How is a journey for two different from ordinary relationships? If you believe romantic comedies, then there’s just nothing extraordinary, only a thousand times more kisses and there is a chance that someone will make an offer. In fact, traveling in a special way aggravates emotions and heats up stress, so you can start quarreling even at the airport , and during checking in at the hotel you can wish your partner a long and painful death. We tell you how to plan a round-the-world trip having fun, avoiding murder charges and save money using flight business class cheap.
? The main tips before the start
When you meet your girlfriend after work and spend holidays with her it is one thing. But to be together twenty-four/seven in stressful conditions is a real test for your love. How to pass it with flying colors?]
Don’t let each other go hungry (and get enough sleep)
To mentally break down is much easier when you die of hunger. In English, there is an excellent word describing such a condition – hangry, hungry and angry together. Food will make it easier to survive the need to complain about the lack of air conditioning in the room and other troubles. The same does for sleep.
Discuss your expectations in advance
There are two main ways to plan travel entertainment: firstly, you can discuss them in advance and agree on everything honestly and openly. And secondly, you can find out that the partner is not really going to keep you company on trips to museums and quarrel on this basis until the flight home. Choose the one you consider the most rational.
Agree on a budget
It’s better to negotiate the money before the trip. Tell each other how much money you plan to spend and how you will share the costs. Will you share bills for food or go Dutch? Will you have a shared or split budget? What will the souvenirs be? What major purchases would you like to make?
? A round-the-world for two – a challenge and an adventure
Now let’s proceed to some practical pieces of advice on how to plan a real journey all over the globe and get back safe and sound.
How to make a route
There are many definitions of a journey around the world. The most common of them says that a trip is considered to be around the world if its route “goes around the earth’s axis and ends at the starting point.” There are also variations – for example, that you need to cross the equator twice, visit both hemispheres, or visit all continents.
Many also include additional conditions – for example, traveling only in visa-free countries or with only $100 in your pocket. We would not recommend following the theory blindly in everything. First of all, you should focus on your preferences, budget and available time. For example, to build your route to the places that you have long dreamed of visiting (the North Caucasus, Elbrus, the Far East, Alaska, Greenland, the Faroe Islands), and through those regions where you would like to return (Iceland, Norway). Add transit points to the list because there are some places traveling through which will make the route simpler (Denmark, Georgia, South Korea, Hawaii). At the same time, avoid those countries and regions that you have recently visited, and concentrate on the corners of the planet that have not yet been explored.
Preparing
Experienced travelers start getting ready for a round-the-world tour sometimes two years in advance: during this time you should study the route network of airlines in detail, assess the average cost of tickets to the necessary destinations, and subscribe to the mailing list of carriers. Air tickets should be bought gradually, and six months before the start, 80% of them should be booked. After the purchase, continue to monitor the situation and keep statistics.
As a result, if you book everything, ‘et’s say, two months before the trip, you can spend two and a half times more. For example, the cost of a flight across the Atlantic from Anchorage to Reykjavik by Icelandair with a flight in the summer season rose from $ 200 in December to $ 1,000 if bought one week before the expected date.
Route difficulties
When drawing up a route, you will have to face two main problems: how to fly over the Pacific Ocean on a budget and how to save crossing the Atlantic. Most people are frightened by the visa issue, so they try to avoid the United States, because of which the cost of the trip can increase significantly. If you still want to minimize costs, you should prepare for an interview at the American Consulate, because it’s cheaper to cross the Pacific through US airports – flights from China, South Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Japan to San Francisco, Seattle, Los Angeles, Auckland and other cities. You can cross the Pacific Ocean through Oceania (there are flights from Australia and New Zealand to Chile and Argentina), but you need to be prepared that getting visas from these countries is not easier, and air tickets here are many times more expensive.
We would not recommend buying the so-called round-the-world tours offered by airline alliances, because in this case you will be tied to certain carriers and routes. In addition, their cost is unprofitable.
List of things
Here it is not much different from the usual list of things needed for a short trip: first-aid kit, personal hygiene items, comfortable shoes, clothes for cool and warm weather. There are a few things that you personally may want to grab. The first is binoculars or a thermos. Thirdly, a good camera with a photo-lens. After all, without a camera with a focal length of 70-200, traveling makes no sense. Yes, it’s heavy. But if you plan to take pictures, then you need to have good equipment.
Do not delay preparation until the last moment
After all, the more time you spend on gathering at home, the less time will be spent on organizational issues in the journey itself. It is worth studying the rules for processing and applying for visas. It is better to do everything yourself, unless, of course, we are talking about complex visas.
For example, there are countries where it is difficult to obtain a visa without intermediaries – for example, Turkmenistan, Bhutan or Japan. There are also states where it is still easier to get a visa through intermediaries because of the low cost of their services (China) or their countries where it is impossible to get a visa without buying a tour (DPRK).
Moreover, like airline tickets, visas can be issued in advance. For example, an American visa is issued for 3 years from the date of application, a British visa lasts six months. With a good visa history, some Schengen countries issue visas for a year (Czech Republic, Lithuania, the Netherlands – with two Schengen visas), for two years (Italy and Spain), and even for five years (France). Some countries have significantly simplified the procedure for submitting documents by making an electronic visa (Mexico, India, Australia).
Security issues
They should be approached very carefully, for example, you can hide documents and cards into different bags and pockets. The contents of the bag may fall out if you do not fast the zipper properly. Or you might get robbed. Surprisingly, this can happen anywhere, from Alaska to the favelas of Rio de Janeiro and the most civilized countries. It is for such cases that it is better to put the valuable stuff in different places so as not to lose everything at once.
How to keep costs to a minimum
In some regions, it is useful and interesting to use the Couchsurfing service, which allows you to live with local residents for free. It is also worth paying attention to hostels because sometimes they are more comfortable than hotels for the same price. You can also save on moving from the airport to the city center: often special shuttles and express trains are much more expensive than regular public transport or even a taxi. In the Hawaiian Islands, for example, it is forbidden to ride a city bus with a suitcase, but with Uber, traveling is several times cheaper than other taxi services.
? The benefits of traveling in a couple
This helps to kill several birds with one stone in a short time. Firstly, to see the maximum number of seemingly inaccessible places, such as mountain villages in North Ossetia with off-road crossings and along gorges between them. Secondly, you can live in comfortable houses that are cheaper to rent for several people (in Norway and Iceland). To rent such a house for one person would be ruinous. Thirdly – feel the real extreme. For example, spending the night at the highest mountain hotel in Europe at the top of Elbrus alone would be much worse than with your loved one.
You will create memories for the rest of your life!
Travel around the world is a story about real nature. These are huge pieces of ice in Greenland that break off with a roar, raising a wave. These are numerous grizzly bears along the bay near Juneau in Alaska and whales near the northern waters of Greenland. A trip round-the-world is a real history lesson. These are endless conversations with fellow travelers and, perhaps, the very freedom that some dream of and others do not even imagine.