Has anyone ever been on a round the world trip?

[mommyoffive]

We were thinking about where to go on our next trip and then I read this blog post, which got my wheels turning.

 

https://travelbabbo.com/2016/09/around-world-kids-two-weeks/

 

 

 

And then this deal popped up today, which really got me thinking. 

 

 

http://www.secretflying.com/posts/around-world-london-uk-6-countries-718-roundtrip/

 

 

 

Has anyone done this? 

 

 

Haven't done it, but it sounds like fun, if one could find the money and time.  Looking at the deal site, though, my first thought was "if I could pick any 7 cities in a round-the-world trip, I'm not sure I'd choose those seven  (London, Luxembourg, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, New York, Frankfurt)".

 

Then I spent the next few minutes daydreaming about what cities I would go to.  Generally, I think the rule is you aren't allowed to backtrack -- So, thread-jacking, I'll ask the hive -- what 7 cities would you choose, without backtracking?  And how long in each city?

Edited June 15, 2017 by GGardner

[DawnM]

I have taken a trip around the world, but it wasn't quite like that.

 

I spent 3 months in Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia.  

 

Then I wanted to go see my parents, who were living in Kenya.  I took a flight from Singapore to Mauritius, and then was meant to catch a flight from Mauritius to Nairobi.  However, there was only ONE flight from Mauritius to Nairobi per week, and I missed it because our flight left Singapore late..  So, I spent an entire week in Mauritius on the airline's dime.  I stayed ON the beach, got 2 large meals per day, and had a good time for the most part.

 

Then I caught the next week's flight to Kenya, spent 3 weeks there with my parents.

 

Then I flew back from Kenya to the US the other way around, and spent a week in Rome and London on the return.

 

So, essentially yes, but before I was married.

[SKL]

So far I believe I've never done more than 2 continents in a single trip (not counting the US stops).

 

We've done a number of multi-country trips.  We usually only have 1.5-2 weeks max, so we usually only plan one long flight and then hop from one city to another by car, boat, train, or puddle jumper.

 

We are thinking maybe next Christmas of hitting some Pacific island (Fiji?), Japan, New Zealand, Australia, and perhaps India (for an Indian friend's milestone birthday).  If we wanted to make it "around the world," we could tack on a stop or two in Africa / Europe and then fly back over the Atlantic.  But as it is, it will be hard to squeeze those first 4 stops into my kids' 2-week Christmas vacation (while also doing Christmas and various year-end work).  It's a neat thought, but maybe one more suited to the retirement years.  :)

 

I'm not sure about the rich north African countries - I know they are very impressive rich countries, and I have friends who have traveled / lived there and raved about it.  But I'm not sure about safety nowadays.  We've been to Morocco, so we hit Africa, and I might just be satisfied with that for now.  :)

[Lawyer&Mom]

I did London-San Francisco-Tahiti-Tokyo-Beijing-Copenhagen-London. For cheaper than the price of London/San Francisco return.

 

I totally recommend it.

 

(We were living in London and met family for a week in Tahiti. The other stops were just a day or two each. Still really cool.)

[madteaparty]

I'm going to! With kids, we set out in January, SE Asia, Middle East, Africa, Europe and ending in Japan and China. if all goes well.

Edited June 15, 2017 by madteaparty

[mommyoffive]

I did London-San Francisco-Tahiti-Tokyo-Beijing-Copenhagen-London. For cheaper than the price of London/San Francisco return.

 

I totally recommend it.

 

(We were living in London and met family for a week in Tahiti. The other stops were just a day or two each. Still really cool.)

 

 

Wow, how did you do it for cheaper than going from london to san fran? 

[mommyoffive]

I'm going to! With kids, we set out in January, SE Asia, Middle East, Africa, Europe and ending in Japan and China. if all goes well.

 

Oh wow!

 

Amazing.

 

 

How long are you doing that trip in? 

[Lawyer&Mom]

Wow, how did you do it for cheaper than going from london to san fran?

It was over a decade ago, so I don't remember the specifics, but round the world tickets can be cheaper than long-haul return tickets.

