Buying a bike could make more sense, especially if you are buying something cheaper. The logic of shipping the $21,000 Goldwing may well make sense for some, but I suspect thats out of reach of most of us. You could probably get a used V-Strom or Varadero (or similar) off ebay and lose virtually nothing while you are travelling. Its worked for me !

The UK may be a better place to buy as the processes are simpler than most other countries, and you won't have a language problem. You can get a temporary V5 (the registration document) in person at local offices, and this is fine for travel - I have done this before. One way ferry to France will cost less than £30. In practice, you are unlikely to need to show bike papers unless you leave the EU - which is a pretty big area these days.... It would take you most of a two week tour to reach the edge I suspect Incidentally, you might even get people interested in buying it from you and then riding it back to the UK.... both people get to do a longer one way trip in the time available.

You do need a UK address for the V5, and insurance, but you can use anyone for that - including me if you need to. Insurance costs will be much higher if you use an address in a big city - so avoid that. Foreign cover will normally be included automatically - 'free'.

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Honda CBR 1100 XX, Yamaha XTZ 660, Harris Special