Me and my girlfriend are wanting to plan a trip away for next year (or the year after if it doesnt come together in time) to somewhere quite adventurous or exotic. We basically have the money to go to almost anywhere in the world so our options are endless….
couple of things:
– i would rather it would be something we organised ourselves kinda thing, rather than through a company
– it doesnt necessarily have to be to do with biking
– the sort of places we have thought of so far are places such as Nepal, Argentina, Vietnam, Canada etc…just to give you an idea

We have no idea where to start and what to do or where to go, so thought i would ask on a couple of forums and see what sort of experiences you guys have had abroad or what sort of trips you have had… would love to hear of any amazing experiences.

fire up a photo or link to some (even if its not your own) too if you can, would help give an idea maybe…

USA road trip. I've done the bum it round the far east and thats OK, but the states is awesome IMO. People are so friendly no language barrier

My best ever holiday was starting in New York and then flew to Denver and drove for 3 weeks though the rockies, Skied one day in Breckenridge, mtb the next day in Moab in the desert heat. Then up to Arches national park, Vegas, Yosimite, San Francisco etc etc.

We did a similar thing 2 years in a row, cost us a bomb but loved it

haha i literally jst suggested that as an idea… trip down the rockies or something… drive, cycle, train etc…

If you fancy the Himalayas don't go to Nepal, it's too crowded and touristy for my liking.

Go to Ladakh in far northern India right up on the border with what used to be Tibet. You can go miles from anywhere if you want. Best way is to fly to Delhi, then fly/bus up to Manali. Once in Manali, you can do a week long paragliding course for £60 and then buy an Enfield and ride up to Leh then onwards over the high mountain passes. You can camp out or knock on people's doors and ask for lodgings.

May not be your cup of tea but it's an idea.

Here's our campsite at 4900m altitude on the India/Tibet border.

Bhutan – go there.

namestebuzz – i would (we both would) loove to do something like that! buy a bike or a 4×4 once out there and do a trip in it, thing is i know very little about mechanics which i think would be a problem as breaking down out there you might be kinda ****? no? i do love that idea though! wild camping where you like and somewhere like nepal doing there?
you ever seen the long way round? (ewan mcgregor and charlie boorman) many ideas and inspiration from that!
quick query but whats paragliding got to do with touring on the bike? lol

elfinsafety – im afraid i dont get you?

Breaking down in India or Pakistan or Iran or wherever is a doddle. The local mechanics can fix anything and you'll get free tea and food as well – normally in someone's house.

In India, every mechanic can sort an Enfield – which is just as well because they break down now and again. Cars are a lot more expensive as they're imported but Enfields are dead cheap to buy or hire. If you buy one and want to take it home afterwards the dealers can provide papers to make the bike any age you want so you can avoid import duties etc.

We did Aberdeen to Kathmandu then went all over Northern India before shipping the bike home.

The paragliding has nothing to do with it – you're right! Just gives you an idea of stuff you could do over there and how little it all costs. 😀

The world's highest road pass at 5608m:

http://mongolrally.theadventurists.com/

namestebuzz – i want to do that sooo much mate!! it looks just amazing!!!! neither of us have ever ridden a motorbike though 🙁 please tell me you live in aberdeen!?

Well, near Aberdeen….

Drop me a PM if you wanna hook up and ask anything 🙂

erm yeah i would, dont think your email is in your profile though? mine is gibbymc@hotmail.com jst fire me an email so i have yours… where abouts are you in aberdeenshire like? i go to uni in aberdeen so will be up there in the next few weeks… love your trip, its jst like something i would want to do, however we would have to find a different way of doing it apart from motorbikes as weve never ridden one lol.

thats the way namastebuzz

will as you know im currently in equitorial guinea – its nice but being from the uk youd never get in and its small ….. most of the island is national park /volcano

dont come here 😛

My folks have traveled to all the places you mention. Seem to recall that they thought Vietnam was incredible.

Lived in Thailand and South Korea. Traveled extensively around Malaysia, Thailand and Laos – and Australia but I wasn't really that keen on it.

Really want to go back to Malaysia when we can get a chance, somewhere I didn't get to see enough of.
Brunei, Sarawak and Saba are also on the list.

Laos is great fun, and you can now get off the beaten track and only have to interact with The Great Unwashed if you want to.

Thailand is good, but I highly recommend not doing the tourist thing, it's a load of tosh.

First time I went there I was recovering from the tail end of dengue fever after Malaysia, I had stopped with a friend who lived in Bangkok to recover and then headed off on my own.

