Round-the-world trips are full of options. We planned to travel in East Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, but we didn’t have an actual itinerary beyond the first week on the road! Spontaneity led us on an amazing adventure. Here’s the four-month itinerary we ended up with as we traveled west around the globe, starting from Washington DC.
Our route on a map: Google Map
Friday, January 23: drive to Pittsburgh, PA
Saturday, January 24: fly to Los Angeles, CA
Sunday, February 1: fly to Seoul, South Korea
Tuesday, February 3: fly to Chiang Mai, Thailand
Saturday, February 7: overnight bus to Nong Khai, Thailand
Monday, February 9: cross the Friendship Bridge to Laos
Friday, February 13: fly from Vientiane to Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Thursday, February 19: bus to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam
Saturday, February 21: overnight bus to Nha Trang, Vietnam
Monday, February 23: overnight bus to Hoi An, Vietnam
Wednesday, February 25: bus to Hue, Vietnam
Thursday, February 26: overnight bus to Hanoi, Vietnam
Thursday, March 5: bus to Nanning, China
Friday, March 6: arrive by overnight bus to Hong Kong
Sunday, March 8: overnight bus to Xiamen, China
Wednesday, March 11: fly to Shanghai, China
Friday, March 13: train to Hangzhou, China
Saturday, March 14: train to Nanjing, China
Monday, March 16: overnight train to Tai Shan, China
Wednesday, March 18: overnight train to Beijing, China
Tuesday, March 31: fly to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Friday, April 3: weekend in Dubai, UAE
Tuesday, April 7: bus to Muscat, Oman
Friday, April 10: drive to Liwa oasis, UAE
Tuesday, April 14: drive to Al Ain, UAE
Wednesday, April 15: fly to Athens, Greece
Sunday, April 19: train to Thessaloniki, Greece
Thursday, April 23: fly to Munich, Germany
Sunday, April 26: train to Regensburg, Germany
Tuesday, April 28: train to Prague, Czech Republic
Friday, May 1: fly to Copenhagen, Denmark
Thursday, May 7: bike trip in Skåne, Sweden
Saturday, May 9: fly to London, England
Thursday, May 14: fly to Dublin, Ireland
Sunday, May 17: train to Galway, Ireland
Thursday, May 21: fly to Boston, Massachusetts
Tuesday, May 26: fly to St. Louis, Missouri
END OF TRIP!
I loved Ireland, Spain (Barcelona) – the sites are great and the people wonderful.
Paris….is Paris… lots of history…
England has great history and wonderful theatre (but the people we found were a bit stiff_.
If you can, go to Spain, check out all of Gaudy’s work- it is fun and incredible.
Anne Marie
Hi Sara and Jonathan,
Jonathan, your Mom just told me of your adventure…how exciting. I do not consider myself much of a world traveler, but in the past few years I have been to Paris and more recently, Rome (then headed south to Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast). Mr. Maher ran the Paris Marathon while we were there then headed to a business meeting in Barcelona (which he highly recommends to you). I stayed in Paris and really really loved it, and I think the both of you would too. But, I was totally blown away by Rome and the Amalfi Coast (we stayed in Positano). I would recommend Rome over Paris, I loved the cobblestone winding streets, the piazzas, the fountains, the people, the pizza, the wine and, of course, gelato. Hope you get there and I will continue to read about your journey. Be safe!! – Denise Maher