Round the World: 10 ways round the world

London – Bangkok (then overland to) Singapore – Perth (land) Sydney – Los Angeles (land), San Francisco – London

Cost: from £937

A classic round-the-worlder, this keeps the costs down but enables you to easily cover a lot of ground thanks to the three chunky overlanding sections: perhaps utilise some great train journeys – the Indian-Pacific across Oz, or an Amtrak railpass for the USA.

Get a Thai massage in Wat Po (Bangkok) and learn to dive on Ko Tao, Thailand; 4WD across the Outback, waterfall-swim in Kakadu and climb the Harbour Bridge in Sydney, Australia; drive Route 1 along the California coast, hike in Yosemite and sail San Francisco Bay to Alcatraz, USA

London – Shanghai (land) Hong Kong – Brisbane (land) Melbourne – Los Angeles (land) New York – London

Cost: from £963

For under £1,000 you can explore China, Oz and the breadth of the US. Shanghai is freshly spruced from the 2010 Expo; pre-book your first night’s accommodation to ease into the city (don’t miss the Maglev hover-train from Pudong airport, zipping along at 430km/h!).

On the way between Brisbane and Melbourne, veer inland to climb Mt Kosciuszko, at 2,228m Australia’s highest peak.

Practise t’ai chi at dawn on Shanghai’s Bund and cycle around the karst hills of Guilin, China; take in the view from the Peak, Hong Kong; learn to surf in Byron Bay and drive the Great Ocean Road, Australia; hire a car for an epic trans-US roadtrip.

London – Nairobi (land) Johannesburg – Perth – Sydney – Christchurch (land) Auckland – Fiji – Los Angeles – New York – London

Cost: from £1,619

Overlanding independently in Africa is possible but requires planning; consider joining a group tour for some or all of the stretch to Jo’burg: instant companions, easy access to national parks, and often cheaper than arranging everything yourself.

Australia, New Zealand and the US are easy to travel solo. And there’s no better way to sample the South Pacific – island stop-offs are easy and economical to work into RTW itineraries.

Wildlife-watch in the Masai Mara, Kenya, and Luangwa Valley, Zambia; walk around the Pinnacles and marvel at the Sydney Opera House, Australia; whale-watch off Kaikoura, NZ; swim in the blue lagoons of the Yasawa islands, Fiji; head up the Empire State, NYC.

London – Rio de Janeiro (land) Santiago – Auckland – Christchurch – Sydney – Cairns (land) Sydney – Mumbai – London

Cost: from £1,595

To make the most of the austral summer, leave the UK in September – entry-point Rio won’t be too humid or busy, and you can hit Patagonia in December. New Zealand will be ideal January/February; then drive up Australia’s East Coast in March/April (warm in the south, dry in the tropics) and get to India April/May before the monsoon.

If it does get too hot here, head higher – Matheran is the closest hill station to Mumbai; further north, the Himalaya are in full rhododendron bloom.

Climb up to Christ in Rio and jaguar-spot in the Pantanal, Brazil; star-gaze in the Atacama, Chile; hike the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, NZ; snorkel the Great Barrier Reef, Australia; join a Mumbai slum tour, India.

London – Toronto (land) Washington – Miami – Las Vegas (land) Los Angeles – Cook Islands – Auckland – Melbourne (land) Sydney – Bangkok – Phuket (land) Singapore – Delhi – London

Cost: from £2,892

The Star Alliance RTW fare allows a maximum of 15 stopovers – so why not use them all? More stops equals higher cost, but you get a lot of countries for your cash, and a mix of ‘easy’ Western nations and grittier developing countries.

First big trip? Consider flying west not east: starting in the US will be a gentle intro; by the time you hit more-challenging India you’ll be a pro.

Museum-hop in Washington DC and gator-spot in the Everglades, USA; snorkel idyllic Aitutaki, Cook Islands; trek with hilltribes from Chiang Mai and dive off Phuket, Thailand; order a Singapore sling at Raffles, Singapore; combine the fairytale Rajasthani cities of Udaipur, Jaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer, India.

See the next five ways round the world

London – Los Angeles (land) Vancouver – Auckland – Tokyo – London

Cost: from £1,069

Stick to the Pacific for a range of experiences. Hugging North America’s west coast you can mix wine and wilderness; you could board the ferry at Bellingham, in Washington State, sail up the Inside Passage to Alaska, then backtrack by RV via the Rockies to Vancouver.

From Auckland you could circuit the whole of NZ (allow at least one month, ideally longer). In Japan use Tokyo as a base for a Japanese train adventure, perhaps across Honshu to see Fuji, Kyoto and Hiroshima. Note: you must book a JapanRail pass before you arrive in the country.

Wine-taste in the Napa Valley and walk among the giants of Redwoods State Park, USA; kayak with orca off Vancouver Island, Canada; dive off the Poor Knights Islands, NZ; learn to make sushi in Tokyo, Japan.