Asia After the break-up of the Soviet Union the possibilities of travelling overland to India have increased. After the war in Afghanistan, there were only two options: the Transsiberian and the route through Iran and Pakistan. Now the Central Asian republics offer new ways to get around the fighting in Kabul. China and India offer extensive travelling opportunities without too many restrictions, although it is quite hard to get from one to the other, freedom of movement being somewhat erstricted with regard to Tibet. Travel in Southeast-Asia is among the best, the easiest and the cheapest in the world, the only exception being Myanmar, which has some tough restrictions on overlanding. In the Middle-East it is still very much the political situation that decides which routes you can and which you can’t. Check twice if you’re planning to do a combination with Israel and the more strict of the Arab neighbours in it. Asean Airpass 6 Asian companies have joined forces in an effort to turn off crisis in tourism industry, and they are now offering an "Asian Airpass". Companies participating include Thai Airways, Garuda, Singapore Airlines, Vietnam Airlines, Philippine Airways and Malaysian. The deal is the following: You have to fly from your home to any Asian destination with one of the carriers. You could f.i. fly to Singapore or Bangkok. You need to buy the pass at home for 270 US$. This entitles you to 3 flights within Asia with one of these carriers. This pass has to be bought at the same time you purchase your international flight, and it has to be booked outside Asean countries. Open jaws are not permitted, except within 1 country. So travel must be contiguous. Domestic flights are permitted except in Vietnam and the Philippines. Maximum stay is two months. Extra flights can be purchased at 90 US$ for one. You cannot do the same trip twice (f.i. Singapore-BKK-Singapore-BKK)!!
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