 T-Shirts + 2 pair of jeans + underwear + socks + 2 jumper + more jackets [He lost two jackets this year] + gloves + 2 pair of runners.

Nat – 4 tops + 2 pair of flat sandals + 1 skirt + 1 pair of jeans + 2 legging + 1 jacket + gloves + woolen hat + 1 pair of a fashion Converse + 1 pair of flip-flops.

When we left Asia at the beginning of April, we bought some warm clothes to face the springtime in Europe. Thank God we got more jackets and gloves because in April the weather was pretty chilly on the old continent. For the first time on this trip around the world, we got temperatures below 5ºC. To travel light you always need to think about the weather of the places you will travel to, spring and summer are definitely the best seasons for backpackers.

» Electronics:

1 Notebook Asus F200M

1 MacBook Air [Rob´s old notebook stopped working while we were in Bangkok 🙁 ]

1 Power Strip [one of the most clever and useful purchases. We became heroes at airports and stations]

1 Computer charger

1 Go Pro Hero 4

» Toiletries:

I’m a nomad but never a dirty and smelly traveler [keep this in mind when you travel]. During 1 year of traveling around the world, I managed to keep some of my everyday beauty routines – body moisturizer, facial cream, and my black/grey nail polish… Not just me, Rob is also looking after himself… Age is coming!

» Travel Gear:

1 Small Backpack

2 Dry Fast Kingcham Towels

This past year was dedicated to learning about travel and blogging, so all our energy was focused on exploring the world and write about it. Among the many online books and articles we read, three of them have a special place in our bags [these are the only printed books we bought. Sometimes we are old school]

– Travel Writing (Lonely Planet) by Don George

– Travellers French by Elizabeth Smith

– The Greatness Guide by Robin Sharma

Medical issues in a nomadic lifestyle

After 1 year of traveling the world, I’m the one who got sick more times. On our journey, we had some scary moments.

» Sickness Scores:

Rob – 6 (3 times flu, cold sore crises, diarrhea and a twisted ankle)

Nat – 9 (I won!!! Back pain, mosquito bites allergy , urinary infection, keen injury, 2 times flu, diarrhea and migraine crises)

Most of the problems were sorted out with medicines we bought at the local pharmacy. We have travel insurance but didn’t need to use it. Although when I got really sick in Boracay, Philippines, we contacted our travel insurance to ask how we should proceed in case I needed to be removed from the island. World Nomads assisted us with everything. Luck me, the doctor solved my problem at the local clinic. More about international travel insurance here . 

Impressions from the Road

» Food – As much as we love Italian food, the title of best food goes to the mouth-watering Papaya Salad we ate in Thailand.

» City – Barcelona is still on the top of our favorite cities. It has everything we love!

» Beach – Boracay Island. My favorite is Puka Shell and Rob’s is the White Beach. One word can describe the Philippines: Paradise!

» Best Party – Hard to choose, but the unpretentious Best Bar at Khao San Road stole our hearts and feet. Many nights dancing with good music, cheap drinks and awesome people. I´d say Berlin comes in second place!

Long-term travel is made of people, not places!

This is definitely not a travel resource, it´s more our impression from the people we met. In 1 year of traveling around the world we made many friends, some just for a few days others for a lifetime. Each one has made a special contribution to our story, helped us to be better people, to travel wisely or blog with more professionalism. I don’t have words to say how thankful we are for meeting you, new and old friends. I’m sure we’ll catch up soon, somewhere in this beautiful world, because friendship is stronger than distance and time!

» Most Handsome Men – Dutch [OMG!!!!]

» Most Beautiful Women – Dutch [I think there are no ugly people there]

» Friendly People – Pinoy. Filipinos are the most friendly and helpful people we ever met. SALAMAT!!!!

» People with strange behavior – In Porto   [Portugal]   people talk to themselves all the time.

» Party Animal People – Spanish and Berliner. Different styles of parting but both of them know how to have fun!

The dark side of a nomad life

Some people think that being a full-time traveler is just fun, parties and beach time. Actually, our travel adventure goes much further than just joy and happiness. Doubts, fears, sadness, and homesickness are feelings that haunt us from time to time.

During this year we lost one of our cats and the other one is battling cancer. She is with Rob´s parents and I´m sure they are giving her lots of love and cuddles. The feeling of being far away hurts, and it makes me think that if something bad happens with our beloved family we’ll be too far to help them.

Money issues are always on our way too. As our long-term travel is funded by our savings, our money is running out. Every day we try to find ways of earning some cash and make the blog our main income. [So please, help us keep the blog running by booking your hotels, flights, tours and insurance here on the blog].

Worst Moment of  Traveling

The worst moment in 1-year backpacking around the world was when we crossed the border from Thailand to Cambodia. It was our second trip to Cambodia and after 7 hours on the bus we refused to pay a bribe to the Cambodian Immigration Officer. We knew he was charging everybody more than the correct amount of money and we said “No”. As a consequence they held our passport for 1 hour, we couldn’t leave the border or go back to Thailand. We felt threatened and unsafe. In the end, after a lot of discussions, they let us go.

It’s not about money. It is about principles, about right and wrong. We had money to pay the bribe but we refuse to do it.

Best moments of traveling around the world

It´s not easy to choose the best moment, during this 1 year of traveling around the world so many things happen, so many dreams came true, adventures of a lifetime and experiences that transformed us deeply. After a long talk, we figured out that our Best Moment was the day we started traveling, the day we left our comfort zone and faced the nomadic life. Our best moment is the day Love and Road was born, the beginning of our adventure.

We are not ashamed to say: we have regrets

It was our first week in Thailand, we were overwhelmed by the beauty of the culture and style of life in Chiang Mai. As silly tourists we booked a day tour including rafting, hiking to waterfalls and Elephant ride. That was an awful decision! I regret we booked the riding elephant tour. At the moment was fun, but after I discovered what they do with the animals and how they are horribly treated.

Lesson learned, now I always try to check the background of the tour company we choose. Elephants Farms in Thailand are a big issue and many animals are in danger. If you want to be in contact with these beautiful giants you can visit rehabilitation centers, help and learn. Nomad is Beautiful wrote an amazing article about Elephants and Tourism in Thailand.

What makes us proud:

We have done so many things in this 1 year of traveling that I´m happy with who we are and what we have achieved. One thing that makes us really proud is that every place we came back, like Bangkok, Istanbul, Reggio Emilia, and many others, we had an open door from a friend. People we met during this journey that keep helping us, treating us as family and friends. No words to express how happy and blessed we feel… This is what travel and friends are all about. Thanks so much for believing in us and on our dreams… Grazie, Merci, Gracias, Salamat, Tesekkurler….

Lessons from a long travel journey

Travel changes you! No doubt about it! During this past year, Rob and I learned to be more tolerant and respectful. When you get in touch with different cultures, religions and people, you discover that we are all the same, a person full of dreams, fears and seeking happiness. Our nationality, our color, sexual choices… Nothing matters. We are the same and we need to love and respect each other! When you let the prejudice go you discover that life can be easier, lighter and happier. This is the second lesson: Try your best to be happy and simple. I´m sure you won’t regret it. Simple things can make a big change in our daily life!

Something called relationship – Traveling the world with a partner

After 1 year of traveling around the world together, we are still alive and in love!! So I must say our recipe is working!! What is our love secret? Nothing special, just respect, share the same dreams and support each other. We had bad moments, sadness, crying crises [that was me 🙁 ] and joy… All the time we were together sharing the feelings and looking for the bright side. Not easy to live 24 hours together for 365 days… But with love and fun everything is possible!!! [I don’t want to be cheeky, but I also think that together we are awesome!! 😀 ]

The Bill! How much does it cost to travel around the world?

Now we come to the truth, the figures of 1 year traveling around the world. Since the beginning, we tried to respect our travel budget: $ 50 USD per day – per person. Inspired by Nomadic Matt`s book [How to Travel the World with $50 Dollars per Day] we found cheap ways to travel. We never gave up of fun and good moments, and we discovered a bunch of interesting and smart ways to save money. Another way to save money is to travel slow, there are countries  where you can live for more than 3 months on a Tourist Visa .

 Our cost of 1 year traveling around the world: [all the figures are in US dollars and it´s for two persons]

Transport – $ 9,172 [intercity and local transportation]

Accommodation – $ 6,882

Eating out – $ 6,280

Party – $ 3,542

Groceries – $ 2,611

Attractions – $ 2,117

Insurance – $ 2,200 [one year worldwide coverage]

Purchases – $ 1,222

Pharmacy – $ 660

Doctor – $ 223

Souvenirs \ Post – $ 194

WC – $ 20

Others –   $ 3,526 [internet, lockers, books, beauty, visas…]

The total cost of 1 year traveling around the world = $ 36,532 or $ 18,268 per person. The average per person / per day was $ 50!

During this 1 year of backpacking, we stayed longer in Europe, Turkey, and Thailand. In all of them for more than 2 months. Here is how much we spent on each one:

» Europe, 151 days: $ 13,369 [average per day = $ 88  or $ 44 per day/person]

» Turkey, 78 days: $4,904 [average per day = $ 62 or $ 31 per day/person]

» Thailand, 90 days: $ 5,492 [average per day = $ 61 or $30.5 per day/person]

We traveled a lot and managed to keep our money under control! Congratulations to us!! On the blog you can find the breakdown of our costs by countries, so far our series “How much Does it Cost to Travel to” shows the costs of travel in Portugal and the  Philippines . During the next months, we’ll be publishing more posts about our expenses around the world. Stay tuned 😉

Time flies when we are having fun! It doesn’t feel like one year has gone by, but when I look back I´m proud to see how many things we have done! How many places we visited, people we met, the cultures we experienced and how we became better persons and travelers. I dreamed of this life, but I never imagined it could be so amazing and full of surprises. We finished 1 year traveling around the world, our first year as digital nomads, 365 days of a nomadic marriage , and we have never been so happy!

I can say out and loud: We are Love and Road, we are long-term travelers, bloggers, party and sun-seekers. We are Rob and Nat and we want to inspire you to travel more and better because discovering the world is one of the most rewarding things you can do in your life!

I hope you enjoyed our story of 1 year of traveling around the world, and hope we could help you to plan your dream trip… Would love to hear your opinion about our story and how we can make it better for you! We started Love & Road as our own life project, but now it includes you and all our readers! Thanks for being part of this amazing journey!

195 thoughts on “1 Year traveling around the world – Our costs and secrets”

You have explained very well . It is very helpful for me because I have already planned to travel in my coming holidays. I am very thankful to you!

You are welcome!

Awesome detailed post. Hoping to travel the world for at least a year after our dog passes. Reading pieces like this are very helpful. Thank you for sharing!

Great write up! Was fun to read. Just one small suggestion: you should visit tye rural parts of Georgia (Mestia, Zhabeshi, Ushguli etc.) and then review your most beautiful/handsome women/men award 🙂

Tks for the heads up!

Great Blog/Article. I myself would love to break free and do as you did. I think traveling resets people. I think Americans, myself included, enjoy a lifestyle like no other, BUT the world is a beautiful place and i think we could ALL use a little more exposure to lifestyles, cultures, religions, etc…from all over the world 🌎 . It would benefit us all greatly. Keep blogging. Sounds like both of you are pros now. Stay in Love, and most importantly , keep traveling. -Ryan St Louis, MO

Glad you enjoyed it Ryan 🙏

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Home » Budget Travel » How Much Does it Cost to Travel the World for a Year or More? (2024)

How Much Does it Cost to Travel the World for a Year or More? (2024)

When that dastardly, dangerously, delightful thought first worms its way into your head: let’s travel around the world, leave everything behind and just go…

I’m a travel blogger and a dirtbag at heart, so of course, I’m happy for you. But then you’re asking, well, how much does a round the world trip cost?

The thing is, a year of travelling can be done for as little and as much money as you want . 

At one extreme, you and your hundred thousand dollars can stay in luxury hotels and swan through secluded villas. In which case, why are you reading a budget backpacking guide? Leave us dirtbags alone!

At the other end of the spectrum, you can work, hitchhike, dumpster dive, and camp your way across a continent or two for a year. You’ll spend next to nothing and gain an infinitude of life experience. 

Somewhere in between are those that just want to take a year off and experience budget travel. Your trip has an end date, so at some point you’ll go back to work; you’re not made of money! You’re ok roughing it a little.

The estimates for travelling around the world for one year range from $10,000 – $20,000 depending on how grungy your travel habits are – and where in the world you go.  

So hush to those luxury-influencer-travellers – this one’s for the broke backpackers! 

I’ve got budget estimates, tricks, tips, and just a smattering of ethics to answer the question: how much does it cost to travel the world?

Budget Tricks 101 for Travelling Around the World

Putting a hard number on a round the world trip, working and volunteering around the world, travel around the world responsibly, faqs about how much does it cost to travel the world, final thoughts on how much does it cost to travel the world.

There is just one phrase that defines all budget travel: go local. If you say this fast enough it kind of sounds like go loco which is a pretty accurate motto for the budget travel feels sometimes!

But the answer to the question ‘ how much does it cost to travel the world? ’ depends on which sandbox you’re playing in. Budget travel rules change a bit depending on whether you’re travelling through India or Germany. The India sandbox has a lower cost of living which means the frugal round the world (RTW) trip can be fairly comfortable. The German sandbox requires a larger amount of savings for the same quality of living; or a sneaky side hustle; or a commitment to utter dirtbaggery. 

Luckily, all of us on the Broke Backpacker team have thought long and hard about which sandboxes to go play in. (Don’t worry I’m retiring the metaphor now).

Picking a country that’s cheaper to travel in will mean you can travel comfortably for longer periods of time.

10 Best Cheap Places to Travel to

13 Cheapest Countries in Europe

Still, go local and life becomes cheaper – and more ethical if you ask me. Don’t go for the imported beer and American Spirit tobacco in India – go for Tuborg beer and bidis instead of cigarettes. Or better yet, just give up smoking. It’s a bullshit habit that grabs you by the throat and says, baby please don’t quit me, we had such good times remember?

I digress, probably because I’m trying to quit smoking. Pro tip: stop smoking cigarettes; start saving money. Boom, thank me later ratbags.

Whether you’re planning to slum it around South Asia for a year or dabble in a cheap trip across Europe , there are some common budget tricks and tips to keep your pockets full of coins. Remember, there are 4 major expenses on the road:

• Accommodation

If you can score parts of your expense list for free (like if you have accommodation included with your work) then you can keep your daily budget to a minimum.

These are my tried and true methods for keeping my 4 major costs on the road down. 

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Cheap Sleeps While Travelling

Budget travel and the cost of travel for one year is a spectrum. As I’ve said, you’ve got the pure dirtbaggery at one end and the glitzy, freaking fancy at the other. 

So reducing your accommodation costs are gonna look a little different depending on how you want to spend your year travelling. 

I can assume – if you’re reading this – you’re happy to say (politely) eat a fat one to hotels and fancy travelling . In which case, you’ll be looking at the hostel life ! Hostels are a pretty great way to experience travelling life as well as save some cash while you’re on the road.

But if you wanna get cheaper than hostels, rest assured there are options. You can always get some good camping gear and camp your way across the world. Investing in good camping gear before you travel the world for a year opens up a range of dope, free camping spots. 

Or you can lean into the great networks of Couchsurfing, BeWelcome, or Trustroots. Putting your trust and faith into a stranger in a country to host you for the night can lead to the most epic experiences. Because it’s more than a free sleep: it’s an invitation into someone’s home and, by extension, way of life. 

Finally, you can always try and score free accommodation with your work. Many seasonal jobs that you pick up along the road will offer free or discounted accommodation. If you can’t wrangle this out of your employer, you can also try housesitting . 

Airbnb and the Travel Blues

At some point during your RTW trip, you’ll probably hit some travel blues . Maybe that one guy at the hostel has taken it upon himself to tell you about the time he almost made it as a professional snowboarder yet again, or maybe you’re trying to quit cigarettes for the third time. Whatever the reason is, you need a break. 

That’s where Airbnb shines. In some offbeat travel destinations where there are no hostels, you will lean on Airbnb and Couchsurfing networks exclusively. But even where you won’t need Airbnb so much, it can be a great alternative. There are low to mid-range properties that are a little classier – and a lot more private – than hostels. They might be just what you need after a hectic few months on the road.

However you make it work, squashing the cost of your nightly sleeps greatly reduces your daily budget. If you have $10 a day to spend, expect that accommodation can quickly add up to half or more of your budget – even in cheap countries. 

Aiming for free accommodation, and a tonne more memories, is the way to go!

Cheap Eats While Travelling

Generally speaking, if you’re in a country that’s cheap to travel to: eat street food .

If you’re in a country that’s more expensive: cook for yourself .

If you want to go full dirtbag: dumpster dive . 

I could go on and on about how good food made me question the Universe about God again… I have had some truly divine meals while travelling. And no, they haven’t been had in the fancy restaurants! In fact, done right, food can be the cheapest part of your whole travelling day. 

You could venture deep into the bowels of a marketplace in Mexico, pet chicken in tow (I was going through something – don’t ask), and score a plate of tacos for $1 . You bite into this magical, mystery meaty, pico de gallo topped taco of goodness. Goddddddddamn, if that isn’t the best dollar you’ve ever spent.

