Find people to fly with on the big trip

The two big directions

Almost every long trip starts with one of these, and both have well-worn routes that are easy to join partway:

• East: Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, often with India, Nepal, Sri Lanka or the Philippines added on.
• South America: Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, Brazil, Chile and Argentina, sometimes entered through Mexico and Central America.
• Cost drives the choice as much as taste: the east is cheaper day to day, South America is further away and the flights cost more.
• Many people do both, in two trips, a year or two apart.

What actually needs a partner

On a trip this long you will meet people constantly. What is hard to arrange on the spot is the beginning and the expensive things:

• The first week: landing, the first city, the first move, before you know anyone.
• Rooms and long taxi rides, which cost the same for one person as for two.
• Treks and tours with a minimum group size — Salkantay, Uyuni, the Amazon, diving courses.
• Renting a scooter or a car, and everything else sold per vehicle.
• Someone to hold the plan with when a bus is cancelled or a border is closed.

When people go

South-East Asia is busiest and driest roughly from November to March, and the rains arrive at different times in different countries. In South America it is summer in the south from December to March, while the Andes in Peru and Bolivia are driest and busiest from May to September. Most Israeli trips leave shortly after discharge, which clusters departures — and that is exactly why matching on dates is worth more than matching on a city.

Meeting travel partners safely

Talk before you book anything together, and meet in the first city before you commit to a route. Keep your own ticket and your own room until you have actually met. Share your route with someone at home and keep it updated. In PlaneMate, every profile carries a visible trust level, face verification is optional, and you can block or report anyone.

Questions before take-off