How to Prepare to Travel the World

Are you planning to put everything aside and travel the world? Do you want to meet new people, see new sights, taste a wide variety of foods from around the world and create unforgettable memories? This quick step by step guide is just for you. From planning and researching your trip to packing tips and finances, we have it all covered right here for you.

1) Research & Plan Your Trip

Many travelers have the perception that traveling the world requires an elaborate plan. On the contrary, we recommend travelers take an impromptu trip because some of the best moments in travel are those that are not planned. Without an extensive plan, the trip feels like a real adventure. It is a good idea to have a rough itinerary planned including a short list of must-sees for each place you plan to visit.

Lonely Planet and other travel guide sites can be a great starting point. But making friends everywhere you go always works for the best travel tips. And don’t pass on visiting the local tourist information office.

Wherever you visit, accept recommendations on the fly and just try and be wherever you are. Instead of seeking out all the landmarks to get photos, take some time to wander – there is so much to learn and discover about those places. Coming back with pictures and no experiences from those world-famous landmarks won’t satisfy you.

Most of your research time should be spent on visas. Many visas can be obtained when you set foot in the destination country while others require you to apply well beforehand. Check out the State Department’s website for country specific visa information.

2) See Your Doctor

Before you go, make sure you see your primary care physician and tell him you’re about to travel the world. Get an overall checkup and get your routine vaccines up to date. Vaccinations might sound painful, but there are places in the world that require you to have certain shots before you can enter the country. And if you are traveling to areas like South America or Africa, you’ll want to ask your doctor about a Malaria and Yellow Fever shot.

If you take prescription drugs, especially narcotics and psychotropics, you should do some research about the laws in the countries you plan to visit. Finding the regulations for each destination can be a daunting task, a good tip is to reach out to the embassies and consulates in those countries for advice.

3) Plan Your Finances

Travel medical insurance is a must-have. In the event of an unexpected injury or illness, you’ll be glad you have it. Depending on your age, you can get insurance for less than a dollar a day. Most international insurance carriers have a large network of providers which means you won’t have to pay out of pocket for treatment.

It can be dangerous to carry a lot of cash while traveling. But in many places, ATM’s can be unreliable and have too little cash is also a problem. It’s wise to have someone back home (like a parent) that can access your bank account and wire you money in an emergency. Carry both a MasterCard and a Visa card because, despite what the ads say, they’re not universally accepted.

4) What to Pack

We advise travelers to pack light and buy what you need as you go if your financial situation allows. Do take with you fast drying clothes that you can wash in the hotel sink and hang to dry by morning. Buy good socks and two pairs of high-quality walking shoes. The Savvy Backpacker has an excellent packing guide for both men and women travelers.

You should also have two copies of your passport and other important travel documents. Take one set with you and leave the other back home. Losing your passport overseas can cost you a lot of time and money in delays.

Among your everyday clothes, take one nice outfit for dressing up to attend the theater, concert, or a wedding (you’re going to make friends while you travel the world, right?).

Packing for different climates will just increase your load, and you’ll often wonder why you’re hauling all that extra stuff around. When leaving one climate for another for an extended period, consider making a gift of your things or ask friends to store them and ship them to you if and when you need them.

5) Keep a Journal (or a Blog, Instagram)

It’s a good idea to keep a journal or put your world travel experiences online via a blog or social media platform like Instagram. If you’re not the most tech-savvy person, don’t worry! Blogging platforms like WordPress and Tumblr are super simple to set up, and you can be making digital entries within minutes.

Whether you go old school or new school, a major roadblock for most is what to write. Don’t stress over it, whenever you have a great experience, make an entry.  Start small and build from there, the more you write, the easier it’ll become. Eventually, you’ll find your voice, and you’ll look forward to your updates.

Other things to include in your journal or blog may include your itinerary, a plotted map of your travels and photographs. You can also add tickets, bottle labels, clippings from local papers, receipts, etc.

Ready, Set, Go!

When you set out to travel the world, do it with all your heart. Explore more of the world, the different cultures, languages, people. Whether you are traveling to Europe, South America, Australia, Asia or all of the above, make sure you have a great time and make some wonderful memories that you will cherish forever.