Of course, if you find yourself on your Europe leg of the RTW trip, street food might not be an option. So it’ll end up being cheaper to cook for yourself. Although tapas, anyone? They can be cheap and delicious!

There’s also something satisfying about learning a few tricks and tips to show off the next time you get to a hostel kitchen.

Pro tip: cover your potatoes in alfoil, slather them in butter and herbs, bake. Cheap, and damn delicious. 

Cheap Transport While Travelling

Remember: go local! If the bus is crammed from window to windscreen with local passengers, chances are it’s the cheapest transport in town. 

It’s practically a backpacker rite of passage to let themselves be absorbed by the madness of squeezing 35 passengers into a 10 seater bus that careens its way through Kathmandu! Now, on the one hand, sometimes you’re not going to want to share your seat with a chicken, an elderly woman, two backpackers, and a stereo. 

Sometimes, you’ll book the air-conditioned bus and it might even come on time.

And remember that walking is free! If you can’t walk, then you sure can hitchhike . And if you can’t hitchhike, you can haggle for the price of the chicken bus. 

I think the biggest factor that determines your transport cost though is how committed to a fast-paced itinerary you are. The faster you move, the more transport will cost. The more inflexible your itinerary, the less time you have to haggle or shop around for a cheaper option. When it comes to the actual travelling throughout your round the world trip, go slow . 

Cheap Budget Activities While Travelling

Jump on those free walking tours. Start hiking in the local area. See the landmarks from the top of a hill in the city rather than from inside. 

There are lots of ways to reduce the amount of money spent on activities. But, usually, it simply means not doing something.

Now, things like the Eiffel Tower, I’m happy not “doing”. I’d rather see it from the metro and maybe picnic in the park with it in the background. I don’t need to go to the top of it and hope my partner isn’t overcome with the need to propose to me.

Occasionally though, the Lonely Planet lists attractions for a good reason: they’re pretty awesome! Other times, there will be once-in-a-lifetime experiences that are part of the reason you left to travel the world in the first place. Like, learning to freedive , or bungee jumping in New Zealand. 

So some days you won’t need to spend a cent on daily activities. On others, it’s nice to have a little extra money set aside to do something epic. 

Ultimate Budget Travel Hack

When you’re considering how much does it cost to travel the world, know that your route and speed will largely determine your expense . The faster you go and the more expensive the cost of living is in a country, the more you will spend.

The number one way you will save money when you travel the world is being flexible. When you don’t have anywhere to be, you have the freedom to pick a cheaper, slower option in order to get there. 

When you have a less packed itinerary, you will spend less money ticking places off. A less packed itinerary allows you to engage in slow travel and save your money, and sanity, as you travel the world.

Wanna know how to pack like a pro? Well for a start you need the right gear….

These are packing cubes for the globetrotters and compression sacks for the  real adventurers – these babies are a traveller’s best kept secret. They organise yo’ packing and minimise volume too so you can pack MORE.

Or, y’know… you can stick to just chucking it all in your backpack…

Okay, so we’ve got some budget travel tricks and tips under our belt. Now we’ve got to try and put a number on this whole excursion. Oof, I can hear the dirtbags tuning out of the hard numbers. They just want to dumpster dive their way through Europe and then go chill in Nepal for a bit – and that’s ok!

But the RTW backpackers want to put a hard number on their budget. So. I’d say if you’re travelling mostly through Europe, Oceania, or North America , you’ll spend around $20 000 in a year. If you’re travelling through Southeast Asia or Eastern Europe you’ll spend around $10 000 . 

See, these are pretty arbitrary numbers when I just type them out. And the longer I spend not smoking, the more attracted I am to structured data. There’s just something so satisfying and distracting about a table.

The most impressive breakdown of how much one year of travel costs is this bad boy . Sharon did not fuck around when it comes to tracking every last dollar she spent on her first year abroad. I think it’s important to remain realistic about your route and the speed that you will conquer your RTW with. 

But even a back of the envelope calculation like my one shows how far you can stretch a few dollars by being savvy. Travelling around the world for a year isn’t necessarily expensive. 

The Back of the Envelope Calculations

Look, when the numbers are crunched, travelling the world for a year costs less than what you might think . Saving up for the legendary RTW is suddenly a little less daunting.

These back of the envelope calculations don’t include flights, internet costs, or a lot of the gear that you might want to buy beforehand. Still, it’s not that expensive. 

Yet, the broke backpacker’s whole dealio is that we travel the world on less than $10USD a day . And we do do that. (Or at least I do!)

Once you’re on the ground haggling new prices , busking, dumpster diving, and hitchhiking it’s quite easy to not spend more than $10USD a day. It’s the flights, the broken laptops, the good quality backpacking gear, the stint in an Indian hospital stricken with dengue fever that pushes the cost up. 

Also, if you build a bit of wiggle room into your budget you don’t find yourself in a shit hot mess (financially speaking).

Also, even if you spend $10 a day, I would still recommend investing in good quality gear from the get-go. This limits the amount of time you spend sewing your pants back together – and reduces the risk that your bag goes kapootz in the middle of a busy street in Hanoi.

The fact is, many people will fall somewhere between a grunge-cat and a full-blown live-off-your-savings RTW, by getting a working holiday visa or working remotely along the way as a digital nomad.

In this case, not only can you deploy budget hacks to keep your daily costs below $10 a day as a weapon against a depleting bank account, but you have an income too! Even the grungiest of dirtbags will admit that it’s nice to be able to afford a fat joint every now and then!

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Maybe you’ve got $20 000 set aside for an EPIC RTW. You’re happy living the hostel life and splurging on the occasional SCUBA diving trip.

Or maybe, you’ve got a more humble budget in mind. 

In this case, you’re probably going to want to work a little to bring down the cost of your year of travel. You can always find the shitkicker backpacker jobs if you’re willing to get your hands dirty. Speak a little of the local language and a construction site will be hard-pressed to say no to your help for the day.

Most hostels will look for backpackers to run the front desk, do some cleaning, or run the bar in exchange for a bed and some pocket money. Then there’s the seasonal work or teaching English that you can pick up along the way. 

I’ve done everything from picking fruit to working on a fishing vessel to bartending for a little extra cash for the travels ahead! Now if you’re planning to turn your one year on the road into multiple years on the road, the hustling and seasonal work will appeal to you. 

But eventually, you might start to think about a more sustainable way to bring down the annual cost of your travels. You might even start to think about how nice it would be to earn some kind of income again…

Alrighty, here’s the dirty little secret of long term travellers: you don’t just quit your job to travel ; you bring it with you . 

Digital Nomadism

Location-independent work is not so unusual these days – and it’s likely going to become more popular as people get a taste of going remote. These days the team that makes up the broke backpacker would all mostly consider themselves digital nomads of some kind and have plenty to say about getting started as a digital nomad .

Many backpackers will start off as freelancers or entrepreneurs of some kind when they begin their digital nomad journey. As with any industry, there are some people who will try it out for a few months and quit; and then there are the lifers. 

It’s just so addicting to have the ultimate flexibility and freedom of travel paired with the undeniable goodness of regular income, no matter how much digital nomadism changes your travel .

Just a few of the digital nomad jobs include:

• IT and tech jobs – web and software development, UI/UX design
• Creative jobs – photography, creative writing
• Writing jobs – copywriting, blogging
• Marketing jobs – e-commerce, product management
• Language jobs – teaching English, translation, transcription

Volunteering on Your Trip Around the World

If you want to lower some travel costs but aren’t sold on the whole hustling, capitalist beast (or maybe you just want to do a little good) I’d suggest thinking about volunteering! You’ll lower your travel costs, connect with local communities, and give back all your best vibes and smiles while you’re at it.

Whenever you are volunteering, do stay vigilant, especially when working with animals or children. Volunteer programs, like Workaway , run through reputable work exchange programs are more well-managed and reputable.

At The Broke Backpacker, we recommend Worldpackers : a review based program that connects well-meaning volunteers with reputable programs worldwide.

You can rest easy knowing you’re doing a little good for the community that you’re in.

Worldpackers: connecting travellers with  meaningful travel experiences.

8 Steps to a Successful Round the World Adventure

What’s sexier than a budget table or a very detailed spreadsheet? An infographic!

• Get some destination inspiration . This is what’s going to carry you through the hard, hustle times. That beautiful sunset over a beach that you have to yourself; that epic trek through the Andean Highlands. Stay inspired!
• Save some coins . Even the dirtbags have got to buy the odd plate of tacos! However, you save up for your trip, keep that inspiration fresh in your mind.
• Create your budget . Know the hard limits. Know when it’s time to hustle again. 
• Have a loose itinerary . Remember, less is more! The slower you can go, and the more flexible your itinerary, the cheaper your round the world trip becomes. 
• Get some dang insurance . Yeah, even you grungy broke backpackers should consider this! No one thinks they’re going to die of dengue fever in a Guatemalan hospital until it’s too damn late. In which case, good travel insurance saves you a shit tonne of money.

6. Pack up yo’ shit! Investing in good gear means that sexy camping spots open up for you and your underwear doesn’t have holes in them after 4 weeks. Get that good gear, yo!

7. Stay healthy . Travelling is a liminal space between who you were and who you will become. There’s a helluva lot of transformation going on, along with some serious physical stressors. Stay hydrated, eat well, and take care of yourself – including staying fit on the road.

8. Work on the road . Inevitably, you’ll get more destination inspiration. And then you’ll need to save up some money again so that you can set a budget, make a new itinerary, get more insurance, and pack all over again! Getting a job on the road makes it possible to keep this dream machine going.

The Ultimate Adventure Packing List

Get a load of this in your backpack and you’ll be well on your way to getting the perfect packing list . You don’t want to be the kid with luggage that’s 20kg too heavy, but there’s no point skimping on the essentials either!

Osprey Aether 70L Backpack

Ya can’t go backpacking anywhere without a blasted backpack! Words cannot describe what a friend the Osprey Aether has been to The Broke Backpacker on the road. It’s had a long and illustrious career; Ospreys don’t go down easily.

Feathered Friends Swift 20 YF

My philosophy is that with an EPIC sleeping bag, you can sleep anywhere. A tent is a nice bonus, but a real sleek sleeping bag means you can roll out anywhere in a and stay warm in a pinch. And the Feathered Friends Swift bag is about as premium as it gets.

Grayl Geopress Filtered Bottle

Always travel with a water bottle! They save you money and reduce your plastic footprint on our planet. The Grayl Geopress acts as a purifier AND temperature regulator – so you can enjoy a cold red bull, or a hot coffee, no matter where you are.

Petzl Actik Core Headlamp

Every traveller should have a head torch! A decent head torch could save your life. When you’re camping, hiking, or even if the power just went out, a top-quality headlamp is a MUST. The Petzl Actik Core is an awesome piece of kit because it’s USB chargeable—batteries begone!

First Aid Kit

Never go off the beaten track (or even on it) without your first aid kit! Cuts, bruises, scrapes, third-degree sunburn: a first aid kit will be able to handle most of these minor situations.

If you spend any time in a tourist hotspot, you’ll take no convincing that some tourists are dickkkkkkkkkkks . 

I think that ultimately, no matter how cheaply we’re travelling, we have a responsibility to travel sustainably . There’s no need to throw your garbage out the window just because the country’s waterways are already full of garbage. You don’t gotta be that guy. 

In fact, if you’re looking to reduce the amount of plastic you use, you can always go for a filtered water bottle . This way you aren’t spending needless money on plastic bottles AND you aren’t contributing to the landfill problem. Heaps yeah! The turtles say thankyou, homie!

And then there are the little things that stem from a little cultural awareness. Dressing modestly where necessary, not carving your name into sacred temples, using your manners; you know, the stuff that would make your mum proud.

I think that the slower you travel, the more that you can grasp the intricacies of cultural awareness and reduce your environmental footprint – AKA the two core components to travelling sustainably. You will fly less and say please more when you travel slowly and have nowhere you need to be.

Travelling slowly is less stressful for you as well, and I believe, you have a responsibility to yourself and your mental health when you travel too. Because at the end of the day, if you neglect your mental health you’re more likely to act like a dick and travel less responsibly. 

It’s all connected!

Basically, if you can nail responsibility to yourself, to others, and to the environment you’re probably doing your bit to make sure travelling remains a net positive force in the world.

I’ve got your burning questions about the cost of travel for one year answer RIGHT HERE!

How much should I save if I want to travel for one year?

While most estimates put the number at $20,000 per year , I think it really depends on your style of travel and whether you think you’ll be indefinitely on the road afterwards. If you are committed to a year of budget travel that might include a few splurges and no proper working, then yeah, I’d say $20,000 is accurate.  If you hustle or get some seasonal work or become a digital nomad, you may end up travelling for far longer and your yearly costs are going to be significantly less.

Can I travel with no money?

Helllllll YES! Well, it depends on what you mean by “no” money. You can gain income along the way by seasonally working or becoming a digital nomad and offset everything you spend with your income. Or you can straight up not work and travel like an absolute grunge-cat hitchhiking and dumpster diving and still not spend any money.

Is it worth travelling around the world for a year?

I think it’s, hands down, one of the most transformative things you can do. The perspective you will gain and the memories you will make are second to none. Book that ticket!

So should you do it? Should you quit your job and travel the world for a year? Well I dunno, I’m not your life guru. 😉

But now you know that travelling the world for a year is really rather achievable. You don’t have to sacrifice everything for your once in a lifetime round the world trip. It’s perfectly feasible to save up and take the trip of a lifetime! A year’s worth of travel may only set you back $20,000. 

And when you inevitably catch the travel bug, you can find budget hacks and jobs on the road to keep you going. Soon you will realise that you don’t need that much money for a year to travel. You can go full grungy dirtbag and hitchhike your way into a new adventure. Orrrrrr, you can take the happy medium and enjoy an exciting RTW adventure for a year.

Through it all, you’ll let in the transformative power of travelling . 

Because ultimately, travelling opens you up to many new perspectives on the world and really drives home that we have one Earth. We have more in common with each other than we think and we have a responsibility to pull ourselves together to keep this planet in good knick. 

Stay golden team, and I’ll see you out there on the road!

And for transparency’s sake, please know that some of the links in our content are affiliate links . That means that if you book your accommodation, buy your gear, or sort your insurance through our link, we earn a small commission (at no extra cost to you). That said, we only link to the gear we trust and never recommend services we don’t believe are up to scratch. Again, thank you!

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Hi. This is a really useful blog thank you. ? My partner and I are planning to setting off on our travels from England in January 2025. We will definitely have £40,000 between us when we go. potentially £45-47,000 (but this will be a bonus if so!). We want to travel South East Asia, then over to Mexico and travel through Central and South America (for Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador). I am worried our £40,000 will not be enough money given inflation costs post-covid. We will be happy to travel overland, quite slowly. We can stay in hostels… we don’t really like to camp (with the odd private room where its cheaper – we are a couple after all!). We do like yo do a bit of diving and Trekking. We aren’t limited on time. Do you have any thoughts on our budget? I have been wondering if we should postpone and save up more but I really don’t want to!

Hi Alisha, I often lament that you need at least 2 of the 3 following to travel, time , money, motivation to make it work should you be lacking either of the first two. You are super lucky and appear to have all three. Don’t wait, go in Jan 2025. More importantly than what you have in the bank is making a realistic daily budget and sticking as best you can to it. Really decide what things you are willing to splurge and sacrifice on.

In my experience drinks (of all types) can be a daily budget breaker, so you can do things like forgo fancy coffee and just have the local brew. Living and travelling like a local will always stretch your money further.Getting involved in projects or workaways will also help. Try to get some interest on the cash you do have in the bank and make sure you find a least two banking products that allow you free access to your money abroad and have them fully set up before you set off. Wishing you a great trip!

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Long Term Travel // Travel Tips

How to travel the world for a year: 7 tips for long term travel.

This post may contain affiliate links. We receive a commission on purchases made through links on this page. This is at no additional cost to you & helps support our travels. Read more in our Disclaimer . Thank you!

Do you want to quit your job and travel the world? You can! We’ll cover the basics of how to travel the world for a year.

We were just like you: bored at work, tired of the commute, always hungry for long weekends, and more trips. We both decided to quit our 9-5 jobs and set out to see the world. After saving up for 2 years, we were able to take the dive and start international travel. We have since been traveling for two years and so far, we haven’t made a single dollar since leaving.

We want to show you how we did it and how you can, too! It really is the dream life of seeing the world before you are old and continuously adding more to your bucket list and actually check it off!

We’ll cover how to travel the world for a year, how much does it cost for a couple to travel the world for a year, packing list for long term travel, and more!

This post is all about how to travel the world for a year!

How to travel the world for a year:, save up money.

The first step to travel the world for a year is to have some money. To be honest, you don’t need a whole lot of it but the more you have the easier it will be. If you are looking to purely travel and not work at all during your travels, you will need to set up a budget and see how much you will need to save up.

This is the route we went with. We have actually been able to travel for 2 whole years for 2 people with just the money we had saved before we left. We predicted we would spend $2,000 per person per month. That gave us a total of $48,000 per year. We did go slightly over that because of so many unforeseen circumstances and you should definitely plan for more as well.

