Hi All,
Hi Claire,
I admire your travel plan. You are nearly to have exciting trip around the world. I don't have any travel experience, so I can't give you a advice. Sorry. But I think you have enough time to visit some more countries such us Indochina area includes Vietnam. Laos, Cambodia...Or you can also visit China, Japan,...In general, there are many beautiful countries in Asia to explore.
Good luck to you and wish you have good trip!
RTW tickets count by continent or touchdown, either way, they rarely include Egypt. Probably best to leave out egypt for now and get ticket UK-India etc.
try Travel Nation.
Many thanks Fussy and Rosenhung for your comments. I still have some time before I have to make a decision and will also check out Travel Nation.
Again - many thanks for your help. Once finalised, I will let you know what I decide on. Although heading to Barcelona next week, so focusing on that for now...
Hi Claire
We booked our RTW flights with Trailfinders. They were really knowledgable and helpful, especially as we must have phoned them 100 times to change our route and change our minds again....and again!
We leave on 01/10/2009 so very excited.
RTW tickets tend to only last for 12 months.
F.Y.I. our route is London > India overland to Nepal > Hong Kong > Thailand overland to Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia > Australia > New Zealand > Chile overland to all South America. This should take us about 18 months so we are forgoing the final flight home on our RTW ticket and will buy our own return flight when we are ready [if that makes sense!].
Have a great trip!
Holly
Hello Claire!
I'm also doing an around the world trip. As far as an RTW ticket is concerned, I've done some heavy research on the subject: compared many travel networks like bootsNall and alliances like oneworld and star. In the process, I’ve made the following conclusions:
Having the freedom to book on the spot definately the way to go.
The restrictions on these flights in terms of continents and stops is really constricting. I found that I had to start changing my ITEN to fit the ticket. NOT the way I want to go.
The price (using the cheapest option, oneworld alliance) for an RTW ticket was actually MORE than what I calculated my one-ways would cost using carriers like kayak and studentuniverse ($3,700).
When it comes down to it, you will learn things on the road, your mind will change about places, you may want to go here or there with friends and take advantage of compulsive opportunities. The freedom to just book a flight a week or so in advance is priceless, and is really what backpacking is all about.
Derek
[ 20-Aug-2009, at 09:58 by thepionier ]
Hey Derek and Holly,
Thank you so much for your advice. Apologies for my delayed response, I was in Spain and Malta for a while. This site is great, everyone has their own way of doing things and there are so many different options that there is something for everyone. I don't have to make a decision right now, but will certainly bear your experiences in mind and hope, that when the time comes, that I make the right decision.
Holly, your trip sounds wonderful - I hope you have fantastic experience.
Derek - I am more leaning towards your sugestion as I think I may want some flexbility while I am on the road.
Again, many thanks for your feedback.
All the best,
Claire
I agree with Derek. Prices didn't seem to be much different using a RTW ticket or seperate flights. Off course this may vary depending on your route. I know sometimes there are destinations that individual flights cost a fortune, but can be included cheaply with a rtw ticket. I would work it out both ways. Kayak is great for getting some rough prices. Try getting quotes for about 2-3 weeks time worked out cheapest for me. The freedom of booking flights as and when you like, being able to change your route easier and not having a 12 month restriction makes individual flights a no brainer for us. There are some verry cheap carriers in certain areas. For example Airasia provides very cheap flights all around Asia and also cheap flights from the UK and from Asia to Australia. My route is to fly to india, overland through Nepal, China, Vietnam, Thailand e.t.c. Then fly to OZ onto NZ, the US then home. We are looking at a few other places, possibly japan, Mongolia, Korea, we will maybe get flights to these places or more likely overland or ferries. Good Luck with what you decide.
Be wary of buying flights as you go. Many countries will not grant entry unless you have proof of onward travel. If you do your research then it shouldn't be a major problem, but having to buy two countries ahead isn't my idea of flexibility.
I think I'm lucky living in the UK as RTW flights seem to be much cheaper here (than starting in the USA for example). Price wise it's a bit of a no brainer for me. I can get around the world for about £1500 (about US$2400). I've even heard of americans getting cheap flights to London, and then they buy their RTW ticket here. Sounds crazy doesn't it, but they saved a wedge of cash.
Anyway, I know where I want to go so I'm not bothered by buying in advance. It means I can budget more easily as flights are taken care of. Also, a reasonable amount of flexibility is built into most RTW tickets.
RTW tickets count by continent or touchdown, either way, they rarely include Egypt. Probably best to leave out egypt for now and get ticket UK-India etc.
A RTW ticket can be any destination points you desire. Ones that are tailored already by agents and airlines are done so for popularity and mass only. It is possible to build your own itinery and price.
Nice to see someone planning a RTW with a bit of new flavour rather than going with the usual Thai, Laos, Cambodia, Oz etc. route.
Definately go for a bit of North Africa and S. America. They have in my opinion so much more to offer than the 'trendy tourist' RTW destinations. It sounds wonderful.
You might consider perhaps one or two other places in Africa on your way to Indonesia, like Kenya or Zambia. SAA fly to all the above routes and I'm sure you could chat with them about a price that is negotiable.
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