First Filipino to travel

to every country in the world

Odette Ricasa became the first Filipino to travel to all the countries in the world when she arrived in Kurdistan, Iraq on 25th of August 2022.

At 77 years old, she has fulfilled a lifetime dream of visiting the 193 countries recognized by the United Nations. Prior to the onset of the pandemic, Odette was five countries short of finishing all the countries. She resumed her world travels in 2022 to complete the remaining destinations: Sudan, Chad, Central African Republic, Libya, and Iraq. She also finished visiting all seven continents back in 2015.

Based in Los Angeles, Odette is an active member of the Philippine Global Explorers travel community, where she heads the U.S West Coast chapter. She is a modern-day renaissance woman, an author of six travel books, a successful artist with over one hundred paintings, a motivational speaker, and a prolific piano player. Her mini biography and travel stories are featured in the book Galà: Adventures of the Most Well-Traveled Filipinos.