Greetings fellow travelers! My name is Orlando and I live in the San Francisco bay area. I've recently caught the travel bug. This past year I spent a couple of month backpacking in South America. One of the best experiences of my life! Had the chance to hike Machu Picchu, party every night till 6am during carnival in Salvador and Rio, spent 2 weeks exploring Buenos Aires, and saw the beautiful waterfalls of Iguazu Falls. Since I've returned from my trip all I can think about is how to save up and backpack all over again. I'm on a tight budget so my next adventure will have to involve a lot of hosteling and couchsurfing. So I'm asking my fellow world travelers, where should my next backpacking adventure be? I've always wanted to go to Europe, but I heard it's really expensive. Some have suggested New Zealand and Australia. Asia also appeals to me. Any suggestions?
I highly recommend a good stint round SE Asia, to fill your backpacking bug, taking in as much as possible - not many options for couchsurfing i wouldnt have thought, but hostels/guesthouses are super cheap, so your $$$ will go alot further. Heaps to see and do in that region, and very accessible!
Couchsurfing is much more likely in Europe but the other aminities will be alot more $$$ !
Agree with Makka about SE Asia regarding budget.
Another one is the area where Europe, Asia and the Middle East merge. A combination of Turkey (ok, a little more expensive compared to the others but still much cheaper than most of Europe), Georgia and Syria is an example. Three totally different countries and Syria is very very cheap! It is just a little more diverse than the SEA countries in my opinion.
And if you have the time and money you can visit a few Eastern European countries, like Bulgaria, which can be done cheap as well. Might be some more couchsurfing options as well.
Have fun, whatever you decide!
Michael
Since you are living in the San Fran area consider a Pacific Circle Ticket. Your options are the and as well as the Circle Pacific fares offered by some individual airlines, such as United and Malaysian.
You could construct a ticket that covers the South Pacific Islands such as Fiji, South East Asia and Australia and takes you back and forth from either San Fran or LAX. This won't be cheap, but given that flights to South Pacific islands are very expensive otherwise and flights to Sydney are no bargain either you'll spent less on flights overall with this.
I also agree with Utrechts suggestion about Syria, Turkey and Georgia, it is a very diverse and interesting area. But as US-citizen you'll have a hard time travelling in this area. Turkey charges a whooping 100 USD visa fee for US citizens and Syria will give you a hard time getting in at all. If you are interested in the Middle East/North African area I would suggest visiting Egypt and Jordan instead. From the USA best fly in and out of Cairo.
Of course I'd have to suggest East Africa - Ethopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi etc... If it's a really different experience you're after then this is a trip worth investigation.
I highly recommend a good stint round SE Asia, to fill your backpacking bug, taking in as much as possible - not many options for couchsurfing i wouldnt have thought, but hostels/guesthouses are super cheap, so your $$$ will go alot further. Heaps to see and do in that region, and very accessible!
Couchsurfing is much more likely in Europe but the other aminities will be alot more $$$ !
Thanks for the advice Makka. I didn't think there was too many couchsurfing opportunities in Asia. Hostels look like the way to go in Asia...cheers!
Agree with Makka about SE Asia regarding budget.
Another one is the area where Europe, Asia and the Middle East merge. A combination of Turkey (ok, a little more expensive compared to the others but still much cheaper than most of Europe), Georgia and Syria is an example. Three totally different countries and Syria is very very cheap! It is just a little more diverse than the SEA countries in my opinion.
And if you have the time and money you can visit a few Eastern European countries, like Bulgaria, which can be done cheap as well. Might be some more couchsurfing options as well.Have fun, whatever you decide!
Michael
Thanks for the reply Michael. I didn't even think about that area in Europe. Georgia and Syria are a couple of places I definitely want to check out!
Since you are living in the San Fran area consider a Pacific Circle Ticket. Your options are the and as well as the Circle Pacific fares offered by some individual airlines, such as United and Malaysian.
You could construct a ticket that covers the South Pacific Islands such as Fiji, South East Asia and Australia and takes you back and forth from either San Fran or LAX. This won't be cheap, but given that flights to South Pacific islands are very expensive otherwise and flights to Sydney are no bargain either you'll spent less on flights overall with this.
I also agree with Utrechts suggestion about Syria, Turkey and Georgia, it is a very diverse and interesting area. But as US-citizen you'll have a hard time travelling in this area. Turkey charges a whooping 100 USD visa fee for US citizens and Syria will give you a hard time getting in at all. If you are interested in the Middle East/North African area I would suggest visiting Egypt and Jordan instead. From the USA best fly in and out of Cairo.
Thank you t maia for bringing the Pacific Circle ticket to my attention. The websites you recommended were really helpful. You're the third person that haas suggested Syria, Turkey, and Georgia (thanks for the advice on prices in Turkey). Think I'll include those places in my plans...
Of course I'd have to suggest East Africa - Ethopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi etc... If it's a really different experience you're after then this is a trip worth investigation.
Thanks zaksame..I definitely have Ethiopia and Uganda on my sights. But is it safe to travel now?
I think there have been a lot of great ideas thrown out. In the end you just have to determine what kind of experience you are most interested in. Also, how much time do you have the next time you head out? If it's variable going someplace like SEA would allow you to stay for longer. Another thing that has helped me to make decisions in the past when comparing a couple places, is thinking about which could be a good deal more expensive in another couple years, and which is more likely to stay more consistent. Sometimes this is hard to tell, but if considering Europe, places that have not yet switched to the Euro, but will be, are likely to have changes in the cost of things when they do. Also, be sure when comparing places that you are taking into account all expenses - airfare, other transport, lodging, food, etc. Just a little food for thought. Good luck with the planing
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