London to Sydney? Cairo to Cape Town? Around the world in eighty days? Given the vast possibilities, organising your dream trip over two or more months could be confusing. Whether you have two, six, twelve or eighteen months to travel, you can prevent your tour from turning into a nightmare of forgotten visas, missed flights or inflexible itineraries thanks to concrete ideas and tips to help you make the most of your precious time.
The world is in your hands, so pack your backpack and start exploring! © Jaromir Chalabala / Shutterstock
If you have two months...
Two months is enough time to explore a continent. This could mean travelling by road acrossAfrica from Cairo to Cape Town (stopping to look for mountain gorillas in Uganda or Rwanda and camping in the shadow of Kilimanjaro) or discovering the wonders of South America: from Machu Picchu and the 'lines' in the Nazca pampas to the Galápagos Islands.
If you have never exploredEurope, consider a 'grand tour' of its major cities; the many connections can take you anywhere from Amsterdam to Zagreb, creating the perfect environment for the inexperienced traveller. As an alternative, if you are escaping the cold at home, you might consider warm South-East Asia, which also proves to be a great destination for travellers on a budget.
Two months is an ideal time frame to cross North America on the road: rent a car and discover the United States and eastern Canada in eight weeks.
South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland
Six months might need a little more organisation, but leave room for improvisation © sergey causelove / Shutterstock
If you have six months...
In this window you could cross a couple of continents by moving overland. The 'hippie trail', opened in the mid-1950s, is a distinctive route through Europe and the Middle East, continuing into Nepal, India and the Far East. War conflicts in the Middle East have made the route more complicated than it once was, but today it is still possible to walk most of it safely.
Leave from London or Paris and head to Istanbul following the route of the famous Orient Express. Zigzagging towards Turkey you can visit the canals of Amsterdam, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Bran Castle in Romania and much more. Invest in a Eurail pass for a single inexpensive and flexible ticket that will help you get around Europe easily by train.
Varanasi awaits you at the end of the 'hippie trail' © Roop_Dey / Shutterstock
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The classic route splits after Istanbul with the option of heading north through Tehran and Lahore to India and Nepal or continuing on to Syria, Jordan, Iran and Pakistan (the route that many governments currently advise against due to political tensions and security concerns). The route to Nepal can be completed in a minimum of six to eight weeks. Once there, admire the majestic Himalayan mountain range and then head to India for another three to four weeks, visiting the legendary fortresses of Rajasthan, the Taj Mahal and the city of Varanasi.
With so much time on your hands, the desire to see as much as possible can be strong. But six months will pass surprisingly quickly and you will want to leave some room for spontaneity: you never know where new friends, new experiences and new hobbies might take you. It might be useful to make a list of the countries and cities you absolutely must see and the activities or experiences you are dying to do and then use these as a basis for your itinerary, leaving room for creativity as you travel.
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Going overland could be a great way to slow down the pace of your trip © Soloviova Liudmyla / Shutterstock
If you have a year...
With a year to travel, you will want to organise an adventure around the world. One way to do this could be to choose a shorter route, like the 'hippie trail' for example, and travel it very slowly, adding several detours to the main route. For example, from Istanbul you could fly to Egypt and see the Pyramids of Giza, and in India you could travel through the south of the country, relax on the beaches of Goa or stay in an ashram.
Of course, not everyone wants to follow a route already taken. Many opt to buy an RTW (Round the World) plane ticket, which costs around €2000 and allows you to visit a dozen places, more than would be possible with a DIY trip on the same budget. If you plan each flight far enough apart, you could then book domestic flights to explore the regions in more depth. Alternatively, more enterprising globetrotters may decide to book only the first flight and then be guided by personal feelings and ideas of the moment.
Don't forget to relax and enjoy the days in your year around the world © Nomad_Soul / Shutterstock
The secret is to divide your trip into easily manageable sections: you have the advantage of time, so don't stress. Allocate at least a month for each destination and consider turning flights into road trips, combining adventure with more manageable means of transport. Divide your trip into quarters or seasons and choose a theme for each, a bit like in Eat, Pray, Love. You can let loose and have fun for a couple of months, volunteer on a farm for a few more months and then learn something new. Having a few fun and achievable goals will help you avoid thinking you have 'wasted' a year.
Between the buzz of organising, preparing and stamping your passport, remember to include moments of relaxation. Few people can manage to carry the initial energy and enthusiasm non-stop for an entire year, so carve out a week here and there to be quiet and relax - why not pamper yourself a bit in a luxury private room or flat? Also remember to intersperse urban environments with escapes into the wilderness.
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Volunteering could add a strong purpose to your trip © Dilok Klaisataporn / Shutterstock
If you are over 18 months old....
Having enough time to circumnavigate the world twice, two years means quitting your job and leaving without a precise destination in mind. This requires a more leisurely pace - considering that it takes some people a whole year to explore a very large country like the United States, China or India.
As you move around the planet, try to make a new city your temporary 'home': nothing allows you to fully get to know a place like actually living there on a daily basis. Settle in, study a new language or volunteer, but you can also do something for yourself and start painting, writing or just live there. Moving around all the time can be tiring and after a while views tend to become blurry. Getting to know a place thoroughly can sometimes be even more rewarding than simply ticking a hundred different attractions off your list.
Published in June 2019