Helen Kirk's Trip at a Glance
| | |
|---|---|
| Departure Year | |
| Duration | |
| Route | Multiple destinations |
| Budget | (~ in 2026 dollars) |
| Age at Departure | |
| Occupation | |
Route
Round-the-world journey.
2026 note: Route information from early 2000s travel planning; current conditions may differ significantly.
In Their Words
When did you go on your RTW trip?
August 2000-July 2001How old were you when you took this trip?
27Including your air ticket and other expenses (from accommodation to souvenir-buying), about how much did your trip cost?
$1200-$1300Nationality
IrelandWhere do you live now?
Austin, Texas, USAOccupation Before your trip: bartenderNow: bartenderHow did your travels affect your career when you got back?
They didn’t really. I actually got my old job back about 2 weeks after returning.What is the route you took/places you visited?
New York, Ireland, England, Thailand, Australia (inc.Tasmania), New Zealand, Fiji, California, back to Texas.Why did you decide to take this trip? What got you into this type of travel, and/or influenced you to go?
Firstly as an Irish citizen under the age of 30 I was eligible for a one year work/travel visa for Australia. I initially planned to go with a friend of mine, but she ended up not making it. At that point I was so into the idea, I was going to go no matter what. Also, of course I wanted to go via Ireland, so that was naturally going to be my direction. It’s a pretty common route for backpackers going from Europe.Out of all your experiences traveling around the world, what was the:Best Moment
That’s a tough one! There were many.Worst Moment
Losing my bank card.Biggest Hurdle, Obstacle or Difficulty?
Waiting for a new bank card to reach me in Australia.Biggest surprise?
Finding out I liked camping.Who is the most memorable person you met on your trip and why?
There’s a couple of people. A guy named Eamon, who I met working on a blueberry farm where we camped for a month. Living out there with nothing around you and to be able to connect and amuse each other was a really great and bonding experience. Also a girl named Madeleine who I ended up travelling with for a couple of months in Australia. We were so in tune with each other and had the same way of thinking, like not caring to make last-minute decisions regarding route or time. We
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This profile was originally published on BootsnAll. Budget figures have been adjusted for 2026 context.