Microsoft Flight Simulator includes the whole planet, which means that it’s possible to go on a literal tour around the world that would make Jules Verne proud.
While exploring every corner of our planet will take years, flying all the way around it is a much more attainable goal, and that’s exactly what I set out to do almost exactly one month ago.
Of course, flying the whole distance in one go would be rather taxing, so I decided to take it easy and split it into several legs, with each keeping me in the air approximately one or two hours.
As my departure point, I selected the airport of Florence in Italy, simply because I’m Italian and Florence is a beautiful city to take off from.
For my ride, I picked the Cessna Citation Longitude. It’s fast so the trip wouldn’t last 80 days like in Verne’s novel, and it’s really sleek. May as well do this in style.
Once I had my departure point and my aircraft selected, I picked my first destination and took off. I didn’t do much pre-planning. Every time I sat at the controls, I simply decided a target that I wanted to visit approximately east of where I was. That would have brought me back home, sooner or later.
The whole tour lasted 33 legs flown between Aug 26 and Sept 22, for approximately 50 flight hours across Europe, Asia, America, and two oceans, briefly touching Africa as well. Here’s the route I followed.
Since Microsoft Flight Simulator is a beautiful game, below you can find 2,906 screenshots taken across all legs.
Having them all on the site would be a bit cumbersome, so clicking on each picture will bring you to the full gallery for that specific leg. You can also find a massive gallery with every single picture here.
And yes, for the realism-savvy among you, I’m perfectly aware that I shouldn’t fly this low over urban areas. This is a sightseeing trip in a Flight Simulator, so I had to break a few rules.
Leg 1: Florence to Athens
Florence is beautifully rendered in Microsoft Flight Simulator, and Athens is an absolutely massive city. Yet, I immediately run into an unforeseen problem. The Longitude has a glitch that degrades its fuel economy considerably, so I loaded a lot less juice than I need and I have to stop on the island of Corfu for refueling.
Leg 2: Athens to Istanbul
This time around I leave Athens with a full tank, and Istanbul is no less splendid, worthy of the connection point between Europe and Asia.
Leg 3: Istanbul to Cairo
Before diving deeper into the Asian continent, I wanted a tad of Africa, so I hop across the Mediterranean to Egypt, where I can witness the majesty of the pyramids from above.
Leg 4: Cairo to Tel Aviv/Jerusalem
Time to fly back to the Middle East with a visit to Israel’s main international airport Ben Gurion, which serves both Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Yet, first I take a closer look at the Giza pyramid complex thanks to the departure route that leads me straight above the famous wonder of antiquity.
Leg 5: Tel Aviv to Dubai
The sixth leg brings me across Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf to the glitzy capital of the United Arab Emirates. Its majestic skyscrapers and beautiful marinas are as stunning as expected.
Leg 6: Dubai to Islamabad
This flight across Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan was perhaps one of the most surprising. The untamed mountains of the regions poking among the heavy clouds make for some of the most gorgeous sights.
Leg 7: Islamabad to Agra
Another certainly scenic flight across north-western Idia over famous wonders like the Golden Temple in Amritsar, the Baha’i Lotus Temple in Delhi, and finally the Taj Mahal.
Leg 8: Agra to Paro
It’s time to head north, over Nepal and its capital Kathmandu, then East alongside the Himalaya to pay homage to Mount Everest. Then, I land in Paro, Bhutan, one of the most challenging airports in the world. Since it’s surrounded by mountains, it’s certainly worthy of that reputation. Luckily, fair weather makes the approach less scary.
Leg 9: Paro to Bangkok
Did I say fair weather? The following day rain and low clouds make the take-off a bit scarier. Yet, the view from above the clouds is gorgeous before the sun meets me again over Myanmar and Thailand.
Leg 10: Bangkok to Siem Reap
The next destination is obvious. From Thailand’s capital, it’s just a short hop to Angkor Wat, the majestic ruins left by the Khmer Empire in Cambodia.
Leg 11: Siem Reap to Hong Kong
My next destination is across the South China sea. I’m welcomed to Hong Kong by a stunning sunset and the millions of lights of the city.
Leg 12: Hong Kong to Taipei
The twelfth leg sees me flying across the pond to Taiwan and its capital Taipei, gracefully crossed by rivers and surrounded by mountains. It’s certainly a majestic sight.
Leg 13: Taipei to Shanghai
Across the sea again and back to China, over Zhejiang to Shanghai, to visit one more massive city with tall skyscrapers reflecting on the Huangpu River.
Leg 14: Shanghai to Seoul
Time to fly to Korea, but massive storm clouds certainly make the flight interesting as I fly over Incheon International Airport to land at the quieter Gimpo airport, which is much closer to the city.
Leg 15: Seoul to Osaka
The next flight is across the Strait of Tsushima to western Japan, heading to Osaka. Once more, I skip the larger Kansai Airport to land at the smaller Itami, right in the middle of the city, enjoying a spectacular approach over Osaka Castle.
Leg 16: Osaka to Tokyo
Being rather biased in favor of Tokyo, this is always one of my favorite flights. I’m welcomed by a gorgeous sight of Mount Fuji before I land at Haneda airport, ready to enjoy my favorite city. Since I haven’t been able to travel for a while, I really miss its atmosphere. The approach to Haneda certainly feels nostalgic.
