RTW trip starting in October - where to go
 

Hi fellow travellers,

I plan to go on a RTW (more or less) trip for at least 6 months and will probably be able to start some time to the end of 2020. So looking at travelling during October-March. Again just a rough plan at the moment.

I always wanted to start riding from home (Germany) and go east (e.g. Silk Road). But I reckon that this should be undertaken during the summer in the northern hemisphere.

So what are your suggestions for a trip during the colder months (in the northern hemisphere)?

Maybe fly into Argentina and then go north so I could reach the U.S. by Spring time? (Feb/March) And then continue on north to Canada/Alaska. This would mean shipping the bike as well which I wanted to avoid, not only for budget reasons.

Africa would be an option I guess but I am not sure if this is for me. (have been riding solo in Morocco and South Africa, but as they say this is not Africa ;-)

Looking forward to your suggestions!!

Cheers,
Stephan

Put any preconceived thoughts away and go see Africa and Africans. You’ll never regret it.


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Well if you want to go around the world, you can't avoid shipping the bike across the Atlantic. ;)

There is a popular container shipping route from Hamburg to Valparaiso, so logistically this would be the easiest way for you.

Then again, if you've done Morocco and South Africa, then you're probably going to be fine in the rest of Africa too.

In February and March the upper north part of the US will be quite cold for a ride. Alaska will be freezing. I'm in Pennsylvania right now and this week will be high 9 low -1 C.

Thanks guys for your input!! Greatly appreciated!

Did anyone do a South America roundtrip between October-February? Any recommendations on rough route planning?

What is your experience with traveling north through Central America on the road?

What are your thoughts to Air vs. Sea shipping to South America? The overall opinion seems to be that Air is much faster and less likely to have big delays. And with Sea you seem to face hard to predict fees in the destination port. Maybe some of you can share your experiences.

Cheers,
Stephan

Stephen, check out the Shipping Info page for loads of experiences: https://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tr...t/shipping.php

Also see Travel Stories for peoples experiences: https://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories

My recommendation would be to fly with your bike with Air Canada to Montreal or Vancouver. They seem to be the easiest and a fairly cheap option and you can find info on their website about cargo planes. I've seen other forums recommending them, I'll post a link at the bottom of this comment. Then if you get to Canada in October, you probably won't have time to go to Alaska due to the cold, but you could ride to Argentina and be warm the whole time. I rode from Vancouver to Ushuaia, Argentina from Early October to late February 2016/17. There's a town in Chile at the south called Punta Arenas where you can legally sell a car/moto from any country!

https://www.aircanada.com/cargo/en/s...otorcycle.html

Hi.. I'm in the same boat as you... planned to have left UK about now for a RTW, but due to this disaster also waiting around in the hope it resolves soon(ish)
I am considering now to leave UK through EU at the end of the year then down into Africa as it stands currently and cant wait!

I'm in the exact same shoes as well. Planned UK to India for 2020, but that's fallen through. Now entertaining the possibility of traveling Oct-March; either Mexico through Central America to, say, Peru ... or West Africa, e.g. UK to Sierra Leone.

My biggest worry is - other than COVID and border closings - the perception of people seeing you as hostile transmitter of the virus.

You can't go East. You have missed the window. And any delays will be even worse. And there are likely to be many delays.

In October you should always start looking to the Southern Hemispheres.

South America and Africa are both great. But South America is suffering heavily with Covid right now. Borders might close. Who knows ?

Africa is always turbulent but never dull. And it's also vast and very diverse.

You could even start in South Africa. Ship to Capetown and head alone the South coast. Head up the East coast. Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda. All safe and beautiful countries to travel in.

Yeah its a bit of a nightmare.. i originally planned a tour of the British Isles first, to get all my gear sorted prior the big trip, now even that's not plausible, so i as we all are in a state of limbo.. i still would like to get into EU as soon as possible and if there is a chance even in Sept/Oct i will go, but S. America is also a good option!
Your right, there is that perception of 'carriers' so not sure if there will be any restrictions !

I came home in March in the middle of a 2 month stay along the US-Mexico border and canceled my plans for a couple of months in Spain and Morroco next fall. Things are a mess.

This disease is going everywhere, so it's not just that you and I might be 'perceived' as a carrier- you really might be one and not know it. Travelers from China, travelers from Europe and now who knows where else have carried Covid 19 to some pretty isolated places.

Travel is out for me until I start seeing some change. I don't want to carry disease to some place where they have little medical service.

..........shu

(Sorry, I can't remember what the original topic was. doh)

Yeah its a headache...!! I also moved back to UK in Dec, quit my job for this trip and now in wait.. nice timing:censored:

Soon as possible, i will be off, even if it is a short trip.

re "Did anyone do a South America roundtrip between October-February? Any recommendations on rough route planning?"

Yes but not on 2 wheels (at least not intentionally). In only 4 months you'll be pushed for time to travel South America, however you have two basic options. In both I suggest flying the bike to Uruguay, Argentina, or Chile. Then start in Patagonia, where it will be late autumn, and either:

- travel north on the west coast (Chile/Argentina, Bolivia, Perú, Ecuador, Colombia, then ship to Panamá (if you want to visit Central America and/or Mexico on the way to the USA & Canada) or to Houston or Miami then head north again.

Or

- head north on the east coast - Argentina/Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, then cross to Perú and continue as above. I recommend against Venezuela, and unless you do a long detour the "Guianas" are not readily accessible on this option.

If you choose not to go to South America (and perhaps the rest of the Americas) then you have time to spend in Africa. Given the inconvenience and expense of Egypt and the insecurity in North Africa and northern West Africa I suggest flying the bike to Cape Town and then doing a loop RSA, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, and maybe as far as Malawi and/or Tanzania before returning to RSA via Zimbabwe. With more time you could visit Kenya, Uganda, and perhaps Rwanda as well.

Third option, given that it'll be summer in the Southern Hemisphere, is Australia, which needs a lot more than 6 months to explore, however the north and centre of Australia will be too hot for a sensible trip, so perhaps Southern Queensland, NSW, SA, Tasmania, and SW WA would make sense.

Apart from Tasmania the whole of Australia has the potential to be very hot during their summer and fires are a risk. Even though they’re in the south, SA and Victoria can be extremely hot - in fact temperatures in north NSW and southern Queensland are often lower but the humidity can be hell.
WA is mostly desert - can be 50 degrees ( I lasted 1 week as a bricklayer in Perth during January doh)
NZ is a better option.
Hope you sort a trip out - keep us posted
bier