200 days in a Backpack Itinerary


Brazil - Argentina - Uruguay - Chile - Bolivia - Peru - Ecuador - Colombia - United States - Iceland - England - France - Austria - Turkey - Iran - Turkmenistan - Uzbekistan - Tajikistan - Kyrgyzstan - Kazakhstan - China - Myanmar
South America Leg - 85 Days

A 24hr flight from Singapore on Singapore Airlines using our accumulated miles will land us in Sao Paolo, Brazil. Here we will explore, in a clockwise fashion, the various capital cities and key attractions of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and before ending in Colombia.
So much has been said about the beauty of the Latin American Continent that we did not have to think twice to put in as our priority on our world trip. The highlights here would definitely be Pantanal's Wildlife, Trekking in Torres Del Paine, Salt Flats of Salar De Uyuni, Ruins of Machu Picchu, and Diving in the Galapagos islands.
Sao Paulo
Rio de Janeiro
Pantanal
Iguazu Falls
Buenos Aires
El Calafate
Puerto Natales
Torres del Paine
Bus on Ruta 40
Bariloche
Mendoza
Salta
San Pedro De Atacama
13 - 15 Aug
16 - 19 Aug
20 - 22 Aug
23 - 25 Aug
26 - 30 Aug
31 Aug - 1 Sep
2 Sep
3 - 5 Sep
6 - 7 Sep
7 - 11 Sep
12- 15 Sep
15 - 19 Sep
20 - 21 Sep
Salar de Uyuni
La Paz
Lake Titicaca
Machu Picchu
Cuzco
Galapagos
Quito
Bogota
Medellin
Cartegena
22 - 24 Sep
25 - 28 Sep
29 Sep - 2 Oct
3 - 8 Oct
9 - 12 Oct
13 - 20 Oct
21 - 26 Oct
27 - 29 Oct
30 Oct - 1 Nov
2 - 5 Nov
Central America/New York Leg - 30 Days

6 - 10 Nov
11 - 13 Nov
14 - 15 Nov
16 - 17 Nov
18 - 19 Nov
20 Nov
21 - 23 Nov
24 - 26 Nov
27 - 28 Nov
29 - 30 Nov
1 - 6 Dec
Miami
Havana
Vinales
Trinidad
Havana
Antigua
Quetzaltenango (Xela)
Lago Atitlan
Flores/Tikal
Antigua
New York
We had our sights set on a US West Coast Road trip until Leann's colleague told us how beautiful his country was, which got us wondering about the less explored area of Central America. After considering the costs, the time, the physical demands, the rarity of this opportunity, and love for exploration, we told ourselves that Sin City and San Francisco could wait. The winds of change and the ticket costs blew us to Miami to start this leg of our trip.
Highlights here include Miami South Beach, Ancient City of Tikal, and gorgeous Lago Atitlan. Of course, since it was along the way, we had to witness the vintage beauty of Cuba before it disappeared. The Big Apple transit was also a no-brainer.
Europe Leg - 28 Days

Yes. Europe again. Can you blame us? It is on the way back. And there are still awesome places to discover, and old friends to catch up with! Highlights here include catching the Aurora Borealis in the land of fire and ice, the picturesque town of Hallstatt (Austria), spending Christmas and catching a Man Utd game in England, and counting down to New Year in Paris.
7 - 16 Dec
17 - 18 Dec
19 - 23 Dec
24 - 29 Dec
30 Dec- 3 Jan
Iceland
London
Scotland
London
Paris
Silk Road / Myanmar Leg - 58 Days

We debated long and hard about how we should cross the Central Asia landmass. The only thing we knew is that we had to reach Myanmar somehow as we thought it fitting to finish off with an ASEAN country we have yet to set foot on. We considered the Trans-Siberian Railway, South of the Himalayas (through Pakistan and India) and eventually decided on the famed ancient trade route of Marco Polo; a route now less travelled, and hence with very little information on.
There was nary a useful guidebook when we roamed the libraries and bookstores. Lucky for us, there were still some who took on those countries, and wrote useful articles we could refer to. Highlights here include hot-air ballooning in Cappadocia, skiing in Iran, exploring the relatively unknown 5 Stans, experiencing the nomadic cultures of the highlands, and the temples and people of Burma.
Note: due to Visa issues, and underestimation of time required, Myanmar was removed, Georgia and Armenia fit in, and 7 days added.
4 - 8 Jan
9 - 12 Jan
13 - 14 Jan
15 Jan
16 - 17 Jan
18 Jan
19 - 21 Jan
Istanbul
Cappadocia
Trabzon
Kars
Akhaltsikhe
Borjomi
Tbilisi
Yerevan
Tatev
Yerevan
Tbilisi
Tehran
Esfahan
Yazd
22 Jan
23 - 24 Jan
25 - 26 Jan
27 - 30 Jan
31 Jan - 3 Feb
4 - 7 Feb
8 - 9 Feb
9 - 13 Feb
14 - 15 Feb
16 - 18 Feb
19 - 20 Feb
21 Feb
22 - 23 Feb
24 - 26 Feb
Shiraz
Kerman
Masshad
Tabriz
Dogubayazit
Van
Istanbul
Kuala Lumpur
Johor Bahru
27 - 28 Feb
29 Feb