rowdc

My husband and I are planning a trip of approximately 5-6 weeks and are somehow stuck on where to go. This will (most likely) be our last child-free trip so it will be a 'big trip' and we want to tick off some exciting travel opportunities that might not be possible for a while.

We would love to go over the Christmas break to take advantage of our work shutdown periods, but I think based on weather we will need to go September/October. Suggestions for either would be great.

We have travelled around the USA and South East Asia and we are about to go to Mexico. We are from New Zealand so have travelled NZ, Australia and the South Pacific. We want something adventurous to a degree, ie. not interested in sitting on a beach for a month (or more than a few days). Our budget is about $15-25000 (NZD), and we want to go somewhere where we can travel in relative comfort for that amount. I don't want to go somewhere where it will be very cold, and we're not into hiking or camping.

We love food, wildlife, nature, cities and history - so a pretty wide range of destinations would suit!

We like fairly fast-paced travel - not a city every couple of days, but it's not our style to stop in one place for a month. I prefer to move around and we are both young and fit so don't mind a bit of travelling. We will be travelling independently, but are not opposed to joining a small tour for a few days. We really like the idea of Africa but I feel pretty overwhelmed at the thought of planning an independent trip there, and I don't think our budget will stretch to a private tour for that length of time. All the other travel we've done I've planned and booked myself so I'm confident with that side of things.

So, based on that criteria, where would you go?

suze

South America

rowdc

Thanks Suze - we have definitely considered South America. Of course, that's a pretty huge area - is there anywhere in particular you would recommend for that timeframe? I would love to do Galapagos but it's hard to narrow down a trip from the rest of the continent.

sparkchaser

South America. You can do a trip where you see Machu Picchu, Galapagos Islands (it's not difficult to fit a trip in there as flights leave daily from Quito and Guayaquil), Easter Island, and Patagonia for that price and have time to leisurely see the capital cities in those countries.


A driving tour of Europe would fit the bill too.

sparkchaser

Dubai: the paradise built on slavery.

Gardyloo

From New Zealand you could purchase round-the-world airline tickets that would let you include both South America and Africa in a trip. The following map is one possibility; there are thousands of options, depending on your tastes: http://tinyurl.com/mw94zcj

In this case you'd fly from Auckland to Santiago, Chile, then up to Quito and out to the Glapagos, then down to Buenos Aires and over to Madrid. Then Rome and Qatar, down to Cape Town and up to Joburg, then across the Indian Ocean to Sydney and back home.

You could hire cars in Santiago and visit the wonderful coast around Valparaiso or Viña del Mar, or maybe some of the vineyards nearby; you could hire a car in Joburg and take 4 days or so to visit Kruger National Park - easy for self-drive, affordable accommodations in the guest camps, and plenty of safari/wildlife viewing at KNP... the list of options is endless.

http://www.oneworld.com/flights/round-the-world-fares

suze

Well I want to go to Argentina myself. Specifically Buenos Aires. But that's just me.

Sassafrass

Sparkchaser, Perfectly said. Wish more people realized that.

tomfuller

For September/October I would check on Canada using the ViaRail Canadian. Use a Blue & Gold sleeper if you can afford it. Set off from Vancouver after a couple of days in that beautiful city.
Stop in Jasper and spend 2-3 or 4 days depending on the 3 times per week Canadian schedule. Next stop would be Winnipeg with 2 or 3 days. If you love train travel, you can take a train from Winnipeg all the way to Churchill on the Hudson Bay to see polar bears. Otherwise you can fly to Churchill and return to Winnipeg.
Train or fly from Winnipeg to Toronto. Take a side trip from Toronto to see Horseshoe/Niagara Falls. Eastern Canada has such gems as Ottawa, Montreal, Halifax, PEI and Cape Breton Island.
Fly back to NZ with at least one stop in the US.