At just 20 years old, Sophia Lee from Alaska is on the cusp of setting a new world record. Having already visited 186 countries and territories, she is only nine destinations away from becoming the youngest person ever to travel to every country in the world. Lee aims to surpass the current record held by Lexie Alford, who completed her global journey at 21 years and 177 days old.
From Solo Teen Trips to Global Ambition
Lee's passion for travel began early, with her first solo international trip to Costa Rica at the age of 13 in 2019. This initial experience, requiring parental permission to fly alone, was a significant step outside the United States. Growing up in a family influenced by her grandparents' work with the US Peace Corps, Lee found travel a natural fit and credits it with helping her overcome childhood social anxiety.
Homeschooled, Lee enjoyed the flexibility to travel while continuing her studies, graduating high school early at 16. She further funded her early explorations by training as a yoga instructor, often exchanging teaching or social media assistance for room and board in countries like Egypt and Ecuador.
Pursuing a Guinness World Record
The idea of challenging Lexie Alford's record initially seemed daunting to Lee. However, after extensive volunteering with wildlife sanctuaries and schools across various nations, she decided to formally pursue the Guinness World Record. This rigorous process mandated travel via public transportation, continuous tracking device use, GPS file submissions, and even revisiting approximately 50 countries she had previously explored.
Lee officially began her record attempt in 2023 when she was 17. A family situation led to a temporary pause, but she resumed her journey in 2024 and has been traveling continuously since. She started on an extreme budget of just $100 per country, often opting for overnight buses to save on accommodation costs, before sponsorships and brand partnerships eased the financial pressure.
Highlights and Hurdles Across Continents
Her extensive travels have taken her through diverse landscapes, from Iran and Vietnam to Libya and Albania. Lee defines a meaningful visit as one that involves genuine engagement with the local culture, whether through interacting with residents, sampling local cuisine, or exploring historical sites. While she ideally prefers at least a week in each country, the demanding schedule often dictates shorter stays.
Not all journeys have been smooth. In Somalia, Lee required a constant security escort, and visiting Turkmenistan necessitated booking a guided tour due to US citizen entry requirements. A severe illness in Congo this April even prompted her to consider returning home. Currently, she awaits visa approvals for some of her final destinations, including Sudan, with Venezuela anticipated to be the very last country on her list.
India: A Favorite Destination
Among the nearly 200 countries she has experienced, India stands out as Lee's clear favorite. She has returned to the country five times since her initial visit in 2022, praising its unparalleled natural, cultural, and religious diversity, alongside its renowned hospitality. She recounts the experience of moving from the Himalayas to the ocean, bustling cities to remote, isolated regions, all within India's borders.
Another particularly special memory for Lee was her trip to Uganda in February 2025, when her grandfather joined her to visit Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, home to nearly half of the world's mountain gorilla population. She described this shared experience as one of the most magical moments of her travels.
The Personal Cost of a Nomadic Life
Years of living out of a suitcase have come with significant personal sacrifices for Lee. She acknowledges spending little time with peers her own age, with most of her traveling companions ranging from 30 to 80 years old. She has gone extended periods without seeing family, including a year without seeing her parents, though her sister occasionally joins her in more accessible locations.
The constant movement has also left her without a strong sense of home or community, leading her to reflect on the typical childhood and teenage experiences she missed. As her extraordinary journey approaches its conclusion, Lee looks forward to a much-needed break after persistent health issues, and eventually, establishing a stable home base. “Living out of a suitcase for seven years has been fun,” she shared, “but I’m looking forward to having more of a stable setting and being able to make friends and kind of build my own life in one location.”