As always, in the winter months I have a lot more time than money.

That's life as a Self employed Motorcycle Mechanic.

I have a relatively limited budget of £2000-£2500 and the months of January and February 2018 to recharge my batteries. I need some sunshine and adventure.

And more importantly, I'm looking for a relaxing trip. I can't be bothered with tons of bureaucracy, paperwork and difficult travel. Gringo Trail bus routes are HELL. I want to bum about on a bike. No extreme adventure selfies are going to be taken on this trip. Backpacking is out of the question because I just can't bare to be without the freedom of my own transport.

What are your suggestions ? There's always great travel ideas from Hubb members.

I really hoped to travel in South America again. Maybe the cheaper Andean countries. But can I get on a bike for that budget though ? Shipping out there is definitely off the cards and flights there and back will probably cost me £1200. Doable ?

Central America ? I've never been.

India is perhaps an option. Cheaper flights, definitely cheaper living and perhaps possible to buy an old Chinese bike and ride South to North ?

USA. Southern States are warm in January right ? The cost of living isn't cheap though is it ? £500 motorcycles about ?

South East Asia. I don't like it. Not my kind of culture. No offence

South Africa. I love the place but bikes are expensive and and it's just not cheap enough. Camping isn't easy there at all.

Australia/ New Zealand ? I think I'd run out of money in a week.



Hit me......

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Its a great idea and I like the way you want to do it. But what kind of bike do you want to ride? Are you happy with a 125 scooter, a 250 dirtbike or do you want something even bigger?

New Zealand - its very easy to buy a bike as a foreigner there. You can camp around both islands almost "everywhere". January and february would be good weatherwise but january is schoolholiday there so campgrounds and other accomodation will fill up fast and prices might rise. But as you have mentioned yourself - expensive.

Cheap Andescountries - aka Bolivia, Peru maybe Colombia, Ecuador? Theres a guy in Peru who seem to have good buyback deals on many types of bikes, also chinese 250 dirtbikes which he upgrades and equipes. He is often posting here on the HUBB. But probably the wrong time of year as it is the rainy season in the Andes at that time of year. But you could always go down to the pacific coast I guess. Northern Argentina and Chile maybe? Uruguay, southern parts of Brasil maybe? Airtickets from Europe to South-America are expensive though, as you have mentioned.

India - would probably be great at that time of year although I belive the northern parts can get quite cool/cold at that time of year. The traffic are horrible though, the pollution, the poverty, the sheer amount of people and traffic can scare the shit out of everyone. Bikes shouldnt be a problem, if you dont want a Royal Enfield - India produces heaps of bikes. The Pulsar brand is said to be quite robust and sturdy and looks like a modern bike at least. Very cheap country and cheap flights from Europe.

Too bad you dont like SE-Asia, it would be the perfect time of year to be there weatherwise. No rain and not too hot. One month i Laos and one month in Vietnam would maybe have been my choice.
Indonesia is great too - and very inexpensive. But january and february are the rainy season down there so not right time of the year.

Africa - never been there so cannot tell.

Anyhow - good luck with your choice.

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In the end everything will be fine. If its not fine its not the end....

I'll ride anything as long as my ass survives the journey and it doesn't break down every half hour.

I went backpacking around South East Asia a couple of years ago. I hated it.

It's hard to say if that's because I was backpacking though. And my frame of mind at the time wasn't the best.

I just didn't gel well with the culture, language etc. I felt that I couldn't connect with the locals. Language and culture barrier was just too much. It felt very much "Us and them" as a tourist. I felt like a cash cow and a scam target from dawn til dusk. I haven't experienced that anywhere else in the world to such an extent.

Anyway. I went there a few years ago. I'd prefer some place new.

Andean countries wet season in January ?? I didn't know.

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Hi Ted How about North Africa ? Use your own bike ride or sail down to Spain
And head south from there.

Not a bad idea. It would have to be west coast wouldn't it. Can't say I fancy the European leg of the trip in Jan and it also rules out all the mountains in Morocco. :/

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not necessarily, I was up in the atlas mountains a couple christmases ago, and while it gets very cold at night up in the mountains, the days were quite pleasant with full gear. Here's the weather where I was staying:

https://www.accuweather.com/en/ma/im...eather/1585014

edit, and for India you can check prices of new bikes here: https://www.bikewale.com/

Wow i never spend 2000 pounds in just 2 months. You could spend a nice time in SoutheastAsia or Indie for 300 returnflight + 150 for food + 150 per month for renting a local bike (less then 5 dollars per day) camping is free and donate the rest to a charity organisation or so. Enjoy! Offroad Motorrad Weltreisen - das letzte Abenteuer

Thumbs up for Ferns suggestion for Nepal. Cheap and exotic, friendly people, stunning scenery. Only Kathmandu is a bit chaotic, the rest is calm and quiet mostly. Himalayas are incredible. Can be a bit chilly at altitudes. Two months can maybe be too long but maybe you can do some hiking too.

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In the end everything will be fine. If its not fine its not the end....

If you have not been to India before I recommend you do at least once Ted, you will either love it or hate it but either way it will be a memorable experience.
They don't have Chinese bikes in India but do have Indian ones usually built in collaboration with a Japanese partner and are close to Japanese quality but Chinese prices.
Starting in the south and working your way north would be good that time of year as it starts to warm up around then.

South East Asia is plan Z. I've been. I dont like it. It's far too frantic, full of irritating drunk teenagers and you're scammed and treated like a cash cow even in your sleep.

Nepal. I've been deliberating it for a long time. And the longer I stay, the warmer it gets. I've had a dream to trek Everest Base camp since I was a teenager.

As long as the daytime temperaturea are double figures in Celsius with sunshine, I can deal with it...

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All great plans.

My shortlist is:

Nepal
Bolivia/Peru
West Africa
Southern India.

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Yes NEPAL!
It's the only place my wife listened to others when they said "don't go". I can't tell you the battle I had convincing her it would be fine. Eventually she gave in and agreed to go, it was post 2015 earthquakes. I must say she was very worried and nervous of what we were going into. We saw Nepal and it's people at thier lowest point and they had every reason to be unhappy. We spent nearly a month travelling off the beaten track to quite remote areas as well as the "tourist" areas.

Nepal, once you are there you don't want to leave! The people and the place get into your soul like no other place I know. We saw such happiness everywhere despite the terrible time they were going through.

I have lost count of the countries I've travelled with my wife. Nepal is the only one she has ever asked to go back to. She had great pleasure in reporting back to the people who tried to put her off going.

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Regards Tim

Learning my craft for the big stuff, it won't be long now and it's not that far anyway

Did you ride there ??

If I go, I'll have to trek to Everest Base camp so id go in Feb

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+1 for Nepal.
Anyone who has not been there should add the country to their bucket list.
KTM, as per any capital city, is not a great attraction to me personally but Pokhara is certainly worth visiting.

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Dave

Yes on a rented RE 350 2up. KTM is a love it / hate it kinda place the rest is fab. Some of the trip is on a 20min vid on youtube if interested.

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Regards Tim

Learning my craft for the big stuff, it won't be long now and it's not that far anyway