They Conquered the World: 8 Amazing Travel Pioneers

This year, International Women's Day falls on March 8th. A reason to celebrate - even though we believe women should be celebrated on all other 364 days of the year. Women are amazing; they move and enrich the world in all its facets. Naturally, this is also true in the travel industry.

In honor of Women's Day, the travel experts at Travelcircus have sought out outstanding female travel pioneers. This has resulted in a journey from the past to the present, showcasing a variety of women.

However, one thing all eight women have in common: None of them allowed anything or anyone to hold them back. They all displayed courage, showing that women have open doors to all the world's travel adventures.

The American Fanny Bullock Workman was a geographer, writer, and highly successful mountaineer. Together with her husband, William Hunter Workman, she embarked on many varied expeditions: they undertook numerous cycling trips, including a journey from Spain to Morocco, covering an incredible total distance of 4,500 kilometers.

Following that, they spent a decade on a cycling journey with many stops, ultimately reaching the Himalayas, where they spent a total of 14 years. During this time, Fanny Bullock Workman traversed 6,500 km in ice and snow and climbed 20 peaks over 4,850 meters high.

In 1906, she, along with her husband and a companion, ascended Pinnacle Peak, setting the record for the highest altitude for women: Workman was for a long time the first woman to ever hike at an altitude of 6,930 meters.

Her countless experiences from her many explorations were documented in books, allowing future generations to share in her unique accomplishments and experiences.

Freya Stark was born in Paris in 1893. Her passion for travel was ignited on her ninth birthday when she received the fantastic tales of One Thousand and One Nights from relatives.

From then on, her curiosity was directed towards the East. Her fascination with the Oriental world led her to learn Arabic and Persian, as well as study history in London. Driven by her interests, she traveled mainly in the Middle East between 1927 and 1979, writing several books about her experiences.

She gained fame with her exploratory journey in 1930 to the then-unexplored Valley of the Assassins and the subsequent travel report titled The Valley of the Assassins. From then on, she was considered a research traveler. In 1972, she was awarded the title of Dame Commander by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.

Her explorations took her to Yemen and Egypt among other places. She even traveled to the Himalayas at the age of 86. She passed away in Italy at the age of 100, 14 years later.

Amelia Earhart attended her first air show with her father. She craned her neck toward the sky, watching the planes performing flips and tricks. It's no wonder that her passion for aviation and everything related to it was sparked in 1920.

Just a year later, she earned her pilot's license, and from then on, no sky was too far for her. She even set a world record as the first woman to fly at an altitude of 4,300 meters. However, she could not make a living from flying and relied on sponsors for her daring endeavors.

On May 20, 1932, she soloed across the Atlantic Ocean. However, this success was not enough for her. Driven by the desire for more, she attempted a round-the-world flight five years later. Unfortunately, this solo flight would lead to her demise. On the leg from New Guinea to Howland Island, the American found herself in trouble. She failed to receive radio signals, leaving her seemingly lost over the Pacific until communication was completely lost.

She never reached her intended destination, Howland Island. A massive search operation by the U.S. government failed to locate her. For a year and a half, Earhart was declared missing before being proclaimed dead in January 1939.

The charismatic car dealership owner, born in 1937, was introduced to her later passion for cars and racing at an early age. She began her career as a mechanic and took over the family-owned dealership with her sister after their father's death.

She became a huge fan of classic cars and loved to participate in car rallies. The passionate racer took part in many competitions, winning countless prizes and awards. Until 2012, she managed one of the largest car dealerships in Berlin.

In July 2014, at the proud age of 77, she set off on a world tour, of course in a vintage car. The 1930s vehicle named Hudo accompanied her loyally from Berlin through Eastern Europe, over Tehran to China, and then on to Australia.

In the second part of her journey, after crossing to the American continent, she first traversed Canada, then the USA and South America. In the final leg of her world tour, she sailed to Africa and explored several countries in the southern part of the continent. She returned to Europe on a cargo ship, where, in March 2017, she was warmly welcomed back at the Brandenburg Gate by friends and family after two and a half years.

