Danish traveller about to become the first person to visit all countries without flying

Torbjørn Pedersen has spent at least 24 hours in each country and has not returned home since 2013. Photo / Supplied

For almost nine years Torbjørn (Thor) Pedersen has travelled the globe with one mission; to visit every country in the world without the use of a plane.

This morning, he is aboard a containership that left Melbourne last night, bound for country 197 out of 203; New Zealand.

After a brief stop in Aotearoa, Pedersen will have only a handful of countries left; Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Tuvalu then, Sri Lanka.

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If Pederson can then make his way to the Maldives, he will become the first person to visit every country in the world in a single journey, without air travel.

The feat hasn't been without obstacles. In fact, for Pederson New Zealand was almost the "straw that broke his back".

At first, things looked promising.

"On May 6th NZ Customs informed that I could enter NZ as a passenger on board a container ship," Pederson wrote on his blog where he's kept track of the journey.

"On the same day our friends at ZIM Shipping informed that Gold Star Line was looking forward to welcoming me on board the good ship Toronto Trader departing Melbourne on May 22nd."

However, a few days later on May 10, Pederson said a senior client service adviser from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment's immigration contact centre got in touch and said he could not enter due to Covid border restrictions.

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More bad news followed on May 12 when a second container ship said they could no longer accommodate him.

Undeterred, Pederson said, while he was initially denied entry under the Covid-19 restrictions, "the email from MBIE seemed more like someone who didn't really know how to deal with something they had never been asked before and found it easier to say no".

He considered alternative routes that went to the Pacific Islands first, but their borders were equally restrictive, and his new Danish passport was waiting in New Zealand.

With "a little help from my friends", Pederson said he received news on May 13 that another shipping company could carry him across. After discussions with New Zealand Immigration, they confirmed on May 17 that he could enter the country as a container ship passenger.

This may seem like a loophole but the Dane's entry to New Zealand is totally above board thanks to good timing and recent changes to the Maritime Border Order on May 2.

Under the new rules, cargo ship crew and passengers are not subject to isolation upon arrival but do need to take RATs on days 0/1 and 5/6 if they wish to leave the ship and be in the community.

Previously a soldier in the Danish Army, Pedersen has put his knowledge of shipping and logistics to good use since leaving home and beginning his epic journey nearly nine years ago in 2013.

Unsurprisingly, he is ready for the adventure to be over.

The New Zealand stop may only be two to three days but it isn't Pedersen's first visit and he does not think it will be his last.

The Toronto Trader is expected to arrive into Tauranga on June 7.