How Long Would It Take To Walk Around The World?

How Long Would It Take to Walk Around the World?

That’s one of those big, dreamy, slightly ridiculous questions we all think about when we’re staring out a window too long. The short answer? About a year if you could walk non-stop—and if you could walk on water.

The long answer involves geography, math, stamina, and a fair bit of imagination. Let’s take a deep step (pun intended) into what it would really take to walk around our planet, and why some people have actually tried it.

The Earth’s circumference is about 24,901 miles.
Walking at 3 mph non-stop = 345 days.
Realistically: 3–10 years minimum, often decades.
You’ll need oceans crossed, visas sorted, and a ton of snacks.
Only a handful of people have ever done it.

Understanding What It Means to “Walk Around the World”

Before we start counting steps, we need to define what “around the world” even means. The Earth isn’t a perfect sphere—it’s slightly squashed at the poles and wider at the equator.

That means the distance you walk depends on your route. There are two main options:

The Equatorial Route: Around the planet’s widest point — 24,901 miles (40,075 km).
The Polar Route: Over the poles — 24,818 miles (39,941 km).

So if you want to save a little time and distance, go pole-to-pole. It’s shorter by roughly 84 miles, but colder and infinitely less beachy.

Quick Math: Walking Around the World in Theory

Let’s do some basic math before reality crashes the party.

The average human walking speed is about 3 miles per hour (4.8 km/h).

At that pace:

Route	Total Distance (miles)	Time at 3 mph (hours)	Days (no stops)
Equator	24,901	8,300	346 days
Pole-to-Pole	24,818	8,273	344 days

So, roughly a year of non-stop walking.
That’s without rest, food, sleep, or bathroom breaks. Not exactly realistic, unless you’re part robot and powered by coffee instead of blood.

Reality Check: Why It Would Actually Take Decades

Now comes the hard truth. You can’t just walk in a straight line around the planet. You’ll hit oceans, borders, mountains, deserts, and the occasional grumpy customs officer.

1. You Can’t Walk on Water

Roughly 71% of Earth’s surface is ocean, so unless you’ve got some divine footwear, you’ll need to plan a land-based route. That instantly makes your trip longer than the theoretical 25,000 miles.

2. You Need Sleep, Food, and Breaks

Even the most hardcore long-distance hikers only walk about 20–30 miles a day on average, depending on terrain and weather.

Let’s assume 25 miles per day on land:

24,900 ÷ 25 = 996 days → That’s 2.7 years of walking, not counting rest days, border delays, or injuries.

3. Terrain Matters

Flat highways? Easy.
Rocky mountain passes, jungles, deserts, or tundra? Brutal.

Mountains can slow your pace to 1–2 mph, while urban detours and visa restrictions could add thousands of extra miles.

4. The Real Record

The best-known example is Karl Bushby, a British adventurer who started walking around the world in 1998. His route spans over 36,000 miles, and after 26 years, he’s still going.

He’s crossed continents, faced floods, visa bans, wars, and pandemics—and he’s still somewhere near Iran as of 2024.

That means the real-world answer might be closer to 25–30 years, even for an experienced adventurer.

Breaking It Down: Step-by-Step Around the World

Let’s look at what a realistic route might look like if you tried to walk across connected landmasses.

Continent	Approx. Distance (miles)	Average Walking Days (25 miles/day)	Notes
North America	5,000	200	From Alaska to Panama
South America	4,500	180	Through Andes and Amazon regions
Europe	3,000	120	Cross via Spain, France, Germany, Russia
Asia	9,000	360	Longest leg through vast terrain
Africa	5,000	200	Desert and savanna challenges

Total: roughly 26,500 miles
At 25 miles/day → 1,060 days = 2.9 years of walking time (no breaks).

Add rest, weather, transport over oceans, and real-life interruptions—you’re easily looking at 10–20 years minimum.

The Practical Challenges of Walking Around the World

1. Political Borders and Visas

You can’t just stroll into a country because it’s next on your map. Many regions require visas or permits. Political conflicts or closed borders can stop your progress for months or even years.

2. Physical Endurance

Walking thousands of miles means injuries, fatigue, blisters, and exhaustion. You’ll need months of training and excellent health to sustain a daily rhythm without major setbacks.

3. Climate Extremes

You’d face everything from arctic blizzards to equatorial heatwaves. A global walk demands gear for every climate—thermal jackets, desert hydration packs, and probably an emotional support playlist.

4. Funding and Logistics

Even if you sleep rough and live frugally, you’ll need food, visas, replacements for gear, and emergency funds. The cost could easily exceed $100,000 for a multi-year journey.

The Science of Walking Speeds and Distances

To understand how long it takes to walk around the world, it helps to know the science behind walking pace.

Walking Type	Speed (mph)	Hours to Complete 24,901 miles	Years (24 hrs/day)
Leisure	2	12,450 hours	1.4 years
Brisk	3	8,300 hours	0.95 years
Power walking	4	6,225 hours	0.71 years

In reality, most humans walk around 8–10 hours per day, not 24.
That means 8,300 ÷ 8 = 1,037 days → about 2.8 years, assuming you could even find a continuous land path (you can’t).

What About Circumnavigation by Step Count?

If your fitness tracker could handle the distance, it would record roughly:

24,901 miles × 2,000 steps/mile = 49,802,000 steps.

Yes, that’s nearly 50 million steps to walk around the world. Your shoes would be dust long before you finish.

Could Technology Help?

You could theoretically combine walking with short ferry rides, bridges, and tunnels. For example:

The Bering Strait between Alaska and Russia is just 55 miles wide — in winter, it can freeze enough to cross on foot.
You could take ferries between continents (e.g., Spain to Morocco, or Asia to Australia).

So while it wouldn’t be a pure walk, it would still count as a continuous human-powered circumnavigation, as long as you travel in one unbroken direction.

Why Do People Attempt It Anyway?

Walking around the world isn’t about speed — it’s about human endurance, curiosity, and connection.

People like Karl Bushby or Dave Kunst (who circled the globe in the 1970s) do it not for records, but to experience the planet step by step. They meet thousands of strangers, cross cultural divides, and literally walk through history.

As Dave Kunst once said:

“You can’t understand the world until you walk it.”

Estimated Time: Realistic Scenarios

Walking Plan	Daily Miles	Time to Complete (approx.)	Realistic Duration
Theoretical (no rest)	3 mph, 24 hrs/day	345 days	Impossible
Hardcore trekker	25 miles/day	2.9 years	Bare minimum
Adventurer pace	15 miles/day	4.5 years	Sustainable
Explorer with stops	10 miles/day	6.8 years	Realistic average
Karl Bushby example	Varies	26+ years	Reality check

So even at your best, you’re looking at a decade or two to realistically complete the journey.

Fun Facts: Walking Around the World Edition

Fastest “walk around the world” was completed by Dave Kunst (1970–1974) — he walked across four continents in 4 years.
If you walked around the equator on a treadmill, you’d burn about 2.5 million calories.
You’d need roughly 100 pairs of shoes to survive the distance.
The International Space Station circles the Earth every 90 minutes — so astronauts technically “walk” around the world 16 times a day (just… not on foot).