Watch out if you’re visiting China in summer! We were there in July and August, just in time for all the university students and families to snatch up the budget-priced seats on the trains. We were stranded on several occasions without any option of where to go. In one case, we ended up having to buy an airline ticket rather than lose more days when we were more than ready to move on. This obviously increased spending in the overall “Transportation” category.

Planning to visit South Korea? Have it on your RTW itinerary? Just curious? Here is what we spent, and what we spent it on during the 23 days we were in there in June of 2011.

In the case of Japan, the rumors are true: it can be VERY expensive. If you’ve got hotel reward points or friends/family to crash with, this is the place to use them! In our month in Japan we used some cost-saving methods to make our trip more economical. See below for details.

Returning home after an extended trip abroad means putting down your backpack one last time and realizing you now have the option to unpack it. Suddenly everyone speaks your language….

In May of 2011, we began our second around-the-world trip. Now almost eight months in, the New Year has begun, and it seems like a good time to look both…

  As we ventured away from the metropolis of Beijing we were very limited on the choice of cities to visit. The reason for this was our neglect in purchasing…

We are sitting in the international terminal at LAX. Off again. The past few days were a whirlwind of mental checklists: travel insurance, notifying credit card companies of travel plans…

It’s been too long since we’ve posted regularly, and hopefully that’s about to change. Part of the silence has been due to the fervent planning and plotting that’s been going…

Since the year-long Coke Zero tour ended a couple of weeks ago, we’ve spent lots of time contemplating what’s next.   Inevitably, between the snow and the lack of income,…

Whew! One week ahead of time and we’re finished with packing. It was a dry run, to make sure everything fit in the backpacks, and so far so good. Here’s…