I would take local buses to whatever city or area I felt like, sometimes take the train. I ended up traveling all around the north east, meeting some mental people and generally not caring where I ended up.

A few times I ended up in the arse end of nowhere on the last bus and would have to stay in a temple or if someone took pity on me there floor.

I never once paid anybody to organise my trips. I had a guidebook that I read, but I didn't let it govern my traveling.

When I started working there I took advantage of my long holidays to visit places off the beaten path.

I met people traffickers in the border region of Tak when out riding dirt bikes with my bike team. A moment I now look back on with amazement that we didn't end up buried in the forest.

Loei province is outstandingly beautiful and the road from there to Nong Khai is superb riding.

Malaysia I ended up spending two weeks with the Orang Asli in the Tamanegara National Park helping a guide setup an off the beaten path experience with less visited tribes

I went to brstol… twice

Here – but I think it's pretty much shut down these days.

I would second the recommendation of northern India. I cycled from Manali to Leh as part of my honeymoon. Was great

Th route itself is not too quiet so if you get into any hassle there is usually someone there to help you out with in a few hours. My mate got nasty sick and we thumbed a lift with a diesel truck over a 5000m pass to a military post to see their doctor

I would really recommend it, it was our first long distance tour. I am in aberdeen as well. If you want more information about it – maps etc welcome around, or chat about it on a bike ride.

The route goes up over the second highest pass in the world

(although there a few places with claims to this) at 5330m ish. and you can go over the highest in a day trip from Leh at the end (Rohtung la pass)

I wrote the trip up on my blog http://www.muddymess.co.uk – i did it July / August 2009 so you will have to click on the relevant months on the right. quite a lot to read to give you a flavour of the trip.

Any more info just give me a shout dnwsmith @ hotmail.com

What ever you do wish you a great journey and adventure.

don't go to tajikistan.

wales

My 'most adventurous' was probably travelling alone across the various Indonesian islands from Bali to Flores…this culminated with a stay on Komodo islands having a peek at the 'dragons' and some snorkelling in some very strong currents.

Thing is, although it was probably my most 'adventurous' it's not the trip I enjoyed the most. Hiking in Nepal was amazing (Everest Base and Annapurna circuit)…and although Kathmandu is 'touristy' it's still a great place to 'chill' between other stuff. Ditto hiking in New Zealand (Milford track is awesome) but for me the feeling of solitude was probably greatest on Tasmania on the Overland track (the abundance of snakes added a little bit of adventure)…oh and swimming holes in Kakadu national park in Australia….in fact that might be the most awesome…or…or..

Edit…places I'd wish I'd been to….Central and South America…to me it's a great unknown and that would be a real adventure. Japan just because it sounds so alien…Got to follow your dreams really…American Wilderness, Alaska, Antartica….the list goes on

For me it's probably been the island of South Georgia from Patagonia on mates 'yacht' for a climbing trip. Southern Ocean is no joke, let alone in a homemade skip!

However we massively enjoyed Peru for our honeymoon. Did a fair amount of trekking away from the usual tourist treks. I've just got back from doing a feasibility study for a gold mine in Azerbaijan. That felt quite adventurous esp with the locals form time to time.

Peru, Patagonia, wife has spent 1 1/2 years in Taiwan etc etc are all good. But currently eastern eurpoe, former USSR countries stretching across to Mongolia are exciting me!

Bolivia is an amazing country – stunningly beautiful, the view from the airport at La Paz of the Cordillera Real is genuinely breath-taking, as is the alitude. La Paz is one of the most amazing cities in the world, incredible situation at just under 4000 metres, tucked into a bowl in the altiplano with nighttime views of the moon sat over massive snow-capped mountains from the centre of town.

Fantastic mountaineering and some great mountain biking. Mad things like the Salar de Uyuni, proper, living, indigenous culture – local women in La Paz still wear traditional costume on the streets. And if that's not enough, you can always cross the border into Peru. In fact South America generally is phenomenal, there's a thing there of the ancient, native beliefs being buried under a veneer of imported and imposed Catholicism, which makes it feel as if you're there on sufferance somehow, particularly once you get off the established 'gringo trail' destinations.

Colombia's another amazing country, but slightly iffy in safety terms.

well as you know im currently in equitorial guinea

What you doing there? You're supposed to be building trails round Feteresso 🙂

Hey Marionheck great pics – I've got some similar ones!

I think the point is not replicate someone else's adventure but take the same mindset as some of the folk on here and then use that to create your own experiences which will be unique to you.

