Airplanes have made it possible to reach places thousands of kilometers away very quickly, but more and more people are realizing that this means an important part of travel gets lost.

By covering long distances on foot, on a bike or on a cargo ship, you get more of an authentic feeling about the travel experience.

Not traveling by plane is also better for the environment – although you will certainly need a lot more time. Let's take a closer look at the alternatives:

1. Put your backpack on and go: Discover forgotten paths on foot

"At the start, I was overwhelmed by how long the path was," Rebecca Maria Salentin said. She walked the 2,700-kilometer (1,677-mile) mountain trail of friendship from Eisenach in Germany to Budapest, Hungary.

"It was hard. If you're on foot the entire time, you can't skip boring or rainy passages.

"You can't walk away from your own doubts and fears," the long-distance hiker said. "Instead, you notice the beautiful things along the way. I realized I'm much stronger than I thought. After about three weeks on your feet, you have thought through everything that had been bothering you. You find an inner balance."

Her personal highlight wasn't just the people she met along the way, but also the friends who supported her and accompanied her at certain points. She named her book about long-distance hiking after this club of friendship: "Club Druzhba."