Winging it around the world... not getting a single flight
IRISH adventurer Niall Doherty has a PLANE and simple mission — to travel around the world without flying.
The determined web designer has taken trains, buses, boats and even rickshaws to get from his home town in Kilkenny to Kathmandu in Nepal over the last seven months.
And now plucky Niall, 30, who still works full-time from his laptop, wants to reach Brazil in time for the 2014 World Cup — after spending time in New Zealand and Thailand.
But his flight ban has already come at a considerable price. Speaking from his temporary base in Kathmandu, Niall said: “For me the no-flying thing is about the challenge and the adventure.
“It’s also not a money-saving exercise because from a financial standpoint it’s way cheaper to fly.
“To get to India from Iran took me two months longer than it would have if I’d flown.”
Niall left Ireland to explore the world and has been overwhelmed by what he’s seen and who he’s met.
But he also left to escape the monotony of a 9-5 job and the miserable news reports from recession-hit Ireland.
He revealed: “In seven months I’ve had free accommodation for 95 nights and I’ve had a lot of help and kindness from strangers. It definitely reaffirms my belief that people are good. I never really believed all the negative stuff I’d see on the news. It’s been a very positive experience.”
And it hasn’t all been backpacking as Niall also got to taste the luxurious side of travelling when he journeyed from Dubai to India.
“It was quite boring, and it cost me about 1,000.
“It was a 12-day return trip and I was only on board for five days because I wasn’t going back to Dubai but I still had to pay the full price.”
The globe-trotter admitted he hasn’t yet figured out the answer to his biggest problem — crossing the Pacific Ocean from New Zealand to South America without a plane.
He siad: “I’m hoping I’ll be able to get onto a cargo boat.”
Remarkably, this isn’t Niall’s first flight-free adventure.
Last summer he spent four months in Spain, and hitch-hiked all the way home to Ireland.
He recalled: “That was a bit of a test run for this trip. It wasn’t too far from home and it was a test to see how much uncertainty I could handle.”
FOLLOW Niall’s adventure on his blog ndoherty.com/blog.