Born in 1971 in Halifax, Yorkshire, sports played a central role in Karen Darke's life from an early age. She climbed the Matterhorn among other feats. However, at 21, a climbing accident left her paralyzed from the chest down.

Yet, her paralysis could not deter her from pursuing professional sports. In her over ten-year professional athletic career, she successfully participated in the Paralympic Games multiple times. In London, she won a silver medal in time trials in 2012, while four years later in Rio de Janeiro, she was crowned a Paralympic champion. Nothing hinders Karen Darke's adventurous spirit. Whether by handcycle, kayak, or sit-ski, there's hardly a mode of transportation she hasn't used for her travels.

In 1996, she crossed the Himalayas on a handcycle, and in 2002, she spent ten weeks on an expedition in a kayak traveling from Vancouver to Juneau. Four years later, she traversed the Greenland ice caps on a sit-ski, covering nearly 600 kilometers in icy conditions and deep snow. She also traveled the entire length of Japan on a handcycle. In sum, Karen Darke is a brave, active, and dynamic woman who serves as a role model for many!

At the age of 10, the American girl received the devastating diagnosis: bone cancer in her left thigh. Following surgery, she received a knee and thighbone prosthesis. She now works at the same hospital where she was treated for her cancer as a child.

Arceneaux is a travel pioneer in a different sense: she is the youngest space tourist.

Billionaire Jared Isaacman purchased the first flight of the SpaceX mission, which included civilian participants. He secured a spot for the hospital where Arceneaux was treated, and the leadership didn't hesitate: The young American, whose childhood dream was to become an astronaut, was selected for this spot.

On the multi-day flight into space, she was responsible for the medical care of the space tourists. In addition to being the youngest space tourist, she is also the first person to fly into space with a bone prosthesis. This allows the young woman to be a role model for her even younger patients, inspiring other cancer survivors to believe that anything is possible even after battling cancer.

The young Canadian is the fastest woman to have traveled to all 196 sovereign states in the shortest time. During her world trip, she set several world records:

She is both the fastest woman and the fastest person to achieve this goal. During her 18-month journey, the Canadian spent about $70,000.

Throughout her world record attempt, Taylor Demonbreun was undeterred by anything; even personal tragedies in her family only strengthened her resolve to persevere and keep her goal in sight.

Born in 1995 during her parents' world trip in New Zealand, Laura Dekker was early on inspired by her father's passion for sailing, so it's no surprise that she began sailing herself. At a very young age, she began solo sailing trips, and at just 13 years old, she sailed alone from Maurik in the Netherlands to Lowestoft in the UK.

In late 2009, Laura Dekker was reported missing for two days in the Caribbean but was found again. It is speculated that her disappearance was related to her planned solo circumnavigation of the globe.

After several attempts, the then 14-year-old Laura Dekker was able to begin her solo circumnavigation in August 2010. After nearly one and a half years and over 500 days at sea, the Dutch sailor reached the Dutch Caribbean island of Sint Maarten on January 21, 2012, completing her solo world circumnavigation.

Her solo journey around the world attracted massive media interest, partly because of her very young age. Additionally, she and her family frequently made headlines in Dutch newspapers as child protective services attempted to prevent or postpone her world circumnavigation.

Laura Dekker is generally recognized as the youngest solo sailor to complete a circumnavigation. However, her world record was never officially recognized, as the Guinness Book of World Records does not support a race around the world for children.

All eight of the women mentioned above have accomplished unique feats:

They were pioneers of their time, both in the past 20th century and in the present.

Some set world records at a very young age, while others did so at a more advanced age. As the pursuit of 'higher, faster, and farther' is far from quenched, it is surely only a matter of time before other women break these records or establish entirely new ones.

Two of them even demonstrate that prostheses or paralysis need not be limitations, and that it is still possible to travel the world in fascinating ways.

It seemed almost impossible to limit ourselves to just eight travel pioneers given the multitude of brave and adventurous women around the world. The listing of these travel pioneers was done according to their year of birth and is in no way intended to represent a ranking. All achievements are unique in their own right and not comparable.