Starting to panic about itinerary and budget...

Hello everyone.

Firstly I will explain this is my first time doing any kind of travelling, I have just finished uni and like a lot of others had a real desire to travel and embrace the world and all its weird and wonderful differences. I will be going along with my long term girlfriend too.

So, down to business.

Our plan is to travel around SE Asia until the 6th January from which we will fly to Perth. (Already booked) We have a rough guide from reading on these forums of a route we would like to take (subject to change to our own personal preferences) and again from reading have seen some great tips....thank you everyone.

Basically to keep it short, we are taking £5,500 each with us and have flights purchased up to Australia on the 6th Jan. We are then planning on working in Oz (hopefully in the Outback) for 5/6months..visas already sorted.

From here is were we are beginning to worry.

Here is the rough itinerary:

Sept-Jan = SE Asia (Hostels, using buses/trains to move across countries)
Jan-Jul = Australia (Working 5/6 months then travel)
Jul-Aug = NZ (Hiring campervan, cycling etc)
Aug- Sept = Peru & Bolivia (Hostels, buses/trains)
Oct - Nov = North America (West to East)
Nov- Dec = Africa (35day overland tour. Deposit paid)

So like I say we both have £5,500 each to last us as long as possible. Then whatever we earn from Australia to help fund the rest of the tour.

We predicted using the UK minimum wage that with working full time for 5months we could look to earn around £1000p/m.

There is not much we can do about our budget with it being so close but like I say I am just starting to over think and panic a little as looking at forums I am thinking we don't have much money. I know we are fitting A LOT in but we both feel its our only chance to go for a long period of time so lets go big haha.

Thank you in advance for any help or advice.

That is a long trip for not a lot of $!

But, FIRSTLY:
The beauty about being gone for so long is you can figure it out as you go. I think you'll know after working 4-5 months in Australia if you can afford a jaunt over to the Americas.

My advice:
Consider delaying the trip 3 months (could save more $ in the meantime), or work longer in Australia. In July, you'll be hitting NZ at the height of their winter, which might mean limited access to the Southern Alps, which is one of the prettiest parts of the country. The Milford Track will be closed, and I don't know about the Sound.

How firm is the ticket from Asia -> Australia...?

In a nutshell, if the Asia ticket can be partially refunded or rebooked: leave in December. See SEA for a little while. March-August, work Australia. September, NZ. October-Nov, America (maybe, or head back to SEA?). Then, finally, Africa.

Where I'm afraid most of your cash will go will be the plane tickets from NZ -> South America (NOT cheap) or from North America -> Africa. Flights from South America to North can be pricey, but I've seen some good deals out of Lima.

It will be a great trip, regardless!

Firstly thank you very much for your reply.

Unfortunately the trip cannot be delayed as already leaving work, booked, insurance sorted etc. I am happy with the budget (I think from looking at daily spends on here and other places) for our budget to last us all of SE Asia and some of Oz.

I will definitely take on board what you advise about NZ, I will admit I was not aware how harsh the winter months could be there.
As you say, as we are away for so long we have the ability to change our plans easily, stay longer in certain areas etc.

I think we will end up working in Oz for around 6months...

The South America flight will be a big expense, but I really feel at this moment like I don't want to miss it out. (I know it is all to easy, and naive of me to say that I will see everything) I understand my plans will change as the trip progresses.

I don't know, for such a big trip which is coming so quickly I am just starting to panic.

Bloody planning ey, should just relax and look forward to the amazing trip regardless of what happens

Have you factored in Malaria tablets inoculations and Visa cost these can be expensive.
Also check out where you can purchase Visas on route.

I think you know without saying what to cut down on to save money but I'll go over it anyway.

Drinking alcohol, smoking cigarets, buying from restaurants and cafes, buying into packaged site seeing.

For lunch make yourself sandwiches, try and rent an apartment and cook your own food. Buy food from the supermarkets the locals use and the markets for fresh food.

The problem with hostels is you pay per person for the room, in budget hotels it can work out cheaper so do your research for the best deals as accommodation will take a huge chunk of your money. Ask at the hostels if you can work for accommodation, what's the worst thing that can happen they just say no.

You'll meets lots of people in the hostels don't be shy of asking for advice.

Take local transport you could find yourself meeting and talking to the locals and walk, you can soak up the atmosphere of a city and it so much more enjoyable.

Check out the tourist offices for free maps and free places to visit.

Asia is not as cheap as people think.

It should be an enjoyable trip so treat yourself occasionally and you should have a great time.

Do you know about the Hospitality Club website check it out:

http://www.hospitalityclub.org/

We met and stayed with a number of people on our round the world trip.

another site you might be interested in
http://www.travelindependent.info/whattopack.htm

Best of luck and keep safe.

Jean

Hi Jean.

Fortunately, I am all vaccinated up, and have my Malaria tablets ready...all 279 of them!!!!

Which leads me on to another question, will I be ok getting through different countries carrying that many tablets, I will have taken them out of the box to save room, but I will keep the boxes flat packed in case it looks suspicious on a search.

Brilliant advice thanks, not a big drinker thankfully so I am hoping that will help save haha. Thank you for mentioning, the hostel situation, so does that mean that sometimes hotels can work out cheaper as you pay per room? Plus it would involve a slightly nicer stay?

Hi Jean.

