From Estonia to Spain on foot: one man’s walk across Europe

It’s not every day that a successful business leader leaves everything behind to walk across Europe. Gruelling? Absolutely. Inspiring? Without a doubt.  

That man is Franck Benhamou, a corporate executive, turned entrepreneur. A meeting of like-minds with Staysure’s founder, Ryan Howsam, led to Staysure championing Franck’s extraordinary trip through Europe. Over 11 long months, he hiked his way from Estonia to Spain, gaining valuable life lessons along the way.  

We talk to Franck as he celebrates the end of the road, to find out what motivated his expedition.  

A year ago, I did a TEDx talk about the logical steps to financial freedom.  

I was essentially giving a recipe for what I had done to find financial freedom, but people are bombarded by too many recipes that are hard to trust and evaluate. 

I thought it would be more authentic if I led by example.  So, I created this walk as a metaphor to illustrate how going from 'feeling stuck' to 'unstoppable' is within reach of anyone who dares to think differently and challenge their limiting beliefs.  

I am French – but where I live is the hardest question you can ask me. I move constantly and consider myself a citizen of the world. At the age of 45, I stopped working after reaching my financial goal, to focus on my family and to travel all over the world. 

Over a dinner in Vietnam, I challenged Staysure founder and CEO, Ryan Howsam, to tell me how he would recreate a business that anybody could replicate from scratch without money and contacts.  That led to his support for the project. 

I created my own route to cross the European Union from its Northernmost to its Southernmost point without having to cross any sea.  

I crossed Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czechia, Germany, France, Portugal and Spain. 

Every country has been great. I’ve found that all people are nice, particularly when you travel with a backpack. Some are more introverted than others, but everybody opens up when you say hello with a smile. 

I planned the trip in 6 weeks. 

I did the walk in one go. Every 150-200km I had a day of rest.  It took 11 months in total. 

There were so many magic moments along the way: my social media followers who brought me drinks while I walked; the sunset on the Baltic Sea; a simple coffee after a hard day. In Portugal, I was received by the Mayor of Mirandela, who showered me with local presents. 

There are also so many different dimensions to the walk: the scenery, the effort, the mindset, the people... but I will stay with the inspiration that the trip generated with the people I met and my followers on social media.  

There is no ‘best’ – how do you compare the white sand of the Baltic Sea, the view at the top of mountains, or the trails of the Black Forest? 

Not the ‘most’ interesting, but an unusual encounter: a person who was my host in Spain. He was a chef and lost his eyesight at 40. He had to reinvent himself and ended up travelling the world and being very successful by developing digital technology in braille. 

Getting blisters in the first 3 weeks was challenging. This adventure is physical, but the real challenge is mental. It is all about mindset. 

I expected to have some trouble with my back from carrying a big backpack, but that never materialised. 

My surprise takeaway was the level of inspiration that the journey generated with followers who overcame their own ‘impossible’. 

Anybody can go from ‘feeling stuck’ to ‘unstoppable’ with a plan of manageable steps and determination. 

I now have new clarity about the purpose I defined for my life 25 years ago about the search for contentment. 

I will continue to live my best life by keeping mentally and physically agile through ‘impossible’ challenges for as long as I can. If, in the process, I can inspire more people to live their best life, that would be a bonus. 

It’s all about mindset. Anybody can cross Europe walking if they really want to. Just make sure you know why you’re doing it, so that you won’t stop after the first obstacle. 

In short, know yourself. Take control of your life. Remain congruent with who you are and what you want when setting your priorities. 

On a practical level, the weight of the backpack is a big consideration. Everything I took was essential to my trip. My backpack weighed 15kg and I would take the same items again. 

Some of my essential packing items included:  

• a Swiss knife 

• a lighter to sterilise needles and burst blisters 

• a whistle 

• Vaseline for my feet 

• a powerful, lightweight phone charger  

• a headlamp  

• a fork and spoon      

A great backpack hack is to use the waterproof cover as an easy access pocket for essentials. It's a pain to take your backpack on and off when you're walking, so I use the rain cover as a pocket for my drone, my jacket and sometimes for food. It's a really efficient solution. I've used it for 6,000 km and nothing has fallen out. I really like it – and that's why I always use my rain cover, even when it's sunny with no chance of rain. 

If you want to read more about Franck Benhamou’s adventure, you can follow his trip on Instagram at @franckly.speaking 

Read our guide to travelling Europe like a legend for tips on places to visit – from Norway’s Northern Lights, to the grandeur of Rome. 

And of course, don’t forget your travel insurance. If you’re planning a longer-term adventure, like Franck’s, you’ll need our long stay travel insurance for the ultimate freedom to travel.  

You can get cover for trips that last between 3 and 18 months – perfect for gap years, long cruises, or simply taking a little extra time to discover new places. 

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If you’re heading off on a longer trip or travelling greater distances, it’s important to double-check your travel insurance covers everything you need. 

Our standard single trip travel insurance policy covers you for up to 104 days. So if you’ve got a longer trip in mind, our long stay travel insurance add-on is a great option, covering you for up to 550 days. That’s around 18 months of peace of mind – so you can travel with confidence.