First time RTW trip, looking for ideas and advice

Hi Folk,

My girlfriend and I are planning a round the world trip starting from the UK in January 2003, and running for about 8 months, we have around £6,000 ($10,000) each to spend, and so will be staying in hostels for the most part. Our itinery goes roughly something like this:

* Canada (Visiting friends in Victoria and Torronto) * USA (Passing through Chicago and Philadelphia to visit friends, and also visiting New York, and death valley. We're intending to keep the USA part of the trip relatively short this time, (a) to save money, and (b) because we intend to come back for a 'road trip' with other friends in a couple of years time and would like to to be mostly fresh to us. * Mexico * Peru (including the inca trails) * Brazil (in time for carnival! Hopefully going by train from Peru, is this possible & relatively easy? I have a brazilian friend, and her family have offered to show us around somewhat, which is nice.) * Hawaii (briefly, possibly, depending on cost) * Australia * New Zealand * Fiji then, sadly, avoiding Thailand and Indonesia, as advised by the British government. * Then flying into Eastern europe, and using trains/busses to move around Europe, until we need to be back in the UK in mid August for the girlfriend to start her post graduate course.

So then, I have a number of questions:

* Can anyone reccomend good UK travel agents with whom I can speak to arrange the flights we're going to require. Obviously we're anctious to book ASAP now (within the next couple of weeks) * Any recommendations for 'must visit' sites within each of these countries? and reccomend lengths of time we should be looking to spend in each of them (currently we're thinking of Canada/US (4-6 weeks), Peru (2-3 weeks), Brazil (4-6 weeks), Hawaii (0-1 weeks), Australia (4-6 weeks), New Zealand (4-6 weeks), Fiji (0-1 weeks), Europe (remainder of the time / money) * Where should I look for travel insurance? I've heard of the mountaineering societies insurance, and I've also been invited to take an American Express Platinum card for £275/year which includes travel insurance for myself and another person/card holder. Does anyone else have experience with this insurance? would it suffice for the RTW trip? * Has anyone else been in a similar situation? if so, any words of wisdom to pass on?

I think that'll do for now, doubtless i'll have more and more to ask as time runs on!

Thanks in advance,

Coup tikte in:

<snip> a lot

It's a continuous travel insurance for vacations of 60 days continuous max... So it won't fit to your desc.

Try to find a good travel agent. He (or she) can give you muchos advice

WheeZ50 (starting his own trip soon)

I paid something like CAD $175 (around 50 quid) for the 139 day trip in Oz last year, including medical, dental, repatriation, etc. etc. 275 quid seems like a lot - I cancelled my Platinum card when it hit CAD $399 (around GBP 160) with not a lot (that I used) to show for it.

I hate to say it, but in January I'd skip my beloved, native Canada unless you have a thing for bad roads and snow. Chicago for the same reason. Do Canada at the end (in other words, reverse the direction of your trip).

I'm completely biased towards Australia, so don't expect an objective opinion. For my dime, I'd spend the whole lot there.

Skip NZ, IMHO. It's a lot like Nova Scotia, which you can do on your Canadian leg (bias again).

One tropical or semi-tropical spot will do it for you - Fiji or Mexico.

My thought? Go to Oz, come back through Fiji, to the west coast, meander east, visit your mates and then return to Europe.

I'll have to check dates, problem being our friends in Canada are only there for a year (school year for those in Victoria, being on a teacher exchange program so they'll be off in July, no idea when the Toronto folks are leaving the country).

However, I guess it might be possible to either (a) miss out Canada (this time) or (b) miss them in Canada and catch up with them when we get back.

i'm hoping that I end up with some nice bias to foreign parts upon my return! I have step-family (which I've never met) in Australia, so hoping to borrow a car for a while, which may make life there more fun/interesting.

The misses is very interested in New Zealand, I've not yet done any NZ reading so no comments from me on that score, will probably do so later this week though.

Fair play. Any suggestions?

Sounds like a plan, though it's missing out Peru/Brazil which are both must-visits for us, but I can work out the route, so not a problem

Cheers,

Just spoken to the girlf. We're thinking of perhaps dropping Canada/Mexico/USA from the agenda, and extending our stay in Peru/Brazil/Oz/NZ

So we'd be looking along the lines of:

Peru: 4-8 weeks Brazil 4-8 weeks (arrive at least a couple of weeks before and leave at least a week after carnival!) NZ 4-8 weeks Fiji (may get dropped) 0 - 2 weeks Australia 4-8 weeks Europe (remaining time, if there is any)

Thoughts?

Cheers,

Well, I'd suggest you do a tropical section of Brazil - maybe into a rain forest district (haven't been myself) and skip Mexico/Fiji. Has the latter calmed down yet?

I haven't been to Peru either, but it's been highly recommended to me - Karin Muller's 'Along the Inca Road' (2000 or 2001: National Geographic Press) is REQUIRED reading. Full stop.

Better, except I'd say 2 weeks in NZ and 10 in Australia. Peru seems a bit long, but I haven't been so am just sort of guessing at that.

hmm.. Sounds like your getting more focused,

Just thought I'd put my 2 bits in- Footprint's South America Handbook might give you some idea how long you're going to stay there, and probably make you want to go to more places. I haven't done it, but I have heard it's difficult without some Spanish/Portugese. They don't speak much English.

Getting rid of Cold, cold Canada was a good idea- but you could always fly to Victoria for a week or so and try to go skiing at Whistler but that would be expensive (think of how long you're going to be travelling...)

Oz is definitely a place to hang out for a while. It's massive and a great place to be.

Enjoy

Just cross posting so you might get some dvice on Latin America

I can speak some spanish, though will get a refresher course before I leave, and am currently running through a portugese course to give me the basics i'll doubtless need to get around. Hopefully I'll pick up more whilst I'm there.

The girlfriend can speak french at GCSE level, and it just starting a spanis course at home.

Hopefully we'll manage, else it's time for gestures and pictures, and a load of amusement/frustration

we're probably going to give it a miss, it's a shame, but seems like we'll have a better all round time if we do

groovy