When you go for a year-long trip around the world, every day is a challenge, and every day is a reward. Such trip requires thinking about numerous things: visas, vaccinations, finances. Long-term travel makes you face homesickness and sensory overstimulation, but it also teaches you a never-give-up attitude and gives energy to push your boundaries.
Traveling around the world was always my dream since the time I was ten years old. That was the time when my mom bought me a first “Voyage” travel magazine. I remember looking at bird-view photos of Maldives islands dreaming that I will be there one day. During my teenage years and student times, I have always worked part-time while studying, mostly with the goal of saving more money for more travel. My first flight was to Norway for the International Student Festival in Trondheim. The level of my excitement was so high that I remember it till today.
During student times, I managed to visit 41 countries and live in 6. Still, going on short vacation or summer breaks felt like … never enough.
So for many years, I was saving money, energy and inspiration for a moment when the time is right. Working in the global consultancy firm gave me many opportunities to travel, but always on a business trip, without enough time to appreciate different cultures and lifestyle. So when in 2018 I reached just another career milestone (promotion to the project manager role), I decided to set out for one year round the world trip … and visited 21 countries!
Check out the community of freedom-seeking people who want to combine career with traveling – or already do it! Enter the GOOD LIFE Community here!
Planning
The idea was to start in Europe and go via Asia and the Pacific islands to South America. I only planned the first two months of the travel, and the rest of the trip was meant to be spontaneous. However, I kept in mind the key destinations I wanted to visit: Mongolia, Nepal, Bhutan, Japan, Hawaii, etc.
The planning mindset was especially important for the Russian part of the travel, where I decided to travel by The Trans-Siberian Railway. The tickets for this train must be bought well ahead of the trip (I recommend at least 2 months in advance). What was also very important to prepare, was the trip to Tibet, due to many governmental regulations and permits which need to be obtained in advance.
Another planning item involves all necessary visas, vaccinations and insurances. Especially tricky ones are visas to Russia, Belarus, Mongolia and China. They need to be applied for well beforehand with predetermined travel itinerary and specific dates, as they are given for exact dates to visit these countries.
Once all destinations are known, it is also essential to visit a travel medicine doctor who can advise which vaccinations need to be taken. In my case, I had to renew by Hepatitis B vaccination and additionally, get typhus, yellow fever, FSME and rabies. Sometimes, there is a need for many more.
Moreover, it is crucial to think about anti-mosquito prophylaxis, as nowadays mosquitos transmitting deadly diseases are in areas which were not affected before. Here, the general advice I would give is not to take antimalarial medication, unless one plans to travel to Central, East and West Africa. Mosquito repellents and mosquito net for a night were always enough for me to stay out of the trouble.
However, it is crucial to be aware of the outbreaks. Just recently, there has been a big outbreak of dengue fever in the Philippines where more than 60000 people affected, and more than 250 deaths reported. Sometimes what seems to be a paradise, might turn to be hell. Sometimes also certain diseases affect us unexpectedly in the places we expect them least. In 2017 my travel partner got dengue fever in a resort in Thailand, and resort claims they spray its surrounding with anti-mosquito chemicals till today.
Finances
Planning such a long journey involves thinking about finances as one needs to be sure not to run out of money before the trip ends. My initial planned budget was USD50,000, with USD20,000 margin for unexpected expenses. It essentially meant that I would be spending approximately USD150 per day for all my expenses. In some countries, this budget was more than enough (nice room, good food, and taxis), whereas in some other countries this was barely enough for daily food expenses. I knew that overspent in some countries will need to balance with underspent in other regions. Having that in mind, every day, I mini-analyzed my expenses to be sure that I do not exceed the budget or save for more pricey places.
The most expensive countries on my route were Bhutan, Hawaii, French Polynesia, and Chile (very unexpectedly, the price level in Chile was comparable to living cost in Switzerland). In those countries, I overspent my daily budget many times, sometimes even by three-fold. The cheapest countries were Mongolia, Nepal, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia (approximately min. 50 USD per day could be enough to enjoy these places).
In terms of respective various cost buckets, the most expensive part of the travel were flight tickets. Sure, one could say that the standard round the world ticket would have been the cheapest option. However, I do not like the inflexibility they gave, i.e., a predetermined number of stops on specific continents. For example, it was not possible to find the round the world ticket which went from Asia to South America via the Pacific Islands.
This being said, the most expensive airfares were the ones via Pacific. The flight from Hawaii to Polynesia cost 1200 USD, and the one from Polynesia to Chile via Easter Island 1500 USD (one way per person). If time is not an issue, one could cross the Pacific in a much cheaper way, for example, hitchhiking on the yachts/sailing boats while working as a crew. However, this could take more than two months and would not allow me much time to explore South America.
