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Courtesy Omar Nok Egyptian traveler's no-flying journey around the world Monumental journey: Egyptian traveler Omar Nok, 31, set off in October on a quest to circle the globe without flying.Monumental journey: Egyptian traveler Omar Nok, 31, set off in October on a quest to circle the globe without flying.
Courtesy Omar NokExciting quest: Nok began his trip in Egypt last year, and has been hopping on trucks, riding camels and relying on strangers’ generosity.Exciting quest: Nok began his trip in Egypt last year, and has been hopping on trucks, riding camels and relying on strangers’ generosity.
Omar NokOn the move: Nok, pictued in Libya, says he came up with the idea during a seven-month trip to Japan in 2024, and feels that avoiding flying allows him to experience the world more deeply.On the move: Nok, pictued in Libya, says he came up with the idea during a seven-month trip to Japan in 2024, and feels that avoiding flying allows him to experience the world more deeply.
Courtesy Omar NokHelping hand: Nok was able to get a ride on a boat from the Canary Island across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean.Helping hand: Nok was able to get a ride on a boat from the Canary Island across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean.
Omar NokNo planes: The no-flying part makes it easier to see more of the world,” Nok told CNN.No CNN. Courtesy Omar NokGoing the distance: "There’s also a special kind of pride in arriving somewhere far," he says.
"Because the distance reminds you of everything it took to get there.”Going the distance: "There’s also a special kind of pride in arriving somewhere far," he says.
"Because the distance reminds you of everything it took to get there.” Omar NokBig following: Nok has been documenting his journey on social media, building an audience of nearly one million across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.Big following: Nok has been documenting his journey on social media, building an audience of nearly one million across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.
Courtesy Omar NokInspirational trip: Nok, seen near the Libya-Tunisia border, hopes his adventures will inspire those keeping track of him.Inspirational trip: Nok, seen near the Libya-Tunisia border, hopes his adventures will inspire those keeping track of him.
Courtesy Omar NokOnward bound: “Some people told me that their faith in humanity was restored by watching my journey," Nok told CNN.Onward bound: “Some people told me that their faith in humanity was restored by watching my journey," Nok told CNN.
Courtesy Omar NokHuge adventure: Nok, seen hitchhiking in Andorra, has taken various modes of transportation, including buses, trains, vans and even horses.Huge adventure: Nok, seen hitchhiking in Andorra, has taken various modes of transportation, including buses, trains, vans and even horses.
Omar NokMaking connections: Although the world is currently battling with instability, Nok prefers not to give much weight to politics.
What matters to him most are places, food, and people.Making connections: Although the world is currently battling with instability, Nok prefers not to give much weight to politics.
What matters to him most are places, food, and people.
Omar NokAdventure traveler: “It can be a polarized world, but honestly, it’s more government-related than everyday people-related.
And most of the world is made up of people, not governments,” said Nok, seen hiking in Cabo Verde.Adventure traveler: “It can be a polarized world, but honestly, it’s more government-related than everyday people-related.
And most of the world is made up of people, not governments,” said Nok, seen hiking in Cabo Verde.
Omar Nok Prev Next Egyptian traveler's no-flying journey around the world Africa See all topics Facebook Tweet Email Link Threads Link Copied! Follow ... jumped from his narrow bunk and climbed up to the deck of the 49-foot sailboat he’d been traveling on.
After weeks of being surrounded by nothing but the ocean, the sight of the Caribbean island of St.
Lucia, home to the UNESCO-listed Piton mountains, left ... is attempting to circle the globe without flying.
The sailboat served as another vehicle to add to his unconventional list of modes of transportation.
experience the world more deeply. “The no-flying part makes it easier to see more of the world,” Nok told CNN.
“There’s also a special kind of pride in arriving somewhere far, because the distance reminds you of everything it took to get there.” No-fly rule ----------- Traveler Omar Nok, 31, from Egypt, is attempting to travel across the world without flying.Traveler Omar Nok, 31, from Egypt, is attempting to travel across the world without flying.Omar Nok This philosophy has taken him across deserts, land borders, and oceans — and into places few outsiders ever see.
Nok says his appetite for exploration began in childhood but accelerated during a 2018 trip to the Balkans, when he booked a one-way flight to Romania from Egypt and a return from Montenegro two weeks later, leaving the rest of the route “unknown.” He later left a finance job at Amazon in 2022 to travel full-time, living off his savings while spending frugally.
Since then, Nok’s adventures have only grown bolder, with trips overland from Egypt to East Asia.
He followed his dad’s 1980s cycle ride to Australia — and recreated the photos frame by frame 6 min read Nok, who holds both an Egyptian passport and one from a European Union country, came up with the idea of traveling around the world without flying during a seven-month trip to Japan in 2024.
The idea was inspired by Danish traveler Torbjørn “Thor” Pedersen, who visited 203 countries over nearly 10 years without boarding a plane.
While staying in the Japanese town of Shinshushinmachi, Nok was introduced to “Ikigai,” a Japanese philosophy about living a joyful life.
He realized that his own Ikigai was to undertake a long-term, no-flying journey around the globe.
Just months later, Nok was en route. He left Cairo in October 2025, making his way across Egypt to Libya.
Nok has been documenting his journey on social media, building an audience of nearly one million across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, and his movements are being live-tracked via the travel app Polarsteps.
His online supporters have already proved useful. The visa for his first border ... Nok began his trip in Egypt last year, and has already made his way to the Caribbean.Nok began his trip in Egypt last year, and has already made his way to the Caribbean.Courtesy Omar Nok He hopes his adventures will inspire those keeping track of him.
... journey. And that’s the best part,” Nok said. “That’s the biggest win.” Another early challenge was traversing northern Libya between Benghazi and Tripoli — a journey fraught with risk that most travelers would opt to make by air.
Nok found himself in a shared van on an overnight journey that was cramped and tense.
Checkpoints dotted the highway and at one point, his paperwork was rejected, stalling his progress.
Related article Cerro AzulCerro AzulCourtesy Steven Barnett He’s 77 and a heart attack survivor.
Now he’s trying to ride a motorcycle around the world 5 min read “I’m not easily stressed, but at this point I was super stressed,” he recalls.
Luckily, a local friend came to his aid, and he was able to make it to his next destination, Medenine in Tunisia He then traveled to France and Spain, making it to the Canary Islands, located off northwest Africa, on a 30-hour ferry ride, before sailing to the Caribbean.
Buses, trains and automobiles ----------------------------- ... and even a poultry truck. After making landfall on St. Lucia, he’s since started to island-hop northwest, reaching the Dominican Republic.
With the world currently facing heightened instability, it’s unclear if or how the current Middle East crisis will impact his journey further down the line.
Nok remains hopeful, preferring not to give much weight to politics.
What matters to him most, he says, are places, food, and people.
“It can be a polarized world, but honestly, it’s more government-related than everyday-people-related.
And most of the world is made up of people, not governments,” he explained.
Boarding that sailboat to St. Lucia in December wasn’t an easy task — Nok spent three weeks trying to connect with sailors in the Las Palmas marina in Gran Canaria, the third-largest of the Canary Islands, in search of a boat to cross the Atlantic Ocean.
He faces the same challenges trying to cross the Caribbean Sea but says he’s confident there’s always a way forward — as long as it doesn’t involve planes.
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