Race Across the World stars share advice for 2025 contestants

Race Across the World is tough. Now ahead of the 2025 Race Across the World series, the 2024 contestants are offering their best advice for the show.

A good start would be watching Race Across the World, seeing how others have fared before. But even with doing your research, Stephen said Race Across the World is a "shock to the system". However, he encouraged anyone thinking about it to "just do it".

The youngest in the race - Alfie and Owen - were surprised to find out their rivals had been doing a lot to prepare for the show while they admitted to doing zero prep. Alfie told Yahoo: "We didn't find this out until the reunion, but apparently Stephen and Viv were like doing hikes. Eugenie and Isabel were learning languages. We didn't do anything."

So what would the Race Across the World contestants do differently if they had their time again to prepare and what do they advise for those racing in the 2025 show?

Pick the right partner

Viv was confident having the right partner was very important because that could prove to be "tricky" at times. With little sleep and lack of food, sometimes rows can break out within the teams so being able to get along really helps situations.

She said: "You're going to be spending an awful lot of time with them. And it might be that you think you are best buddies and you're really close as a family or whatever but you're with them 24/7 for up to eight weeks."

Viv and Stephen are a retired married couple who already are together a lot in their daily lives so they thought this was a big plus to their partnership when heading onto the show.

"We actually did think we had an advantage because we do spend a lot of time together," she said. "So we're used to each other and I don't think there were any surprises between the two of us. That's where we think some of the other contestants may have struggled slightly."

Pack only the essentials

Eugenie and Isabel were so prepared for the race that they admitted to "overpacking", having had two of everything just incase of an emergency. While the rucksacks provided some "belly laughs", Eugenie admitted they were incredibly heavy and it was something they would rethink if they were heading out to do the race again.

The mother and daughter warned any potential contestants about taking too much in those rucksacks. "Really be thinking about what they really need," Eugenie said. "What are the actual essentials? Keep that rucksack light."

Plus, everyone who watches Race Across the World knows the contestants have to do a lot of running to the checkpoint while being able to lift those rucksacks.

Stephen and Viv who didn't have rucksacks before the race were sure their weakness was "carrying stuff". They knew they needed to be able to lift their rucksacks easily because they wouldn't beat the other competitors in a "foot race".

"Every single thing we can do to lighten our load literally as well as metaphorically, we just had to do it," he said. So much so that Stephen cut labels out of his underwear just to make his bag a little bit lighter.

"We were weighing everything and I was cutting the labels out of my underwear. They sound really silly and petty - I suppose it is. But everything matters, you do what you can to promote your own strengths if you want."

Think outside the box

Alfie encouraged anyone thinking on taking up the challenge to "think outside the box". "Just think a little outside the box," he said.

His must-have pack item for Race Across the World was a calculator, something he wished he had brought along with him on his journey. "You forget," he said. "Because obviously when we do maths at home, we just swipe down on our phone and the calculators there. And you really are sent to code with no comprehension of what currency you're getting next. And a calculator would have been really helpful."

This season Eugenie and Isabel did bring a calculator and they found it was very helpful.

Be in the moment

Isabel advised those competing to "be in the moment" while competing on the show. "We could have taken it in a bit better," she said.

"It is a race but it's also a once in a lifetime experience. Some of the stuff we got to see and do. Just being in the moment as much as possible and just having something to have downtime. I had books, mum used an MP3 player... It will get tiring over time."

This is something all of the contestants talk about while on the trip. It might be a race but it's also an experience and they must learn to juggle both elements of the show while competing.

Take a camera

Eugenie simply thought it would be a fabulous idea for contestants to take a camera to capture their once in a lifetime memories as they went along.

This season we've often got glimpses of Owen snapping photographs of where he is travelling alongside his best friend Alfie.