Nate has always been fairly frugal, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t spend money on what was important to us. We really thought about what we liked doing and what brought us happiness. You should do the same. For example, we loved Disneyland. And even though we lived in San Diego (about a 2-hour drive from Disneyland), we decided to get annual passes. It was 100% worth it for us even though we could have saved that money.

Instead, we saved on things that didn’t really bring value to our lives like going out for fancy dinners, buying fancy cars, or living in the best neighborhood. We didn’t buy a lot of new clothes, we canceled subscriptions we weren’t using, and only went grocery shopping once a week. These are just a few of the money-saving tips we have. I could write a whole course on how to save money, but we’ll leave that for another day.

Become a Digital Nomad

Now, if you truly don’t make enough to save money or just can’t wait to get going, there are plenty of options for you, too! You can become a digital nomad. This means working online from anywhere in the world. With technology growing at the rate it is, and especially with the pandemic, there are more jobs online than there ever have been before. Many people we have met through our travels are working online to continue to pay for their travels.

A great place to look for online jobs is FlexJobs or We Work Remotely . Of course, it’s still a job and likely will require a certain set schedule. And for lots of jobs, like online teaching, you will need to work hard to get that initial base business. But it will all be worth it to set up a dream life of traveling whenever and wherever you want.

Here are just a few examples of fully online jobs:

• Teaching English
• Software Consultant
• Graphic Designer
• Video Editor

You could also get jobs in each new location you go to. Lots of hostels will hire people for short terms and give discounted or free accommodations on top of a small wage. You could also handle a business’ social media, work as a bartender or barista, give surf lessons, or take photography for local businesses. These types of jobs usually take longer and will require you to stick around in one town for a longer period of time. But whoever said that was a bad thing? Doesn’t a three-month stint in Costa Rica or Thailand sound nice?

Stick to a Budget

Now that you either have the money or are on your way to making the money, you will need to figure out how to spend it. It can be tempting to blow a ton of money like you normally would on a vacation. But if you are going to be traveling long-term, you will likely need a budget in place in order to continue those travels. Of course, if you have boatloads of money and are looking to travel, you probably aren’t even reading this, so…

Setting a budget up sounds daunting and honestly, like not much fun. But there are a ton of easy ways to do it. The most important part of a budget is just tracking where your money goes! If you are aware of it, you can influence where it is going with a better understanding.

The 100% easiest way to do this is through Mint.com . Mint is a free service where you connect your bank accounts, credit cards, loans, and anything else financial. It will automatically categorize your spending (food, hotels, excursions, etc.). You can manually edit transactions and it will learn as it goes. We have been using Mint for the last 5 years and it has been incredibly helpful for our budget tracking.

We have a total annual budget and we break that down monthly. From there we estimate where our accommodations, flights, and fixed expenses (Netflix, Safety Wing, Adobe, etc.) should be. At the moment, we are also tracking our expenses daily. It’s an easy system where I write down everything we spent for the day on a Post-it note and we tally it up for the week to see how we did.

There are thousands of other ways to budget (like the cash envelope system from The Budget Mom ) and you will find what works best for you as you try them out. You will need something to ensure you stay on track and can continue to travel for as long as possible!

Couple of tips to save some money: shop local, eat local, and travel slow!

Have a General Itinerary

This is a very general tip because you will want a lot of freedom with your travel. But if you have a general itinerary you can ensure you go in the most efficient route and can save on transportation. The faster you travel, the more your transportation costs will be so any savings you can get on them will be helpful! If you know you want to explore Southeast Asia (which we highly recommend), it wouldn’t make sense to go from the Philippines to Indonesia to Cambodia to Singapore. A general itinerary will just help you make the next logical steps in your journey.

You will also be able to better plan around holidays! Holidays and events while traveling can be some of the coolest experiences and we highly recommend visiting as many as you can! You wouldn’t want to miss the Yi Peng Lantern Festival in Chiang Mai by a week or Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. A general itinerary will help you plan to be there for those big events!

Packing for a Year

Now packing for a year of travel can seem extremely daunting but with laundry, it’s really not so bad. We carry two checked suitcases and two carry-on backpacks with everything we own, and we are just fine.

I do have a few tips to make everything easier, though. A capsule wardrobe is your best friend. This is where everything in your wardrobe matches everything else. So every shirt could be worn with every pair of pants. It’s extremely helpful because you don’t have to plan outfits and if the laundry gets low, you still have matching clothes. I keep my wardrobe to all the same color scheme with mostly neutrals and just a few colored shirts.

You don’t need “traveler’s” clothing, wrinkles aren’t that bad on regular cotton clothing. And bring jeans if you normally wear jeans. Don’t change your wardrobe just to travel, it will make you even more uncomfortable. Fewer shoes are more since they truly are the hardest thing to pack. Toiletries can be bought all over the world, so just bring a normal size of everything. Unless you have a boutique brand of face wash or a very hard-to-find shampoo, you will be able to find it abroad, even brand names (Colgate, Neutrogena).

Lastly, packing cubes  are immensely helpful. Especially when packing for two. We each have our own color and know exactly what goes where. It makes packing easier and unpacking after a long flight even easier.

Be Flexible

Even if you have a budget and an itinerary, things are going to change. And that’s okay. Traveling has made us so easygoing and it’s absolutely for the best. Likely things are going to go wrong. In fact, sometimes everything is going to go wrong. You may lose something important or expensive, you may get hurt, or you may get lost and have no way to find where you’re supposed to go. All of these have happened to us and sometimes it can be overwhelming. The more you prepare, the easier things will be, but nothing will ever go perfect.

We truly believe that everything happens for a reason and we wouldn’t be where we are right now if those things hadn’t happened to us when they did. And sometimes these things are very obvious.

For example, the global pandemic shut the world down only a few weeks after our travels started. We decided to wait it out in Cambodia and we ended up connecting with another couple waiting it out in India. They are now 100% our best friends and when we met up with them for the first time, instead of spending 4 days together, we spent 3 weeks together! It was amazing and we still talk twice a week! Because we stayed flexible, we were able to meet them and because we were so flexible we got to spend so much time with them. Definitely, time well spent! Check out our besties, Jenn & Elliot while they boat around the US!

Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

We aren’t truly sure what we were thinking when we decided to quit our jobs, give up our lease, and start traveling the world. We are the largest creatures of comfort around. If we find a restaurant we like, we’ll go back 3 times. And even though we still are very much comfort seekers, traveling has pushed us out of our comfort zones so much. We have tried foods we would have never even thought existed (like cow’s stomach ) and slept in places that weren’t always up to our old standard. I have had to communicate in Spanish in stressful situations, learn to negotiate a price, and trust strangers to take us where we needed to go.

I’m not trying to paint a scary picture of travel, but we really have had to get out of our comfort zones while traveling. It can be hard sometimes, but it is always worth it. I am always so proud of myself, of us, when we go through one of those glaringly obvious moments. Like, recently when we ate guinea pig in Ecuador! If you are able to get out of your comfort zone and happy to do it, travel will be so much more rewarding for you.

This post was all about how to travel the world for a year! We hope these tips for long-term travel help you as you transition into this new chapter. We are SO EXCITED for you!!

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Find great tours, car rentals for a road trip, don't forget travel insurance, protect yourself online, get visas for most countries, more posts to check out.

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• Date: September 8, 2021

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We’re Alicia & Nate, a couple that traveled full-time for 3 years straight. We are now living in a cozy little apartment in Albania. We have a passion for exploring new places and trying new foods.

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How to travel around the world for a year

While my last post covered my previous year traveling, writing and programming , this article will go into the specifics of planning your own round the world trip, including flights, costs, activities and accommodation. I'll show you how affordable traveling actually is, and how to plan your own adventure.

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." - Mark Twain

I think it's especially important for people to get out of the Silicon Valley echo chamber, to travel and get some perspective. Traveling opens your eyes to some of the real problems people face, and gives you the opportunity to come up with solutions to tackle those, rather than some of the more trivial ideas closer to home. You can't fail to come away from traveling inspired with a fresh perspective and new ideas.

Choosing where to go

Choosing where to go can be overwhelming at first, especially when you have no idea about the countries involved. I'd been to South Africa for three months the previous year, so I decided to start with some familiar territory to get into the rhythm of traveling.

For the subsequent countries, I visited Trey Ratcliff's HDR photography blog, stuckincustoms.com . In fact all the photos in this post are taken by Trey. The guy has travelled the world and been to some incredible places. I simply went through the countries he crossed, and added the most beautiful ones to a list. Ultimately that list ended up as:

South Africa, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, NYC, SF, Costa Rica, Panama, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina.

My aim was to see as much as possible in that one year, and then revisit places properly in the future. If you don't have as much time, I'd recommend focusing on an area, perhaps Asia. For example, for my next trip I'm planning to:

Start in Beijing. Take the train to Tibet. Go down to Nepal. Travel overland to India. Make my way down to Mumbai. Fly to South East Asia and travel through northern Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos.

So in other words, where you want to go depends on your time, budget and inclination.

Organizing flights

Round the world air tickets have made traveling a piece of cake compared to the hassle of the past. My grandpa had to fly with the Queen's Messenger to Bhutan in a decrepit plane, which lost one of its engines half-way through the flight, and had to perform an emergency crash landing. To top it off, after the necessary repairs were made, he was asked to continue his journey in the same plane! How times have changed.

You can either book your flights individually, which gives you the maximum flexibility, or book them all at once with a round the world plane ticket; the cheaper option. I chose the latter, as the amount of flights I needed wasn't going to make buying them separately economically viable.

Round the world ticket prices range from around ~$3k to ~$7.5k USD. I got 16 flights for about $7k, but it really depends on the time of year, the areas you're flying to and where you start your journey. One good tip is to start and end your journey in a less affluent country, as ticket prices are usually much cheaper.

I used oneworld for my ticket, and I'm pretty happy with them. They're a conglomerate of AA, BA, JA, CP and others, and offer a convenient online booking tool to plan your journey; no point giving commission to a travel-agent when you can plan it yourself. One advantage of oneworld is that they let you change the dates of your flights for free. Location changes aren't free, so make sure you get those right the first time.

RTW tickets have a number of restrictions, which differ from airline to airline. Some of them limit the amount of miles you can fly, others the actual number of flights. Most only let you fly in and out of a continent once, and require you to fly in a general direction (i.e. always east). You have to spend a minimum of 2 weeks in each place, and most tickets expire after a year. The reason behind the limitations is that they don't want people using them for commuting, so keep that in mind when buying them.

I advise you to use the round the intercontinental flights for the long continental flights, and then if necessary book short internal ones. Asia and South America are pretty easy to get around without having to take flights everywhere, whether it's by the local buses, coaches, buying a car or hitch hiking. I definitely recommend you to restrict air travel as much as possible, and instead travel by land; you'll see and experience much more.

Pack as lightly as possible as you'll need to carry everything you take with you on your back. This is especially important from a security standpoint too, as the more you take, the more you'll have to keep an eye on.

I just bought a 90 liter rucksack off ebay, and stuffed one weeks clothing into it, a towel and my camera setup. In Malaysia I actually sent back my tripod and wet suit, they were too unwieldy and heavy to take any further. Anything you don't take and find you need, you can buy locally. In fact, this minimalistic lifestyle has stuck with me, and is one of the things I most appreciate about traveling.

Budget & Accommodation

Accommodation is easy, especially when you travel through some of the cheaper places in Asia. I was on a bit of a budget, so generally ended up in hostels - except for the odd hotel in Asia and South America. Good hostels aren't hard to find, especially when you can do a bit of research online. Hostel World is a good start, along with the Lonely Planet and Wikitravel . Some places are really well set up for travelers, like New Zealand, while it can be trickier in others, such as Hawaii and Japan.

Hostels are also a great way of meeting people and getting advice on where to go. You'll always find interesting people; I've met semiconductor chip designers, professional divers and quantum encryption experts. I've met traveling companions and created friendships I'll have for life. This is half the fun of traveling.

As for the total budget, I planned for about $15k for the whole year, for both accommodation and food. It turned out that number was about right, and I wasn't living too cheaply either - eating out every night at local restaurants. It's always a good idea to have a buffer in the bank though, for the peace of mind.

Cash and Electronics

All the countries I went to had ready ATMs to hand, so getting cash wasn't an issue. My card was cancelled three times though by my bank, suspecting fraudulent activity. I advise you inform your bank of your travel plans, so as not to run into this problem. Take out a few credit cards, and stash them in different places to be on the safe side. Even better, try to find cards that don't charge your an international transaction charge, as this can quickly add up. A lot of places won't accept cards, so you'll need cash on hand.

I didn't bother with a mobile phone for the entire year, instead just using an iPod touch and Skype. This isn't as crazy as it sounds, and it's actually a good feeling to disconnect and go. People can get in touch with you when you choose. If you do take a mobile, get an international plan and keep an eye on it - they can get stolen pretty easily.

I took a Nikon SLR and Macbook everywhere, as well as a bunch of other electronics. Frankly the world isn't the wild west that some people seem to think it is, but you just have to use common sense and keep things close to hand. I may have just been lucky, but in my whole trip, I didn't have a single thing stolen.

Plugs (sockets) are something to research too. Whilst most of Asia has similar plugs, you can get caught out from time to time. Likewise none of the plugs in Latin America are grounded, so three pronged US plugs won't fit. Getting an international plug adapter is a good idea!

Wifi is available practically everywhere (Vietnam often has better internet than the US in my experience), and the only trouble I had finding it was some of the remotest parts of Africa. If you are going somewhere particularly remote then you might want to invest in a 3G dongle. Buying it locally is usually the cheapest option.

Activities and Planning

Don't, whatever you do, choose a package . I just booked the first two nights in the city I was flying into, and then took it from there. Sometimes I wouldn't even do that, and just fly in. You have to leave room for spontaneity in your plans, don't try and plan everything in minutia. Your plans will generally change anyway when you arrive and get advice from other travelers. Be flexible and adapt.

I personally didn't use guide books, but the staple guide is the Lonely Planet . Buy these in the countries when you arrive. If you buy them locally, or in the airport you'll overpay.

WikiTravel is a great resource, and one I used every day. However, the best resource is advice on the ground from fellow travelers and locals . I used to jot down all the great advice they gave in a little black notebook. And it doesn't have to be advice about the country you're currently in. I remember an Argentinian guy I met who drew a map of South America in my book, listing all the places he recommended in Peru and Chile.

Companions are down to you. I personally prefer traveling alone, forcing you to meet more people and make friends along the way. If you do travel with people, make sure you're good friends, as traveling for extended periods can get frustrating.

If you're lucky enough to be an American or European citizen, then visas are not an issue. The only country that wouldn't give me a visa at the border was Vietnam, and I just paid a guy at a Cambodian hostel to take my visa to the Vietnamese embassy and process it. It's worth doing a bit of research on this in advance, but it usually isn't a problem.

Health insurance

For health insurance I just used World Nomads . They've fairly competitive rates, and are one of the more dependable options.

That said, it's often a case of staying lucky and not doing anything stupid. All the insurance in the world won't help you if you have an emergency in a remote part of Africa.

I'd usually stay in the same place for at least a few days, sometimes up to a week, before moving on. However, when you're moving so much it's sometimes nice to have a bit of grounding every now and again. Whenever I got this feeling I'd stop for a few weeks, and stay in one place. For example, I did this for two weeks in Ho Chi Minh, when I needed to make some progress on the book.

As for exercise, if I wasn't surfing I usually ran along the beach for at least half an hour. Having more time you can dedicate to your health is one of the major benefits of traveling. After a few months of surfing and running every day I was the fittest I think I'll ever be.

I found I needed some intellectual stimulus too, and writing the book was my way of achieving this. Without that I'd have to occupy my mind with other pursuits, such as reading and programming. It's important to keep this intellectual balance in mind, especially when you're traveling for an extended period.

When I finished the book, I started hacking on open source projects, and created Spine . In fact, the first version was written on a particularly long bus ride in New Zealand. It's amazing how you can plug in the earphones, zone out the distractions and focus wherever you are.

Whenever I was traveling to a new city, I pinged the Ruby mailing lists a couple of days before hand to see if anyone was interested in meeting up. More often than not it worked out, and I had people to hang out and ask for advice. In Tokyo and Hong Kong I gave tech talks, whilst in Sydney and Cape Town I ate out with the local Ruby teams.

Programming communities can give you an immediate link and base in a new city, they're an incredible resource.

Traveling round the world you will you see and experience more than you ever thought possible. You will eat like a king, from delicious fruits you've never heard of in Malaysia, to the best steak you've ever tasted in Argentina. You'll climb mountains in New Zealand and hike down Canyons in Peru. You'll surf incredible breaks in Costa Rica and party like there's no tomorrow. You'll meet some amazing people and have life changing experiences.

Quite simply, traveling the world will be one of the best decisions you'll ever make.

So the net cost for the trip was about $22k . I paid for the vast majority of this with one month's consultancy beforehand. That's crazy when you think about it, one month's consultancy in return for a year traveling. And I certainly didn't hold back with the budget, I met a lot of people doing it for much cheaper. Where there's a will, there's a way.

