• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
tourism

How One Man Became a Millionaire While Visiting Every Country in the World

By
Cailey Rizzo
Cailey Rizzo
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Cailey Rizzo
Cailey Rizzo
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 19, 2017, 1:00 PM ET
passport
inside of a british passpot with visasGetty Images/iStockphoto

Johnny Ward spent 10 years traveling around the world, visiting all 197 countries on the planet — and made $1 million along the way.

Although 33-year-old Ward started out on a shoestring budget, he was able to become a millionaire on the road, proving that travel and making money need not be mutually exclusive. And, according to him, anybody can achieve similar results.

When he set off for his round-the-world mission, Ward did not have even enough money for a plane ticket. So he signed up to do medical research in a hospital in Ireland. Doctors spent five weeks testing drugs on him and he earned seed money to travel to Thailand and teach English.

From there, Ward began blogging and building up a following (which he details on his website). From there, Ward expanded his blog into a media brand with 100 different websites. He earned money from advertising revenue on all of his different sites.

“I’ve had to be diligent enough to take out my laptop and work in the evenings when I was in Mongolia, or Kazakhstan, or Ethiopia,” Ward told The Telegraph. “Those were the tough times, putting the work in while I was actively traveling, not knowing if it would pay off or not.”

Then, two weeks ago, Ward visited the final country on his list: Norway. He celebrated the achievement with champagne and loved ones in the Arctic Circle.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BRoKtI8gARe/

“If you truly, deeply want something bad enough, you can make it happen,” Ward wrote on Instagram when he reached Norway. “When you visualise your path, and every choice you make strives to bring you to where you know you can be, nothing can stop you.”

This article originally appeared on TravelandLeisure.com

About the Author
By Cailey Rizzo
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Julian Braithwaite is the Director General of the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking
CommentaryProductivity
Gen Z is drinking 20% less than Millennials. Productivity is rising. Coincidence? Not quite
By Julian BraithwaiteDecember 13, 2025
53 minutes ago
carbon
Commentaryclimate change
Banking on carbon markets 2.0: why financial institutions should engage with carbon credits
By Usha Rao-MonariDecember 13, 2025
2 hours ago
Nicholas Thompson
C-SuiteBook Excerpt
I took over one of the most prestigious media firms while training for an ultramarathon. Here’s what I learned becoming CEO of The Atlantic
By Nicholas ThompsonDecember 13, 2025
3 hours ago
Sarandos
Arts & EntertainmentM&A
It’s a sequel, it’s a remake, it’s a reboot: Lawyers grow wistful for old corporate rumbles as Paramount, Netflix fight for Warner
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 13, 2025
4 hours ago
Lauren Antonoff
SuccessCareers
Once a college dropout, this CEO went back to school at 52—but she still says the Gen Zers who will succeed are those who ‘forge their own path’
By Preston ForeDecember 13, 2025
4 hours ago
Oracle chairman of the board and chief technology officer Larry Ellison delivers a keynote address during the 2019 Oracle OpenWorld on September 16, 2019 in San Francisco, California.
AIOracle
Oracle’s collapsing stock shows the AI boom is running into two hard limits: physics and debt markets
By Eva RoytburgDecember 13, 2025
5 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
Tariffs are taxes and they were used to finance the federal government until the 1913 income tax. A top economist breaks it down
By Kent JonesDecember 12, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Apple cofounder Ronald Wayne sold his 10% stake for $800 in 1976—today it’d be worth up to $400 billion
By Preston ForeDecember 12, 2025
24 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
40% of Stanford undergrads receive disability accommodations—but it’s become a college-wide phenomenon as Gen Z try to succeed in the current climate
By Preston ForeDecember 12, 2025
23 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
For the first time since Trump’s tariff rollout, import tax revenue has fallen, threatening his lofty plans to slash the $38 trillion national debt
By Sasha RogelbergDecember 12, 2025
19 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
The Fed just ‘Trump-proofed’ itself with a unanimous move to preempt a potential leadership shake-up
By Jason MaDecember 12, 2025
17 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
At 18, doctors gave him three hours to live. He played video games from his hospital bed—and now, he’s built a $10 million-a-year video game studio
By Preston ForeDecember 10, 2025
3 days ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.