 

We were expats at the time, using company paid home leave, so it may have been cheaper because the company would have otherwise bought full fare, fully refundable tickets.

Edited June 15, 2017 by Lawyer&Mom

[December]

Technically I have.  My husband and I started out in Singapore and made it as far as India before he couldn't handle travelling any longer (we had been gone 7 months and it was the very first time he had ever left the country) but our flight from India went the other way around, so it was still round the world even though the entire trip took place in south Asia.

[Tap]

Hangs head in shame.....I don't even have a passport.  LOL

[Lanny]

If you fly around the world flying Eastbound will be fewer hours in the air.

 

Sent from my SM-G355M using Tapatalk

[Guest]

Haven't done it, but it sounds like fun, if one could find the money and time. Looking at the deal site, though, my first thought was "if I could pick any 7 cities in a round-the-world trip, I'm not sure I'd choose those seven (London, Luxembourg, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, New York, Frankfurt)".

 

Then I spent the next few minutes daydreaming about what cities I would go to. Generally, I think the rule is you aren't allowed to backtrack -- So, thread-jacking, I'll ask the hive -- what 7 cities would you choose, without backtracking? And how long in each city?

I definitely would not attempt to do it in two weeks. I need enough time in one spot to feel like I have experienced the pulse of that place (not to mention, to overcome jetlag and other travel-related feelings of unwellness). I wouldn't do an Around the World trip unless I could spend a year doing it.

 

Why is everyone skipping South America entirely?

 

I would want to land in every continent (except Antarctica) and spend enough time in each place to really feel it, possibly even traveling by land in an area before the next leg of the trip. (IOW, if I'm in Europe, I would not stay in Frankfurt only and then fly to another continent; I would probably fly to London, take the tube to France, check out Italy and then fly out, say).

 

There are a lot of places I would love to go, all over the world.

[creekland]

There's no way I'd even want to do such a trip in two weeks.  All that expense and travel days for so little time actually seeing anything is not my idea of fun at all.  It'd be more like a nightmare - just a checklist of boxes saying BT without the DT.  We're wanderers, not sprinters.  Even just doing the American West we took one month (first trip) and two months (second trip) with an additional month in Hawaii and we feel those trips were rushed.  One month just in one state or one island is about right.

 

We're also different in that we tend to skip cities - far preferring to see scenic park/vista type areas.  We'd want waterfalls, mountains, beaches, unusual flora/fauna, and historical places.  Places like Bora Bora, Machu Picchu, Stonehenge, Victoria Falls, Iguazu Falls, Antarctica, Uluru, The Great Wall, The Stone Forest, Petra, Lake Baikal... I could keep typing forever.  Cities?  VERY limited interest - perhaps a museum or two.  Cities in Italy would probably rate highest for their history and art, but in a "design your own trip," even they wouldn't be there for first choices.  There are too many fascinating places to see first.

Edited June 15, 2017 by creekland

[madteaparty]

Oh wow!

 

Amazing.

 

 

How long are you doing that trip in?

We will be back late August so he can start high school. We spend uneven amounts of time in various places because we meet friends/family in certain places and are taken around by them.

[SemiSweet]

Why is everyone skipping South America entirely?

 

I was wondering the same thing...

 

I probably would not do it that way, two weeks, even a month just wouldn't be enough time, and those stops aren't very representative. For now, I satisfy wanderlust with an international trip every 1-2 years spending at least 4-5 days in each place, but in 9.5 years, dh and I will be taking off to live and travel on each continent for 2 years. So our trip will likely take 10-12 years. Of course, that's barring unforeseen circumstances but it's what we are working toward.

[marbel]

I haven't and most likely  never will.  I've not traveled much.

 

But honestly the itinerary in the 2nd link (London and back in 3 1/2 weeks) sounds like hell on earth to me.  So much jumping from place to place.  When I think of "traveling around the world" I think of spending time - more than just a few days - in a lot of different places.  A very long trip.  

 

Edited June 15, 2017 by marbel

[madteaparty]

I was wondering the same thing...