It's also possible to turn this into a lifestyle by paying for it on the road. If you're a programmer, you can definitely contract remotely, even if it's only for part the year. Your clients don't care where you are, only that you get the work done. The process for getting yourself into this position is the same as becoming a successful contractor. Practice and networking.

The only other thing to consider is that quite frankly, time is running out. The older you get, the more baggage you'll get tied down with, and the harder it is to do something like this. You should be optimizing for experience in your life, rather than money.

Motivation consists of two things, increasing 'want' and increasing feasibility. In other words, to motivate you need to increase the desire for something, and increase the reality of attaining it. Hopefully I've done both with these posts. It'll be great to see more programmers traveling.

This is a repost of a post first published in December 2011.

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How to Prepare to Travel for a Year

12. Nov. 2021

The idea of picking up your life and committing to traveling for an entire year may make you feel a variety of  different emotions: extreme excitement, paralyzing indecision,  a sharp sense of fear - sometimes all in the same moment.

How do you even begin to tackle a project like preparing to travel for a year? There are so many things in your life that you need to tie up: your current lease, your agreement with your employer, that kind-of-sort-of relationship that you just started. They all fall under the category of “need-to-figure-out-asap”, but you just don’t know what steps you need to take to start.

To be fair, traveling for a year is not a decision that should be made lightly. After all, you’re committing to 365 days of travel, not just a week or two on the road. That kind of commitment takes some serious planning and organization, which will undoubtedly result in many Google searches for the answers to the questions that are running through your head.

Travel the world for a year with a community of like-valued professionals on a work and travel program

What do I do with my car if I’m going to travel for a year?

While you’re traveling you’ll rely more on planes, trains, and buses to get around than you will your own car. However, if you currently live in a city that requires you have your own form of transportation (we’re looking at you, Los Angeles) you probably have a few questions about what you should do with that expensive investment.

The obvious first answer is to sell. Fully embrace a minimalist lifestyle while you’re on the road knowing that everything you own is in your luggage. On top of that feeling of freedom that comes when you let go of the things you don’t need, selling your car will line your pockets with some   extra cash to take with you on your journey.

If you’re attached to your car, if you’ve given it a name, if you have years worth of memories stored between the seat cushions, or you just aren’t ready to part with it before your trip, consider a long term storage solution. Most cities have storage facilities with spaces large enough to house a car - you’ll just have to think about if you want to be footing a monthly storage bill in addition to your car payment.

What should I do about my apartment?

Maybe you were hit with an epiphany, a moment when a lightbulb went off in your head telling you that now is the exact right time to travel. The only problem? You’re in the middle of the year-long lease.

It’s never a good idea to break a lease without having a discussion with your landlord! First, try to see if your landlord will allow you to cut your lease a few months short, or sign a new lease that lets you go month-to-month.

If those avenues don’t work out, you can search for a subletter, or use a service like MetroButler or Airbnb. Tap into your network and see if there’s anyone that is searching for a short-term place to live in your city. There are Facebook groups and online communities created for just this purpose. It’s in your best interest to have a responsible subletter, so do your due diligence before signing on the dotted line. Some buildings require the sublessee to pay a fee every month in addition the subletter’s rent, so keep that in mind when you’re budgeting for your year of travel.

Would my partner be able to handle a long-distance relationship for a year?

Dating long-distance is tough, but it can be even tougher across international borders and timezones. Before you take the leap and book your plane ticket, think about whether you’ve done long-distance before as a couple, if you’re good at communicating, and if your relationship is stable enough to overcome the challenge of being apart. This isn’t an aspect of your decision that is black and white - there will be some downsides no matter what you choose to do.

Sit down and have a detailed discussion with your partner about what you’re interested in doing and gauge their feelings. They may want to join you! If you’re traveling with a work and travel program, you can often find a couples’ discount. Traveling together could be just the experience that you need to make your relationship stronger.

I can’t leave my pet behind. Can I?

One of the most common things that stops people from setting out on a long-term adventure is the fact that they would have to leave their beloved pet behind. We get that. Odie the dog or Loki the cat is your best friend - how could you possibly say goodbye to them for an entire year?

It’s definitely not easy - however, there are ways to make sure that you’re leaving your pet in the best hands possible.

The easiest thing to do is ask your parents, close friends, family members to help you out and take care your pet for a year. If a personal connection isn’t viable, consider asking your groomer if they have a boarding option, or if they know of any local boarding facilities or doggy daycares that could look after your fur baby. Whatever you do, make sure that you’re completely comfortable with your decision before you pack up. Remember - you can always Facetime your furry friend whenever you need a spark of happiness to jumpstart your day.

What about all of my… stuff?

Over the years, you’ve probably accumulated enough stuff that your head hurts just thinking about how you’re going to be able to store it all. Your mom’s basement just isn’t big enough.

Here’s one clean, simple idea: sell it, donate it, or toss it.

As humans in the 21st century, we’ve gotten used to wanting things and have put the concept of wanting experiences on the backburner. You’re about to flip that idea on its head and, in the process of doing so, you should remove a lot of those unnecessary things from your inventory.

If it’s an item that has no value to you or anyone else, toss it. Some social media sites offer marketplaces where you can sell any of your belongings to people in your area for a reasonable price. If you can’t find a willing buyer, think about giving your things away to people who could use them, but might not necessarily be able to afford them. We call this radical gifting. You’ll be leaving for your trip with a little less baggage - and a lot of good karma.

How do I file my taxes as a traveler?

Now you’re getting into the logistics! Taxes are an important thing to consider before you start traveling, as it’s good to have a game plan in place before you jump on a plane. You’re going to want to see how your country handles international residency and how you can file your income if you’re going to be working remotely.

Some U.S. tax residents participating in work and travel programs have been able to take advantage of the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (the "FEIE"). Many factors determine whether the FEIE may be applicable in your case, and you should consult a tax professional to see if it’s a fit for your situation. If you do qualify, you could earn back tens of thousands of your tax dollars.

While we see ourselves as experts on all things “work and travel”, we are definitely not tax professionals. We’re unable to give tax advice and nothing that we say should be construed as tax advice or legal advice rendered by Remote Year or anyone employed by or associate with Remote Year.

When it comes to remaining tax compliant, it’s all up to you. Many of our participants have reached out to a trusted tax professional for advice, and we suggest that you do the same if you feel that your tax obligations are unclear.

Do I need a different bank account?

Most banks make it possible for you to make purchases around the world - for a fee. Before you start your year-long adventure, look into what financial services your bank offers without international fees. You may want to consider moving your assets to another location so that you’re not spending more than you need to while you travel.

In addition to your checking accounts, check out your current credit cards. Can you collect mileage points with your current cards? Are their foreign transaction fees? Do you get any travel-related rewards that can make your time on the road a bit easier? Don’t lose out on taking advantage of these perks just because you didn’t want to do the research!

One thing to note: We’re not financial experts. Though we’ve been through it all with the participants of our programs, we’re not in a position to give financial advice, and none of the information that we provide should be misconstrued as such.

Will my phone work when I’m in a different country?

If you head out on your journey with your phone as-is, it probably won’t work for you in a different country. While WiFi is as readily available as air these days, there will be some destinations on your itinerary that will require you to have access to data in order to use cellular services.

There are a few different routes you can go when it comes to your phone. One of the simplest is to purchase a new SIM card in the countries that you’re traveling in. SIM plans are pretty inexpensive and if you run out of data, you can just recharge them. If you’re working and traveling with Remote Year, we can take care of this step for you. We offer local SIM plans so that you can be connected wherever you go.

If you don’t want to have to seek out a local cellular service in every one of your destinations, you can sign a contract with a company like T Mobile that has great rates for international data plans, or use a service like Google Voice or Project Fi so that you can keep your current phone number when you travel.

As you consider whether you should travel for a year, there will certainly be a few obstacles in your way, but don’t let the barriers above stop you from following the path you want to take toward personal growth. There’s always a solution even if it isn’t a simple one. Every time you come up against something that might hold you back, take a deep breath and remember the reason that you want to go on this adventure. That it will all be worth it. Then get out there and make it happen.

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Experts: How Much Money You Need To Travel the World for a Year

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Have you ever dreamed about taking a year off work to travel? If you want to make that dream a reality, it’s time to buckle down and start saving . How much you will actually need will depend on a few variables, but to give you a general idea, GOBankingRates spoke to a few travel experts who have actually done it.

Here’s how much money you need to travel the world for a year, plus, tips for doing it on the cheap.

How Much Do You Need To Travel the World for a Year?

Josh Band, founder of A Backpacker’s World , spent a year traveling for $15,000.

“In my year of travel, I visited 13 countries, spending roughly one month in each,” he said. “I visited Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, The Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Nepal, Australia and New Zealand. As you can tell, I was pretty focused in Asia and ended in Oceania.”

Band traveled as cheaply as possible and stuck to a strict budget to keep his costs to $15,000.

“The cost of traveling for a year depends on two key things: how you travel and where you travel,” he said. “For example, traveling in Asia is a lot cheaper than traveling in Europe. On top of this, if you are staying in four-star hotels every night, your expenses are going to be a lot higher than someone staying in a hostel, like I did. You can find hostels for as cheap as $2 a night in Asia.”

Mark and Kristen Morgan, creators of the travel blog WhereAreThoseMorgans.com , spent $45,000 for an 18-month honeymoon around the world.

“With this amount, we were able to interrail Europe, backpack through Asia, explore South America and drive a bucket list three-month road trip through the entire United States,” they said. “We were on a VERY tight budget, but we were able to accomplish a few incredible experiences like hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, experiencing fall in the Japanese Alps and watching the World Cup in the summer of 2018 from various places in Europe.”

Of course, things get pricier the more people you are traveling with. Cynthia Matthews von Berg, founder of the travel blog Sharing the Wander who is currently traveling the world, recommends saving $100,000 to travel the year as a family of four.

“This should be more than you need if you are careful, but it allows you a cushion,” she said. “This allows you to eat out one to two meals a day (we aim to keep it to one meal out when we have an apartment or other way to cook for ourselves), and all of the major tourist sites. On a daily basis, we aim for $150 per day or less, excluding travel transportation. We don’t always make that number — it’s harder than you think! — but it gives us a goal.”

How To Travel Affordably

If you’re traveling for an extended period of time, it’s important to look for ways to save in some areas.

“I would recommend adopting the mindset of a budget traveler or backpacker,” Band said. “Sacrifice the luxuries of normal vacations for experiences. For example, take a 24-hour bus instead of a two-hour flight. The bus will be a nightmare and it won’t be pleasant, but remind yourself that the destination will make the journey worth it.

“Also, choosing to stay in a hostel is one of the best decisions anyone can make,” he continued. “Not only do they save you tons, but they are a great avenue for meeting new and like-minded people. I have met some of my best friends through hostels, and the best bit is they are from all around the world. Now whenever I visit a new country, sometimes I already have a friend waiting to host me for a few days.”

In addition to opting for budget transportation and accommodations, be smart about where you are choosing to travel in the first place.

“Think about how to balance out higher cost of living countries with lower cost of living countries,” said Charles Breitbart, founder of the travel site TripTins.com , who spent a year traveling the world from March 2019 to March 2020 and spent $30,000. “Spending a year traveling just to places like Switzerland, Iceland, Norway and Japan will be much more expensive than visiting places like India, Nepal, Vietnam and Cambodia. Finding a middle ground between the two will be key.”

Food and drink costs are another area where you should be mindful of spending.

“If you cook your own food, costs will be much lower than if you are eating out all the time,” Breitbart said. “If you decide to always go out at night and purchase drinks, that can also greatly affect your budget.”

He also recommends being very selective about the excursions and activities you pay for.

“Scuba diving, bungee jumping, safaris, boat trips, guided tours — these all sound like fun and exciting things to add to an around-the-world itinerary. However, all of these cost money — and sometimes a lot of it,” Breitbart said. “You will need to decide which activities are most important to you when considering how to fit everything into a budget.”

One more variable to consider is when you’ll travel to each destination.

“Each country you visit will have a peak, off-peak and shoulder season,” Breitbart said. “If you continuously visit countries during their peak seasons, costs are surely going to be more expensive. But if you can visit during off-peak or shoulder seasons, that is where savings can begin to happen.”

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How to budget for a trip around the world

Dec 11, 2019 • 5 min read

Bundling visas is one way you can shave your long-term travel budget © maybefalse / Getty Images

In Around the World in 80 Days , Phileas Fogg bets his friends at London ’s posh Reform Club that he can circumnavigate the globe in under three months. His fictional expenses were £20,000, and for nearly a century and a half, that number somehow stuck as the price for seeing the world. 

Despite the fact that author Jules Verne actually budgeted the equivalent of £2,242,900 in today’s money, some experienced world travelers will still tell you that $20,000USD is the baseline cost for a single person on a year-long around-the-world adventure. While that comes out to just under $55 per day, other globetrotters will insist that you’ll need at least $100 or more per day to travel comfortably. 

So how do you figure out what figure is right for you?

My husband and I spent 12 months visiting over 100 countries on all seven continents, and our day-to-day budget covered a huge range of expenditures. 

In Southeast Asia , it was easy to travel like royalty for next to nothing. Comfortable hotel stays that included a lavish breakfast for two could be found for around $30 a night. Huge bowls of savory dumplings were just $2 apiece, and centuries-old temples and gardens could be toured for as little as $1 a ticket. 

Related:   Safari without the big bucks

Eastern Europe was equally affordable, with bed-and-breakfast accommodations for under $30 a night, rental cars with unlimited mileage for just $17 a day, country-to-country bus passes for $19 or less, and a number of ancient castles and cathedrals open to the public for free. 

At the other end of the spending spectrum, our daily budget flared to $820 per person for an 11-day expedition to Antarctica . The cruise included three extravagant meals a day, a private cabin with a large ocean-view window and en suite bathroom, and all transportation and excursions. But for $18,000, shouldn’t it be all-inclusive? 

There are limitless ways to see the world, from holing up in luxury hotels to surfing couches, so before you can begin crunching numbers, you need to make some decisions. Here are the top questions to ask as you start to create your around-the-world budget.

Are you planning the trip yourself?

My husband loves trip planning. It is arguably his favorite hobby, aside from the travel itself. He will pore over flight schedules, train timetables and bus routes while keeping endless spreadsheets of costs and combinations and codes.

We typically travel in one direction (either moving continually eastward or westward) and book only one-way flights. It keeps us from wasting time and money by retracing our steps, but this kind of detailed planning is not for the faint of heart. It took him a year and a half to plan our around-the-world adventure.

Related:   Six smartphone apps for budget travel

Ready-made trips 

If a package deal is more your style, then you’ll find plenty of ready-made options. Several cruise lines will sail you to half a dozen countries in a month starting around $7,000, or you can spend half a year at sea and visit three dozen countries or more for upwards of $65,000 per person. We’re talking interior cabins without all the bells and whistles, but all you have to do is show up.

Prefer the air over the sea? You can regularly find cheap flights with long layovers in two or three cities for around $1,500 round trip. For example, one recently multi-airline itinerary on offer featured travel from London to San Francisco , Honolulu , Samoa , Fiji , New Zealand , Sydney , Singapore and Athens before returning to the UK five weeks later, all for $1253 (£950). 

How fancy are you feeling?

The level of luxury you expect from your around-the-world experience has a direct effect on your bottom line. Do you imagine yourself in glittering cities like Paris , Rome , Dubai , Singapore, Sydney, Los Angeles and New York ? Better bring the big bucks, even for a long weekend. Are countries like Thailand , Cambodia , Morocco , Portugal , Bulgaria , Romania , Colombia and Peru more your style? You could travel for several weeks on the same budget.

Once you’ve narrowed down potential destinations, take a look at places you can visit without paying for a visa. Many countries have reciprocal relationships that allow visitors holding certain passports to enter for free. You can also find regional deals that bundle countries, like the European Schengen Visa or the KAZA UniVisa that offers discounts to travelers visiting both Zambia and Zimbabwe . Don’t forget about required vaccinations for some destinations, too, since they can be pricey and often aren’t covered by regular health insurance. 

Destinations definitely makes a difference, but so do your day-to-day choices. Are you willing to take a bus instead of a taxi? Stay at a hostel rather than a hotel? Sip a soda in lieu of champagne? Our travel research includes typical costs for transportation and accommodation, but we also consider how much daily expenses like food and drink will be. 

Cost of living calculators like Numbeo give useful benchmarks for things such as taxi fares, groceries and gasoline, and you can see prices in both the local currency and your own currency, which helps you learn the conversion rates, too.

Can you save money along the way?

Establishing a travel budget ahead of time is important, but once you leave home, it’s easy to ignore the numbers and convince yourself that you only live once. That’s why we sneak in some money-saving tactics along the way that help us keep things in balance. 

Many travelers like to play it safe by buying bottled water, but all those dollars (and all that plastic) add up. We carry a lightweight, reusable water bottle and an ultraviolet light purifying pen wherever we go, which saved us over $1,000 on our year-long trip and kept our stomachs settled on all seven continents.

We will also go to great lengths to avoid checking bags and paying those extra fees on planes and trains. Traveling with only carry-on luggage shaved nearly $3,000 off our expenses and ensured we never missed a connection while waiting at the baggage carousel. 

