How Long Would It Take to Walk Around the Earth?

At the equator, Earth is 24,901 miles around. Walking 20 miles per day, it would take 1,245 days — about 3.4 years of nonstop walking — to circle the planet. The actual record holders, who couldn't actually walk the whole loop because oceans, took 4-11 years for the comparable continental traverse.

The math is the easy part. The logistics are where it gets interesting.

The math

A brisk human walking pace is about 3 mph. Sustained over 8 hours per day, that's 24 miles per day — but no one walks 24 miles every day for years. Endurance walkers average 15-25 miles daily.

• At 15 miles/day: 1,660 days = 4.5 years
• At 20 miles/day: 1,245 days = 3.4 years
• At 25 miles/day (athletic): 996 days = 2.7 years

That's nonstop. Add rest days, illness, weather, and the human body needs at least 1 day of full rest per week.

The catch: most of Earth is water

The equatorial circumference goes through ocean for about 78% of its length. You can't walk across it. Hawaii is closer to the equator than to most continents, and even hopping islands by boat changes the trip from "walking" to "expedition."

The longest practical walking route is the "Trans-Eurasian-American" footpath: Cape Town to Magadan to potentially North America via the Bering Strait (frozen seasonally), then south to Patagonia. Roughly 14,000 miles of walkable land.

Real attempts

The Guinness "circumnavigation by foot" record requires walking at least 18,000 miles across at least 4 continents, with the start and end at the same point. Most attempts take 4-11 years.

• Dave Kunst (1970-1974): First verified circumnavigator. 14,500 miles in 4 years. Crossed oceans by boat.
• Jean Béliveau (2000-2011): 47,000 miles in 11 years across 64 countries. Slept in hosts' homes and parks.
• Steven Newman (1983-1987): Solo 22,500 miles in 4 years.

Why it takes so much longer than the math suggests

Pure pace math ignores reality. Walking around the Earth requires:

• Visa renewals: Most countries cap tourist stays at 30-90 days
• Funding stops: Walkers usually pause to earn money, write articles, or accept sponsorship
• Weather waits: Crossing the Karakoram or Sahara isn't a year-round option
• Injury recovery: Stress fractures and tendonitis are universal
• Border issues: Some borders close, others require special permits

What it costs your body

Walking 20 miles a day burns roughly 2,000-2,500 extra calories. Sustained over years that adds up to millions of extra calories — most circumnavigators eat 4,500-6,000 calories per day on the road and still lose weight.

Joints take a beating. Long-haul walkers report chronic foot, knee, and hip issues. Most need 3-6 months of recovery after finishing.

What it costs in money

Newman's 1983 trip cost $35,000 (about $115,000 today). Béliveau's 11-year walk cost roughly $10,000/year sustained mostly by donations and host families.

Modern attempts often run as documentary projects with sponsorship — the budget can hit $100,000+.

The shorter version: walking across one continent

If "around the Earth" is too ambitious, here are walkable land traverses:

• Pacific Crest Trail: 2,650 miles, ~5 months
• Appalachian Trail: 2,194 miles, ~5-7 months
• Great Wall of China: 13,170 miles, ~14-18 months
• Northern Africa to Cape Town: 8,000 miles, 2 years

Could it ever be done in one straight loop?

No. There's no continuous land route that doesn't cross water. The closest you could come is the Cape-to-Bering route described above, with maybe 1,200 miles of seasonal sea-ice walking — and even that's getting unreliable as the Arctic warms.

Walking around the Earth is, mathematically, a geographic impossibility. The closest equivalent is "walking equivalent distance" via continental traverses.

Want more "how long" reads? See how fast humans can run or how many calories walking burns.