 

I probably would not do it that way, two weeks, even a month just wouldn't be enough time, and those stops aren't very representative. For now, I satisfy wanderlust with an international trip every 1-2 years spending at least 4-5 days in each place, but in 9.5 years, dh and I will be taking off to live and travel on each continent for 2 years. So our trip will likely take 10-12 years. Of course, that's barring unforeseen circumstances but it's what we are working toward.

Oh talking for myself, skipping South America and possibly India because the first we've done already and can be done on school summers, the second I want to coordinate with friends going home and it won't be this next year. Edited June 15, 2017 by madteaparty

[mommyoffive]

I think going around the world in 2-3 weeks would be fun.  We like to move sometimes.  Sometimes we like to stay put for a bit longer.  I think both have merit.   I think doing the trip for a year would also be awesome.   But I would rather do it for a few weeks than not at all.

 

And I think some people plan around the world trips to get onto every place that they can.   Other people must means it can be going around the actual earth.  

 

 

I am now really thinking of this. 

 

I kind of didn't think of it because I thought it would be lots, but it seems like you can do it for a good price. 

Edited June 15, 2017 by mommyoffive

[Guest]

There's no way I'd even want to do such a trip in two weeks. All that expense and travel days for so little time actually seeing anything is not my idea of fun at all. It'd be more like a nightmare - just a checklist of boxes saying BT without the DT. We're wanderers, not sprinters. Even just doing the American West we took one month (first trip) and two months (second trip) with an additional month in Hawaii and we feel those trips were rushed. One month just in one state or one island is about right.

 

We're also different in that we tend to skip cities - far preferring to see scenic park/vista type areas. We'd want waterfalls, mountains, beaches, unusual flora/fauna, and historical places. Places like Bora Bora, Machu Picchu, Stonehenge, Victoria Falls, Iguazu Falls, Antarctica, Uluru, The Great Wall, The Stone Forest, Petra, Lake Baikal... I could keep typing forever. Cities? VERY limited interest - perhaps a museum or two. Cities in Italy would probably rate highest for their history and art, but in a "design your own trip," even they wouldn't be there for first choices. There are too many fascinating places to see first.

Except for the fact that you are getting much more traveling done than I at this stage, your traveling mentality is very similar to mine. 😊

 

Even as I said in the recent thread about Niagara Falls, we spent a week at Niagara because I need to feel like I'm really experiencing a place. I would also not want to just buzz through London in a day and think I had been to England. And my dream for exploring the American West is to have no less than three months in an RV, traveling about. I want to see how people like to eat and how they call things by different names (i.e., Sprite is "lemonade"). I want to see what the shops sell and how people interact. You can't do that if you're just checking seven cities off a list and spending a hundred hours on airplanes.

[marbel]

There's no way I'd even want to do such a trip in two weeks.  All that expense and travel days for so little time actually seeing anything is not my idea of fun at all.  It'd be more like a nightmare - just a checklist of boxes saying BT without the DT.  We're wanderers, not sprinters.  Even just doing the American West we took one month (first trip) and two months (second trip) with an additional month in Hawaii and we feel those trips were rushed.  One month just in one state or one island is about right.

 

<snip>

 

One of the ways my husband and I knew we were compatible was our traveling style.  We just preferred to see fewer places but really see them, rather than just flying through lots of places.  

 

When our family went to England and Scotland for a month several years ago, people were appalled at how little we saw (by their estimation).  A whole week in London without taking day trips to Bath or Stratford?  Why would you spend 1.5 days in the British Museum?  Why did you take all that time to go to Lewis (Outer Hebrides) when there's "nothing" there?  In the end, we felt like we actually overplanned and spent too much time driving.  

 

It can be hard not to say "oh, we're close to X, we should add that in" but ultimately we are happy when we don't succumb to that temptation.

[Pam in CT]

My brother & family lived in Singapore for 15+ years, which is almost exactly on the other side of the globe from us; and on several visits we ended up doing RTW tickets just because it worked out cheaper.  That's not seeing the world, though.

 

We did a travel year as a family, with a RTW ticket focused on the Southern Hemisphere - I think the RTW part went Johannesburg, Miami, Quito (Ecuador), Lima (Peru), Santiago (Chile), Auckland (NZ), Sydney (Australia -- we then did the world's longest road trip and flew out from Cairns), Singapore, Dublin.  We did spurs off that to a couple of other places and ate the final leg of the ticket back to South Africa.