Related:   Under-the-radar budget activities from around the world

The bottom line

There is no one-size-fits-all number for an around-the-world adventure. Your budget on the road is as personal as your budget at home. But you can approach it one of two ways: either begin with the destination in mind and plan accordingly, or start with your budget and see how far it will take you. 

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Destinations

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Plan Your Trip

Plan your rtw trip.

Finding the right round the world trip planner can be difficult. This is first and foremost because many such tools on the internet are only for planning (and, in some cases, booking) RTW flights. The truly difficult part of planning a trip around the world is deciding where to go, how long to stay and how to arrange your trip, so the content deficit (let alone how rare it is to find a quality world trip planner) is frustrating for many travelers.

The good news? Whether you want to travel all around the world, or simply want to visit multiple continents during a single trip, this guide covers all the bases you’ll need to hit as you plan your trip.

Of course, I’ll also touch on the particulars of buying a RTW ticket, including a somewhat contentious recommendation on my part. I’m about to share a great deal of information with you, but I promise: Planning a RTW trip is much, much easier than it looks.

Booking Round the World Flights

Many a round the world trip planner (which to say, any airline alliance website create for the purpose of selling flights) will tell you that booking a single RTW ticket is essential for a round the world trip. However, I don’t agree with this. In addition to the fact that having a single travel the world for a year itinerary (even a flexible one) can lock you in on a trip that will be anything but predictable, it’s often more cost effective to book individual segments, particularly if you have some miles or points to play with.

Let’s say, for example, that you live in the United States and want to fly around the world westward. After taking advantage of a rock-bottom one-way flight from the US to Japan or China , you can take advantage of low-cost flights as you explore Southeast Asia and Australia , then gradually make your way to Europe (and from there, Africa ), flying to South America before returning home, often for only a few hundred dollars per segment. A round-the-world ticket, on the other hand, which often only includes long-distance flights, can easily cost between $2,000-3,000. And that’s without the fees you’ll certainly have to pay to change it as your plans evolve.

How Long Does a Round the World Trip Take?

Whether or not you work with an around the world trip planner, you should keep in mind that as you plan a round the world trip, the issue of timing can be surprisingly far in the back of your mind, particularly if you’ll be traveling to regions of the world you’ve never visited. While two weeks traveling through Japan or Western Europe can allow you to cover a lot of ground, it’s woefully insufficient in places like India , Africa or even much of South America. In general, it’s safe to assume you’re probably underestimating how long you’ll need to devote to your trip.

Broadly speaking, I’d say the best round the world holidays last a minimum of six months, though I have personally taken epic trips in a shorter amount of time than that. On the other hand, I’d caution against traveling for longer than a year at a time, as being away from your “real life” for such a period can have other impacts on your well-being, ones you might not be able to anticipate right now.

How Much Does a Round the World Trip Cost?

Another deficiency of many a round the world trip planner (which is once again to say a flight booking tool) is that it provides only a piece of the cost puzzle—your round the world trip isn’t only going to cost a few thousand dollars. Generally speaking, the average cost of traveling anywhere in the world is between 50-150 USD per person, per day, which means that a conservative estimate for the cost of the ultimate around the world itinerary for a six-month trip (without your “big” flights) is between $9,000-27,000. Not cheap!

Of course, there are ways to decrease the cost of a travel around the world itinerary, whether you manage to find the cheapest round the world ticket, take advantage of opportunities for free or discounted stays (whether you couch surf or do some sort of volunteer program) or simply keep your dining out and shopping to a minimum. In general, however, I’d recommend over-estimating your budget than under-estimating it, if only so you don’t end up as a “begpacker.”

When to Take a Round the World Trip

When you travel around the world will depend upon where you want to go. While most of the sample round the world routes I’ll recommend in the next section are fairly evergreen, some destinations are better during certain months than others, and planning according to this can influence the rest of your travel trajectory.

For example, let’s assume you want to see the cherry blossoms in Japan , probably the world’s most famous seasonal spectacle. Whether you choose from my round the world trip ideas below or commission a custom 6 month travel itinerary, you’ll want to arrange the rest of your RTW trip to optimize the weather in all your destinations. You might head to Nepal after Japan, for instance, to trek when the country’s famous rhododendrons are blooming, or visit Australia and New Zealand before Japan to catch the tail end of warm weather Down Under.

Round the World Trip Ideas

The best of six continents.

Most round the world trip planners will want to see the “whole world” on their trips—all six inhabited continents, and potentially even Antarctica. Regardless of where your RTW travel originates, the general path you will follow is North America-Asia (Australia/New Zealand)-(Middle East/India) Europe (Africa)-South America-North America, or maybe in reverse depending upon where you start and what time of year you’re traveling.

In terms of a general flight path, this might look something like the following: Los Angeles-Vancouver- Tokyo – Bangkok – Sydney – Dubai – Paris -Cairo-Cape Town-London-Buenos Aires- Bogota -Houston. Needless to say there are countless variations, from a 6 month round the world trip to ones much longer!

Wonders of the World

Rather than taking a comprehensive approach (which can lead to a year or even longer on the road—again, not an option for the majority of travelers), you can start your world travel planner based on a finite list of world wonders, be it classic ones you find on an Asia trip planner like the Great Wall or ones you designate yourself, such as Barcelona ‘s Sagrada Familia church or Ethiopia’s “Door to Hell.”

Assuming you take a more classic route for your around the world itinerary, you might go about planning a round the world trip between wonders as follows. From Chicago to Beijing (for the Great Wall), then to Delhi (for the Taj Mahal), to Cairo (for the Pyramids ), to Athens (for the Acropolis), to London (for Stonehenge), to Rio de Janeiro (for Christ the Redeemer) to New York (for the Statue of Liberty). Again, this is highly customizable!

The Backpacker’s Trail

I’ve taken great pains within this round the world trip planner to be honest and sober about the cost of traveling around the world, but this is still a sort of trip that people on the backpacking spectrum can take. Specifically if you decide to string together affordable destinations like Southeast Asia, India, Eastern Europe, Andean South America and Central America.

For instance, if you’re seeking a cheap around the world itinerary, you might fly from Denver to Kuala Lumpur (via China, as Chinese airlines are the cheapest), then fly to Mumbai or Delhi for a month or two there. From there, head to Ukraine or Poland to begin a month or so backpacking Eastern Europe (I particularly like the Balkans ), before taking a flight (probably a multi-leg one) to Lima (where Peru and Bolivia await) or Cancun, from which can you head south to affordable Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua.

Five-Star Frolic

On the other end up to the spectrum for a world trip itinerary, travelers without a set budget can enjoy a round the world business class (or even first class) romp that pulls out all the stops. Rather than focusing on a set range of destinations, you can plan your trip based on luxurious hotels and experiences, be it a Tanzania safari from the opulent Four Seasons Serengeti , sampling award-winning in-flight products and services from airlines like Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines or dining in foodie capitals like Tokyo and Paris.

If you’re planning a luxury round the world trip, it makes sense to enlist the help of a professional (me or someone else), since the price of such assistance (usually between $100-200 per week of travel) is minimal compared to the overall cost of such a RTW trip.

Other FAQ About RTW Travel

How many stops do you get on a round the world ticket.

Whether you’re planning a 6 month round the world trip or plan to stay on the road for years, I am a proponent of piecemeal booking of air travel, rather than committing yourself to a RTW ticket. Therefore, I consider the number of “stops” permitted on such a ticket to be superfluous.

How do I plan a trip around the world?

Unless you are a very experienced global traveler, I recommend against trying to plan a trip on your trip. Rather, work with a professional (such as Yours Truly) to arrange a travel the world for a year itinerary. Or for longer than a year, or shorter—you get the idea.

Are round the world tickets worth it?

No! As I’ve expressed many times during this round the world itinerary, I am not a fan of RTW plane tickets. They rarely cost less; booking and changing them requires a pedantic phone call—or rather phone calls, since you’ll have to call in every time you want to make a modification.

Round the World Trip Planning

The best round the world trips are the ones where you get out on the road and go where the wind takes you, but that’s not realistic for most people. Whether because of finite funds or a “real life” you need to get back to, round the world trips require more planning than you’d probably like, even if you’re generally an adventurous and spontaneous traveler.

“So,” you might be asking, “can you plan my round the world trip for me?” The answer is yes, though there are a couple caveats. Because of the length and breadth of most RTW trips, many travelers want a more skeletal version of my typical “Travel Coaching” itinerary, which is typical extremely detailed and includes day-by-day recommendations. As a result, my pricing for planning RTW itineraries differs from what I’ve published on my Travel Coaching page , so I’d advise emailing me directly with any inquiries.

The Bottom Line

No matter how extensive a round the world trip planner you’ve been seeking, I’m confident that mine has met your needs. For most travelers, it’s simply a matter of learning your RTW flight booking options, assessing the cost of your RTW trip and deciding upon destinations and routing. However, others might want to hire a world trip planner (or a least a skeleton of it, which puts in place a broad trajectory) on their behalf.

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Here’s Everything You Need to Travel the World

F iguring out how to travel the world is no easy feat, especially when you’re trying to do it on a budget or planning world travel with a family.

There are many factors to keep in mind when evaluating your trip, including what to do before leaving and your budget. To help you get started, we’ve put together a guide on how to travel the world, including everything from how to start looking into your trip to how to save money once you’re abroad.

1. Get prepared

If you want to travel the world, there are some planning measures you want to take first to ensure you have durable luggage and the proper documents — a passport and possibly visas — and figuring out how much time off you’ll need.

Get your documents in order

Those in the U.S. will want an up-to-date driver’s license because by Oct. 1, 2020, all U.S. residents traveling domestically must have identification compliant with the Real-ID Act , which increased security requirements for state drivers licenses and ID cards.

Residents in 24 states including Alaska, California, Idaho, Maine, Oregon and Washington have until Oct. 10, 2018 get a Real-ID compliant card, though states have the option to apply for exemptions through Oct. 1, 2020 when the last phase of the Real-ID Act is enforced, meaning residents in those states should regularly check the status of their IDs before flying.

For travel outside of the U.S., passport cards or trusted traveler cards can serve as documents at certain land and sea crossings. But you’ll want to make sure you have a passport book if there’s any chance you might leave or enter another country via plane, where passport cards won’t work.

Already have a passport? You’ll want check if it’s valid for at least six months after planned trips. That’s because some countries like Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and Russia make this a requirement for entering their countries. Renewing a passport takes at least six to eight weeks through the mail, but those with proof of international travel (like a flight itinerary) can get an expedited passport renewal for an additional $60 to the $110 fee and by visiting a passport center in person.

International travel could also require a visa depending on the location and duration of your trip. Some countries have agreements in place that allow travelers to enter and leave visa free. For example, the U.S. and Canada don’t require visas for travel ( except in certain circumstances ), and Europe’s 26 Schengen States have a system where a visa issued by one of the 26 states typically allows travel throughout the others for up to 90 days.

To find out if your trip requires a visa, check your destination’s embassy or consulate website. Some countries will allow you to travel visa-free for a short stay. Others, like Lebanon , also allow citizens from destinations like the U.S. to get a visa upon arrival.

Get your vacation dates in order

Working while traveling can be tricky, but there are a few steps you can take that don’t involve quitting your job to travel the world.

Start by saving vacation days if you work at a company that pays out for these dates. Those looking to trade in vacation days can also check out companies like PTO Exchange , which lets companies buy back unused vacation days so employees can convert these days into travel, health benefits or charity credits.

Speed up security wait times

Signing up for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry can help save you time when moving in and out of airports.

TSA PreCheck , which costs $85 for a five-year membership, allows you to speed through domestic airport security without having to remove your shoes, belt, laptop, liquids or light jackets. The service is currently available in 200 airports in the U.S. across 47 participating airlines .

Global Entry , which costs $100 for a five-year membership will get you the same expedited screening through airport security as TSAPreCheck does, while also giving you the added benefit of expedited U.S. customs screenings through automated airport kiosks when arriving from an international destination.

Look for work on the road

Even if you leave your job to travel the world, there are some ways you can make money while abroad .

Companies like Upwork allow people to find work almost anywhere, even while traveling, since it’s open to freelancers across a wide range of fields that include video production, translation, programming, designing, writing, and mobile development. Income will vary on the type of position and number of hours worked, but freelancers can often rack up hourly rates that go as high as $200 per hour, according to Upwork representatives.

You could also find a place to stay through companies like the Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms ( WOOF ), which offers housing at organic farms around the world in exchange for volunteering on the farm, doing everything from feeding livestock and watering gardens to harvesting fruit trees.

Get the right credit card

Having the best travel credit card for your trip can not only prevent foreign transaction fees, but also help you reap rewards and perks during your trip.

A few cards with travel benefits include the Chase Sapphire Reserve ($450 annual fee), which offers $300 toward travel costs, $100 toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, access to thousands of airport lounges, zero foreign transaction fees, and a 1:1 point transfer program towards top airline and hotel loyalty programs. The Bank of America Travel Rewards no-fee card lets you easily cash points to use toward airline tickets, baggage, hotel stays, car rentals and cruise packages. The card offers unlimited points, with up to 1.5 points for every $1 spent and 20,000 bonus points if you make at least $1,000 in purchases the first three months of opening your account.

When it comes to savings on hotels, the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card lets you earn five points for every dollar you spend at one of the company’s hotels, and two points at participating Marriott Rewards hotels.

Read More: What Is Travel Insurance? And How Much Is It?

2. Book travel far in advance

After all that preparation, you’re ready to book your trip around the world, which will likely be a round-the-world plane ticket, a journey by sea, or a combination of flights and ground transportation.

Below is a breakdown of how different travel options work:

Consider a round-the-world ticket

Round-the-world tickets allow you to buy a ticket and fly with various airlines under one alliance. But there are some regulations to keep in mind. Tickets are usually valid for up to one year, though flyers are required to start and end their trip in the same country through the following major alliances:

• Star Alliance (including Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, Austrian, United, and Lufthansa) bases its round-the-world tickets on the number of miles, with levels of passes you can choose from based on mile increments. You can take up to 15 stopovers, but you’ll need to keep moving in the same direction as how you started your trip.
• OneWorld (including American Airlines , British Airways , Cathay Pacific , and Qantas) has two different round-the-world ticket options. Its Global Explorer ticket is a mile-based option with four different mile increments to choose from, while the One World Explorer is based on the number of continents you visit, with up to four segments (flights) you can take in each of the six continents the alliance flies into.
• Skyteam’s (including Delta, Air France, Korean Air, AeroMexico) round-the-world option requires a minimum of two stops and runs for a year, with the alliance even offering theme-based trips, like beach or history, to make planning your ticket a little easier.

Round-The-World tickets can cost around $2,000 , and Dave Grossman, author or MilesTalk: Live Your Wildest Travel Dreams Using Miles and Points , recommends checking whether it’s cheaper to book a round-the-world trip or individual legs by entering itinerary into Google Flights and comparing the overall price to those offered when building an itinerary out on the alliance websites.

You can also book round-the-world tickets through a travel agent or third-party sites like AirTreks of Flight Centre . These sites can be cheaper because they often pull together individual airline tickets based on the lowest fares to create a round-the-world itinerary.

However, round-the-world ticket travelers should note: missing one leg of your ticket could cancel the rest of your trip, making it best for travelers who feel comfortable planning out a lengthy trip well in advance.

Take a world cruise

If you’re looking to travel the world by sea, a world cruise can provide the flexibility to explore multiple continents, traveling from the U.S. to Europe for example, or to hone in on one continent. Itineraries vary by cruise, and world cruises can be great for families, retirees or those who can be at sea for around three months.

Sometimes, cruise lines will offer the option to book only a segment of world cruise, which can range from two weeks to a month. To book a segment, prospective travelers will also have to add a one-way trip to or from the start or end of their journey.

The costs of world cruises can be anywhere from $13,000 to upwards of $40,000 per person, as Cruise Critic points out.

Take a repositioning cruise

If you’re looking to travel the world for cheap, consider a repositioning cruise, which take place when ships need to relocate from one region to another. The cruises can cost up to $50 less per day than classic cruises and typically take place during shifting seasons like the fall and the spring. Cruise lines often sell repositioning tickets as one-way routes.

Consider train travel

If you plan on using trains throughout your world travel, there are a few options. For example, select companies like Great Rail Journeys now offer around the world rail journeys as well as a variety of rail passes.

Amtrak offers U.S. rail passes with 15-day ($459 for adults), 30-day ($689 for adults), and 45-day ($899 for adults) pass options that let you travel across eight segments (stops), 12 segments (stops), and 18 segments (stops).

Rail passes are a popular way to explore multiple stops within continents like Europe on the cheap. The Eurail Global Pass is the only rail pass that lets international travelers visit all of Europe , with unlimited travel offered in 28 countries. Eurail sells its global passes directly through its official website with a variety of prices and time options, starting at $600 per person for six days of travel within a month.

Those looking for the cheapest ways to travel, which can involve buses or ferries, can check out Rome2Rio , which lets you see all the transportation you can take between two locations and what route will be the cheapest. There are also lower-cost options like Berlinbus (a low cost bus operator in Germany) and the Student Agency Bus , which will give you discounted prices on coach lines in Europe. Swiss Federal Railways, often called SBB , also provides travelers with a wide variety of overnight train options, allowing you to save on overnight hotel fees to travel instead.