Whether you’re looking to detox from technology or simply find some inner peace, these destinations are sure to deliver.

Need a break from the chaos of everyday life? Imagine escaping to a place where time stands still, and the only sounds you hear are the gentle rustling of leaves or the soothing waves of a serene ocean. Sounds like heaven, right? You’re in luck! There are some incredibly peaceful countries around the world that are perfect for a relaxing vacation. Let’s explore some of the most tranquil destinations on the planet where you can unwind, recharge and rediscover yourself. Whether you’re looking to detox from technology or simply find some inner peace, these destinations are sure to deliver.

Here Are 6 Of The Most Peaceful Countries In The World:

1. Iceland

According to the 2024 Global Peace Index, Iceland is the most peaceful country in the world. From the Northern Lights to the majestic glaciers and geothermal hot springs, Iceland’s unique landscapes will soothe your soul and rejuvenate your senses. As you explore this country, you’ll discover a world of wonder.

2. New Zealand

At number four on the list is New Zealand, which is a haven of untouched wilderness, stunning fjords and pristine beaches. With its laid-back vibe and epic scenery, this island nation is perfect for hiking, biking or simply soaking up the sun. Here, you can experience the great outdoors like never before.

3. Ireland

There’s a certain magic to Ireland that will capture your heart. Perhaps it’s the warm hospitality of the Irish people, the rich history and culture or the beauty of the Emerald Isle’s landscapes. Whatever it is, Ireland will leave you feeling enchanted and eager to return. It’s ranked number two on the 2024 Global Peace Index list.

4. Austria

For a taste of old-world grandeur, look no further than Austria, which is ranked number three on the list. This country of majestic palaces, opera houses and picturesque villages is ideal for history buffs. The soothing sounds of Mozart’s music and the grandeur of Austria’s architecture will transport you to an ancient era.

5. Switzerland

Another country you must visit is Switzerland. Located in the heart of Europe, the Swiss Alps provide a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts, with majestic mountains and lush valleys to explore. Once you experience the beauty of this country, you’ll find it hard to leave. In case you’re wondering, it holds a ranking of number six.

6. Singapore

In the midst of urban chaos, Singapore offers a surprising haven of peace. The Gardens by the Bay, the Botanic Gardens and the city’s many green spaces provide a serene escape from the hustle and bustle of city life. You can discover the unique blend of Asian cultures and delicious cuisine. Singapore is ranked at number five in the list.

You’re ready to book your next holiday, and you’re aware of the importance of minimising your travel footprint. But where do you begin?

If you’re stumped, you’re not alone. A new Booking.com report found sustainability is important to 84% of global travellers. But while the desire to travel greener is strong, the path to eco-tourism is unclear for many. A Trip.com study found that nearly half of travellers are confused about what sustainable travel actually means, while a 2025 World Travel & Tourism Council report revealed that cost is a major barrier.

With global tourism bouncing back and environmental pressures intensifying, 2025 is a crucial year to rethink how we travel. Here are some simple, practical ways to make more impactful travel choices this year – without sacrificing joy or comfort on the road.

1. Choose trips that give back

As you plan your holidays for 2025 and beyond, experts recommend asking yourself whether you want to be a passive tourist or a visitor who makes a positive impact on the destination. A regenerative-focused trip could involve hands-on conservation at an Ecuadorian ecolodge or choosing an Australian hiking experience helping to revive Aboriginal culture. Fiji’s new Loloma Hour encourages travellers to dedicate at least one hour of their stay to a positive environmental, cultural or social impact activity, while Hawaii’s Mālama experiences encourage visitors to give back to the environment and local communities through habitat restoration, beach cleanups and more.

“We must do better than just sustain travel,” said David Leventhal, eco-hotel owner and co-founder of Regenerative Travel, a leading provider of educational courses aimed at transforming the travel industry into a force for positive change. “We must reverse damage, and regenerate working at a whole systems level to integrate people and planet better.”

