FIN. (and thanks for all the fish)
Aug 23, 2016, 1:54 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: anywhere and everywhere
Programs: UA GS, AS MVP 100K, DL Diamond, Marriot Lifetime Titanium, AmEx Centurion
Posts: 5,523
FIN. (and thanks for all the fish)
So, this is it. In just about a week I will board an IcelandAir flight and takeoff for Reykjavik, Iceland. Iceland will be my 196th, and final country in the world to visit!
Of course, that would be far too easy after the logistics of planning the first 195 countries! As a brief history, what led up to this point:
First off, the journey has covered approximately 2.4 million miles to this point and a total of 157 airlines. When mapped, it looks something like this:
As of 1988, I had visited five countries: The US, Canada, Mexico, the UK, and the Soviet Union.
By 2000, that list had only increased to 11, taking in France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and South Africa.
From there, things started going faster:
2002: 16 countries, including first trip to Asia
2003: 23 countries, including first trip to Central America (Costa Rica)
2004: 31 countries, including Australia
2005: 34 countries, including being part of the first group of Americans to visiting North Korea in decades
2006: 41 countries, including lots of South America
2007: 55 countries, including a big trip around the Middle East
2008: 65 countries
2009: 72 countries, including most of Europe and Southeast Asia complete
2010: 81 countries, includiong Afghanistan
2011: 102 countries, including my first RTW trip
2012: 130 countries, with about half of the new ones in Africa
2013: 149 countries, including several trips to Africa and Central Asia
2014: 171 countries, notably Syria, Nauru, and Angola
2015: 185 countries, finally visiting Yemen, CAR, Chad, and Eritrea
2016: 195 plus one to go....Iceland!
The question I get all the time is, "when did you really start doing this?" I guess I was in casual traveler mode, going to new places when convenient from around 2002-2010. By 2005 I'd decided that one day I would go everywhere, which is why I jumped on North Korea when the chance was there, since it was unclear how long they might allow Americans in. 2010 was when things really started picking up, and I added 20+ new countries per year.
Of course, I don't do anything the easy way. First off, I opened my trip up to family, friends, and coworkers, and will be going to Iceland with around 40 people to share the final country experience.
Then, because IcelandAir essentially costs the same to fly to Iceland or to Europe with a stop in Iceland, I had to add something on. But, I had no idea what...so because tickets were selling quickly I booked into London after Iceland and back a week later from Helsinki. But, what to do in between?
First thought was "let's do an epic train adventure!" But...I'd rather save that for London to Singapore by train some day when I have time...so what else. Then it hit me. My previous trips to Latvia, Lithuania, and Ukraine were incredibly brief, so let's spend a few days there. Perfect!
So, the trip was set, and the route:
Trip report will be split into roughly these edited parts, since I never made it past London:
1. Washington to Reykjavik with Icelandair, arrival in country #196
2. Reykjavik City Tour and Final Country Celebration
3. Blue Lagoon and the Reykjanes Peninsula
4. The Golden Circle SuperJeep Tour Part I
5. The Golden Circle SuperJeep Tour Part II
5. Day in Reykjavik and Other Iceland Musings
6. Reykjavik to London with Icelandair
I can't believe the end is finally in sight, but here it comes! Thanks to all who have virtually joined the travels along the way, as well as those who have actually joined me for some of the trips...it wouldn't have been nearly as fun and rewarding without you!
If you'd like to read past trip reports in the meantime:
