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2016 was a great year of travel for me, and hopefully for you too.
The year started on the tarmac in Nagoya, Japan, about to take off in Thai Business Class on a Dreamliner to Bangkok.
The year will end, for me, in a few hours in sleepy Puerto Natales, Chile where I arrived by hitchhiking yesterday, and where I’m prepping for my Torres del Paine eight day hike that kicks off in a few days.
COUNTRIES VISITED (16)
In chronological order (new countries in bold):
- Japan (45 minutes)
- Thailand (10 days)
- Singapore (2 days)
- Vietnam (10 days)
- India (2 days)
- United States (3 weeks)
- Chile (2 weeks)
- Argentina (5 months)
- Brazil (10 days)
- Spain (2 weeks)
- Germany (3 days)
- Czech Republic (1 week)
- Serbia (5 weeks)
- Montenegro (2 days)
- Croatia (2 months)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina (10 days)
Five of these countries were new. My total is now 74 (counting England, Wales, Macau, Hong Kong, and China separately):
PREMIUM AIRLINE CABINS FLOWN (9)
In chronological order (with links to trip reports):
- Thai Business Class (Dreamliner)
- Etihad Business Class
- Etihad A380 First Class Apartment
- Copa Business Class
- LATAM Premium Economy
- Singapore First Class
- Croatia Business Class
- Lufthansa Business Class
- Lufthansa First Class (747-8)
My favorite flight was definitely the First Class flight on the Etihad A380.
Number two was Lufthansa First Class. All the other flights, I enjoyed getting some rest, but I was ready to get off at the end.
MILES FLOWN (59,578)
- 59,578 miles flown over 37 segments
- If I had flown all these as paid flights on one airline like United or Delta, I wouldn’t even have the highest mid-tier status!
- Longest flight: Abu Dhabi to New York in Etihad First Class on an A380 (6,867 miles)
- Shortest flight: Sarajevo to Zagreb (173 miles) to avoid 9 hours on a bus or train
- Favorite flight: Abu Dhabi to New York in Etihad First Class on an A380 (6,867 miles). Fourteen hours wasn’t long enough
- Least favorite flight: Honolulu to Chicago in United economy wins because it was my longest economy flight, and the flight time was 3:50 PM to midnight Hawaii time, meaning I showed up in Chicago at 5 AM local time on no sleep.
FAVORITE MOMENTS OF TRAVEL
- Overnighting with a local hill tribe family near Chiang Rai, Thailand and playing frisbee with the kids in the village
- Watching the sunset in Railey, Thailand with a bottle of Flyin Hawaiian (the cocktail I invented)
- Spelunking in Phong Nha-Khe Bang National Park with two of my best friends
- Auditioning for a Quilmes beer commercial in Argentina
- Spelunking and snorkeling in Bonito, Brazil
- Watching five UVA basketball games over the summer in Spain
- Getting on Spanish TV
- Visiting friends in Leipzig, Germany who I met eight years earlier in Nicaragua
- Four months of intense study of Serbo-Croat
- Oktoberfest with my sister
- Playing soccer-golf with my niece, brother, and sister in Hawaii
- Hitchhiking for the first time in my life from Rio Gallegos airport in Argentina to Puerto Natales in Chile
What were your travel stats for 2016? More importantly, what were your best travel memories from this year?
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Scott, What software or site do you use to highlight the countries and routes you’ve flown, that creates the images you used on the blog?
We’ve had a good travelling year. Not even sure I remember all of it. Some for points, some just good deals. Our preference is to fly coach. Even if it’s points, I hate to burn more than needed to get there, and both my wife and I are small, and fit easily into coach seats.
We started the year in San Francisco, then drove to Portland, Oregon, visiting friends in both places, and enjoying the scenery along the way, then flew back to NYC.
In March we took advantage of Emirates deal of two coach tix, non stop NY to Milan, for I think $1100. They’ve run this promo for the last 2-3 years. It’s come out even 1-200 cheaper after Years, but of course, there may be less selection by then. We took a car, drove to Bologna, Florence, then train to Rome and back, then back to the car from Florence to Tuscany, where we stayed in an old castle (cold), and toured the area, continuing up through Cinque Terra, Monaco (drove a lap of the Grand Prix route in 15 minutes, in heavy traffic), and on to Nice, then back to Milan, and home. Enjoyed the 380, even in coach. We were in the most forward cabin, on the lower level, which give the usual front of the plane silence, at the cheap price. Nice.
I think our next trip was Buenos Aires, in June, where I met a pen pal I’ve had for over 20 years, and a friend I met while Eurailpassing in Europe in 1983! Had a very authentic experience, including an attempted mugging in BA. We escaped. Found a good use for Delta points there. Buying domestic trips on Aerolineas Argentinas was cheap with points, and expensive with money. And, it’s really the only way to get around the country, unless you have time for very long bus trips. Went to Salta, and Iguazu falls, including going over to the Brazilian side by local bus, another country touched!
We mostly stay home in the summer. It’s nice where we live, and expensive to travel. We made a car trip to Montreal in June for the F1 race, and not much else.
In October we went for our annual trip to Shanghai (my wife is from there). We always go somewhere else in Asia, on this trip, and were planning to visit Taiwan, but it was crazily hot and humid (33C, 90%), so we changed our minds, and went to Seoul instead. Really enjoyed it. Reminded me of Tokyo in many ways, but not as over the top. Much less expensive, though.
Next trip will be leaving in 3 weeks, to Maui and then on to Australia. Too advantage of your posted info on buying Hawaii round trip using Korean Airlines points, on a transfer from Chase, to buy Delta tickets for 25,000 each in coach. It was a protracted process, handled old-school, by phone (!) largely, by KAL. They were very courteous and effective, but I am amazed at their requirements (a marriage certificate!), and that they don’t charge any fee for this… as far as is visible to me, I don’t see how they get paid for processing a partner ticket using miles that I did not even earn from their company.
Thanks for all your advice on the blog.
http://www.amcharts.com/visited_countries/
“I think our next trip was Buenos Aires, in June, where I met a pen pal I’ve had for over 20 years, and a friend I met while Eurailpassing in Europe in 1983! Had a very authentic experience, including an attempted mugging in BA. We escaped. Found a good use for Delta points there. Buying domestic trips on Aerolineas Argentinas was cheap with points, and expensive with money. And, it’s really the only way to get around the country, unless you have time for very long bus trips.”
I love that part! Hopefully I can keep up with the people I’m meeting, 35 years from now. I also just used Delta miles to fly domestically on Aerolineas Argentinas, but I’ve got a new way to get around Argentina–hitching!
I’m glad someone booked those Delta flights to Hawaii with Korean miles. Look for my post on Monday–it’s gotten easier since you did it! You can now do it online.
Hey Scott,
Have fun hiking over the next 8 days, turns out your partner on the hike is a mutual friend!
[…] 2016 in the books, and my rundown of last year’s travel here, I thought I’d share my upcoming travel […]
hey Scott, did you pay for the ride from Rio Gallegos to Puerto Natales. I hitchhiked from P Natales to Punta Arenas years ago, but I gave the driver gas money. How’s your Spanish these days?
Hey Scott, great post and very inspiring to read. What do you do to stay in Argentina for 5 months? Do you run into any visa issues or is the rule there 6 months max as a tourist?
I can’t speak for Scott 100% (he’s hiking in Patagonia right now) but I’m pretty sure he does what I do–leaves the country at least every 3 months. Argentina gives 90 day tourist visas.