Hi there,

My name is Tristen and I am new to this forum. For a while now me and my girlfriend have been dead set keen on traveling a continent/s in which we are currently saving for and hoping to leave around this time next year. We would like to travel parts of Europe and Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos/Thailand/India/Nepal etc. I currently own a Honda XR250L Baja and My girlfriend owns an XT250 however we may trade in the XT for something more of a DR250 or similar. Ive been researching as much as I possibly can but can't seem to find the best option to do this. We are hoping to have at least 15-20k each by the time we are ready to go including everything flights etc. I am definitely in need of some advice on what is going to be the best/affordable way of making this journey. Buying a bike overseas would seem like the cheapest option however considering I am not a resident living in such countries it sort of makes registering the bike impossible? The other option is to ship our bikes which seems to be incredibly expensive just to get our bikes to and from New Zealand which wouldn't leave a hell of a lot of money to travel with. Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

Welcome to the HUBB!
I personally wouldn't ship your bikes, If it was a big bike you couldn't do without then possibly but 250s especially if one you haven't purchased yet... no way! a waste of cash and a big headache.
It is definitely NOT impossible to purchase and register a vehicle overseas and that is your best and cheapest option. I travelled SE Asia back packing and rented a small 150cc bike in Lao for 8 bucks a day so that might be a good option for you too. I chose to rent as I only had one month travel but you could easily but a small local bike in Bangkok and travel around, if my memory serves me correctly Vietnam is the difficulty as it difficult to bring in foreign registered bikes. But again easy to buy in Ho chi Minh city and ride up to Hanoi and sell again.
If you like small bikes I would buy a model popular with locals Honda or Yamaha 100cc-150cc scooter type. Most motorcyclist scoff at scooters and wouldn't be seen dead Riding them but they can pretty much go anywhere a bigger bike can as they are super light. I remember struggling up an intense track in my KLR650 and while resting I see a small Chinese 100cc scooter come past 2 up .
The parts cost basically nothing and are everywhere so never a major issue. Just strap on your backpack and away you go
India/Nepal get yourself a Enfield I am planning this for 2020. Not overly reliable but an amazing experience. Otherwise a Bajaj will do you.
Europe you can get bikes pretty cheap and it is fairly easy for foreigners to buy (but not my area of expertise) Just scroll each regional section and you'll find all the info you need...
Hope that sends you in the right direction

Thanks a lot for the reply! The issue I'm having with the purchasing a bike overseas is a lot of these countries require you to be a resident to register them for insurance purposes etc etc. I've heard about people purchasing bikes in ho chi Minh then selling in Hanoi. Can the same be said for the rest of south east Asia? I had the idea last night to sell both the xt and the xr250 and buy 2x Honda ct90's and fly them as it would cut the weight and postage down. You could probably fit them in one crate! Do you think this could be a viable option? I need a bit more light shed on the registering of vehicles as a non resident.

check out Where Should I Buy And Register A Bike As A Tourist? | S.E Asia Motorcycle Touring Forums | GT-Rider.com
this should have all the info you need. People are buying bikes in SE asia so it definitely possible. Don't ship. that is my 2cents
GT rider is another great forum focussed purely on SE asia