A man has become the youngest person to visit every country in the world.

The Comet: James Asquith has become the youngest person ever to visit every country in the worldJames Asquith has become the youngest person ever to visit every country in the world (Image: Archant)

James Asquith, 24, of Stevenage, has spent £125,000 visiting 196 countries since 2008. He funded his travels by using money he had saved working part-time jobs since he was 16, as well as working in bars and hostels while on his travels.

The Comet: James Asquith in AustraliaJames Asquith in Australia (Image: Archant)

Mr Asquith said: “Vietnam was the first country I went to and I spent nearly three months there. I also spent about five months in the US and Canada, getting to 27 states between Hawaii and Alaska.

“There were a lot of small countries and tricky border crossings along the way. I put trust in some people who drove me through as many as three countries at a time.

“I always seemed to pick the worst timing to visit a lot of countries. I went to Libya three weeks after Gaddafi fell, Afghanistan two weeks after the terrorist bombings in Mazar-i-Sharif, but I usually just tried to find a friendly local person and use their knowledge to get an insight into each country.”

He has now returned to his regular job as a credit trader in London.