Ok here is the tentative plan for my round the world trip. As it stands, I have a good idea what I will be doing for the first couple months and then the trip becomes hazy. I’ve done this on purpose as I hope to keep a lot of flexibility for when I find a place I really like and want to stay longer.
January 30 – Leave Washington, DC for Portland, Oregon. I’ll stay with a friend and use this flight to cut down on the initial travel leg distance. I’ve also never been to Portland!
February 2 – Leave Portland and fly to Auckland. My flight routes to Honolulu for a short layover then an overnight 12 hour stop in Brisbane, before ending in Auckland. Australia will end up being my first country of this trip on a technicality. I arrive in Auckland on the 4th very early in the morning. I’ll probably just set up camp in the airport until daylight hours.
February 4-March 1 – New Zealand
March 1 – 31 – Australia
April – Mid May – Southeast Asia. I’d love to go to Bali, the Philippines, Thailand, and Cambodia. I have a decent amount of flexibility here, but haven’t made any concrete plans. Suggestions?
Mid May – Mid June – China. I’m meeting my two best friends in Beijing where one will be headed for a choir tour. When he is done, we’ll travel around Beijing and go see the Great Wall. After he returns to the States, my other friend and I will do some more sightseeing and we’ve even talked about taking the overnight train to Mongolia!
Mid June – Mid July – No specific plans. Maybe I’ll return to Southeast Asia, head to Japan, or head to South Korea.
Mid July, no more than 3 days – Dubai. I love architecture and especially that of skyscrapers. Since I’ll be transiting from Asia on to Europe, I must stop and see the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa.
Late July – Jordan. If I can make the timing work, I will brave the intense heat of summer to see Jordan. I would love to check out the Dead Sea, Amman, and Petra.
August, September, October – The max amount of time an American can stay in Europe without a visa is 90 days. I plan to put that limitation through its paces. I’ll enter Europe through Turkey or Greece and spend my time slowly weaving my way through Eastern Europe before finishing in Spain. I have family in Scotland and Italy, so I hope to make stops there. And I’m also planning on meeting some friends from the travel hacking community in Munich for Oktoberfest.
November, December – South America. I’ve only been to Paraguay, and that was ages ago as a teenager. I have some friends in Rio de Janeiro, so my current plan is to fly from Spain or Portugal down to Rio and explore the Brazilian coastline. From there head to Buenos Aires and then Santiago.
January – Central America. I’ll finish my travels by heading north to Panama and Costa Rica, before heading back to Washington, DC, just in time for winter. 🙁
Whew! I expect this to change frequently, but that is just the fun of such an open-ended trip. If you have suggestions for places to check out, let me know below or shoot my a message on any of my social media accounts!
December 12, 2014
w/ the philippines, where you go is really dependent on what you want to do. boracay has beautiful beaches, and if done right, you can stay where the sandy beaches are not as good (ie: cheaper to stay) and then walk down the beach and be in pristine sand/shallow water. there’s also a shrine of the virgin mary that rests atop a coral reef section that, during low tide, you can seemingly walk to, and then during high tide, you have to take a small boat to.
as a whitey, you’ll wanna steer clear of the southern part of the country (to be safe). my mother is from zamboanga city (in the south), and kidnappings and bombings have been known to happen. the fact that you’ll stick out like a sore thumb, or toothpick for all intensive purposes…be careful!
on davao, there is the filipino eagle natural center, and well….if you are unfamiliar w/ the bird, it is friggin’ huge!!! http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g298459-d320865-Reviews-Philippine_Eagle_Centre-Davao_City_Davao_del_Sur_Province_Mindanao.html
there’s also the chocolate hills in bohol
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294259-d593829-Reviews-Chocolate_Hills-Bohol_Island_Bohol_Province_Visayas.html
the eagle & hills i’ve never been to, but they’d be top on my list. boracay was lovely, but i recommend getting there “directly” from manila.
enjoy your wonderful travels my friend! i know you’ll have a wonderful time!
– S
December 12, 2014
Spaz, what about Siargao? I was looking into heading there as it seems as idyllic as Boracay with less crowds.
December 11, 2014
What an ambitious itinerary! I can’t wait to hear all about your adventures!!!
January 12, 2015
The UK is not a part of Schengen, so you can stay in EU Schengen countries for up to three months and then you can still spend up to six months in the UK.
January 12, 2015
Ya I was thinking of stopping to visit family in Scotland and also check out England for the first time. Thanks for the comment!
January 22, 2015
Just sent you WAYYYY too much information about different places to visit. Can’t wait to follow your travels!
January 22, 2015
Haha yes you gave me quite a lot of info! Thanks. I’ll pour over it. 🙂
January 26, 2015
This is a quote from Eric Schmalz who writes for Matador Network:
“I believe the transformative power of travel can be found in the moments where the contents of the soul are challenged and expanded by the contents of the world. A symbolic, self-transformative chord is struck where one might feel for a moment that the universe is working in one’s favor and that perspective is lifted from its usual narrow confusion to glimpse a state of grace.”
May your soul expand and feel the grace of the new experiences you are about to embark upon!
Love,
Mom
February 13, 2015
Logan
You are getting near to the Australian sector of your incredible journey ! We now reside in regional Victoria, 500 kms north west of Melbourne. If you are planning to visit – we are on the mighty Murray River and can offer a glimpse of an oasis in the Australian desert – would love to share some of our region with you. However – we have planned and are going on a visit to Tasmania from 2nd-24th March, taking our vehicle and crossing Bass Straight to the Island via the overnight Ferry. Our Melbourne residing son (Glen – 27) will be flying to join us from 9th to 22nd. If any of these plans/dates coincide with your anticipated travels, please make contact. Email probably best. Hope your expectations are being met and you are having fun! ……. Lyn Nicol