Another significant cost bucket was accommodation costs. The most expensive hotels were those on Polynesian islands (one night ranging from 300 USD to 1000 USD), while the cheapest accommodation was in Mongolia (15 USD) or in the tent in Chile (free). One way of reducing accommodation costs is being part of the loyalty program of one of the big hotel chains (e.g., Marriott Bonvoy) which allows to accumulate loyalty points which could be later exchanged for free nights. As mentioned before, the price level in Chile was also much higher than expected, so buying a tent, sleeping bag and sleeping in the wilderness was the safest bet to save money. Of course, one could go one step further, and always sleep in the wild or try to find hosts in different travelers’ networks (like Couchsurfing.org or Hospitality).
In terms of meals, cost of one meal ranged from USD 3 (snack in Nepal) to USD 70 or more (a meal in the restaurant in French Polynesia or in a high-end venue in Japan). Here, the best way to save money is to cook yourself (in the rented apartments via Airbnb or at the back of your overland truck/campervan).
While on the Road
Like every activity in life, if done too much, can lead to a burn-out or fatigue. The same happens with traveling! I would not have believed that before I left for this trip. But it occurred to me as well. Long story short: It is essential to take breaks, even from travel.
The problem starts with an awareness that in some places we only will be once in our lifetime, and even if we can come back there, it will take some time and money to return. So, there is a continuous pressure to keep seeing new places, visit new churches and ruins, try just another delicious local meal and socialize with other travelers and locals.
And here comes the magic: Once you release this constant pressure of doing something in every new place you are, life becomes beautiful again! There were days that the only “touristy” thing I have done was eating lunch in the restaurant nearby to my hostel.
It’s important to realize that long-term traveling causes cognitive and sensory overstimulation. Every time you arrive at a new place, there are new pathways to beat and find. Where can I find the best coffee? Where is tasty and healthy food, not too expensive? How much can I afford in this city? Can I spend more on something I really want to do? Can I stay in a better hotel this time to have a better sleep?
Traveling long term is a series of decisions you need to make and continuous planning. You are not only documenting what you have done on your blog (past), doing sightseeing and meeting people (present), but you need to think about the future constantly.
The trouble starts if you realize that you are in a given country exactly in its high season. Then you struggle to find any place to stay, even 10 km away from the center (Kyoto in November), or any available wild or organized campground for your tent (Chile in January and February).
So, it’s essential not to be under such pressure all the time, and take days off. Days when you sit in a comfortable bed or 5-star hotel (only 60 USD in Paraguay) and watch Netflix or call friends you miss.
Lessons I’ve Learned
What journey taught me are unparalleled lessons, which could never be learned in another way.
First of all, traveling long term teaches you how to push new boundaries and go outside of your comfort zone. Every day. Try to find a shower in Western Tibet, warm blanket at 4000 m above sea level on the way to Everest Base Camp, vegetarian food in Mongolia, or a sheltered place for your tent in Patagonia. Every day is a challenge, but also, every day is a reward.
Second, you meet people from all various backgrounds. Many times you depend on their kindness. Many times you need to negotiate. Or manage to get out of the policeman’s hands who tries to find another source of income (aka bribe) for today. You need to practice your negotiating skills, influencing, understand what matters for this another person, in order to survive.
Thirdly, traveling teaches you stamina and persistence, grit and never give up attitude – both on a physical and mental level. Usually, when things get tough physically, soon after the mind is affected.
No proper toilets and showers in Western Tibet for 10+ days drove me crazy, till the point I was ready to go home. Glad I did not give up. Severe cold and freeze at nights on the way to the Everest Base Camp taught me survival skills and gave me a conviction that if I socialize more with my team, we will all get through it together. Serious diseases, poisonings and visits to the hospital always posed a question mark in my head: Was this travel worth the risk? Whether climbing high mountains or walking long distances or hobble with broomsticks as substitutes for crutches just to see another Moai on the Easter Island – it always required not only the physical but also mental strength.
Fourthly, managing emotional energy is essential during a long-term journey. Not seeing your family and friends for a year, not sleeping in your favorite bed, living out of a suitcase, carrying a heavy backpack to another bus station – it all takes a toll on the level of the emotional energy.
Therefore, it is important to anchor your happiness around familiar things. Do you miss a good cup of coffee? Spoil yourself and buy a good espresso in the Italian restaurant or a big cuppa of Starbucks. Do you miss a comfortable bed? Sleep in a nice hotel from time to time (and account for it earlier in a budget).
Other pieces of advice would include: cook your favorite food, call your family and friends regularly, do your favorite activities which you miss now, e.g., do yoga, go to fitness, play soccer, read a book, play a computer game. Do whatever makes you feel familiar and is not new or emotionally draining.
To summarize, the trip I completed was a fantastic adventure. It gave me perspective on my life. Made me realize that I am extremely lucky to have so many things in my life. Taught me even better crisis management skills and perseverance. Showed me how beautiful the world is. And increased my appetite for even more travel.
If you want to read more about my round-the-world trip, visit my blog: http://travel.samandmarta.ch/
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!