Fortunately, I am all vaccinated up, and have my Malaria tablets ready...all 279 of them!!!!

Which leads me on to another question, will I be ok getting through different countries carrying that many tablets, I will have taken them out of the box to save room, but I will keep the boxes flat packed in case it looks suspicious on a search.

Brilliant advice thanks, not a big drinker thankfully so I am hoping that will help save haha. Thank you for mentioning, the hostel situation, so does that mean that sometimes hotels can work out cheaper as you pay per room? Plus it would involve a slightly nicer stay?

RTWnewbie wrote:Hello everyone.
Sept-Jan = SE Asia (Hostels, using buses/trains to move across countries)
Jan-Jul = Australia (Working 5/6 months then travel)
Jul-Aug = NZ (Hiring campervan, cycling etc)
Aug- Sept = Peru & Bolivia (Hostels, buses/trains)
Oct - Nov = North America (West to East)
Nov- Dec = Africa (35day overland tour. Deposit paid)

So like I say we both have £5,500 each to last us as long as possible.

The leg up to North America seems out of place here. and South America => North America => Africa seems like expensive routing. I've found it cheaper to fly from Hong Kong, Bangkok, or Vietnam => US than it is to fly South America => US.

Do tell more on how you settled on that routing.

Yeah no worries

Basically, SE Asia was first stop from the beginning, and we sort of built our trip from there. Need to go to Oz after simply for work. So then after discussing possible routes with STA travel this is what they came up with.

I do understand what you mean though, when booking individually it looks very expensive routing. I was assured at the time by STA they could book it cheaply for us, and provided a quote for the entire trip of £2500. Which was not too bad imo (although that has no experience whatsoever haha)

I imagine the route after OZ will be tampered with and destinations will drop off and other added.

Slightly different question is in regards to overland travel through SE Asia. Are nightbuses as dangerous as some websites make out, will I be better with trains?

Can't give you much advice on your itinerary, but if as you said, your budget is set and your departure date is set, then just go and travel until your money runs out, then buy a return ticket home. There's really not much you can do about it anyway. Once you are done working in Australia, you'll know how much money you'll have saved, and just plan from there.

A few comments on your predicament. The faster you move, the more continents you see, the more expensive it will be. That's the simplistic way of answering it. If you plan to travel in the US, it will be expensive, and there's few ways to get around that. Public transport sucks and is not cheap, there's few hostels outside of major cities, and everything is just more expensive. Traveling on a budget here is just very difficult. I would consider scrapping North America if I were you. But that's just me.

Everyone always says that "this is the only time I'll be able to do this" yet everyone who goes on a trip like this starts thinking about and planning their next adventure before they even get home. It's addictive, and while it may be 5, 10, 20 years down the line, chance that if you were able to make a trip like this happen once, you'll be able to do it again. I'm not trying to be harsh here, but unless you have an unlimited budget or want to resort to things like dumpster diving and sleeping wherever you can, you simply won't be able to see everything on your wish list. That's just part of RTW travel - decisions have to be made, and I think the sooner you accept that, the easier this whole thing will be. Just my 2 cents on the matter.

RTWnewbie wrote:Slightly different question is in regards to overland travel through SE Asia. Are nightbuses as dangerous as some websites make out, will I be better with trains?

We never had an issue with night buses or trains in SE Asia. Didn't take a lot, but the ones we did were just fine. Not exactly the most comfortable, but no safety issues at all. What have you been reading about danger on night buses in the region? Just curious as I have never really seen this before?

Good luck, and I really am not trying to be a Debbie Downer here, just realistic. Seeing 5 continents on that budget is going to be tough - not impossible - but tough. And it's just so much more enjoyable to not constantly be worrying about money and affording everything you want to do. You may be able to be in all these places, but what are you really going to be able to do?

You guys have an ambitious plan. Let's face it, it all has to do with the lifestyle you are willing to accept for a while. Personally, I think a budget of $50 per day per person is on a lower side and when you have to stay in hostals and eat street food or buy your own at grocery stores.

The biggest budget issues you will encounter in Australia, NZ and North America. Also, you mention you will rent a campervan in NZ. Trust me it's not cheap, it is in fact cheaper to rent a car and stay in hostels than it is to rent a van there...

Here are some budget tips if you are willing to compromise on your quality of living:
1. Stay at other people's homes either via service like http://couchsurfing.com or http://www.housecarers.com/ . With the first you will share a place with the person who lives there and in the other, you will most likely need to take care of someone's pets. If you do not have a profile on either, create one asap so you build a friend base and 'trust level; , perhaps even host a few times yourself back at home etc.

2. Use public transportation whenever possible- buses are usually the cheapest form. And if you can sleep on busses take overnight trips, you will save the stay in hostels etc.

3. Freelance in your spare time - if you have profession including writing, translation, editing, design, programming etc, you can easily make some extra cash on the side via services like freelancer.com

4. Avoid organized tours especially in places like Australia or NZ, they are very expensive. Tip- look at the proposed itinerary and do it yourself. It may not be as structured or exciting but certainly cheaper.

5. Prepare your own food (except when in south east Asia where street food is awesome and cheap)

These tips will probably help you save the most, but 5K pp still ain't much, so you will have to be innovative and frugal while on the road. Don't let this deter you, there are folks who travelled with no money at all and made it.

Cheers and good luck.