New Zealand, Australia, India (2017Q4 & 2018): Itinerary - Sanity Check/Review
 

Hello HU Members!

After considerable research and several revisions, I have developed a couple high-level itineraries that I would like to share with those with local knowledge or anyone who may have completed a similar trip. Specifically, I have attempted to prepare a high-level itinerary that avoids excessive heat and rainfall, especially in India and SE Asia.

Before committing to a guided tour across Thailand and Myanmar, I would like to ensure I am not over-looking a great opportunity for an even better route/itinerary.

I have learned everything is a compromise. It is nearly impossible to plan around bad weather for itineraries beyond six months, at least for Asia. I initially hoped to include SE Asia, but have decided to postpone SE Asia for another winter.

At this time, I am interested in feedback regarding the order of the Australian and New Zealand visits.

Desired Destinations by Priority: Australia, New Zealand & India
Constraints: Start tour after October 20th; Minimize Shipping Costs by Crating M/C

Considerations:
POC near Sydney to help with retrieval, storage and delivery of motorcycle crate shipment, a short-term loner motorcycle & lodging.
I am leaning towards option A to avoid peak tourist season and less competition for campsites/lodging. Are campsites usually conveniently available during peak season?

Thanks in advance for your feedback, suggestions and extra keystrokes!

Take care & ride safely!

Koonzee

Option A:

Oct. 20th - Nov. 30th: New Zealand (Approx. 6.5 weeks; Perhaps Auckland port can hold custom crate; avoid peak tourist season & school breaks)
Dec. 1st - Feb. 28th: Australia (Approx. 2.5 or 3 months; store crate with friend; ship from Sydney to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; stay in Sydney or rent mc in KL)
Mar. 1st - Mar. 19th: Malaysia (Approx. 2.5 weeks, includes 7-10 days for shipping duration & prep for guided tour; remain in Sydney during shipment)
Mar. 20th - Mar. 24th: Thailand (5 day crossing with guided tour - new regulations)
Mar. 25th - Mar. 31st: Myanmar/Burma (7 day crossing with guided tour - guide required)
April 1st - May 31st: India (2 or more months; Northern India - Possibly explore Mountain Passes in June.)
June X - TBD: Nepal (Open to suggestions for route crossing China/Central Asia/Russia)

Option B:

Oct. 20th - Dec. 31: Australia (Approx. 2.5 months; Various M/C Rallies)
Jan. 1st - Feb. 18th: New Zealand (Approx. 6.5 weeks; limited more expensive lodging due to peak tourist season)
Feb. 19th - Mar. 19th: Malaysia (Approx. 1 month, includes 14 days for shipping duration & prep for guided tour)
Mar. 20th - Mar. 24th: Thailand (5 day crossing with guided tour - new regulations)
Mar. 25th - Mar. 31st: Myanmar/Burma (7 day crossing with guided tour - guide required)
April 1st - May 31st: India (2 or more months; Northern India - lovely weather during April & May; Mtn Passes in June.)
June X - TBD: Nepal Nepal (Open to suggestions for route crossing China/Central Asia/Russia)

For those not familiar with NZ & AUS who may be contemplating a similar visit, you may find the following information useful. I suggest planners avoid the time consuming temptation to research mean rainfall and temperatures for various cities. Simply go to your favorite tour guide publisher.

When to Go in New Zealand | Frommer's
When to Go in Australia | Frommer's

New Zealand:
Spring (Sept, Oct, Nov) -- This is a beautiful time to visit - the countryside is flush with new green grass, baby lambs, and blooming trees. Christchurch in the spring means blossoms, bluebells, and daffodils in abundance; Dunedin is a splurge of rhododendron color. The weather can still be very changeable right up to mid-October, so come prepared with light rain gear. In the South Island, it's still perfectly normal to get late snowfalls in September.
Summer (Dec, Jan, Feb) -- This is peak tourist season, so you'll pay top dollar for accommodations and airfares. Book early to avoid disappointment -- this also applies to the major walking tracks, such as Milford, for which you should make bookings 6 months ahead. The country's beaches come alive, and boaties flock to the water. Fresh fruit is falling off the trees. (You must try Central Otago cherries and apricots; the apple district is Hawke's Bay.) Everyone should see Central Otago when the lupines are flowering, with brilliant colors etched against blue skies and golden tussock.
Most Kiwi families take their main annual holidays between mid-December and the end of January, which puts enormous pressure on accommodations in major summer beach destinations.
You'll find a far greater seasonal difference in the South Island than in the subtropical North.
By comparison, the northern part of the North Island is subtropical. That means lots of winter/spring rain, and often daily light showers.
Milford Sound, the wettest place in the country, with a phenomenal 365 inches of rain a year.