Know when to book

Unfortunately, there’s no magic set of days before your trip that will get you the best deal on flights. But travel seekers can keep an eye out for regular flight sales on social media, where airlines will often announce flash sales. And there are certain travel apps that will alert you when the price has gone down on flights you’re interested in.

3. Avoid hidden travel and communication fees

Once you’ve started your trip, there are tips and tricks to help you travel each destination across the world on a budget. Here are some ways to cut costs during your travel around the world:

Grab a city pass

City-pass offerings vary by location, but many will give you free or discounted admission to top attractions in a city, as well as fast-track options to cut lines. Some passes, like the Paris Pass , also include free transport throughout the city as well as admission to attractions. If you’re traveling in the U.S., you can check out the CityPASS network , which provides discounts on attractions across 12 North American cities.

Eliminate hidden hotel fees

To reduce hidden hotel fees (that is, after checking what hidden fees the hotel charges before you book), you can ask the hotel whether they can forego additional fees for amenities you don’t use, like the gym or in-room safe. The hotel may be able to remove these charges from your bill before you arrive.

If you’re staying at an all-inclusive property, you’ll want to look into the fine print and the “terms and conditions” of your stay. The reason for this is that some properties will charge more for items like champagne, high-end liquor or some activities. The easiest way to spot these is by keeping your eye out for asterisks in promotions and advertisements.

Communicate for free

Communicating with friends and family while traveling is important, but roaming charges and international calling fees can add up quickly.

Apps like WhatsApp, Viber and Skype, which allow messaging and calling for free over Wi-Fi if you have an Android phone. You can also grab a local SIM card, which you can purchase at airport vending machines and convenience stores. The Local SIM app can pinpoint the best local cellular carrier to grab your SIM card.

Choose Restaurants Wisely

While eating food from around the world is often one of the best parts of traveling, dining out for every meal can become expensive. To save some money: stay away from restaurants located near tourist attractions, which generally have higher prices and lower quality . Some travel experts recommend making lunch your biggest meal, when prices can be half that of dinner, according to CheapOAir.

Ask about free amenities on flights and at hotels

Some airlines and hotels have free perks available to guests who know to ask for them. On flights, for example, travelers can request everything from ukuleles on some Hawaiian Airlines flights to hot chocolate on Southwest Airlines. Some hotels also offer free amenities that range from night lights, chargers and curling irons at Kimpton Hotels to complimentary yoga sessions at select Hyatt properties.

Now, if all you need is travel inspiration, check out the 20 best and affordable places to travel in 2018 .

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The Passport Kids

Adventure Family Travel

Trip Around the World Itinerary

In: Best Family Travel , Full Time Travel by Nicole Last Updated: June 23, 2021

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Our family left Canada on a trip around the world . So many great memories and experiences shared as a family. Exploring new places, going back to a few familiar spots, visiting family and making new friends. A journey of a lifetime that our family will cherish forever.

Early on in the trip, I found it difficult to keep up with the blogging about all the places we were going to on our RTW trip; the choice came down to either blogging or enjoying the moments with my husband and kids. From the lack of blog posts, you can see I choose to enjoy the moments! So as we get settled (somewhat) into a regular life I hope to share all our stories and update the below Trip Around the World Itinerary .

In case you didn’t follow us from the beginning, here is our Ultimate Around the World Itinerary .

If you are wondering what travel gear we brought and what we packed go check out our long term travel packing checklist !

United Kingdom – July 1 – 7

• London  – 5 nights
• Cambridge – 2 nights

France – July 7 – 23

• Biarritz   – 14 nights
• Toulouse – 2 nights

Spain – July 20

• San Sebastian – 1 day

Croatia – July 23 – August 9

Find out more details about our 16 days in Croatia with our itinerary here!

• Dubrovnik – 5 nights
• Split – 7 nights
• Hvar Island – 1 day
• Brac Island – 1 day
• Trogir – 1 day
• Krka National Park – 1 day
• Plitvice National Park – 3 nights * Where we stayed in Plitvice National Park, Croatia

Italy – August 9 – 23

• Rome – 3 nights
• Civitanova del Sannio – 11 nights

Vatican – August 10

• Vatican City – 1 day

Czech Republic – August 23 – 26

• Prague – 3 nights * Where we stayed in Prague, Czech Republic

Austria – August 26 – 29

• Vienna – 3 nights * Where we stayed in Vienna, Austria

Hungary – August 29 – Sep 1

• Budapest – 3 nights * Where we stayed in Budapest, Hungary

Malta – September 1-14

Find out all the things we did in Malta here!

• Bugibba – 14 nights
• Gozo – 1 day
• Valletta – 1 day
• Golden Bay – 1 day
• Blue Lagoon – 1 day

Bulgaria – September 14 – 17

• Sofia – 3 nights

United Arab Emirates – September 17 – 28

• Dubai – 5 nights * Where we stayed in Dubai, UAE
• Arabian Desert – 2 nights * Where we stayed for our Desert Safari
• Abu Dhabi – 4 nights * Where we stayed for 3 nights & Where we stayed for 1 night

South Africa  – September 28 – October 17

• Cape Town – 12 nights
• Ndabushi Safari Lodge – 4 nights * Where we stayed for this African Safari
• Kambaku Safari Lodge – 2 nights * Where we stayed for this African Safari

Vietnam – October 18 – November 16

Check out our 4-week Vietnam Itinerary here!

• Ho Chi Minh City – 5 nights
• Hanoi – 4 nights
• Halong Bay – 2 nights
• Hue – 3 nights
• Hoi An – 2 nights
• Da Nang – 1 night
• Mekong Delta – 2 nights
• Phu Quoc Island – 10 nights

Singapore – November 16 – 19

• Singapore – 3 nights

Malaysia – November 19 – December 3

• Langkawi Island – 14 nights

Indonesia – December 3 – 29

• Sanur, Bali – 26 nights
• Ubud – 1 day
• Kuta – 2 days
• Seminyak – 1 day

Thailand – December 29 – February 18

• Bangkok – 8 nights * Where we stayed in Bangkok
• Kamala Beach- 20 nights * Where we stayed in Kamala
• Karon Beach – 9 nights * Where we stayed in Karon
• Phi Phi Islands – 5 nights
• Krabi – 8 nights

Cambodia – February 18 – 23

• Siem Reap – 4 nights

Australia – February 23 – March 28

Check out our full post for all the details on our 4 weeks in Australia!

• Gold Coast – 5 nights
• Hervey Bay – 1 night
• Fraser Island – 2 nights
• Sunshine Coast – 3 nights
• Whitsundays – 1 day
• Great Barrier Reef – 1 day
• Melbourne – 3 nights
• Lorne * Where we stayed in Lorne
• Apollo Bay * Where we stayed in Apollo Bay
• Port Campbell * Where we stayed in Port Campbell
• Torquay * Where we stayed in Torquay
• Bondi Beach – 4 nights
• Sydney – 4 nights * Where we stayed in Sydney Harbour

Vanuatu – April 2

• Vanuatu – 1 day
• Lifou, Loyalty Island – 1 day
• Noumea, New Caledonia – 1 day

New Zealand – April 9 – May 13

• 33-Day Campervan Trip – 1 Month South Island & North Island Itinerary
• Christchurch – 1 night
• Lake Pukaki – 1 night
• Mount Cook – 1 night
• Wanaka – 2 nights
• Queenstown – 3 nights
• Milford Sound – 1 night
• Fox Glacier – 1 night
• Motuek – 3 nights
• Nelson – 1 night
• Picton – 1 night
• Wellington – 1 night
• Greytown – 2 nights
• Taupo – 1 night
• Rotorua – 2 nights
• Waitomo – 1 night
• Hobbiton – 1 day
• Coromandel Penisula – 3 nights
• Russell – 3 nights
• Orewa – 1 night
• Auckland – 2 nights

United States  of America – May 13 – June 1

• Houston, Texas – 19 nights

Canada – June 1 – July 1

• We visited more places in Saskatchewan and spent the summer boating and enjoying lake life on the prairies.

RTW Travel Facts & Numbers:

• International Travel Dates – July 1, 2017 – June 1, 2018
• Countries Visited – 23
• Cities Visited – 81
• North America
• Days Out of Canada – 336 days
• UNESCO sites – 28
• Flights – 37
• Ferries – 7
• Trains – 4
• Car Rentals – 4
• Cruises – 2
• Campervan Rentals – 1
• Taxi/Uber/TukTuk/Trams/etc – Too many to count
• Apartment Rental – 154
• Hotel/Resort – 82
• Campervan – 33
• Family & Friends – 32
• Boats – 13
• Safari – 6
• Planes – 5
• Cabin/Cottage – 8
• Hostel – 3
• Broken Glasses – 2
• Worn-out Shoes & Sandles – 10
• Teeth Lost – 3
• Haircuts – 16
• Lost Wallet – 1
• Lost Luggage – 0
• Total Avg Weight Luggage – 62kg / 137lbs

Around the World Itinerary Planning Tips

The toughest part for me was when I started to plan the trip and how to travel around the world . I didn’t know anyone that had done an around the world trip before. I had no idea where to start and how to plan a trip around the world ,  so hopefully, a few tips below can get you started on the world trip planning!

• Check out our Pre Travel Checklist of Things to do Before Travelling for a Year!
• Set some clear expectations on what you want to get out of your trip around the world . We outlined what we thought would be our world trip success here before we left so we always looked back to make sure our trip was aligned with these trip goals.
• Being from Canada we knew we wanted to follow the sun and stay in warm climates ! This also helped with packing for a year too. So we spent a significant amount of time in Southeast Asia, both for the temperatures and also the cost helped stretch our budget for a year.
• We looked into RTW tickets (round the world flights) and we found they would have been cheaper if we knew what our exact route was going to be. But, we wanted to have the freedom of planning out our destinations 4-6 weeks out ahead of time.
• We also were open-minded about if we needed to come back for any reason we would have only lost money for accommodations and flights for approximately 6 weeks. 
• We found that three days in major city centers were the right amount of time for us. This would give us 2 full days of sightseeing and also helped with the budget since bigger cities generally cost more money.
• We found it useful to sometimes book half-day tours or day tours to be able to see more within that timeframe and help with taking some planning away from us. We used Get Your Guide and Viator to book these tours and get some ideas. 

• We really wanted to go to South America to reach our 6th continent on the trip, we researched into it a lot but we had a budget set aside for the trip and this was not going to fit it. So we decided that we could spend a month in New Zealand to extend our trip. We had to make adjustments with closer flights to keep on track with the budget. We generally used Skyscanner to help us search for destinations and compare flights to different locations with this tool.
• Staying longer in places was just simply cheaper, so if you can travel slower you will be able to save more money and travel longer.
• We used and stayed in VRBO for most of our accommodations and overall were happy with the places we stayed at. This provided us with a home away from home feel that we needed since being away for so long. We stayed at Apartments for over 200+ nights.
• A general guiding rule we had was anything less than 3 nights we would stay in a hotel. We used mostly Booking.com to book our hotel rooms. 
• Be sure to have travel insurance for your RTW trip, we used World Nomads and were extremely happy with their services. We had to extend our coverage to the United States (as that was not originally part of the plan), and making the changes with World Nomads was extremely easy! You can read our ENTIRE review of the family travel insurance in this post here.
• Schooling for kids was a big item for us to sort out. I worked through the kid’s school plans for our world trip in detail and outlined their world school program here .
• Pre-planning for this trip around the world took approximately 1 year to put everything together and prepare to be gone from our regular life.
• Although the saving for the trip took a lot longer, you can check out more details on how we saved for the trip . 
• We started itinerary planning for our world travel with our family bucket list and mapped out the tentative travel routes with the months of the year.
• The first destination on our around the world trip we chose was London. This was to help transition our kids into travelling full-time and ease their way into it with the same language, adjust to different time zone and slowly get our kids into the rhythm.
• Don’t take anything for granted! Be in the moment and truly enjoy you are going to travel around the world!  This was my dream and I learned so much by travelling with my kids and this was our tour of the world together!

Looking for more inspiration? Check out some of our favourite family travel quotes here !

Note: This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. More Info:  Disclosure

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June 3, 2018 at 11:56 pm

Wow! What a journey! It is a lifetime experience for the kids for sure! Interesting to know what were their favourite places and the most memorable moments of the trip.

The Passport Kids says

June 9, 2018 at 8:31 am

Hi Nat – An amazing lifetime experience for our entire family. Everyone has their favourite or special moments it is tough to pick just one. I think for me it had to be the safari in South Africa… it was everything that I imagine and more. Just so different than anything like our typical lives in Canada and I am a wilderness gal :) I am going to be getting more blog posts up about our trip now that we are getting back to a “regular” type life and we will share more about our moments! Thanks for following along!

Kuheli says

September 28, 2018 at 8:19 pm

Such a leap of faith to do this. And I am glad you chose not to blog while on the trip and just experience it. A year of travel is a lifetime of experiences. Please do let me know what’s the best age to do this. My son is 3 and I would love to do if not a year then 6 months of travel.

October 13, 2018 at 8:36 pm

Thanks so much for the support and understanding. To me, it was about enjoying the moments… I won’t ever get those moments back and will never regret that decision. To be honest, any age is the best age. I think it would be different experiences with every age, the most important part is really to just go and do it! You’ll know in your heart when the right time is, but regardless spending time with your son and exploring the world will be remarkable! Best of luck and please let me know when you go! I would love to hear when and where :)

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How to Travel Around the World

Last updated on November 6, 2023 by Shannon

My heart pitter-pattered with fear when I touched down in Sydney way back in 2008. That was the first day of my yearlong around the world trip (which would turn into 15+ years traveling and living overseas ). With online information scarce about long-term travel back then, this website documented my trip, and also shared all the practical details of world travel. 

You have two reading options. Sit down with a coffee and soak in my tips in the “Step-by-Step, Exactly How to Travel the Word” section—each tip links to an in depth discussion of that topic. Or, quickly browse by resources for your current planning stage in my “Most Common Questions” section.

Table of Contents

Why trust me to help plan your world travels?

Travel blogging was in its infancy and those with a dream to travel the world were left to hunt for advice in forums or dated library books. Fifteen years later, A Little Adrift is still the single most comprehensive resource online about long-term around the world travel .

Since that first day on the road back in 2008, I’ve completed numerous round the world trips and been named National Geographic Traveler of the Year. After 10 years of near-constant travel, with expat stints in Mexico, Thailand, and Bali, I moved to my home base in Spain in 2018 and explore from there with my toddler son.

Below, I share answers to every single reader question I’ve fielded over the years about long-term travel—and also everything I’ve figured out through trial and error. The FAQ page houses niche questions about planning world travel.

Although I traveled solo for the bulk of my round the world trips, I’ve also traveled and volunteered with friends, family, and even my four tween-aged nieces and nephews .

In short, I have the travel credibility to back up every recommendation I make. I specialize in long-term travel and moving overseas as an expat or digital nomad working from the road .

Planning to travel the world is overwhelming. This page catalogs posts tackling every major subject about plotting, planning, and successfully navigating world travel.

Step-by-Step, Exactly How to Travel the Word

1. Decide that you will make world travel a priority.

If you clearly have the wanderlust gene and you’re dreaming of travel but on the fence about if you can or should take a trip , just decide that you will do it. Set the intention and start viewing the world through the lens of, “How can I make world travel a reality for myself.” Opportunities and conversations you would have otherwise missed will filter into your life.

2. Assess your savings and debt.

Although you can travel the world for a lot less than you think— you can travel for an entire year for $20K for one person —you should still give your savings a hard look and use these tips for saving for travel to pad the trip fund.

Since I was working remotely the entire past 15+ years of travel, I paid down debt during my first four years of travel; I just factored that into my trip budget. Finding a side hustle now, or remote work, will speed up your ability to travel the world.

3. Renew your passport (or apply for one) right now.

Your passport is your gateway to the world and there is no reason to put off applying for a passport until just before your trip—instead, prioritize this step so that it’s in process while you plan your world travels. And if your travels are a ways off, a passport is a good motivator to stay the course!

4. Begin purging your belongings.

If you’re giving up your home or apartment, it’s never too soon to start selling things you won’t need, and donating those things you don’t use. Getting rid of everything you own is a process, and you should undertake it alongside planning your world travels.

5. Come up with a reasonable budget for your trip .

Take stock of how much money you’ll have saved for your world travels, and the length of time you’ll spend on the road. Factor in any payments you’ll need to maintain while away, like paying down debt or a mortgage.

Calculate your daily average travel allowance by dividing your total budget (minus debt) by your days spent on the road. While it’s still possible in 2023 to travel the world for an average of $50 a day, that’s trickier to accomplish in a lot of countries, so you need to know where your daily average falls. Here’s how to calculate an accurate budget for long-term world travel .

6. Brainstorm the many places you could travel.

Dream big when listing all of the places you’d like to visit—perhaps some locations were inspired by reading the best travel books out there, or others are bucket list locations you’ve always dreamed of seeing. Make your list broad but still the cream of the crop ideas.