Second Bolivia – it is stunningly beautiful as BWD put it, but it's also raw and a bit edgey which adds to the experience.

India's an obvious choice – the kind of place that wows you one moment then hits you in the face as you turn a corner. Proper experiences to be had though. Never did sort it out myself the last time, but met a chap out there who was riding around on an Enfield Bullet (easy thing to arrange) and understandably he raved about the freedom this afforded him.

Egypt through Sinai to Jordan is a good trip – Cairo, Giza for the pyramids, Luxor for Valley of Kings/Queens, nice beaches and trekking excursions in the Sinai area, Wadi Rum and Petra in Jordan.

There's one place that's topped it all for me – Iran. The most generous people I've met, incredible mountainous scenery in the north west, stunning architecture, yet unsurprisingly it's not touristy – no McDonalds or Starbucks to dampen the spirit. Iran is it's own place and that's a big part of why it's so good. I'm in contact with many people I met out there, and I have no worries in fully recommending it. A place like this you'd want to keep to yourself, but (selfishly) thankfully there's no need as most people can't see past the reported negativity of the country and don't consider it.

Chilean Patagonia for a Sea Kayaking expedition. Stunning place, very friendly, very remote. Some pics here:

http://tonydalton.smugmug.com/Vacation/Chilean-Patagonia-2008/5935561_JrHF5#369750251_VgRxS

We stopped in Santiago de Chile on the way out and Buenos Aires on the way back for a couple of days so there are pics of those places too. You'll figure out which ones are Patagonia 🙂

There's one place that's topped it all for me – Iran. The most generous people I've met, incredible mountainous scenery in the north west, stunning architecture, yet unsurprisingly it's not touristy – no McDonalds or Starbucks to dampen the spirit. Iran is it's own place and that's a big part of why it's so good. I'm in contact with many people I met out there, and I have no worries in fully recommending it. A place like this you'd want to keep to yourself, but (selfishly) thankfully there's no need as most people can't see past the reported negativity of the country and don't consider it.

Yeah agreed on that – Iran is a fantastic place. The friendliest, most helpful people you could ever wish to meet and a beautiful country. Not as remote as Ladakh perhaps but wonderful in every way.

namastebuzz – a mans gotta eat/buy new bikes

missus TR is bedding in the trails for my return :d

alaska features highly on my list of places i want to go

namastebuzz – Member
If you fancy the Himalayas don't go to Nepal, it's too crowded and touristy for my liking.

Go to Ladakh in far northern India right up on the border with what used to be Tibet. You can go miles from anywhere if you want. Best way is to fly to Delhi, then fly/bus up to Manali. Once in Manali, you can do a week long paragliding course for £60 and then buy an Enfield and ride up to Leh then onwards over the high mountain passes. You can camp out or knock on people's doors and ask for lodgings

+1 been to this area twice now, head to Gangotri (source of ganges) like namaste said, loads better than nepal, more real, less crowded, the locals are awesome, climbing even more awesome. Manali feels a bit like a theme park though but ski resort where paragliding lessons are is a cool place to hang out. Definately hire/buy an enfield and head up to ladakh/zanskar

alaska features highly on my list of places i want to go

Me too – I've got a mate living up there now so he's primed to host us. Actually want to use it as a springboard to ride the Pan American highway sometime………..

Brack – where's that? Looks like you cheated by using a helicopter to get there.

I've travelled round the world pretty much but still get amazed at some stunning places in the uk, rode across Dartmoor and Bodmin two weeks ago absolutely beautiful.

Skied one day in Breckenridge, mtb the next day in Moab in the desert heat

Hmm, doens't sound good to me – whistle stop tours aren't the best way to really appreciate a place I reckon. Having one day somewhere makes me sad. We were in Estes Park Colorado for a bout a week, and all we managed to do was find out exactly how much cool stuff there really was to do and see, and only got a microscopic part of it done.

while macchu piccu isnt exactly off the tourist trail Peru was **** ace!

molgrips

odd you should mention that – in austrailia on the gold coast – i was very glad to be leaving places after a day. full of pricks most of the places – unfriendly and pretencious – a bit like here 😉

brisneyland and sydney were good but the bits inbetween i did not like !

The Philippines are definitely worth a look
-ignore the warnings from the FCO, you'll be fine.

fantastic informations coming in here guys, loving it! definately tempted by the northern region of india and around there…

I did the Trans Siberian Express in 1987. I was 19. We hitched to Budapest. Waited 2 weeks. got train to Moscow, then the Trans Siberian to Beijing. £39 one way – it was cheap then too. Wicked.