How to Plan a Trip Around the World in 7 Steps

Planning a round the world trip is overwhelming. Hours of research and thought go into making a trip like this a reality. You must consider your route, visas, your budget, accommodation, transportation, activities, and much more. This guide will give you an outline to follow to help you plan a trip around the world. It also includes useful tips and advice to make your journey a little smoother, safer, and more affordable.

Over the past 12 years of traveling, I have made 2 trips around the world and have visited over 60 countries. On my first round-the-world trip, I traveled for 6 months through 15 countries on 4 continents. On my second trip, I visited 12 countries on 3 continents over the course of 5 months. In this guide, I’ll share my experience in planning round-the-world trips. Currently, I’m in the middle of my 3rd round the world trip.

Table of Contents

• Route Planning- Where do you want to go?
• Budgeting- How Much does a Round the World Trip Cost?
• Visas and Entry Requirements- What documents do you need?
• Transportation- Info on booking your flights as well as ground transportation
• Accommodation- Where will you sleep?
• Money- Banking and finances
• Packing and Travel Gear- Preparing for departure
• Sample round-the-world trip itineraries- A few ideas to help get you started

Step 1: Decide Where You Want to Go and Plan a Route

Choosing your route is the most exciting and important part of planning a round the world trip. You need to know where you’re going in order to calculate costs and plan activities, accommodation, and transportation. At this point, let your imagination run wild.

I recommend you start by researching the various regions of the world that interest you and make a list of potential destinations. While making your list, you may want to consider:

• Cities- Are there any major world cities that you’ve always wanted to see? Maybe you’ve always dreamed of visiting London, New York, or Tokyo. Add it to your round-the-world itinerary.
• Countries- Maybe there’s a particular country that you’ve always dreamed of visiting. While planning my round the world trip, I knew I had to include India and Thailand in my round the world itinerary.
• Major tourist sights– Which world wonders do you want to visit? For example, maybe you’ve always dreamed of visiting the Great Pyramids of Giza, Angkor Wat, the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal, or Macchu Picchu. One of my bucket list activities was going on an African safari. I ended up visiting the Serengeti and Maasai Mara parks.
• Foods- Consider your favorite cuisines. Maybe you really like Italian or Thai food and want to taste authentic flavors.
• Activities- What types of activities do you like to do? Do you enjoy hiking, diving, surfing, laying on the beach, dancing, extreme sports, or visiting museums?
• People- Do you have family or friends in another country? Your around-the-world trip is an excellent opportunity for you to stop in for a visit.
• Culture- Maybe you’ve always wanted to experience a particular culture. For example, maybe you’re fascinated by Japanese culture and you want to learn more about it.
• Parties, festivals, and concerts- Another valid reason to choose a destination. Maybe you’ve always wanted to attend a particular music festival, for example. Maybe you’ve always wanted to visit Rio de Janeiro for Carnival or Munich for Octoberfest.

If you need some inspiration, you can check out my destinations page. Also, read some travel guides, blogs, or books, or watch some travel vlogs.

How to Make a Rough Around the World Itinerary

After making your list of potential destinations, it’s time to put together a rough round-the-world itinerary. This itinerary will probably change multiple times throughout the planning and research process. This is just a rough draft so you have something to start with for budgeting purposes. You can always add or remove destinations as you plan your round the world trip. You can even change plans mid trip. Nothing is set in stone.

To make a round the world itinerary:

1. Prioritize your list- Chances are, you can’t hit every destination in one trip. Move the ‘can not miss’ destinations to the top of your list and place the lower-priority destinations toward the bottom. I recommend you select 3-5 dream destinations that you can not miss. These will be the base of your round the world trip.
2. Look at the location of each ‘can not miss’ destination on the map- This gives you a rough overview of your general route. You’ll travel from one destination to the next either east to west or west to east until you return home. If one destination is too remote or out of the way, consider saving it for a future trip.
3. Find the closest ‘can not miss’ destination either to the east or west of your starting point- That will be the first region that you visit on your around-the-world trip.
4. Look for nearby countries and cities to visit in the same region- You will visit these destination on this leg of your journey. If you’re unsure, research nearby cities and countries. You want to visit all of your desired destinations on each continent or region before moving on. If you don’t have any other destinations to visit in that region, you can move on to the next region.
5. Find the next closest ‘can not miss’ destination in the same direction of travel- It’s time to move on to the next another continent or region. This is the second leg of your journey. Research the region and look for activities, events, and points of interest in nearby cities and bordering countries.
6. Continue plotting a general route around the world- As you go, research each destination to find potential activities and other nearby destinations. The number of stops that you make depends on your budget and the amount of time that you can travel.

By now, you should have a rough around-the-world trip itinerary. If you’re having trouble, look at a map. I found it really helpful to study the world map while planning my trip. Looking at the map made it much easier for me to plot out my travel path.

Consider the Timing of Your Round the World Trip

Some destinations are seasonal. When planning your around the world trip, you’ll need to consider the season you’ll visit each destination. You may need to be in a specific place for a specific date. This can determine the direction you travel or the order you visit each region.

For example, you may not want to visit Europe during the winter because most of the continent is cold and snowy. You might travel to Asia for the winter, then head to Europe in the spring when the weather warms up.

if you’re planning a particular activity, you may need to visit during a particular season. For example, if you’re planning on going skiing in Colorado, you’ll have to visit during the winter.

Also, keep in mind that the seasons are flipped in the southern hemisphere. If you’re visiting the southern cone of South America, Australia, or southern Africa, summer runs from December-February. These are the warmest months. If you’re visiting the global south, you may need to take this into consideration.

If you’re planning on traveling for a particular holiday, festival, or event, you’ll have to time your visit. For example, maybe you want to visit Oktoberfest in Germany. You’ll have to plan your trip so you’re in Germany in October.

Traveling East Vs West on a Round the World Trip

When planning your around the world itinerary, it’s important to decide whether you want to travel East or West and stick with this decision. You want to minimize backtracking. Many round-the-world tickets don’t allow you to backtrack. Backtracking also increases costs and tr