7. Assess the cost of visiting different countries.

Now look at your list and note how much it costs to visit each of these places. Traveling in Southeast Asia , for example, has a far lower daily budget than traveling Scandinavia, for example. Assess if some of your destinations are grouped close together and would be better visited as a single trip, versus your around the world trip.

Also look into how much it costs to live in a place as a digital nomad —you may want to spend three months or more enjoying one location as an expat before continuing your travels.

8. Pick a route around the world.

You’ll need to pick a direction you’ll travel from your home country, and then start slotting in the countries as you build your around the world itinerary . Aim for a balance of developed and developing countries so that you can meet your budgeting goals.

On my own yearlong world travels , I cut out Scandinavia early in my planning because of the cost, and because I knew I could easily visit that corner of the world on a future trip. I kept in destinations that were budget-friendly, and that I would challenge me and create a more transformative trip .

9. Plan your homeschooling journey if you’re traveling with kids.

Learn from other families who have traveled for months and years with school-aged children on the various ways that you can homeschool , world school, and unschool during your trip. I homeschooled my niece for her sixth grade year as we lived in Thailand and traveled Asia together, picking up life lessons along the way .

10. Book your transportation.

Decide if you should buy a round-the-world ticket for your trip, or if you should instead use cheap one-way flights as you travel the world.

And you can even travel the world without flying by using overland transportation like trains and boats. Some boat trips can be cushy, like a repositioning cruise, while others are more utilitarian, like booking passage on a cargo ship.

Once you’ve paid a fair bit of money toward your trip, you need travel insurance to protect your investment. I recommend IMG or Safetywing as the best options for long-term travel.

11. Pick out the right gear.

Long-term world travel is not like a weekend getaway, you need a balance of gear that you can afford, and gear that will hold up to the wear-and-tear of non-stop travel.

You should pick the right RTW backpack or luggage, and then buy select pieces of clothing and gear that will be most valuable to you on the trip you have planned. You don’t need to buy everything new , but you might need to invest in quality hiking shoes, sunny-weather gear for sun protection, and other things.

Here’s what to consider when packing for long-term travel , and also the best crossbody travel purse I’ve found. I also carry an ergonomic, portable travel system since I work from the road.

12. Make a plan now for handling your personal life while away.

Start weeks and months before you departure date to plan how you will receive and process mail , and which travel debit cards will best hold up to the rigors of life on the road (spoiler alert: Schwab is hands-down the best bank for travelers).

And the obligation to file and pay your taxes doesn’t disappear while you travel.

13. Make sure all of your vaccines are up-to-date.

Even if you’ve traveled extensively, your coverage for some vaccines may have expired—many last just five-to-ten years. Check your vaccine record , and assess if you need any odd-ball ones like Yellow Fever, based on your world travel route.

14. Understand how to stay healthy while you travel.

Getting sick is inevitable for long-term travelers, either a common flu, or any of the more serious diarrheal illnesses could strike. Know how to not get sick on vacation , as well as what to do once you are. Carrying something like a SteriPen or LifeStraw can lower your changes of getting sick on your trip.

And women should consider using a Diva Cup , which is an easy, reusable way to handle your period on the road—I’ve found it cleaner than the mainstream alternatives.

15. Apply for your visas.

Depending on where you’re traveling, you’ll need to apply for a visa before you can legally enter the country. While many countries offer visa-on-arrival, a fair few others require that you apply either online or in person at an embassy.

16. Start planning your travel specifics.

If you’re traveling the world for less than six weeks, you’ll probably need to do a fair bit of legwork planning the specifics before you leave—that means choosing the type of accommodation to use , and then booking it. (Photo at the Taj Mahal in India)

Contrary to what many believe, you actually need to plan a lot less if you’re traveling for many months. I always book just my first week in a new place if I have months at my disposal, unless I’m traveling during high season, when you need two-to-three weeks of bookings to avoid exorbitant prices.

I also look for social enterprises that I can incorporate into my trip, as well as volunteer opportunities , if I plan to stay in one spot for many months.

17. Educate yourself on challenges faced by most world travelers.

From learning how to stay safe to avoiding travel fatigue , you’re going to need some new knowledge that doesn’t always come up during short-term travels. Other issues many travelers face include overcoming loneliness —using a travel journal app that keeps you easily sharing and communicating with family can help.

18. Pack with intention and finesse.

Packing for long-term travel is an art, and one that you’ll get better at the longer you’re on the road. To start, you should plan a versatile wardrobe that can take you through the majority of the places on your route—if you’re stopping to ski in one spot, but in sunny climes the rest of the time, you should just rent gear.

Consider using packing cubes , which are among the best ways to stay organized on the road . And you’ll need at least an RFID wallet to carry your passport , if not a money belt to keep it safe. I also pack a few bits-and-bobs that I consider my Travel MacGuyer gear .

19. Know how to get the most out of traveling the world.

Many people seek transformational travel experiences , but don’t know how to make that happen. A lot of what you seek comes from deep cultural immersion —it’s about visiting the iconic, touristy spots, but then going deeper under the skin of a place through things like cooking class, using local transportation , eating the street food alongside locals, and more.

No every day as a backpacker or world traveler is what you dream of right now, but every day is an opportunity to learn something new from the place you’re visiting.

20. Navigate like a pro while you travel.

It’s easier than ever to use an e-SIM to have data on your phone the moment you land, or most places in the world offer cheap SIM cards packed with enough data to access your travel apps and get you where you need to go.

Consider using services like WhatsApp (the traveler Gold Standard) and Google Voice to stay up-to-date with those back home, and with new travel friends. You’ll also need a VPN—this is a must for not only accessing Netflix US, but also to access your bank and some services that use IP blocking. I’ve used NordVPN for years and it’s never failed me.

Most Common Questions About Traveling the World

Is a life of world travel right for you?

If you’re dreaming of around the world travel and need inspiration, the advice and perspectives in these stories will point you closer down your path toward travel. Whether you doubt if you can afford world travel, or if your family will approve, there’s advice here for you.

• How Do You Make Big Decisions?
• Why I Decided to Travel the World
• Creating Transformative Travel Experiences
• A Letter to Young Travel Dreamers
• The Best Travel Books

Afford a life of world travel.

For most people, we can afford those things we prioritize. And while life is never that simple, international world travel is likely more affordable than you assume—it all depends on how you save, where you go, and for how long. These resources share how to navigate budgeting and all things money and travel.

• How to Get Out of Debt
• How to Save for World Travel
• How Much Does it Cost to Travel the World
• The Best Credit and Debit Cards for Travel
• Using Geoarbitrage to Live Abroad
• How to Work Remotely While You Travel

Plan long-term world travel, specifically.

Planning an around the world trip spanning months or years is a very different beast than a short trip. Here’s what you need to know from my 13+ years of peripatetic wanders.

• Plan Your Itinerary Around the World
• Packing for Long-Term Travel
• Homeschooling While Traveling
• How to Purge Everything You Own
• How to Pick the Right RTW Backpack?
• Buying RTW Flights: Everything You Should Know
• FAQ for Long-Term Travels (Taxes, Mail, Etc.)

Research & book your around the world trip.

Finding the great flight deals (and learning how to use credit cards for travel hacking) can significantly lessen the cost of traveling the world. These resources share my go-to methods for findings flights, accommodation, visas, and things to do in each new place.

• Travel Accommodation 101
• How to Find Great Flight Deals
• Should You Buy RTW Flights?
• Visas for Long-Term Travelers
• Free Destination Guides

Stay healthy and safe.

Staying healthy while traveling is an art and a science combined. When you’re traveling in developing regions of the world, it’s just a matter of when you’ll get sick. Be prepared. Know how to approach travel safety and health before you need this vital information. Here’s how:

• How to Pick the Right Travel Insurance
• Travel Vaccines 101
• How to Stay Healthy Abroad
• Safety and Solo Female Travel Advice
• Handling Your Period on the Road

Live your best travel life.

Life on the road has highs and lows, down days and true life-changing highs. Make your trip memorable with first-hand advice about handling loneliness, navigating new destinations like a pro, and finding the transformative travel experiences you seek.

• Safety and Solo Female Travel
• How to Balance Loneliness & Long-Term Travel
• Stay Occupied on Long Travel Days
• Best Travel Apps

Pick the resources for your travel style.

I’ve been many types of travelers over the years, in fact, I am all of these at once. I’ve worked remotely for 19+ years, I travel responsibly, and I traveled solo for a decade—now I travel with my toddler. Select your travel style and you’ll find all of my best resources and tips for that type of traveler. :)

Digital Nomads Expats and Retirees Bloggers Responsible Travelers Volunteers Solo Female Travel

Companies I Truly Love (And Recommend)

These are the booking engines, guidebooks, and travel companies I use every time I’m planning a trip.

• Accommodation :  Booking.com
• Flights :  Kayak  or  Expedia
• Route Planning : Bookaway
• Travel Insurance :  International Medical Group (IMG) or SafetyWing
• Responsible Travel :  Grassroots Volunteering

Who is World Travel Right For?

There is no one specific type of person who travels around the world. People of all ages, backgrounds, and interests may choose to travel extensively for a variety of reasons. That means if you’re dreaming of world travel, it’s possible and someone in your exact circumstances has figured out how to do it!

The resources provided outline all of the detailed steps to get from dreaming to doing. But if you’re still not ready to commit to world travel, here are some common traits or characteristics that people who travel around the world may have include:

• Curiosity : A desire to learn about new cultures, people, and places is often a driving force for people who travel extensively.
• Adventure : A love of adventure and a willingness to try new things and step out of one’s comfort zone can be important for those who want to travel around the world.
• Flexibility : Traveling around the world often requires a certain level of flexibility and adaptability, as you may encounter unexpected challenges or changes in plans.
• Resourcefulness : Being able to problem-solve and find solutions in unfamiliar situations can be a valuable skill when traveling around the world.
• Open-mindedness : An open-minded attitude and a willingness to embrace new experiences can help make the most of a trip around the world.

Sound like you? I’ve spend more than 15 years helping other travelers find ways to travel the world on short or long-term trips. Usually there are some fears that might be holding you back from around the world travel. Here are some common fears that may be preventing you from traveling:

• Fear of the unknown : Traveling to unfamiliar places can be intimidating, as it involves stepping out of one’s comfort zone and encountering new cultures, languages, and ways of life.
• Fear of safety : Some people may be afraid to travel due to concerns about personal safety, such as the risk of crime or terrorism.
• Fear of getting lost : Not knowing your way around an unfamiliar place or being unable to communicate with locals can be a source of anxiety for some people.
• Fear of flying : Some people may be afraid of flying due to a fear of heights, turbulence, or other factors. Did you know it’s possible to travel the world without flying ?
• Financial concerns : Traveling can be expensive, and some people may be afraid to travel due to concerns about the cost and their ability to afford it. That was me—I couldn’t initially conceive of how I would afford long-term travel. Then I realized that world travel can be more affordable than life at home, particularly in you work remotely. I was able to pay down more debt while traveling than I ever did living in Florida and LA.
• Health concerns : People with certain medical conditions or disabilities may be afraid to travel due to concerns about access to medical care or the ability to cope with unfamiliar environments.

Let’s Connect

Let me know if you have any other questions about around the world travel, or something I can help you with; I’m happy to lend an ear or help you find the resources you need to plan your own world travels. I look forward to chatting! :)

Other places you can find me :

• Tweet with me .
• Connect on Facebook .
• Follow me on Instagram .

Pick Your Pin!

• Best overall
• Best for expensive trips
• Best for exotic trips
• Best for annual plans

How we reviewed travel insurance for seniors

Best travel insurance for seniors of may 2024.

Affiliate links for the products on this page are from partners that compensate us (see our advertiser disclosure with our list of partners for more details). However, our opinions are our own. See how we rate insurance products to write unbiased product reviews.

Reaching your golden years doesn't mean your adventures have to end. In fact, in this stage of life, you'll hopefully have more time and resources to travel. But as a senior citizen, you'll want to ensure you have travel insurance that covers any health-related issues arise while you travel.

Our top picks for the best senior travel insurance

• Best overall: Allianz Travel Insurance
• Best for expensive trips: John Hancock Travel Insurance
• Best for exotic trips: World Nomads Travel Insurance

Best for annual plans: Travel Guard

How we rate the best senior travel insurance companies »

Compare travel insurance for seniors

Your health gets more unpredictable as you age, which makes travel insurance more important for seniors. Unfortunately, it's also more expensive. The best travel insurance for seniors won't have too steep of a price hike compared to rates for younger travelers. It will have high coverage limits for emergency medical coverage, trip cancellations, and and emergency medical evacuation. It's also important that your travel insurance offers pre-existing condition waivers , ideally at no extra cost to the traveler. 

Here are our picks for the best travel insurance coverage for seniors in 2024.

Best overall: Allianz

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Good option for frequent travelers thanks to its annual multi-trip policies
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Doesn't increase premium for trips longer than 30 days, meaning it could be one of the more affordable options for a long trip
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Some plans include free coverage for children 17 and under
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Concierge included with some plans
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Coverage for medical emergency is lower than some competitors' policies
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Plans don't include coverage contact sports and high-altitude activities
• Single and multi-trip plans available
• Trip cancellation and interruption coverage starting at up to $10,000 (higher limits with more expensive plans)
• Preexisting medical condition coverage available with some plans

Allianz Travel Insurance is one of the most widely recognized names in travel insurance, and it stands out as one of the top travel insurance providers for seniors. It offers a wide range of policies covering medical treatments overseas and emergency medical transport.

Allianz also provides options for varying trip lengths. Its annual multi-trip policies , for example, cover any trip you make during your policy period, even if they aren't yet planned, making it an excellent option for seniors who vacation multiple times per year.

Read our Allianz Travel Insurance review here.

Best for expensive trips: John Hancock

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Offers 3 travel insurance plans
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Cancel for any reason rider available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Affordable travel insurance premiums
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Reviews of claims process are mixed
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Buyers may not get specialty coverage for sports equipment and other high value items
• Trip cancellation for 100% of the trip cost
• Trip interruption insurance for up to 150% of the trip cost
• Emergency medical coverage of up to $250,000 per person
• Medical evacuation coverage of up to $1,000,000

John Hancock Travel Insurance plans for seniors offer some of the best coverage available. It provides generous maximum benefit amounts while still offering affordable prices.

Each plan includes coverages like trip cancellation, emergency accident, and emergency medical, with the option to add benefits like CFAR (cancel for any reason) . Plus, getting a free online quote is a quick and straightforward process.

Read our John Hancock Travel Insurance review here.

Best for exotic trips: World Nomads

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Coverage for 200+ activities like skiing, surfing, and rock climbing
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Only two plans to choose from, making it simple to find the right option
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. You can purchase coverage even after your trip has started
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. If your trip costs more than $10,000, you may want to choose other insurance because trip protection is capped at up to $10,000 (for the Explorer plan)
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Doesn't offer coverage for travelers older than 70
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. No Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) option
• Coverage for 150+ activities and sports
• 2 plans: Standard and Explorer
• Trip protection for up to $10,000
• Emergency medical insurance of up to $100,000
• Emergency evacuation coverage for up to $500,000
• Coverage to protect your items (up to $3,000)

World Nomads Travel Insurance is a great choice for active senior citizens under 70 who want comprehensive travel insurance. The key difference between World Nomads and many other providers is that it covers 200+ adventurous activities like scuba diving, mountain biking, surfing, skiing, and even bungee jumping. In addition, World Nomads' trip cancellation and emergency medical coverage includes COVID-19-related issues. Many other insurers are excluding that type of coverage now.

For adventurous senior citizens over the age of 70 years, World Nomads suggests working with its partner, TripAssure .

Read our World Nomads Travel Insurance review here.

Trip cancellation coverage for up to 100% of the trip cost and trip interruption coverage for up to 150% of the trip cost

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Trip cancellation coverage of up to 100% of the cost, for all three plan levels
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. CFAR covers up to 75% of total trip costs (maximum of $112,500 on some plans) 
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Medical coverage of up to $500,000 and evacuation of up to $1,000,000 per person
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Includes COVID coverage 
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Above average baggage loss and delay benefits
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. High medical evacuation coverage
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Premiums may run slightly higher than competitors

Travel Guard is a well-established and highly rated name in the travel insurance industry. It offers three main coverage options to choose from, and in general its policies have above-average coverage for baggage loss and baggage delays, plus high medical evaluation coverage limits.

• Trip cancellation coverage for up to 100% of the trip cost
• Trip interruption coverage for up to 150% of the trip cost
• Preexisting medical conditions exclusions waiver must be purchased within 15 days of initial trip payment
• Annual travel insurance plan and Pack N' Go plan (for last-minute trips) available

Travel Guard  offers comprehensive insurance plans for shorter and longer trips. One of its more unique offerings is its Travel Guard Annual Plan.

This annual travel insurance comes with standard coverage benefits (trip delay, baggage loss, etc.) and substantial coverage amounts, which is important for seniors who travel multiple times per year. Travel Guard also offers a preexisting medical condition waiver, meaning those with certain medical issues can still gain coverage.

Read our AIG Travel Guard Insurance review here.

