Perth (Aus) to London
 

Hi all, planning the ride form Perth via Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Italy, France, England.
Looks something like the list below. Apologies for all the double ups, pulled it off a spreadsheet tracking distances etc.

Main concern is border crossings, we are two bikes (Africa Twins) and light gear. There is plenty of stories of scooters, locally plated bikes etc crossing SE Asia borders, tales of bigger bikes being banned, no foreign plated bikes in China etc etc. Any help re the facts warmly welcomed, if you have tips on a single crossing or link to a post ive missed or you've done the whole thing, love to hear from you. Were happy with getting to Bangkok, from there the mystery starts.

Thanks in advance, looks like a great forum, will keep searching threads in the meantime Cheers, Craig.

Perth to Meekatharra
Meekatharra to Port Hedland
Port Hedland to Broome
Broome to Halls Creek
Halls Creek to Katherine
Katherine to Darwin
Darwin to Bangkok (Thailand) (by air)
Bangkok to Siem Reap (Cambodia)
Siem Reap to Phnom Penh
Phenom Penh to Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam)
Ho Chi Minh to Nha Trang
Nha Trang to Da Nang
Da Nang to Vinh
Vinh to Hanoi
Hanoi to Lao Cai (China)
Lao Cai to Kunming
Kunming to Guiyang
Guiyang to Chongqing
Chongqing to Guangyuan
Guangyuan to Tianshui
Tianshui to Lanzhou
Lanzhou to Wuwei
Wuwei to Jiuquan
Jiuquan to Kumul
Kumul to Turpan
Turpan to Urumqi
Urumqi to Khorgas
Khorgas to Almaty (Khazakstan)
Almaty to Taraz
Taraz to Turkestan
Turkestan to Kyzylorda
Kyzylorda to Aral
Aral to Aktobe
Aktobe to Oral
Oral to Saratov (Russia)
Saratov to Volgograd
Volgograd to Rostov On Don
Rostov on Don to Mariupol (Ukrane)
Mariupol to Mykolaiv
Mykolaiv to Braila (Romania)
Braila to Brasov
Brasov to Belgrade (Serbia)
Belgrade to Zagreb (Croatia)
Zagreb to Venice (Italy)
Venice to Pisa
Pisa to Genoa
Genoa to Nice
Nice to Marseille
Marseille to Lyon
Lyon to Paris
Paris to Dieppe
Dieppe to Newhaven (ferry 3 hours)
Newhaven to London

Hi Craig C and welcome,
Your route or something like it are entirely possible and most or all of the information you need is posted here somewhere.
To start with I would simplify your route with country to country rather than town to town then use the search facility to find the most up to date information about entering and travelling in each country.
Read other people's ride reports and pay attention to the season they travel in and whether that caused a problem, it is difficult to avoid bad weather all the way but try and minimise it as much as possible for a more pleasant trip.

Thanks Mark, will do. Cheers

Just pointing at something that could be a bit challenging...

For Thailand the new law from 2016 requires foreign plated vehicles to have guides and permits to enter and travel through the country. But as for now most travellers seem to get into Thailand without these mandatory requirements. But flying bikes in can be a problem. I read about some guys flying their bikes inyo Bangkok who didnt have arranged guides and permits in advance - and those guys ran into problems because of that. If you contact mr David Goodchild at Plodd Stop on Facebook he probably know more about that...

Vietnam - afaik also requires guide and permits to enter and travel in the country and it seems very difficult to get. Other travellers have entered Vietnam just by buypassing Customs at the bordercrossing. That is at best risky if you ask me, but then again maybe it went well...

Entering and crossing China you will definetively need guide and permits and its quite expensive. And entering China from Vietnam is something I never have heard about. But that doesnt mean that its never done of course. I havent studied your route through China but remember you cannot always choose yourself. Some areas are offlimit for foreigners. On many highways motorbikes are not allowed in China.

From Kasakhstan and onwards it shouldnt be any such problems. Visas to Russia and Ukraine can be a bit tricky but its doable.

Thanks Snakeboy, I appreciate your advice. I have confirmed with Thai and Vietnam consulates today here in Australia that it is certainly possible, they do allow foreign plated bikes of any capacity as long as you have the required permits and a guide, you are spot on. I have not chased down the requirements for China as yet although I have read the rules are similar and needed 3 months before the trip. Thinking we may just fly the bikes straight into Ho Chi Minh and head north into China. Need to find out what guides cost. Thanks again, Craig.

I am in Thailand now and riding round on my own without the need for a guide. Don’t know where that info came from. Needed compulsory third party insurance which cost just £17 for a year and I have a carnet which the border guys in Thailand were happy with, allowing me a 30 day stay.

The law about mandatory guide and permits for foreigners entering Thailand with foreign plated vehicles came in 2016. In the beginning it was quite strictly enforced but nowadays the enforcing of this law seem quite relaxed.
As I mentioned above - arriving at an airport with a bike can certainly be another story. It isnt long ago some guys who flew their bikes into Bangkok got big problems and if I remember correctly they chose to fly their bikes to another destination insteqd of waiting 30 days which is the said time it takes to get permits.
You can read more more about the new laws for entering Thailand with a foreign plated vehicle here...https://www.facebook.com/groups/1024...702/?ref=share