 

We took ten months to do it, though.  I personally wouldn't much enjoy jamming more than 2 countries into 2 weeks, despite my checklist enthusiasm, lol.

 

Haven't done it, but it sounds like fun, if one could find the money and time.  Looking at the deal site, though, my first thought was "if I could pick any 7 cities in a round-the-world trip, I'm not sure I'd choose those seven  (London, Luxembourg, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, New York, Frankfurt)".

 

Then I spent the next few minutes daydreaming about what cities I would go to.  Generally, I think the rule is you aren't allowed to backtrack -- So, thread-jacking, I'll ask the hive -- what 7 cities would you choose, without backtracking?  And how long in each city?

 

Ahhhh......

 

My kind of daydream...

 

There's the vaguely-rooted-in-reality daydream, that actually starts at a major airline hub and does more-or-less direct links between more-or-less major cities on existing airline alliance routes, that could conceivably be feasible for a real-life RTW ticket.  That version would go something like:

 

Los Angeles (just because this is the reality-based version and I happen to know that IRL the only direct NY-Sing flight goes the other direction, so I need to start on the West Coast) - 3 days

Singapore (we've been many times, so, 2 days)

Istanbul (Turkey) - ~10 days (we've never been.  I'm not sure I'd really want to take my kids NOW, but I desperately do want to go.)

Amman (Jordan) - ~7 days (Amman, Petra, Wadi Rum)

Rome (Italy) - ~3 weeks (Rome, Florence, Umbria, a week in a rented house in some little Tuscan village)

Amsterdam - (I've been many times, and the kids once, so 3 days)

Reykjavik (Iceland) - ~2 weeks (circle the island, hike the thermo-wonders)

 

(return to New York)

 

So that's like, what, 10 weeks in total?

 

 

 

Then there's the completely unfettered version of the fantasy, which has nothing to with IRL airline patterns or IRL time constraints, or the preferences of any of my family members lol, and is built solely on what *I'd* like to see and what *I'd* like to do there:

 

start in New York

 

La Paz (Bolivia) - 2 weeks, 1 traveling around and 1 homestay

Buenos Aires (Argentina) - 4 weeks taking buses around in all different directions, doing homestays & language school in several locations

Windhoek (Namibia... then cross border by land fly out from Livingstone, Zimbabwe) - 4 weeks, 3/1 in Namibia / Victoria Falls region

Colombo (Sri Lanka) - 10 days

Katmandu (Nepal) - 10 days mostly trekking

Yangon (Myanmar/Burma) - 2 weeks

 

(return to New York)

 

So that's 15 weeks.

 

Ahhh... now I have a smile on my face....

 

 

 

 

I'm going to! With kids, we set out in January, SE Asia, Middle East, Africa, Europe and ending in Japan and China. if all goes well.

You're doing it!!!   :party: Mazel tov!

[shawthorne44]

I haven't myself, but while doing the college Europe tour, I did talk to several that were in the middle of one.   The people I talked to had worked in Asia, mostly Japan for a year or two, then bought a round-the-world ticket in order to travel and get home.  These tickets were standby only seating, no backtracking, and they expired in a year.  Everyone I talked to said that they spent too long in India because it was cheap and wonderful, and were rushing through Europe before their tickets expired.  

[Lanny]

A few years ago, my favorte Singer/Band did some concerts in Japan and China (on 3 or 4 separate trips). They are based in the Dominican Republic.  I remember thinking how it would be faster for them, if they could fly Nonstop, from say Tokyo or Beijing, to New York and then go down to Santo Domingo.  Probably that would have cost more than a "Round-Trip" fare, where they returned to Europe and then to Santo Domingo, flying Westbound, which requires more time in the air due to the prevailing winds.  

 

I had read about "Round the World" airline fares years ago. I doubt that many airline reservation people or Travel Agents know about them. 

[Farrar]

I haven't, but I've been curious to do it. I've done that crazy Amtrak thing where you go cross country (years ago - it was excellent but sort of rough and I can't imagine doing it as an adult). And I've been all over the world, but not at once.

