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Comment by jasonkester | Hacker News Reader

I remember reading this last time it came through. The only thing I'd differ with is the RTW ticket. Don't do that.

I always book a single one-way flight to start my trip. Bangkok, Cape Town, Cartagena, etc. Just get to one end of a continent and plan on spending as much time as you need moving across it.

Dates on the calendar are the biggest source of unhappiness when you're on the road. There's nothing worse than having to leave a place you're really enjoying because you have a flight to catch two countries away next week. You'll never expect to spend six months in the place you end up spending six months in. If you book ahead of time you're guaranteed to have to either blow off your expensive ticket or miss out on what would have been the best part of your trip.

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Definitely agree with the RTW ticket. We bought a one-way flight from Sydney to Buenos Aires, never looked back. It's an incredible amount of freedom not knowing which port will be your way home, or whether your trip will turn from 3 months into a year. Never lock yourself in to something that can't be altered, changed or cancelled without a massive hit to your finances.

RTW ticket may be cheaper but it also limits the direction you can go. Buying a one way ticket gives you the ultimate flexible.

Also, working with a travel agent allows you to get "fake" return tickets which many visa's applications require.

I've heard people can get turned away for not having a return ticket, is that true?

I've had it happen to me twice.

On landing in Cape Town, the only other ticket I had booked was from Nairobi to Cairo. Evidently, they figured I'd be able to do that without ever leaving South Africa, so it wasn't sufficient proof. In the end, all they did was cut my 3 month visa-on-arrival down to one month.

Another time, checking in for a SEA-BKK flight, I was stopped at the counter for only having a one-way ticket. So I booked a full fare, refundable, return flight on the spot, then found the airline office in Bangkok the next day and refunded it.

Most places, it's not an actual issue. Scary places like Russia and the USA are exceptions.

Yes, but I recently had a rather curious experience at the Thai consulate in the US. Their web site states you need to show tickets in and out and a bank statement. I printed these out, but the receptionist handed back these documents before sending me to the visa window, so they were never considered. Perhaps the requirement was dropped and the website not updated. I do know that if you overstay your welcome, you will be fined per day you are late leaving the country.

Yes. One time I had to buy a one-way ticket back at the airport. Now I paid by credit card and cancelled my ticket as soon as I could and got most of my money back, but it was still a bit of a PITA, and reinforced in me the importance of always having a decent buffer on an emergency credit card.

Yes, seen it happen but you can often talk your way out of it, or print a fake bus ticket. Other times you'll be less lucky, it really depends on how you get on the desk. Technically its the law in a lot of countries but often not enforced.. up to you whether its worth the risk!

Yes, but just book a fully-flexible return, the refund it after you've entered the country. Quite a stupid rule given it can be so easily circumvented.

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