roundtheworldflights.com has been organising big globetrotting adventures since 1997. Our staff members are unashamed travel geeks; we pride ourselves on knowing the obscure tricks that get the cheapest deals, and our ability to join even the most ambitious routes together. But despite such pseudo-superhuman powers, we do need some input from you if we’re going to get your trip just right. So here’s a nine step plan for making everything go smoothly...

One year to six months out

Start having a think about where you’d like to go. Start tapping up your friends for ideas and utilise the internet for inspiration. Put potential destinations in a rough geographical order, check out weather patterns, get ideas of what you want to do where and generally get rather excited about the whole thing.

If you’re going away for a long time, there’s a definite art to packing. Deciding what to take with you and how best to fit it all in becomes rather important, and while there’s no ‘right’ way of doing it, there are certainly plenty of wrong ways.

Pick the right bags

The first thing to do before getting any items of clothing ready is to pick the bag or bags they’re going to go into. The backpack versus suitcase debate will no doubt rumble on for centuries, but let’s just say that a backpack is a darned sight easier to carry around when you’re trudging a couple of kilometres between bus station and accommodation. That said, it’s a lot easier to keep things neat in a suitcase.