Woman who visited every country in fast time lists top 10

Globetrotter Cassie De Pecol, 27, from Connecticut, set a Guinness World Record for being the first documented woman to travel to every nation.

She accomplished the feat in record time in February 2017, hitting all 196 countries in 18 months and 26 days.

Now De Pecol is releasing her list of her Top 10 favorite destinations. At the very top of her list is Mongolia for its wilderness. Also included are Bhutan, Pakistan, Costa Rica and even the USA.

Throughout her journey, De Pecol boarded over 255 flights, planted trees in over 50 countries and went through five passports. She spent between two and five days in each country. 

Beginning when she was 23 on the Pacific island of Palau in July 2015, the trip lasted half the time of the previous Guinness World Record.

Her journey, Expedition196, was almost entirely funded by sponsorship, has been an installation in sustainability and ethical eco-friendly tourism. 

10. USA

Even though De Pecol has visited every nation on earth, home still came at the top of her list when she kicked off number 10 with the USA.

‘Fall in New England is something everyone should experience,’ she told The Telegraph.

‘They say home is where the heart is, and the more I travel, the more that’s becoming more real to me.

‘Home is where family is, it’s where my safety net is, it’s where everything that I’m familiar with is, and my country is rich in nature, which is important to me.’

Even though De Pecol has visited every nation on earth, home still came at the top of her list when she kicked off number 10 with the USA (Pictured, in Washington, Connecticut)

9. COSTA RICA 

Per her travel blog on her website, De Pecol said her travel bug took hold in college she spent time in Costa Rica at age 18

As for why the island nation made the top 10 list, she kept it fairly simple: ‘Monkeys, fresh fruit, good music and volcanoes…need I say more?’

Per her travel blog on her website, De Pecol (pictured, in Costa Rica) said her travel bug took hold in college she spent time in Costa Rica at age 18

8. PERU, SOUTH AMERICA 

The Amazon rain forest and Aguas Calientes [gateway to Machu Picchu] were among De Pecol’s favorite spots she visited.

In fact, the rain forests of Peru – one of the places De Pecol spent the most time living – were the reason the country made the top 10 list.

The Amazon rain forest and Aguas Calientes [gateway to Machu Picchu] in Peru (pictured) were among De Pecol’s favorite spots she visited

7. TUNISIA, NORTH AFRICA 

De Pecol said Tunisia was her favorite country to visit when it came to history.

She said everyone should visit ‘to experience Northern African culture with a Middle Eastern feel and an immense amount of archaeological history.

She said the town of Sidi Bou Sai, 20 km from Tunis, the capital of Tunisia, ‘blew me away’.

De Pecol said Tunisia (pictured) was her favorite country to visit when it came to history

6. OMAN, ARABIAN PENINSULA 

The scenic coastal nation, which curves through the Arabian Peninsula, is filled ancient forts, crystal blue water, deserts, and spectacular mountains.

‘To immerse yourself in the desert and mountains, while learning from locals who live in the mountains, it’s a whole different lifestyle,’ she said.

De Pecol told Forbes she stayed at Six Senses Zighy Bay Resort on the northern Musandam Peninsula, while her Instagram account also shows she traveled down to Salalah.

‘To immerse yourself in the desert and mountains, while learning from locals who live in the mountains, it’s a whole different lifestyle,’ she said of Oman (pictured)

5. PAKISTAN 

De Pecol said that everyone should visit Pakistan ‘to get a true sense of raw, authentic Asian culture and for the food!’

She had to wait four months to get her visa approved but said she was not disappointed. revealing that her time in Pakistan was one of the ‘many wonderfully educational and culturally enriching experiences’ of her travels. 

De Pecol said that everyone should visit Pakistan ‘to get a true sense of raw, authentic Asian culture and for the food!’ (Pictured, in Pakistan)

4. VANUATU, SOUTH PACIFIC 

De Pecol started her journey on the Pacific island of Palau in July 2015, and hit up many of the islands in the area first.

‘[Everyone one should visit] to experience the process of how Kava is made and to meet some of the kindest people,’ she said of Vanuatu.

Kava is a plant of the western Pacific. The roots of the plant are used to produce a drink with sedative effects.

De Pecol started her journey on the Pacific island of Palau in July 2015, and hit up many of the islands in the area first, including Vanuatu (pictured)

3. MALDIVES 

De Pecol noted that in the Maldives she saw ‘some of the bluest water, whitest sand and most stunning sand banks in the world.’

In March, she shared a post on Instagram, noting: ‘Woke up in the Maldives… pretty stoked about it.’

She added in another Instagram post that the people were another reason the Maldives was in the top 10 list. 

De Pecol noted that in the Maldives (pictured) she saw ‘some of the bluest water, whitest sand and most stunning sand banks in the world.’

2. BHUTAN 

Landlocked in the Himalayas, Bhutan is known as a very spiritual place to visit with its many temples, which is why it made the top of De Pecol’s list. 

‘The pilgrimage [to Paro Taktsang] was something out of Avatar, a dream to trek through low-hanging clouds with a harrowing drop at any given moment on either side.

‘Prayer flags swayed through the pines, prayer wheels spinning in the breeze, and tsa-tsas (ashes of the dead) wedged between crevices of stone.’

‘The pilgrimage [to Paro Taktsang] was something out of Avatar, a dream to trek through low-hanging clouds with a harrowing drop at any given moment on either side,’ she said (Pictured, in Bhutan)

1. MONGOLIA 

In Mongolia, De Pecol shared many pictures of tall mountains, meadows and nature, which the American said was what she loved about the country.

‘[You should visit] to be immersed in the remote wilderness and to ride the wild horses,’ she said.

In Mongolia (pictured), De Pecol shared many pictures of tall mountains, meadows and nature, which the American said was what she loved about the country