PLANNING A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD
Planning a trip around the world that allows you to maximise your experience requires a bit of effort. If you love this part pf a trip, then you will enjoy checking out my approach for planning structured itinerary. If the whole idea scares you – relax – I have done it and have you covered. In a recent post I shared my structured and phased approach to planning a vacation. Travelling while on sabbatical tends to mean that you will be away for more than a couple weeks. That means that while it will likely take a bit longer and be more in depth than normal, planning a trip around the world follows the same methods. Here’s my approach in a nut shell:
- Create A List – It’s time to brainstorm. Think of everywhere you want to go and jot it down on a list. Use your imagination. Go wild.
- Find Best-Time – Dig around and find out when the best time of the year to visit your destinations is.
- Fit Your Budget – Now that you know the where and when – find out the how. Don’t make the mistake of trying to fit a trip within a budget. Fit your budget into your trip.
- Map It Out – Start plotting your destinations to find an order that make sense directionally with minimal backtracking.
- Book Your Flights – Book your long haul flights and let them act as a skeleton for your trip.
If you follow the above method, you are left with a nice, logical itinerary. Then it’s all about your personal travel style – how much or how little do you want to wing it while you are on the road. The additional items you then build into your plans serve as the meat to your itinerary. I personally like more structure than the normal person, but understand that planning a trip around the world requires flexibility. Having every single aspect of the trip pre-planned takes spontaneity out of the trip.
resulting itinerary will be forever epitomised in a multi-tabbed document that could bring tears to the eyes of anyone fond of a spreadsheet. The effort that we put into planning a trip around the world was immense – but the preparation mean that we were able to enjoy every minute of it. We had some very clear ideas of what we wanted to get out of the trip, the type of experiences we wanted for ourselves and where we would be able to get it.
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Southern Route: Georgia – Tennessee
Western Route: Las Vegas – Grand Canyon – Death Valley National Park – Yosemite National Park – San Francisco – Pacific Coast Highway – Los Angeles
GALAPAGOS ISLANDS & ECUADOR
PATAGONIA, ARGENTINA & CHILE
NEW ZEALAND
If you are trying to decide whether or not New Zealand make your list, be sure to check out my ultimate itinerary in Destinations // New Zealand Itinerary for some inspiration.
AUSTRALIA
HONG KONG
MYANMAR
VIETNAM
LAOS
CAMBODIA
PHILIPPINES
Don’t believe all the noise you hear about it being complicated to get around. Just prepare yourself to be spoiled with white sand beaches and some of the most pristine coral gardens in the world.
MALAYSIA & BORNEO
NEPAL & EVEREST BASE CAMP
Route: Kathmandu – Lukla to Phakding – Phakding to Namche – Namche to Thame – Thame (Acclimatisation Day) – Thame to Lumdeng – Lumdeng to Gokyo – Gokyo to Thangna – Thangna to Dzongla – Dzongla to Lobuche – Lobuche to Gorakshep – Gorakshep to Everest Base Camp – Everest Base Camp to Periche – Periche to Tashinga – Tashinga to Monjo – Monjo to Lukla
Nepal has been on my list for so long! I need to make it happen by 2019. Thanks for reminding me and giving me the travel inspiration 🙂
I’m not in a position to take a sabbatical but I’d do this route if I could – especially visiting the Galapagos, a total dream of mine! Sadly it isn’t to be, but I can try and make it through your list one trip at a time!
I’m so glad you included New Zealand – so far its been my favourite place, its so beautiful and under appreciated! I wish I could afford to do a Round the World trip myself, but instead I’ve opted for slower travel along with working in between. So glad you got to experience so many wonderful destinations.
Sabbatical is out ouf question in Italy, but it really does sound pretty busy to plan a no-stop trip around the world, I had no idea!
You have been to some great places and had some great experiences. Of course the Piece de resistance is your exploration of Nepal and the Himalayas. Happy to see that you have also spent time exploring the backwaters of Kerala. Kerala is such a unique and tranquil region.
What an amazing resource – and a great place to start when planning 🙂 Now I’m wishing my 9-5 was a little more tolerant of sabbaticals 😉
Love this route of a Round the World trip. The mustang across the US is a must, I am still to do it. I only done a road trip in their verison of a Ford Mondeo! I felt so small with their trucks on the highway 😀
What a fantastic blog post! Thanks for the great informations – making a trip around the world is a dream of mine!