 

I can't decide if it would be excellent or totally grueling. Thrice in my life I've done monthlong trips - the first time I went to China, with dh and we traveled all around, the month or so I spent on my own bumming around Malaysia and Thailand, and the month dh and the kids and I spent in southern Africa - mostly Namibia, though we went to Victoria Falls and to a few places in South Africa. The China trip was beyond grueling. It was a long time ago and travel in China was a good bit rougher then. Dh and I both got sick - presumably from the constant spitting (this is much better most places now). Thailand and Malaysia on my own though was excellent - I was so chill the whole time. And I still sort of dream of how relaxed Namibia was with the kids. Like, I have this very crisp memory of sitting by the pool, which was hilariously next to a waterhole (there was some greenery and a fence thing separating them) in a sort of resort that was literally cut off from everything (the roads had all flooded). And I swear, we all had no cares. The kids were running around, in and out of the water, reading books (Bone, I recall, and Mushroom had a book of classic condensed stories for boys). It was beyond perfect. I could have stayed another month.

 

So... I don't know. Travel for longer is intimidating, but attractive. I have a friend who is doing it with her brood in a couple of years. They're very excited.

[Rosie_0801]

 Sydney (Australia -- we then did the world's longest road trip and flew out from Cairns), 

 

Why are you calling *that* the world's longest road trip?  :huh:

[madteaparty]

Because I can't multi-quote: to Pam, yes I think so, unless some disaster strikes between now and then. I'm taking your advice and planning one region/approx 10 weeks at a time, otherwise it gets too overwhelming. It helps that we know people almost everywhere (not every country, but most regions).

To farrar, I think it's about equally grueling/thrilling. I've been surprised to have to summon quite the energy to just plan this, and it's not like I haven't travelled with my kids before.

Edited June 15, 2017 by madteaparty

[Ravin]

Only technically. I was stationed on a ship forward deployed from Japan in the Navy, so flew from California to Japan to join the ship. When I left the ship, it was in the North Arabian Sea, having sailed there from Japan, and I flew home, by helicopter to Bahrain, and commercial flight from Bahrain to Kuwait to Amsterdam (the Amsterdam Airport constitutes the entirety of my visits to Europe) to L.A.X. So, I've been all the way around the world, but it wasn't a "world tour" as such.

 

As for seven cities....Dublin, Sydney, Ulaanbaatar, Timbuktu, Beijing, Cape Town (South Africa), and Rio would do it for me. 

[Pam in CT]

Why are you calling *that* the world's longest road trip?  :huh:

 

 

:lol:

 

 

OK, I take your point, there are longer trips.  I guess our problem was that we somehow didn't expect it to be quite as long as it turned out to be.  When you sit in America staring at a world  map, it looks like a hop skip and a jump, Sydney to Cairns.  It's only, like, three inches on a map!  Planning fail.

 

(It was, nevertheless, massively fun.  Australia is awesome, folks.)

[DawnM]

Skipping South America?  For me, it wasn't really skipping, it just wasn't where I had friends/family/reason to go.

 

I have been to Argentina and Central America in the past.  I would like to visit Costa Rica someday.

 

There are 2 continents I haven't been to yet are Australia and Antarctica.  I think one of those I will never visit.  

[Guest]

Skipping South America? For me, it wasn't really skipping, it just wasn't where I had friends/family/reason to go.

 

I have been to Argentina and Central America in the past. I would like to visit Costa Rica someday.

 

There are 2 continents I haven't been to yet are Australia and Antarctica. I think one of those I will never visit.

The first time I ever saw an ad for taking a "trip around the world," I found a link almost identical to the one in the OP. I remember how crestfallen I was: This is a trip around the world? Well, why stop in any cities at all? It just made no sense to me. Taking a "trip around the world" does not strike me as something where you simply circumnavigate the globe and take a few day trips in different locations. The connotation of it, to me, is spending a meaningful amount of time on all the continents with actual cultures in them. There are lots of places in south or central America I would personally want to see for sure, if I was taking a trip of such magnitude.