Well, it’s been a full year since we set off and headed east just to prove that old Chris Columbus was right and the world is round.  Turns out that he was correct.  We left Florida, sailed to Europe, flew to Kenya, UAE, India, China and Singapore and sailed back to the US.  Along the way, we stopped at 10 or so different countries and had many memorable experiences.  (Almost getting run over by a Zebra was high on the list!) That was a 62 day trip!

Well, what if the world is only round in one direction….maybe we should go check that out!  Also, going east around the world was a bad idea…..you lose 24 hours and end up taking 3 red-eye flights.  When you cross the international date line you get the day back, kind-of, but you are still tired as hell!  Going west, theoretically, you could do it with no red-eye flights…..that would be a nice goal!

Several months ago, we booked a cheap transatlantic cruise on the Celebrity Constellation from Rome to Tampa in late fall 2027.  RCL recently released their transpacific cruises for next fall and we found that the Quantum of the Seas was sailing from Seattle to Tokyo in late September of 2027.  The Quantum arrives in Tokyo on October 12^th a full 17 days before the Constellation departs Rome on October 29^th, 2027.

That leaves 17 days to build an adventure across Asia and eastern Europe.  We are always up for an adventure! (At least me, Reva just puts up me…..unless the travel involves Yellow Fever risk areas or India…then she gets pissed).

So here is the basic starting plan.  FYI, Airfare looks very reasonable for this route at least at this point.

Tentatively, we are thinking of spending a few days in Tokyo to start things off.

Next, a quick visit to China seems appropriate.  We have not seen the Terracotta Warriors in Xian.  Also, since we will enter from Japan and depart to a different country, we can visit China VISA free….that is a big consideration for us when visiting many countries.

We have been to a lot of places but we have not ventured into the “Stans” .  Many of these Central Asian countries are said to be beautiful, safe and friendly with a rich history.  They lay along the silk road from Xian to Istanbul.  Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan in particular are becoming tourist centers and require no VISA’s for Americans to enter.  We will avoid Afghanistan and Pakistan or any other “Stan” where we could get killed or abducted.

Next, we have fantastic memories of the Dalmatian Cost and Island hopping in Croatia and it’s along the route. This a good time to revisit. Also, we could spend 3 days here or 7, so its a good buffer point.

Lastly, if time allows, we have been told the “heel” of Italy is beautiful and not overrun with Tourists….its also only a few hours by train from Rome.

I can’t book any flights or hotels yet, but now is time to piece the puzzle together.  Also, based on my initial review, there are no significant disease issues traveling to any of these areas so no extra shots or Malaria prevention would be required.  As I put this together, I will add updates on how the trip planning is going. 

The total trip this time will be 47 days.  We were able to do the last around the world trip for $6,200 each, $12,400 total.  I think we can do this trip much cheaper (Safaris are expensive.)  The cruise portion of the trip (Balcony cabins for 30 days) was $5,300 total ($2,650 each).  Hotels, airfare, tours, and local transportation for 17 days will probably be less than $4,000 total, depending what we add…River Cruise on Yangtze? We will see!