I. London to Iran and Afghanistan in a mix of C, F, and LCCs
II. Above the Arctic Circle with UA/CO/LH and SK in whY, C, and F
III. Around the World in 40 Days for 40 Years
IV. 8 Places People Who Are Right in the Head Do Not Spend New Years
V. 12 Countries, 10 Airlines, 4 Islands, 27,080 miles, 11 Days
VI. 6 Countries in 6 Days - Caribbean Island Hopping and first AA Experience
VII. Guyana, Suriname, and French Guyana with an unexpected sidetrip to Caracas!
VIII. To Haďti - for vacation and a milage run!
IX. Around Senegal and West Africa
X. 4th Annual New Years in Dangerous Places - Libya Edition
XI. Kosovo and FYR Macedonia - Milage Run in United Business + TK/LH
XII. Washington to Peru and Machu Picchu on COPA and TACA
XIII. To Johannesburg...for 36 hours!
XIV. Here a Stan, there a Stan, everwhere a Stan Stan....
XV. Air Burkina, Air Cote d'Ivoire and 7 countries in West Africa
XVI. Turkey for Thanksgiving....with a side of Tajikistan, Serbia, Montenegro, and Moscow
XVII. Into the Heart of Darkness... Congo, Angola, Gabon, OH MY!
XVIII. HI! Four Islands, Lots of Planes, Beaches, and Convertibles
XIX. Plenty of Salt, Not Enough Oxygen...a Trip to Boliva, Colombia, and Ecuador
XX. Learning to Relax - Long Weekend in St Christopher and Nevis
XXI. You're spending New Years WHERE? IRAQ? (2009-2010)
XXII. Pineapples, croissants, and neon OH MY! A trip to Hawaii, Paris, Andorra, and Vegas
XXIII. South Pacific, Israel, Lebanon - 6 weeks - 71,500 miles - 24 countries
XXIV. Sundae bloody Sundaes...a 2014 United Year in Review
XXV. Lakes, Lemurs, and Lithuania: Horton Hears a Houthi!
XXVI. First Americans tour to North Korea 2005 - Arirang Mass Games
XXVII. Doing the Needful - Lufthansa Business US to Chennai
XXVII. C-ing things: Canada, Curry, Cameroon, CAR, Chad, Camels, Chengis Khan and China!
XXVIII. Learning my ABCs: Algeria, Bahama, Cuba and the Cubana IL-96
XXIX. Exploring ZMapp of West Africa...or how I got detained by the CDC
XXX. Transatlantic to Bangkok with United, Austrian, Air Canada, and Thai
XXXI. Being Lazy in Belize
XXXII. Quick Trip to Cape Town with United, SWISS, South African, and Lufthansa
XXXII. FUNny thing happened going to and from Tuvalu...Cathay F, Etihad Apts, Fiji Biz
XXXIII. Achievement Unlocked: AFRICA! Visiting Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal
XXXIV. Penultimate Country? CriMeA River! Putin on the Ritz: Turkmenistan, Siberia, Malaysia
Of course, that would be far too easy after the logistics of planning the first 195 countries! As a brief history, what led up to this point:
First off, the journey has covered approximately 2.4 million miles to this point and a total of 157 airlines. When mapped, it looks something like this:
As of 1988, I had visited five countries: The US, Canada, Mexico, the UK, and the Soviet Union.
By 2000, that list had only increased to 11, taking in France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and South Africa.
From there, things started going faster:
2002: 16 countries, including first trip to Asia
2003: 23 countries, including first trip to Central America (Costa Rica)
2004: 31 countries, including Australia
2005: 34 countries, including being part of the first group of Americans to visiting North Korea in decades
2006: 41 countries, including lots of South America
2007: 55 countries, including a big trip around the Middle East
2008: 65 countries
2009: 72 countries, including most of Europe and Southeast Asia complete
2010: 81 countries, includiong Afghanistan
2011: 102 countries, including my first RTW trip
2012: 130 countries, with about half of the new ones in Africa
2013: 149 countries, including several trips to Africa and Central Asia
2014: 171 countries, notably Syria, Nauru, and Angola
2015: 185 countries, finally visiting Yemen, CAR, Chad, and Eritrea
2016: 195 plus one to go....Iceland!
The question I get all the time is, "when did you really start doing this?" I guess I was in casual traveler mode, going to new places when convenient from around 2002-2010. By 2005 I'd decided that one day I would go everywhere, which is why I jumped on North Korea when the chance was there, since it was unclear how long they might allow Americans in. 2010 was when things really started picking up, and I added 20+ new countries per year.
Of course, I don't do anything the easy way. First off, I opened my trip up to family, friends, and coworkers, and will be going to Iceland with around 40 people to share the final country experience.
Then, because IcelandAir essentially costs the same to fly to Iceland or to Europe with a stop in Iceland, I had to add something on. But, I had no idea what...so because tickets were selling quickly I booked into London after Iceland and back a week later from Helsinki. But, what to do in between?
First thought was "let's do an epic train adventure!" But...I'd rather save that for London to Singapore by train some day when I have time...so what else. Then it hit me. My previous trips to Latvia, Lithuania, and Ukraine were incredibly brief, so let's spend a few days there. Perfect!
