You only live once: 50 years of Lonely Planet

Hitting the Khao San Road with nothing but a backpack and Thai phrasebook in tow has been a rite of passage for more than two decades. But back in 1973 intercontinental travel was a fantasy for all but the enterprising few.

“Lonely Planet’s co-founders Tony and Maureen Wheeler shared a vision of fulfilling your travel dreams,” explains Lonely Planet stalwart writer Tom Hall, “with unique experiences, people and perspectives waiting around every corner.”

The couple penned the pale blue 94-page book after completing their first adventure; a three-year journey from London to Australia, via Asia, in an old minivan. “The first book was an accident,” Tony later explained. “While we were living in Sydney, we’d meet people and they’d say ‘What did you do?’ and we’d jot notes down for them.” It was an accident that sold 1,500 copies in one week – turning your gap year fantasy from pipe dream to viable life goal in the process.

With affordable air travel now placing the world at our fingertips, a lot has changed since 1973. With this must come a good look at how we minimise our impact on the places we travel to – and on those who live there.

“With that mobility has come an awareness of the fragility of the world and the important role tourism, now such a vast industry, needs to play in preserving habitats and respecting communities,” Tom explains.

“The key point remains the same though,” he adds. “The world is a wonderful place. Let’s help you explore and enjoy it.”

We still want to travel but we must do it in an informed and responsible way. With this in mind, LK and Lonely Planet are sharing some of their bucket-list experiences from the latest, and second, edition of Lonely Planet’s You Only Live Once, a modern guide to inspire your travels. Think skywalking above the clouds, tracking wildebeest across the Serengeti or stargazing by Lake Taupo.

Dreams on hold thanks to life, work, money stuff ? Fear not as Lonely Planet contributors Emily and Victoria give you a gentle nudge with expert tips on planning your own YOLO style adventure. While we’ve rounded up some of the world’s best unsung   sporting events – plus the essential books to take with you. Fifty years on and Lonely Planet’s desire to share the far corners of the world continues.

GO SOLO

Spend some quality time with yourself on a Japanese adventure

There are many fantastic reasons to embrace being alone in Japan. Throw yourself into a bedazzling, disorienting Lost in Translation experience in Tokyo. Give rapt attention to a plate of grilled oysters on Miyajima Island, or sizzling okonomiyaki in Osaka. Experience the snow-mu  ed silence of Hokkaido’s ski fields, or visit the Hiroshima memorials in thoughtful quiet. By devoting your full attention, you’ll have a brimming bank of long-lasting sensory memories.

FACE THE FEAR

Ready to experience some of Europe’s most stunning views?

The only way is up Head to the peaks, pinnacles and rock towers of Italy’s eastern Dolomites. Since the 15th century, when French army captain Antoine de Ville scaled the peak of Mont Aiguille with a ladder, climbers have been mad about this corner of the Alps. Follow in the footsteps of WWI soldiers via the Vie Ferrate (Iron Ways), a skyscraping series of mountainside cables, metal rungs, rope ladders and chain bridges that allow access to some of Europe’s most heart-stopping views.

SKYWALK

See the world’s most breathtaking sights from a new angle

Walk above the clouds on the latest lofty lookouts. The Aurland Lookout, (pictured here), perches above Sogneord in western Norway. In Alberta, Canada, the Glacier Skywalk at Jasper National Park has views over the Columbia Icefield. Or you could step into the void on Mont Blanc’s Aiguille du Midi. Finally, the Grand Canyon Skywalk was one of the first to allow visitors to walk on a glass platform cantilevered over the cliffside.

STARGAZING

Struggling to see things clearly?

Let the night sky show you the way Contemplate your place in the universe while stargazing somewhere like Lake Taupo, New Zealand. The images being received from the James Webb telescope put our own lives in perspective among the mind-scrambling scale of the cosmos but also highlight how important it is to preserve our own precious planet.