Today, I am going to talk to you about my world tour which is fast approaching as it starts in exactly two months (mid-September 2014). In this article, I will talk about the stages of my trip and then explain how I will proceed with the different stages of my world tour.
📋 What to remember: Preparing a world tour seriously requires 6 to 12 months. The key steps: settle your accounts (mutual termination, sabbatical leave, resignation), set your budget (€10,000-18,000), get your vaccines and visas, choose your insurance, and establish a flexible itinerary framework. The most important thing: have a real personal reason to leave, otherwise the trip ends up exhausting you.
Summary of my world tour.
Here is my travel plan:
- I start my world tour on September 15th in Turkey, I will only travel inland for two weeks, especially in the Göreme and Pamukkale regions.
- I will then take a plane to the cape (Cape Town) in South Africa and I will travel up the South African east coast by bus to Johannesburg. Along the way, I will visit national parks and go hiking. Then, from Johannesburg, I will go to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. (Approximate duration: 5-6 weeks).
- After Africa, I will go to the Middle East in Jordan and/or go directly for a few days to Dubai. (Approximate duration: a few days to three weeks).
- Then I will hit the road to Nepal where I will do a trek (the Annapurna Circuit for a duration of 3 weeks).
- After the walking, some rest and partying, I will go to Thailand where I will spend New Year’s until mid-January.
- The passage through Asia will be quick since I will go to New Zealand and/or make a stop in Australia for Australian Day (January 26). In New Zealand, I want to travel on the South Island and stay there for a duration of one month.
- Then, to go to South America (and/or North America) where I will stay for the rest of the year (with an option to consider: French Polynesia and Easter Island if I manage to get cheap plane tickets or within my budget).
At the time of writing this article, I only have tickets for Turkey and South Africa. Although I know the places where I will stay, I prefer to have the option to buy my tickets at the last minute (one to two weeks before leaving).
In this particular case, I keep: my freedom. I can extend my trip as I please or change my plans and go to other places.
To know the best time to leave, just check quandpartir.com
How will I get around for my trip around the world?
One of the questions I was often asked is: ‘how do you get around?’Generally, within the same region, I travel by train or bus. For example, I will take the bus in Turkey or South Africa. However, to travel from country to country, I take the plane but I buy my tickets at the last minute (a few days to a month before).
There is also the option of a round-the-world ticket, but the ticket is only valid for a maximum of one year and you must provide specific dates. However, this ticket can be modified several times.
🗣️ My experience: The hardest part of the preparation was not the logistics, but telling my loved ones. My parents took 3 months to digest the news. I explained to them that I was leaving with a finalized budget, insurance, and a return plan. Once reassured about the seriousness, they became my first supporters. Anticipate this discussion: it weighs more than the vaccines.
Here are several examples for my choice of plane ticket:
- Changing the dates:
We can see that for 3 different dates, there is a variation depending on the day, there is a difference of 22 euros between Saturday and Monday and a shorter travel duration.
🍀 Sabbatical leave
- Guarantee to get your job back
- Preserves retirement and seniority
- No sudden break in the CV
- Regulated by the Labor Code
🔻 Mutual termination
- Possible severance pay + unemployment benefits
- But no job upon return
- Sometimes lengthy negotiation
- Possible employer refusal
🌍 Did you know?
In France, sabbatical leave allows you to leave your job for 6 to 11 months while keeping your position upon return. Conditions: at least 36 months seniority in the company and 6 years of professional activity. It is legal, regulated by the Labor Code, and the employer cannot refuse without serious reason in companies with more than 300 employees.
Here is the link I used to leave last minute to Amman in Jordan from Zimbabwe.
- Use the stopover to visit the country.
In the previous case, there is a stopover in Johannesburg and Dubai. If you travel during the low season, you can stay a few days to several weeks during the stopover and pay the same price for the plane ticket. This is what I explain in this post: here.
⚠️ Classic trap
Leaving without a financial safety net. Many exhaust their entire budget on the trip and end up in a tight situation. Keep at least 3 to 6 months of rent + bills in a dedicated savings account, untouchable during the trip. This is your safety net upon return, while you find a job again.
- Split your journey and do part of it with a low-cost flight.
For my trip to South Africa, a Paris – Cape Town ticket with a stopover in Istanbul would have cost me more or the same price as making two trips with two different airlines: Paris – Istanbul then Istanbul – Cape Town. Splitting my ticket allowed me to save money because I took a low-cost airline for Paris – Istanbul and then an international airline for Istanbul – Cape Town.
In Asia, it is very easy to take low-cost airlines. For example, for my ticket to Myanmar, I had booked Paris – Bangkok then Bangkok – Rangoon, which saved me several hundred euros. However, I stayed one day less in Myanmar.
To delve into the budget part in practice, itinerary and detailed budget of a round-the-world trip explains how much I spent over 12 months. On the health side, review of Chapka insurance compares the most used long-term coverages. And on the flights part, should you take a round-the-world ticket weighs the real advantages of the RTW ticket.
And you? How do you manage to get last-minute plane tickets at the lowest possible prices?
How long does it take to prepare a round-the-world trip?
Do you have to quit your job to do a round-the-world trip?
Which vaccinations are mandatory?
| Step | When | Duration | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decision + employer announcement | D-12 months | 2-3 months (negotiation) | 0 |
| Budget setup | D-9 months | Ongoing | Depending on income |
| Vaccinations + health check | D-6 months | 3-4 months (spaced out) | €200-500 |
| Visas (WHV, etc.) | D-4 months | 1-3 months | €50-300 per country |
| Insurance + bank cards | D-2 months | 2 weeks | €200-600/year |
| Selling / storing belongings | D-1 month | 1 month | 0 or storage unit |