So, the trip was set, and the route:
Trip report will be split into roughly these edited parts, since I never made it past London:
1. Washington to Reykjavik with Icelandair, arrival in country #196
2. Reykjavik City Tour and Final Country Celebration
3. Blue Lagoon and the Reykjanes Peninsula
4. The Golden Circle SuperJeep Tour Part I
5. The Golden Circle SuperJeep Tour Part II
5. Day in Reykjavik and Other Iceland Musings
6. Reykjavik to London with Icelandair
I can't believe the end is finally in sight, but here it comes! Thanks to all who have virtually joined the travels along the way, as well as those who have actually joined me for some of the trips...it wouldn't have been nearly as fun and rewarding without you!
If you'd like to read past trip reports in the meantime:
I. London to Iran and Afghanistan in a mix of C, F, and LCCs
II. Above the Arctic Circle with UA/CO/LH and SK in whY, C, and F
III. Around the World in 40 Days for 40 Years
IV. 8 Places People Who Are Right in the Head Do Not Spend New Years
V. 12 Countries, 10 Airlines, 4 Islands, 27,080 miles, 11 Days
VI. 6 Countries in 6 Days - Caribbean Island Hopping and first AA Experience
VII. Guyana, Suriname, and French Guyana with an unexpected sidetrip to Caracas!
VIII. To Haďti - for vacation and a milage run!
IX. Around Senegal and West Africa
X. 4th Annual New Years in Dangerous Places - Libya Edition
XI. Kosovo and FYR Macedonia - Milage Run in United Business + TK/LH
XII. Washington to Peru and Machu Picchu on COPA and TACA
XIII. To Johannesburg...for 36 hours!
XIV. Here a Stan, there a Stan, everwhere a Stan Stan....
XV. Air Burkina, Air Cote d'Ivoire and 7 countries in West Africa
XVI. Turkey for Thanksgiving....with a side of Tajikistan, Serbia, Montenegro, and Moscow
XVII. Into the Heart of Darkness... Congo, Angola, Gabon, OH MY!
XVIII. HI! Four Islands, Lots of Planes, Beaches, and Convertibles
XIX. Plenty of Salt, Not Enough Oxygen...a Trip to Boliva, Colombia, and Ecuador
XX. Learning to Relax - Long Weekend in St Christopher and Nevis
XXI. You're spending New Years WHERE? IRAQ? (2009-2010)
XXII. Pineapples, croissants, and neon OH MY! A trip to Hawaii, Paris, Andorra, and Vegas
XXIII. South Pacific, Israel, Lebanon - 6 weeks - 71,500 miles - 24 countries
XXIV. Sundae bloody Sundaes...a 2014 United Year in Review
XXV. Lakes, Lemurs, and Lithuania: Horton Hears a Houthi!
XXVI. First Americans tour to North Korea 2005 - Arirang Mass Games
XXVII. Doing the Needful - Lufthansa Business US to Chennai
XXVII. C-ing things: Canada, Curry, Cameroon, CAR, Chad, Camels, Chengis Khan and China!
XXVIII. Learning my ABCs: Algeria, Bahama, Cuba and the Cubana IL-96
XXIX. Exploring ZMapp of West Africa...or how I got detained by the CDC
XXX. Transatlantic to Bangkok with United, Austrian, Air Canada, and Thai
XXXI. Being Lazy in Belize
XXXII. Quick Trip to Cape Town with United, SWISS, South African, and Lufthansa
XXXII. FUNny thing happened going to and from Tuvalu...Cathay F, Etihad Apts, Fiji Biz
XXXIII. Achievement Unlocked: AFRICA! Visiting Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal
XXXIV. Penultimate Country? CriMeA River! Putin on the Ritz: Turkmenistan, Siberia, Malaysia
Last edited by ironmanjt; Oct 17, 2016 at 7:30 pm
Aug 23, 2016, 2:27 pm
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: anywhere and everywhere
Programs: UA GS, AS MVP 100K, DL Diamond, Marriot Lifetime Titanium, AmEx Centurion
Posts: 5,523
Aug 23, 2016, 2:48 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: anywhere and everywhere
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Posts: 5,523
Fortunately, it all worked out!
Aug 23, 2016, 3:42 pm
#10
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: IAD/DCA
Posts: 31,797
Somewhere around 120-140 countries I saved a handful of possible last countries, including Belize, Bahamas, and Iceland. Once I got about a year out I settled on Iceland, and told myself I'd avoid transatlantic flights to avoid accidentally screwing it up.
Fortunately, it all worked out!
Fortunately, it all worked out!
"I love it when a plan comes together."
Aug 23, 2016, 4:11 pm
#12
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: anywhere and everywhere
Programs: UA GS, AS MVP 100K, DL Diamond, Marriot Lifetime Titanium, AmEx Centurion
Posts: 5,523
