Is it possible to travel the world with only a bitcoin wallet in your pocket? It was to this question that programmer Felix Weis, who conducted a famous experiment, wanted to find an answer. In 2015 he managed to visit 27 countries and 50 cities in 18 months, paying only bitcoins during the trip.
Weis first discovered the digital currency in 2012 when his trust in the banks diminished after the financial crisis. With the world trip experiment still in his mind, he converted all his savings to Bitcoin and started the travel.
In some countries like Romania or Turkey it was downright difficult to use cryptocurrency. Felix explains how he managed not to be tempted to use fiat money: he couldn’t use any banks, no currency exchanges from one country to the next, and no credit cards. Cash could only be traded for Bitcoin, and Bitcoin always had to come first.
At one point, it took Weiss three whole days to convince the owner of the diving equipment to accept Bitcoin because he knew nothing about it.
“Money is a huge construct as it can be whatever people want it to be. It’s something that happens over generations and I don’t see why Bitcoin can’t be the same. The fact that I was able to use it in 27 countries makes it a global currency for me,” said a traveler.