Mini RTW trip

shinnersdcu

Hey,

I'm trying to come up with a plan for travelling for a year and would love to get any advice because I'm a bit lost at the moment with all the options.

I'm going to head late September with my bf and another couple and we're think of Rio first and travelling south america for 6 weeks.

What realistically can you get done and see while having a laugh at the same time. Would some flights be a better option than buses?Where to go what to see?

Then we're going to head to Fiji for 2 weeks before hitting Oz early December.
I think we're going to fly into Adelaide and make our way up to Carins. We were thinking 6-7 months for Oz in total.

Then Thialand/Laos/Vietnam/Cambodia/ and back to Thaliand in about 3-4 months

Is this a good route?

We dont plan on having to work,we might just for the fun or depending on finances so we're all doing the tefl and prob the bar license just in case.

any advice?

cheers

Neamhshuntasach

Well it's a linear route to begin with. Some people seem to plan routes without looking at a map as they are all over the place.

Anyways regarding South America. 6 weeks is a long enough time to see a fair amount but don't get too ambitious as you will spend a lot of time traveling on buses. What looks like a short distance between places can and will end up being a lot longer than you think. Since you are heading to Fiji from SA i can imagine you will be leaving from Santiago. So Rio is a good place to start. Either there or Buenos Aires. You could always start in Rio and work your way down to Argentina. Take in a day or 2 in Uruguay and then fly to Lima and work your way down to Santiago while taking in a bit of Bolivia. Or you can just concentrate on Brazil, Argentina and Chile by using buses. That would be something i'd probably do if i just had 6 weeks. While 6 weeks seem like a long enough time you won't feel the days being used up when there.

I can't really comment on Australia as i'll only be there for the 1st time next year. But i had a mate who got back from Australia only last week and he said that he spend between 25-30K within a year over there. That included money he had earned while working there. So you'd wanna make sure you have a lot of money behind you for Oz if you don't plan on working. Granted he seemed to do a lot of stuff while there such as visiting New Zealand and Fiji for Christmas and general traveling around.

3-4 months is also plenty for South East Asia. You will have time to see lots and also chill out.

Overall it's a decent route. But if it was me taking your trip i'd reduce time in Oz and spend more time in South America as i love the continent. But everyone has their own preference.

Glowing

Yeah I say this to pretty much everyone who is trying to plan a RTW trip - why are you planning to spend so much time in Australia? It's really just like home, and to see all the sights there is no way you'll need 7 months! It'll seriously break the bank! It's not a cheap place to travel, eat or sleep in!!

If I were you, I'd cut out about 4 months from Oz (maybe add in NZ for a month?), add the extra time to Asia and see more of South America too - Australia would be a great place to work and live, but tbh it's overrated as a backpackers destination.

shinnersdcu

thanks a million guys,

Our timescales does seem a bit random. I suppose it's because we've said for years we're goinyg to Oz for a year so to us cutting it back to 6-7 months seems like loads.....and if it's that expensive I'd y we'd have to work

We only came up with the south america idea because we wanted a holiday before Oz but if we're going to do it it does make sense to take more time and do it right

I've got my heart set on Peru and Rio and I think we'll have to leave through Santiago so thats a hell of allot of ground to cover

Are flights within South America expensive? ex Rio to Lima?

Also would it be cheaper to do more countries for shorter times like extend asia to include India/ Philippines or China to Russia

ahhh there's so much how can one plan this!!!Think a trip to chapters is needed to buy every guide book ever

Glowing

Yeah - 7 months in Oz without working would cost an absolute fortune.

With 2 months in S.A you could see a lot. I spent 2 months there from last December and saw a lot of Chile, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina. I covered a lot of ground mostly on overnight busses (that's the way to do it over there, flights are not that cheap) - and got to see everything i wanted, it was great! You could fly into Lima, bus it down through Cusco, into Brazil, down through Bolivia then Argentina then out of Santiago - definitely do-able in 6-8 weeks!

It's generally cheaper to do fewer places in a longer time because the 'actual travel' is the expensive part of travelling! The overnight busses, the flights, the trains, they all add up. But then again, you might as well see China or India or Russia since you're going to be so close! You certainly won't come home next year and regret that 50 quid you spent on that one bus!!!

Make the most of it while you're there - you'll have the next 60 years to pay it off

shinnersdcu

if you don't mind me being nosey Glowing, how much did you spend in South America not including flights?Just your money spent there including buses and treks etc?

I might spilt my money into 3 sections so that if I over indulge in Oz I have to work but at least Ill have the money to be able to do South East Asia

Neamhshuntasach

I spent about 3 grand (Euro) or maybe a little more in 4 months while in South America. That was the longest continuous time i was on the continent. I had gone to certain countries for a few weeks at a time and i'd always average about 20-40 dollars a day. (around 15-30 Euro). Obviously treks and certain days will cost more money than the average but there will be days when you just kick back and do nothing. And when you do nothing you spend nothing or close enough to it.

I'll be in South America for about 10 months from later this year and i expect to spend around 7K or so there. Roughly an average of 25 euro a day. I will be traveling overland at all times ecept where it is necessary to fly such as getting to Angel falls.

Glowing

shinnersdcu wrote: »

if you don't mind me being nosey Glowing, how much did you spend in South America not including flights?Just your money spent there including buses and treks etc?

I might spilt my money into 3 sections so that if I over indulge in Oz I have to work but at least Ill have the money to be able to do South East Asia

I don't actually know for sure, but I think I spent about 2 grand in two months, although probably closer to 3 - with such a short time, I crammed in as much as possible, and did loads of treks/tours/eating/drinking ... we also spoiled ourselves in B.A and stayed in a lovely hotel. Argentina is reasonably expensive compared to Peru and Bolivia so the longer you spend in the poorer countries, the longer your money will last.

I HIGHLY recommend doing the 4 day Inca Trail - we did it though Llama Path, and they exceeded our expectations 100 fold.