Split up with boyfriend, earthquake hit Malta, opportune chance for redundancy, bored, won the Euro Millions, jealous of a friend, verging on mid-life crisis... there are a hundred reasons to pack up and depart on an around-the-world trip. Most probably you’ve always dreamt of doing it, but one of the above has spurred you into kicking this into some kind of reality.

Ten years from now you won’t remember the extra three weeks you spent living off peanut butter sandwiches. But you’ll remember white water rafting beside hippos

But it is daunting. How do you fit X number of countries into Y amount of time? Does the around-the-world plane ticket include Mongolia, Thailand, Antarctica, the Colombian jungle, and Mount Kilimanjaro? Of course, you could just walk out the front door with a backpack, but living on an island you won’t get very far without a pair of flippers.

There are 1,001 guidebooks that will tell you what to pack, where to go, what not to do, and how to get off the beaten track. It’s enough to make you think that travelling around the world is difficult. It’s not.

And in the hope of communicating the ease of such a daunting sounding trip, here is our guide to the only three questions you need to think about:

Question 1: Who to go with?

Travelling with somebody is intense. At home you might live with someone, but you usually get a work-induced eight-hour break five times a week. Not when you travel. The wrong answer to this question and a week after leaving Malta you’ll be thinking “aaahh... five more months of him!”

Don’t worry about what to pack. Unwanted items can be discarded and additions can be made. But a travel partner can’t be ditched by the side of the road.

Partner, best friend, brother, neighbour who also wants to visit South America, work colleague you get drunk with… you will have a different experience with each. But don’t compromise.

This is your once-in-a-lifetime trip; stick to your plan and don’t rearrange your route because your travel companion wants to spend a month learning to be a Buddhist monk in rural China.

You can go alone. It’s sounds frightening but travelling alone allows you to be selfish. You choose the city, the hostel, the restaurant, the bus, and you do it when you want. Even better, the people you meet will be the like-minded type you can hit the road with for a few weeks. But wouldn’t it be good to share the experience with someone you know?

There is no correct answer to this question. So why not hedge your bets?

Go to Argentina with your neighbour for a month, before meeting your boyfriend in Cuba, going to Vegas with your brother, and then flying to Southeast Asia alone.

There is always the excitement of looking forward to meeting a familiar face, and if your travel partner sucks, then she’s going home in two weeks, so who cares?

Question 2: Where to go?

Well, duh, everywhere. A world map provides endless possibilities.

Hmmm, there, here, that country you’ve never heard of with the funny name, the jungle, desert, beaches, lots of beaches, that one that was on telly last week, and everywhere in between so I can completely fill my passport and frame it on the bathroom wall.

Don’t be overly ambitious – just because you’re going around the world doesn’t mean you’ll never holiday again. You can’t fit 100 countries into 101 days. Break the world into regions and rough groups of countries close to each other.

The most popular regions are the easiest to travel in. There is an established trail with good facilities and transport infrastructure, language is not a major barrier, and there are plenty of other travellers to meet.

In this group you could put: Australia/New Zealand, Southeast Asia, North and South America, and most of Europe. The popularity of these regions is well-deserved. There are incredible sights and mind-blowing experiences, just remember that you won’t be the only person doing it.

Other regions are more difficult. They can be tiring, time-consuming, scary and lonely. The Middle East, Africa, China, India, and all those countries you’ve never heard of, fall into this category.

Travel in these countries and you will be on an adventure completely unique to you, authentically experiencing what the locals do. It’s just you could be pulling your hair out in frustration now and again.

Try both. Pick one easier region and one that is more difficult. That way you go home with the photos of all the famous Unesco World Heritage Sites, and memories of a journey nobody can replicate.

Question 3: How long for?

“Forever and ever and ever… I’m never coming back.” Which is what we all think we want to do. But let’s be realistic about Malta. Can you really spend 12 months away from friends and family? Are you not going to miss your grandma’s cooking? Homesickness isn’t nice and can kill any experience.

And let’s be realistic about money. Stretching out a trip by scrimping on every corner doesn’t make you happy. Yes, you could survive of miniscule budget, but you would be surviving... not doing anything.

What’s the point of travelling to exotic places if you’re not prepared to spend money experiencing their wonder? Why go to Africa and not fork out for a safari? Why skip the Inca Trail for an extra two weeks on the road?

Ten years from now you won’t remember the extra three weeks you spent living off peanut butter sandwiches. But you’ll remember white water rafting beside hippos.