2. Think beyond the environment

In 2025, travellers are increasingly aware of the social and cultural impacts of tourism, with Booking.com’s 2025 Travel & Sustainability Report showing for the first time that more than half of global travellers are aware of tourism’s impact on local communities as well as the environment. With overtourism protests – which are already ramping up in 2025 – and unaffordable housing in popular destinations, there’s a growing call to be more mindful about how, when and where we travel.

That’s not to say that the environmental elements of sustainable travel are less important – reducing carbon emissions and plastic are as important as ever,” says Dr Susanne Becken, professor of sustainable tourism at Australia’s Griffith University, “but the growth of tourism is putting more and more pressure on communities to a point where some tourism hotspots don’t want to engage with it anymore.”

Steering clear of popular destinations at peak times, being more respectful of local cultures and people, hiring local and Indigenous guides and purchasing more mindfully – from accommodation to souvenirs – can all help to reduce pressure on communities. “Remember that the destination you are visiting is someone’s home,” says Becken.

Looking for immersive, community-based travel? Nepal’s Community Homestay Network has launched three new “community circuits” for 2025, including an itinerary traversing little-visited eastern Nepal; while a new Intrepid Travel trip offers an opportunity to engage with Indigenous elders on a journey to Colombia’s “Lost City”. From visiting a Thai island that has taken sustainability into its own hands to experiencing life in a groundbreaking Swedish town, there are now countless opportunities to visit communities in responsible and regenerative ways.

3. Hold hotels to higher standards

Hotels and other holiday accommodations contribute a large proportion of the CO2 emitted by the tourism sector – but better options are emerging. The world’s first carbon-positive hotel, Populus, opened in the US in 2024; and IHG launched its first branded net-zero hotel in the UK in March 2025, voco Zeal Exeter Science Park.

In South Africa, Few & Far Luvhondo, which opened in January 2025, is among an increasing number of safari lodges prioritising sustainable innovation and eco-tourism. This zero-waste, renewable energy-powered lodge is working to rewild 50,000 hectares of highly degraded land in the Soutpansberg mountains – and even has Africa’s first solar-powered cable-car experience.

But you don’t need a luxury safari lodge budget to make more sustainable accommodation choices. A network of UK hiking “hotels” offers free, minimal-impact stays, while Earthships in the US offer unique net-zero accommodation. In Europe, social impact-driven affordable accommodation provider The Social Hub opened a new hotel in Rome in March 2025, with another due to open in Porto this year.

Becken recommends checking for international certification (like B Corp, EarthCheck, Green Globe and Green Key), which indicate a company is committed to energy efficiency and mindful consumption, and cares about how its people are treated. In the absence of certification, which can be financially challenging for small businesses to obtain, check the property’s website for a meaningful sustainability policy encompassing environmental and social initiatives, or contact them directly to ask. The same approach can be taken with tour operators.

4. Consider the journey as well as the destination

Many destinations are making it easier for travellers to minimise their impact when they arrive, via initiatives like zero-waste dining, electric safaris – or even decarbonising their entire visitor economies.

But while destinations are getting greener, getting there often isn’t. Air travel remains one of the most carbon-intensive parts of tourism, and Becken notes that “sustainable” aviation fuels alone cannot solve aviation’s soaring emissions.

In good news for rail travel enthusiasts, there are a slew of new opportunities in 2025 to take a memorable – and lower-impact – route to your destination. In Australia, the Indian Pacific has extended its journey from Perth to Sydney to five days with new off-train experiences on each leg; while La Dolce Vita Orient Express, Italy’s first homegrown luxury train, made its inaugural journey from Rome to the Tuscan hill town of Montalcino in April. Expected to be completed in 2025, Portugal’s Evora-to-Elvas route is the first link in a high-speed network that will eventually connect Madrid to Lisbon in three hours; and a renewed version of the legendary Orient Express carrying passengers between Istanbul and Paris, is due to roll in 2026, along with a new Budapest-to-Belgrade line.