Australia:

Australia’s summer is a nice time to visit the southern states, and even in winter temperatures rarely dip below freezing.
Generally, the best months to visit Australia are September and October, when it’s often still warm enough to hit the beach in the southern states, it’s cool enough to tour Uluru, and the humidity and rains have not come to Cairns (although it will be very hot by Oct).
Low Season - October through March (summer) is just too hot, too humid, or too wet—or all three—to tour the Red Centre. North Queensland, including Cairns, suffers an intensely hot, humid wet season from November or December through March or April.
Try to avoid Australia from Boxing Day (Dec 26) to the end of January, when Aussies take their summer vacations.

By the way, if any of the listed countries are on your short list for 2017Q4 or 2018, please feel free to contact me. It would be nice to compare notes since I am still in the planning stage. It would also be nice to share my journey with local or foreign travel companions. Local motorcyclists with intimate knowledge of local attractions, scenic routes, lesser-known historical sites or geological oddities are always a highlight of a road trip.

In order to maximize the duration of my journey, I hope to minimize lodging expenses along the way. Any tips or online resources for affordable lodging, volunteering or 'tent spaces' would be greatly appreciated. In the United States, a popular website for free campsites on government BLM property or stealth camping is available at FreeCampsites.Net. Does the NZ or AUS adventure riding community have a similar resource?

Thanks again for any feedback or suggestions regarding the itinerary options and questions. (Perhaps our paths may cross at one of the HU rallies in Perth or Snowy Mtns.)

Take care & ride safely!

If you download Wikicamps New Zealand and ditto Australia (costs a few $) and also for example a map application as Mapsme - you will be able to find all kinds of very useful information. All campsites and campgrounds, commercial ones, state or community run, and bush camps. What amenities there are there and not, what the cost is. Many users write reviews so it gives you a picture of what it is like.
I can say it was a huge help for me when I rode around in Australia ans NZ. It also shows gas stations, supermarkets, hostels and hotels etc.

Your itinerary seems a little short to me but maybe thats the time you have. I spent 10 weeks in NZ and 6 months in Oz.

And youre also skipping Indonesia I notice, it was the best and most interesting country for me in this region.

Anyway - good luck with your trip!

SnakeBoy: Thank you your WikiCamp recommendation. That is exactly the information I was seeking. The app looks great!

Planning a route with optimum weather has been quite an exercise.

After receiving additional feedback, I have gone back to the 'drawing board' and started over from scratch.

Peaks Tourist Seasons Relative to Destinations:

Australia (peak season): (April - Sept)
India (Himalayas): June - Sept
SE Asia: Jan-Mar or June-Sept
China (Southern): April
New Zealand: Sept-Nov or Dec-Feb(peak)

Perhaps the following would be more desirable:

Nov-Dec: New Zealand (ship from SoCal->NZ)
Dec/Jan/Feb: SE Asia (Ship NZ->SE Asia; Store M/C while elsewhere??)
Mar/April: China (Southern-rare opportunity ride with Chinese friends; borrow or buy & sell)
May/Jun/July: Australia (borrow or ship from SE Asia to AUS)
Aug/Sept: India (Himilayas) (Buy & Sell)

Any thoughts on the above?

Well, I am going to have to revisit the entire itinerary and even reconsider shipping versus renting/buying.
If anyone is interested in a ride share/swap, I have a really nice Honda ST1100A and Honda Africa Twin XRV750 in southern California ready to explore the Southwest.

Final question: While reviewing carnets, I recall reading something about the motorcycle exiting the country with the owner or have documentation of its shipment. Are there any exceptions to this rule?
If I ship my m/c, it would be helpful to store it while visiting China.

Shipping Summary:
SoCal->NZ
NZ->SE Asia (perhaps store in SE Asia while renting elsewhere; suggestions?)
SE Asia -> AUS
AUS->Home to SoCal or South America (tour India while enroute to SA; Spring Sept-Nov or Summer Dec-Feb)

Thanks a lot for reviewing my itinerary! I am sorry the posts are so long... still evolving!

Take care & ride carefully.

Koonzee

Btw, I saw a nice potential ride for sale in New Zealand recently, but am unable to contact the seller since the Trademe.co.nz will not accept my registration. Would any kind souls in Australia or New Zealand with a Trademe account please assist with providing my contact information to the seller. This may provide another option to consider. It would be greatly appreciated!

