At 29, he is the youngest Indian to have travelled across all continents. Take a look at his journey
“I never book return tickets,” says Shubham Singhi
When Shubham Singhi boarded his first international flight to Singapore at 14, little did he know that his adventures would take him to 111 countries across all seven continents by age 29. Now holding the record as the youngest Indian to achieve this feat, the Powai-based explorer says travel for him is about raw, unfiltered human connection and not about just ticking boxes.
“It was never about the count,” says Singhi, who works in finance and trading to fund his travels. “Initially, I travelled with family. But later, when I started travelling solo, it was to understand how people live in the most extreme corners of the world.” This curiosity led him to places few dare to venture—like surviving the -45°C in Norway’s Svalbard archipelago, where polar bears roam freely, or entering Afghanistan in 2020 under the watch of armed soldiers.
Singhi’s most profound lessons came from hardship. In Tajikistan, he was the lone tourist in villages without electricity. “We slept huddled around a gas stove. And because I am a vegetarian, I had to survive on potatoes only for weeks,” he recalls.
Yet, it was Afghanistan that reshaped his worldview. “Despite the turmoil, locals shared their last bread with me. Their joy came from togetherness, not possessions.”
As a lifelong vegetarian, Singhi mastered the art of finding meat-free meals in meat-centric cultures. His strategies? “Research, carry snacks, and ask locals.” In Kazakhstan, he tracked down Astana’s only vegan café. “You adapt or you don’t eat,” he says.
Though he occasionally travels with friends, Singhi prefers solo journeys for deeper immersion. “Alone, you have more freedom. People invite you into their lives. These connections matter more than any landmark.”
Now on his seventh passport, Singhi has perfected the art of unplanned journeys. “I never book return tickets,” he says. His most memorable moments came from detours, like hitchhiking across Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. “Real travel happens when you surrender control. That’s when locals invite you for tea, or when you learn how to forage.”
While on the road, he also delves into photography. His social media has fleeting moments from his travels, such as dunes and ocean meeting in Namibia, the polar world, the steppes of Central Asia, and many other incredible landscapes. “I don’t use filters. Real beauty lies in raw, imperfect moments.”
With Antarctica checked off earlier this year, Singhi is shifting gears: writing a book on budget travel and launching a startup to help others explore responsibly. “After seeing glaciers melt and reefs die, I want travellers to leave places better than they find them.”
In the age of social media, his advice to adventurers is simple. “Travel isn’t about luxury or Instagram. It’s about letting the world change you.” And for Singhi, that change began with a simple question at 14: What else is out there?”
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