Just think. The next time you fly across Europe, the Atlantic or beyond in a comfortable, air-conditioned plane you could be repeating history several times over.
By accident you might mimic Jack Kerouac's On The Road route, the Inka Trail or where Ernest Hemingway discovered his writing passion in Paris.
Wherever you go across the globe, there's a chance you could be following forgotten footsteps.
Indeed, the world has been trod by thousands of feet in ancient and modern times. And, to follow your dreams rather than just a map, it could make sense to find out about the route first, and prepare for the usual aspects such as travel insurance cover, travel money or learning foreign phrases.
Here are six historic routes to follow:
1. Join a Julius Caesar tour in Rome (Italy)
A priest, a soldier, a politician and widely accepted in Ancient Rome as a descendant of Venus, The Goddess of Love, Caesar was a man and a half. Walking tours will take you to the sites of his birth and death, following the bendy streets of his reign, and where he made his epic speeches. Discover more about
Ides of March tours and his legendary assassination by a group of Senators.
2. Lands End to John O'groats (UK)
Robert and John Naylor were the first known people to walk continuously from John O'Groats to Land's End in 1871. You could choose a different mode of transport and route to make the journey more interesting - by plane, train or automobile if you think the blisters will be unbearable!
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| beautiful Lands End |
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3. Inka Trail (Peru)
The Incas were an ancient people who lived in South America until the 1570s. Their key legacy is the Inca Trail, heralded as the most famous trek in South America. Some 26 miles long, it blends beautiful mountain scenery, lush cloud-forest, and a magnificent mix of Inca paving stones, ruins and tunnels. The Pièce de résistance is the Lost City of the Incas.
4. The history behind Hemingway's Movable Feast book (Paris)
The famous writer, Ernest Hemingway, was renown for taking many of his writing cues from Paris. Start a
Hemingway walk at the collectible Censier Daubenton station on line seven. Take his book, A Moveable Feast, with you, a memoir of his Paris days; mandatory reading for Hemingway followers.
5. Jack Kerouac's 'On The Road' route (US)
Why not hit the road like Jack Kerouac did in the late forties and make your own memories for a book, like he did in his,
On The Road? You could follow your nose along many of Kerouac's old haunts, bearing in mind you would need many months to complete the epic trip.
New York to Desert Denver and San Francisco – and down in Mexico were just a few of his stomping grounds.
6. Derry to western Ireland
Not all routes are long-forgotten. Traveller writer and broadcaster Michael Palin's second
Great Railway Journey (1994) took him from the ancient walled city of Derry to the most western tip of Ireland. Why not take in some majestic Irish countryside by rail rather than road…?
Follow those footsteps.
This guest post was written on behalf of Money Matters, the Sainsbury's Bank blog. Though it may include tips and information, it does not constitute advice and should not be used as a basis for any financial decisions. Sainsbury's Bank accepts no responsibility for the opinions and views of external contributors and the content of external websites included within this post. All information in this post was correct at date of publication.