Buying a bike in NZ is really easy, all they require is a valid adress to fill in on the documents. It could even be the old owners adress or a hostel adress for what I understand. Its also conveniant to have NZ friend that you trust that can help you with the sale - as if you dont have a buyer when you leave.

I bought a bike in NZ and had a friend there helping with the sale. So it wasnt a rush-sale and thus low price for me. All went very smooth...

SE-Asia is a big PITA nowadays as you know. Thailand, Myanmar and China has mandatory permits and guide requirement. Malaysia and Indonesia are ok as long as you have a valid Carnet.
Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam - Vietnam seems difficult, officially you need permits (expensive) although I heard from time to time they do let in foreign plated bikes. Laos and Cambodia has the problem that coming from south or west you need to cross Thailand to get there. And Laos doesnt allow bikes under 250 cc in nowadays (at some border crossings at least) and one province doesnt allow any motorbikes in (Xayabouli) Cambodia seems also to be a bit difficult nowadays as one need permits there as well and most bordercrossings seem to demand a Carnet also - although Cambodia is not an official Carnet country. It might be a better idea to rent or buy a bike and do as much as you can of those countries on a rental or a cheap purchased one?

SnakeBoy: Thanks again for the prompt and informative replies. I have been on the fence about shipping vs rent/buying for months and recently decided to ship to destinations without guide requirements or simply do short term rentals while waiting for the m/c shipments. Initially, I decided to ship due to the duration, comfort requirement (taller rider) and known maintenance history.

I have read hours of information on forums about the guide regulations and really regret not planning a comparable trip a decade ago. It is unfortunate...

Anyhow, I am reconsidering all options again or hybrid of multiple options. Unfortunately, I think the trend will be buying and renting in the future. It is a shame since most of us customize our motorcycles for personal needs to live off of it for extended trips.

Perhaps I need to catch up with the times, leave the expense electronics/camera gear at home, and simply fly to destinations packing cell phone and a couple soft panniers in a GIVI trunk. There may be a tendency to 'over-think' the planning... However, I usually don't like to wing it.

I hope to receive a reply from a buddy in Australia shortly. If I can borrow his motorcycle for AUS, I'll scratch the entire shipping idea and buy or rent locally.

Thanks again for your feedback.

Koonzee

Hi Mate, As Snakeboy says, you can easily spend longer in NZ & Oz if you have the time. Especially if you want to explore some of the offroad routes as well as having a look at the usual tourist stuff.

Tourism in NZ has been growing like crazy so you often do have to think ahead a little. If you go for your option B I would book well ahead if you want to stay at any of the tourist hotspots. However outside the Christmas-Jan peak most campgrounds will be able to squeeze in a bike & small tent somewhere at short notice.

If you come Oct - Nov you'll be able to wing it most of the time. Call ahead a day or two & you'll be guaranteed a spot. You'll get some rain that time of the year, if you decide it's not camping weather that's when it's really worth calling ahead, a spot in a backpackers hostel or a cabin in a campground are often good options for when you need a roof.

Free or basic & Dept of Conservation campsites near the tourist centres or on the main tourist trail get quite crowded right through the season - there are thousands of cheapskate backpackers in vans & cars with that same app or the similar campermate. However gravel roads are usually pretty good at scaring off the riff-raff so if you are checking out some of the adventure routes & backroads you'll find lots of neat places to camp, either designated DOC sites or anywhere on public land without a no camping sign is fair game (just leave no trace, take a trowel if planning to free camp so you can bury your shit)

We are 20km from Rotorua & always enjoy hosting traveling adventurers, so get in touch if you'd like to come & stay.

Cheers
Clint

PS check out the temperatures of your planned destinations in Oz vs the time of year too - the climate in a lot of the interesting desert areas of Oz can be pretty brutal through summer.

CintNZ,

Hello. I hope this post finds you well.

Thank you very much for writing and sharing your thoughts about my tentative schedule, camping and the weather. I especially appreciate the invitation!

Fortunately, I received feedback from a couple forum members, which really helped fine-tune my schedule. I have revised my schedule after changing my travel plans for Australia from summer to winter and my travel plans for the Himalayas from spring to summer. Everything fell in place very easily. As of now, I am very happy and comfortable with the following flexible schedule. I am aware of the risk that I will be exposed to more rain during the New Zealand spring. If I desire to stay longer and explore more 4x4 tracks, I can reallocate time from SE Asia.

Nov-Dec: New Zealand
Dec/Jan/Feb: SE Asia
Mar/April: China
May/Jun/July: Australia
Aug/Sept: India (Himalayas)

Finally, thank you for the heads-up about camping reservations during peak season. Your information is very helpful and reassuring.

Take care & ride safely.