When you do need to fly, choose low-emissions flights with the help of booking platforms like Google Flights, which displays the average emissions for each route. Booking economy seats and prioritising direct flights also reduces emissions. Can’t stand cabin wastage? Air New Zealand, Alaska Airlines, LATAM and SAS are just a few airlines that have taken meaningful steps to reduce single-use plastic on flights. And while carbon-offsetting your flights through verified schemes does not undo the damage, many experts agree it’s better than doing nothing at all.

5. Be curious and connect deeply

Anthony Bourdain famously said that “travel is not a reward for working, it is education for living”. It’s a great philosophy for sustainable travel – and one of the most sustainable ways to learn more about the place you are visiting is to book an Indigenous-led tour.

Record demand for First Nations experiences in Australia has coincided with the launch of new tours for 2025, including a Byron Bay storytelling walk that offers a powerful way to connect with one of Australia’s most popular coastal holiday destinations. Native and First Nation tourism is also booming in North America, with the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association naming Oklahoma’s Chickasaw Cultural Center, which offers guided tours and a daily stomp dance demonstration, as the best cultural heritage experience for 2025.

Meanwhile, citizen science and hands-on conservation activities also allow travellers to engage with destinations on a deeper level. New for 2025, Natural Habitat Adventures’ Kenya Rhino Conservation Safari includes behind-the-scenes talks with conservationists in three leading private conservancies; while Aurora Expeditions, the world’s first major expedition cruise line to gain B Corp certification, recently added Eyesea, a platform designed to map global pollution and maritime hazards, to its robust citizen science programme.

6. Harness the apps

Calculating the carbon footprint of your travels is a great way to track your impact (try the University of California, Berkeley’s CoolClimate Calculator). But there are many other ways in which apps can help. Find new ways to immerse in nature with AllTrails, which features more than 450,000 trails across the globe including its top 25 trails to explore in 2025; and discover plant-based dining options around the world with Happy Cow, which named London as its number one vegan-friendly city for 2025. Connecting travellers with more than 800,000 drinking water sources worldwide, Droply makes it easy to avoid plastic water bottles.

And while social media has often been blamed for contributing to overtourism and other issues, research shows it can also be used as a force for good to share positive sustainable travel experiences. Did you enjoy a visit to Vilnius, the European Green Capital for 2025? Share it with your followers and inspire others to go.

7. Learn to spot greenwashing

Deceptive sustainability claims – known as greenwashing – have become increasingly prevalent in the tourism industry as businesses try to capitalise on growing demand for eco-tourism. In 2024, major airlines including Air France, Etihad, Lufthansa and Qantas were accused of making misleading sustainability claims, and Booking.com dropped its Travel Sustainable programme after regulatory backlash.

“New legislation adopted by Europe [called the Green Claims Directive] will make it much harder for companies to greenwash, and I think we will see that roll out globally,” says Becken. Until then, it’s on consumers to stay sharp. Use resources like Sustainable Travel International’s guide to avoiding greenwashing in tourism – and “don’t underestimate the value of guest reviews”, says Leventhal. “Platforms like Google offer honest insights into whether a property or tourism experience truly lives up to its promises.”

8. Leverage your privilege

Recognising the privilege to travel freely, as only a small percentage of the world’s population is able to do, is the first step in making travel a force for good. Privilege gives travellers the power to spend our travel money on experiences that are good for people and the planet, from choosing animal-friendly experiences to ensuring activities we participate in keep vulnerable children safe and don’t exploit culture or communities. It can be argued that privilege doesn’t only come with power, but also a responsibly to pay it forward.

Tired of jet lag? These pro tips will have you feeling fresh on arrival.

The modern world of international travel comes with a peculiar challenge that can derail even the most seasoned travellers: jet lag. As our bodies struggle to align with new time zones, we often find ourselves fighting fatigue, mood swings and disrupted sleep patterns.

However, recent research suggests that with the right approach, we can significantly reduce these effects and adapt more quickly to new time zones. Jet lag occurs when rapid travel across time zones disrupts our circadian rhythm—the body’s internal clock that regulates our sleep-wake cycle.”