Leg 17: Tokyo to Sapporo
I always feel melancholic when I leave Tokyo, and apparently this extends to flight simulators. Yet, it’s time to move on to Sapporo, the capital of Hokkaido. Unfortunately, the beauty of northern Japan is hidden by a thick cloud blanket, but the approach at dusk makes up for it.
Leg 18: Sapporo to Sokol
The next leg brings me to the remote Russian region of Magadan Oblast, after flying over the Kuril Islands and the Kamchatka peninsula.
Leg 19: Sokol to Anchorage
Time for the big jump across the northern Pacific Ocean to the cold mountains of Alaska. Anchorage is ready to welcome me to America with a gorgeous sunset.
Leg 20: Anchorage to Seattle
Another jump over Canada to Seattle. Since it’s Microsoft’s home turf, it’s not surprising that the city of inFamous: Second Son is modeled in great detail.
Leg 21: Seattle to Denver
While the weather over Seattle deteriorates, the flight to Denver is most pleasant, especially considering how beautiful the north-western United States is from above.
Leg 22: Denver to Chicago
This flight between two of the busiest airports in the world admittedly has little else to offer. As beautiful the Pacific Northwest is, the central United States is a bit… flat.
Leg 23: Chicago to New York City
Time to visit the Big Apple, and it certainly does not disappoint with its many landmarks and the familiar skyline. As usual, JFK Airport is super-busy, so I have to wait for a bit to let the airliners land. With these sights, that’s fine by me.
Leg 24: New York City to Montreal
I leave the sights of Manhattan to head north to Canada, but there’s always time for a closer look at Central Park.
Leg 25: Montreal to Halifax
From Québec to Nova Scotia, there is plenty of time to admire the beauty of Canada. I haven’t seen so much dark green and blue in a while. Unfortunately, I can’t have pre-flight poutine in a flight simulator.
Leg 26: Halifax to St. John’s
As I head to the north-eastern tip of Newfoundland, ready for the long jump across the Atlantic, the American continent bids me goodbye with the most spectacular fiery sunrise.
Leg 27: St. John’s to Reykjavík
As I fly over the Atlantic Ocean I’m welcomed by large clouds that unfortunately shield the rough beauty of Iceland, even if they’re quite gorgeous themselves. I land at Reykjavík’s smaller airport and I’m officially back in Europe.
Leg 28: Reykjavík to Dublin
Another flight over the north Atlantic and I’m finally in Ireland. From above, it’s certainly easy to see why the country is associated with the color green.
Leg 29: Dublin to London
Flying to England, I take my time to enjoy the beauty of Dublin from above before I cross the Irish Sea. In London, I avoid the hustle and bustle of larger airports like Heathrow and Gatwick and head straight from the small runway of London City, in the middle of the metropolis.
Not only it’s spectacular, but the steep approach (to avoid the nearby skyscrapers) on a jet is quite intimidating, almost like landing on an aircraft carrier.
Leg 30: London to Paris
The take-off from London City airport is just as spectacular as the landing as I fly low and slow over the Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, and the glorious HMS Belfast.
Then it’s time to fly across the Channel to France and La Ville Lumière. I land at the massive Charles de Gaulle airport and take almost as long to taxi to my ramp as I did to fly there.
Leg 31: Paris to Frankfurt
Taking off at sunrise I avoid the busiest hours at CDG, and I’m treated to the lovely sights of Paris kissed by the first sun.
Then I fly directly over Luxemburg and into Germany, where I’m welcomed by the familiar skyline of Frankfurt.
Leg 32: Frankfurt to Innsbruck
Departing from Frankfurt I take my time to overfly Nuremberg and Munich before heading to Austria and the winter resort city surrounded by the Alps.
Low clouds and mountains make for a rather intimidating approach to Innsbruck, which is one of the most challenging airports in Europe. Yet, the double rainbow as I cross the decision point is the perfect welcome.
Leg 33: Innsbruck to Milan
It’s time to go home. The last leg brings me over the Alps back to Italy. Again, I take some time for sightseeing over Milan, which looks gorgeous from above with the gothic spires of the Duomo and all its familiar landmarks. I’ll be home for dinner.
I’m going to close this report this with something fully unexpected: I was flying over northern Italy on my approach to Milan when I took a look at my navigation map and I noticed that I was about to fly over my town, completely randomly. I didn’t even try.
I dropped down to 3,000 feet just in time to poke under the clouds and there it was, my house right there, alongside the soccer field where I used to play as a kid.
I was aware that there is a fairly busy airway passing over my house (trust me, you hear it), but I certainly never expected to randomly stumble upon it right at the end of a virtual flight around the world.
This concludes my flight around the world, which solidified my belief that Microsoft Flight Simulator is truly a unique game.
Not only is it a great Flight Simulator with the potential to become even more exceptional as both Asobo and third-party developers add to it over the months and years, but it’s a truly awesome experience capable to provide intense feelings of awe, marvel, and discovery almost similar to real travel.
I just returned home (quite literally), and I’m already planning my next flight.
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