Understanding travel insurance for seniors

Before diving into the specifics, it's essential to understand what travel insurance is and why it's particularly important for senior travelers. The best travel insurance offers financial protection against unexpected events affecting your trip, such as trip cancellations, medical emergencies, or lost luggage.

Types of coverage

• Medical Coverage: Ensures your medical expenses are covered in case of illness or injury.
• Trip Cancellation/Interruption Coverage: Provides reimbursement if your trip is canceled or cut short due to unforeseen events.
• Baggage Coverage: Covers loss, damage, or theft of personal items during your trip.

Benefits of travel insurance for seniors

• Peace of Mind: Knowing you're covered in case of emergencies can make your travel stress-free.
• Financial Protection: Shields you from potentially overwhelming medical costs and trip cancellations fees.
• Assistance Services: Many plans offer 24/7 assistance services, providing help whenever and wherever you need it.

Making the most of your plan

After choosing a plan, it's crucial to understand your policy fully and know what services are available to you in case of an emergency.

Understanding your policy

• Read the fine print and understand the claims process to avoid surprises.

Emergency assistance services

• Familiarize yourself with the emergency assistance services offered by your plan and keep all necessary contact information handy.

How to pick senior travel insurance

It's wise to compare several different travel insurance policies for the best coverage and pricing, as premiums vary widely between insurers and depend on factors like your age and travel destination.

That said, some of the more essential coverages to look for if you're a senior citizen include:

• Travel medical coverage - This coverage will pay for your medical bills outside the US.
• Medical evacuation coverage - If you're injured or become sick while traveling, this coverage will transport you to the nearest hospital or even back home if your condition necessitates it.
• Preexisting conditions - Coverage for known health conditions. You'll need to purchase travel insurance within a certain time period from when you book your trip to qualify for a preexisting condition waiver .
• Cancel for any reason (CFAR) - The name says it all! It'll cost extra and you'll need to purchase insurance early, but it's the most comprehensive trip cancellation coverage you can get. Note that CFAR insurance usually only covers up to 75% of your trip fees.
• Trip cancellation insurance - This coverage provides reimbursement for your prepaid and nonrefundable costs if you cannot make your trip due to an unforeseen event.
• Baggage delay insurance - This coverage will reimburse you for essentials like toiletries and clothes if your bags are delayed.
• Lost luggage insurance - This coverage will reimburse you up to a specified amount if your bags get lost en route.

Of these, the most critical to note are whether or not your policy covers preexisting conditions and the limits for travel medical insurance and emergency medical evacuation.

Some insurance companies offer a waiver that will cover preexisting conditions. You'll have to follow the requirements for adding a waiver to your policy, like insuring the entire cost of your trip. Or purchase the policy within a specific time after making your first trip deposit payments.

You'll also want to find a policy with high maximum limits for travel medical and emergency medical evacuation coverage. These types of expenses can be substantial, so you want to have appropriate coverage.

When comparing senior travel insurance options, we looked at the following factors to evaluate each travel insurance provider:

• Coverage limits: We looked at each travel insurance company's coverage amounts for benefits like medical emergencies and trip cancellation.
• Flexibility: We looked at how customizable a policy is, so you can choose what your travel insurance policy covers .
• Coverage for preexisting conditions: Preexisting conditions are one of the more critical factors for travel insurance for senior citizens, so we looked at travel insurance companies that offer the best coverage for preexisting conditions.
• Price: We compared travel insurance providers offering reasonable basic and comprehensive coverage rates.
• Benefits geared towards seniors: We compared travel insurance companies that offer solid coverage for senior citizens, like medical evacuation, COVID-19 coverage, and trip cancellation.

You can read more about our insurance rating methodology here.

Seniors should look for travel insurance policies that offer comprehensive medical coverage, including for preexisting conditions and emergency medical evacuation. They should also consider policies with higher coverage limits to ensure adequate protection. Additionally, seniors should seek travel insurance plans that provide 24/7 assistance services, as well as coverage for trip cancellations, interruptions, and baggage protection.

The cost of senior travel insurance coverage can vary depending on your age, overall health, state of residence, travel destination, and length of your trip. However, assuming all other factors are the same, you'll pay more for travel insurance at 70 than at 30.

All travel insurance companies, except World Nomads, included in this guide offer coverage for pre-existing medical conditions as long as you buy your policy within the qualifying period from when you placed your trip deposit.

Allianz is the best travel insurance for seniors due to its wide array of medical coverages and emergency medical transport. Allianz also offers multi-trip insurance policies , which could make sense for seniors who travel frequently.

In some instances, travel insurance companies will have age eligibility restrictions, often only insuring people 80 years old and younger.

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards .

Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

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When it comes to government planes and political trips, who pays for a president’s campaign travel?

FILE - President Joe Biden boards Air Force One, March 11, 2024, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. The White House and the Democratic National Committee are splitting the cost of Biden’s travel while he runs for a second term. It’s part of a longstanding arrangement that prevents taxpayers from being stuck with the full bill for political trips. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez, File)

FILE - President Joe Biden, center right, and first lady Jill Biden, center left, walk off Air Force One, March 29, 2024, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. The White House and the Democratic National Committee are splitting the cost of Biden’s travel while he runs for a second term. It’s part of a longstanding arrangement that prevents taxpayers from being stuck with the full bill for political trips. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

FILE - President Joe Biden boards Air Force One at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, March 21, 2024, in Dallas, en route to Houston. The White House and the Democratic National Committee are splitting the cost of Biden’s travel while he runs for a second term. It’s part of a longstanding arrangement that prevents taxpayers from being stuck with the full bill for political trips. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

FILE - President Joe Biden boards Air Force One, March 13, 2024, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. en route to Milwaukee. The White House and the Democratic National Committee are splitting the cost of Biden’s travel while he runs for a second term. It’s part of a longstanding arrangement that prevents taxpayers from being stuck with the full bill for political trips. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

FILE - President Joe Biden boards Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., March 11, 2024, to travel to Manchester, N.H. The White House and the Democratic National Committee are splitting the cost of Biden’s travel while he runs for a second term. It’s part of a longstanding arrangement that prevents taxpayers from being stuck with the full bill for political trips. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

FILE - President Joe Biden boards Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., April 12, 2024, enroute to New Castle, Del. The White House and the Democratic National Committee are splitting the cost of Biden’s travel while he runs for a second term. It’s part of a longstanding arrangement that prevents taxpayers from being stuck with the full bill for political trips. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

FILE - President Joe Biden, second from left, boards Air Force One, March 28, 2024, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. Biden is headed to New York for a fundraiser. The White House and the Democratic National Committee are splitting the cost of Biden’s travel while he runs for a second term. It’s part of a longstanding arrangement that prevents taxpayers from being stuck with the full bill for political trips. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

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WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s no simple matter to move the commander in chief from point A to B, and it’s even more complicated when the president is seeking a second term.

President Joe Biden recently spent three days in Pennsylvania , a pivotal state in the 2024 campaign, and he plans to be in Virginia and Florida this coming week. The Democratic incumbent is seeking an edge over Republican Donald Trump as he ramps up his travels around the country.

Here’s a look at how much it costs and who pays the bill during the campaign season.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

It’s not cheap to fly the president’s fleet.

The White House uses Sikorsky helicopters known as Marine One when the president is aboard, as well as custom Boeing 747s that are immediately recognizable as the iconic humpback Air Force One. (Sometimes the president uses a more modest modified 757 if his destination is nearby or if a runway isn’t long enough to accommodate the bigger plane.)

Marine One costs between $16,700 and almost $20,000 per hour to operate, according to Pentagon data for the 2022 budget year. Air Force One is even more expensive: roughly $200,000 per hour.

But those figures only scratch the surface of the real cost. There also are military cargo planes that travel ahead of the president to make sure his armored limousines are in place, not to mention the enormous security apparatus that follows the president everywhere.

New aircraft are in the works because the current versions are decades old. Sikorsky is producing 23 updated helicopters to serve as Marine One. Boeing is building two new Air Force One planes , and they are scheduled to be finished by 2028. According to the Pentagon, the planes will come with all enhancements, including “a mission communication system,” a “self-defense system” and even “autonomous baggage loading.”

WHO PAYS FOR THE TRAVEL?

When the president flies for political purposes, the campaign is supposed to pay the bill. But during an election year, the line between governing and campaigning can be fuzzy.

For example, Biden held an official event Wednesday in Pittsburgh, where he announced his proposal for higher tariffs on steel imported from China. The event, however, was a not-so-subtle opportunity for the president to rub shoulders with union members who are critical to his reelection, and he jabbed at Trump in his remarks. (At one point Biden joked that the former president was “busy right now,” a reference to the hush money trial that recently got underway in New York.)

It’s up to the White House counsel’s office to figure out what percentage of the president’s travels are campaign related. That determines how much the federal government should be reimbursed by the Biden campaign. Sometimes the calculations aren’t straightforward, such as when the White House adds an official event to an otherwise political trip.

Norm Eisen, a White House ethics lawyer under President Barack Obama, said both Republicans and Democrats have usually hewed closely to regulations.

“We had a set of rules on how to do the allocations,” he said. “They’re intricate, and we stuck to them.”

No matter what, taxpayers end up on the hook for most of the cost. Campaigns do not pay for all the Secret Service agents and the rest of the security apparatus. In fact, they usually only cover the cost of Air Force One passengers who are flying for explicitly political purposes — sort of like buying a ticket on a particularly exclusive private jet.

President Joe Biden, second from left, boards Air Force One, March 28, 2024, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

HOW MUCH HAS BIDEN PAID?

Biden’s campaign and his joint fundraising committee have been stockpiling travel cash in an escrow account maintained by the Democratic National Committee. From January 2023 until the end of last month, they deposited nearly $6.5 million.

Some of that money goes to general campaign logistics, such as staff expenses and advance work. The account is also used to reimburse the federal government for official aircraft used to transport the president, the first lady, the vice president and the second gentleman when they travel for the reelection effort.

So far, not much money has found its way back to the U.S. Treasury. As of the latest data available, just $300,000 has been provided.

It’s safe to assume that Biden’s campaign will end up forking over much more than that once the campaign is over. Trump’s team reimbursed the federal government nearly $4.7 million for travel expenses during the 2020 race.

But Biden probably won’t have trouble covering his bills. His campaign and the DNC had more than $192 million in cash on hand at the end of March.

AP White House Correspondent Zeke Miller contributed to this report.

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Florida Abortion Ban to Take Effect, Cutting Off Major Access Point

The state has dozens of clinics that serve tens of thousands of women a year, including from across the Southeast. The six-week ban will require most to travel much farther.

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By Patricia Mazzei

Reporting from Miami

Florida has long played a significant role in the American abortion landscape, with dozens of clinics providing the procedure to tens of thousands of residents a year while also taking in patients from across the Southeast.

That era will end, at least for now, on Wednesday, when a ban on most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy will take effect. The strict new law will replace a 15-week ban and require most Floridians and other Southerners seeking the procedure to travel to Virginia or farther.

Almost every other state in the region banned or sharply restricted abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022; many had few abortion providers even before the ruling. North Carolina still allows abortions up to 12 weeks , but with a 72-hour waiting period that makes it a less practical option for out-of-state patients.

“The surrounding states have been desperate to find a place to go within a reasonable distance,” said Kelly Flynn, the president and chief executive of A Woman’s Choice, a network of abortion clinics, including one in Jacksonville, Fla., “and we have been that place.”

Instead of the number of abortions in Florida decreasing after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the 15-week ban into law in April 2022, as proponents had hoped, it went up because more patients were coming from Southern states with more restrictions or near-total bans.

Florida, the third-largest state by population, has about 50 clinics and last year provided some 84,000 abortions; nearly 8,000 of them were for women from outside the state. Until July 2022, Florida allowed abortions until about 24 weeks.

“We don’t want to be an abortion tourism destination,” Mr. DeSantis, a Republican, said last year .

Lawmakers and Mr. DeSantis approved the six-week ban in April 2023, when the governor was preparing to run for president. His message to Republican primary voters focused on how he had reshaped Florida’s political identity , turning it from a swing state to a beacon of right-wing policy. His campaign failed , but the policies remained.

The six-week ban was conditioned on the Florida Supreme Court first upholding the 15-week ban, which abortion rights groups had challenged. The conservative court did so on April 1, starting a 30-day countdown for the six-week ban to become law.

The new law provides exceptions for abortions to take place up to 15 weeks for pregnancies that result from rape, incest or human trafficking, though women would be required to show documentation such as a restraining order, medical record or police report. There are also exceptions to save the life of the woman and, before the third trimester, for fatal fetal abnormalities.

The law also prohibits doctors from prescribing medication abortions through telehealth and dispensing the pills by mail. Medical professionals who violate any part of the ban could face criminal penalties.

Many women do not realize that they are pregnant by the sixth week, so backers of abortion rights say the new law will represent a near-total prohibition — exactly the shutdown of access that they worried would happen when Roe was overturned.

Unlike Florida, many Southern states had few abortion clinics left even before that ruling. When Texas, the nation’s second most populous state, banned the procedure at six weeks in 2021, it had about 20 clinics that provided about 50,000 abortions a year, significantly fewer than Florida.

The six-week ban is “going to protect thousands of unborn children,” said John Stemberger, the president of Liberty Counsel Action, an anti-abortion lobbying group.

He said Florida has almost 200 anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers, which sometimes provide pregnant women with ultrasounds and baby supplies. That is about four times the number of the state’s abortion clinics, which are mostly clustered around big cities. Mr. Stemberger said he has worked with anti-abortion groups to expand the centers’ capacities.

“There’s going to be an increased demand for their services,” he said. “We want to communicate to mothers who are abortion-minded that there are options.”

Abortion providers and nonprofit funds that help women pay for abortions in Florida have spent the last year preparing for this moment.

Between 2018 and 2023, about 60 percent of abortions in Florida happened after six weeks of pregnancy, according to state data .

Clinics are scheduling ultrasounds earlier and ramping up other health care services to try to stay open. Funds are training volunteers to plan travel for patients to Illinois, Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. (North Carolina is closer but its waiting period to get the procedure makes it a less feasible destination.)

All of the changes could prove temporary: A ballot measure in November will ask Florida voters whether to amend the constitution to allow abortions until about 24 weeks. It will require more than 60 percent support to pass, a high threshold, and it would not take effect until January, assuming that lawmakers or anti-abortion groups did not challenge it in court .

For now, Florida will have to adjust to being another Southern state where abortions are extremely rare.

“We’re going to be an abortion desert,” said Michelle Quesada, a spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of South, East and North Florida, which operates eight clinics in the state. (Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida operates another nine clinics.) “It’s going to be really challenging for patients.”

Ms. Quesada said that after the Florida Supreme Court ruling clinics called patients scheduled to be seen in May and moved up their appointments. Out-of-state patients have been sent as far south as Miami — more than 600 miles from the Georgia and Alabama borders — because wait times in Tallahassee and Jacksonville, in the northern part of the state, have been two or three weeks, she added.

In the last year, abortion clinics have added other services, including prenatal care and adoption referrals. They have also seen an increase in patients requesting contraception, Ms. Quesada said, including vasectomies for men in their 30s and 40s.

Dr. Marian Sampson, an obstetrician and gynecologist who provides abortions for Planned Parenthood’s clinics in Fort Myers and Naples, on Florida’s Gulf Coast, said that over the past two weeks, “pretty much every appointment slot is double booked every day.”

Inevitably, clinics will be far less busy under the six-week ban, said Nikki Madsen, the co-executive director of the Abortion Care Network, a national association of independent abortion clinics that had 36 members in Florida as of last year.

“The number of patients those clinics will see will drastically plummet,” she said. “When a clinic closes, it’s incredibly difficult to reopen.”

Clinics and abortion funds said that, unlike in the months after Roe was overturned, they have not seen an uptick in contributions since the ruling allowing the six-week ban. That is most likely because donors are focused on funding the November ballot measure.

“While that is a positive thing if it passes, there’s a lot of time between May 1 and January when that would go into effect,” said McKenna Kelley, who is on the board of the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund. “We are doing the work day in and day out.”

Not only will it be more expensive for funds to help patients now that they have to also pay for their travel, but some people may find the plane travel that can be required overwhelming, said Jessica Hatem, the executive director of the Emergency Medical Assistance Abortion Fund in West Palm Beach. The fund was founded in 1972, pre-Roe, to help women in Florida go to New York for legal abortions.

“When we are sending people on a plane, generally it’s their first time flying,” she said. “When we’re sending Southerners to the North in the middle of winter, people don’t have coats.”

It is hard to predict just how much the number of abortions performed in Florida will drop after Wednesday, said Isaac Maddow-Zimet, a data scientist at the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health research group that supports abortion rights.

Researchers found that abortions declined by about 50 percent in Texas and Georgia after those states’ six-week bans took effect. South Carolina had a much steeper drop-off — about 71 percent, he said — in part because so many women had been traveling there for abortions from other states. The South Carolina Supreme Court upheld a six-week ban law in August.

“Every state,” Mr. Maddow-Zimet said, “has ripple effects through every other state.”

Patricia Mazzei is the lead reporter for The Times in Miami, covering Florida and Puerto Rico. More about Patricia Mazzei