As Dr Sarah L Mednick, Sleep Researcher and a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of California in Irvine stated, “Our circadian rhythms are finely tuned to our environment and when we travel across time zones, we essentially disrupt this delicate system. Understanding how to navigate this disruption can make all the difference.”

While this disruption affects everyone differently, the impact tends to worsen with age. The good news is that we can implement strategic interventions to minimise jet lag’s effects by understanding the science behind our body’s timing system.

The direction matters

Varun Shetty, Co-Founder, Director and High-Performance Coach at Invictus Performance Lab, shared, “One crucial factor in managing jet lag is travel direction. Eastward travel typically poses a greater challenge than westward travel. This asymmetry exists because most people find it easier to stay awake later than to fall asleep earlier. When travelling east, you’re essentially asking your body to compress its natural day, while westward travel extends it.”

The power of pre-travel preparation

For eastbound flights, Varun Shetty suggested, “Preparation should begin at least two days before departure. The key is to gradually shift your wake time 30-45 minutes earlier each day. This adjustment should be accompanied by immediate exposure to bright light upon waking, early caffeine consumption, and morning exercise within 60 minutes of rising. These three elements—light, caffeine, and physical activity—work together to shift your internal clock.”

Dr Phyllis C Zee, a leading expert in circadian rhythm research, emphasised this and noted, “Preparing for a trip isn’t just about packing bags; it’s about preparing our bodies for a smoother transition into new time zones. Simple adjustments to sleep and light can significantly lessen the impact of jet lag.”

Varun Shetty revealed, “Westbound travellers face an easier adjustment but can still benefit from preparation. The strategy here involves delaying daily routines by 30-45 minutes, including wake time, caffeine intake, and exercise. Additionally, exposure to bright artificial light in the evening helps prepare the body for later bedtimes.”

The temperature minimum: Your circadian navigation tool

Varun Shetty highlighted, “A critical yet lesser-known factor in combating jet lag is understanding your temperature minimum—the point in the 24-hour cycle when your body temperature is at its lowest. This typically occurs about two hours before your natural wake time. By managing light exposure around this crucial period, you can effectively reset your internal clock.”

He advised, “For eastward travel, seek bright light exposure one to two hours after your temperature minimum (based on your home time zone). Conversely, for westward travel, light exposure should occur one to two hours before your temperature minimum. This timing is critical—getting it wrong can worsen jet lag symptoms rather than alleviate them.”

Strategies upon arrival: Adapting faster

Once you have reached your destination, certain practices can accelerate adaptation as per Varun Shetty –

• Align Meal Times: Following the local meal schedule helps regulate your body clock. Fasting for 14- 16 hours before your first meal in the new time zone can also aid adjustment.
• Use Portable Light Devices: When natural sunlight is unavailable, bright light therapy devices (5,000-10,000 lux) can mimic daylight to help reset your circadian rhythm.
• Block Blue Light in the Evening: Wearing red-lens glasses or using apps that filter blue light can promote melatonin production, aiding restful sleep.
• Engage in Regular Exercise: Morning physical activity in your new time zone reinforces your body’s alignment with local time. Even a short walk can positively impact your circadian adjustment.

Busting jet lag myths

Reaching for a glass of wine or pop a sleeping pill during your flight might be tempting but these quick fixes often backfire. Varun Shetty explained, “Alcohol can leave you dehydrated and disrupt your sleep, making recovery harder once you land. Sleeping pills, on the other hand, can cause grogginess and throw off your internal clock even more. Instead, keep it simple—stay hydrated, get the right amount of light exposure, and incorporate small activities like stretching or walking to ease the transition into a new time zone.”

Making jet lag a thing of the past

Varun Shetty concluded, “Jet lag doesn’t have to put a damper on your travel plans. By tapping into the science of your body’s internal clock, you can take proactive steps to feel energised and ready, no matter where you land. Small adjustments, like managing your light exposure, timing your meals, and using travel-friendly tech, can make a world of difference.”

For frequent travellers—whether jetting off for work or a dream vacation—managing jet lag isn’t just helpful; it’s essential. These simple, science-backed strategies can help you leave jet lag behind and focus on enjoying both the journey and the destination.