Unique place to go for a week or two in January

Thinking about taking a week and a half off around MLK day. Wanting to climb somewhere outside of North America, I've never been to Europe, Africa, or the Middle East. Interested in trad climbing, mountaineering, or ice climbing. Not really into sport. I'd love to go somewhere exotic where getting there is an adventure in itself, or just feels very different than the US. Honestly doesn't even have to include climbing, just want an adventure. Any ideas?

Ice climb Japan 

a week and a half isn't that long, and you're going to lose a couple days flying, so I would choose something relatively close to a major airport. Given your constraints, off the top of my head I would say:

• Cape Town, ZA (trad)
• Scotland (ice/turf/mixed)
• Frey, Argentina (trad/mountains) (can you fly to Bariloche? not sure)
• Arapiles, Australia, before they shut it down (is this different enough from the US?)

+1 to Refugio Frey at Bariloche, Argentina. And yes you can fly directly to Bariloche. 

Yea I don’t get a ton of time off unfortunately

Morocco. You'll kill three birds with one stone:

1. Def. adventure venturing into Taghia and the high Atlas

2. Climbing

3. Enjoy some nice local cuisine in Marrakesh's bazaar. ;)

https://www.guidedolomiti.com/en/climbing/taghia-rock-climbing-morocco/

Hey Martin! 

Itatim - Brazil is a very exotic place with great weather, easy approaches and awesome climbing! Sport, Trad, Mutipitch, etc. Plus tasty food, no crowds, and a bunch of local climbers for partnership.

Two of the fifty Brazilian classic climbs are in Itatim.

https://tradfriends.com/2022/01/03/itatim-a-brazilian-climbing-paradise/

Nkane 1 wrote:

a week and a half isn't that long, and you're going to lose a couple days flying, so I would choose something relatively close to a major airport. Given your constraints, off the top of my head I would say:

• Cape Town, ZA (trad)
• Scotland (ice/turf/mixed)
• Frey, Argentina (trad/mountains) (can you fly to Bariloche? not sure)
• Arapiles, Australia, before they shut it down (is this different enough from the US?)

There are some good suggestions here, but keep in mind that January is the Southern Hemisphere summer. Dyurrite Arapiles will be very hot then (would you go to J-Tree in the middle of July?), and Cape Town will be too although at least it is close to the ocean so temperatures are somewhat moderated.

For Antipodal options that time of year, consider Tasmania or the South Island of NZ. Deepening where you want to go, there are proximate airports in Hobart, Christchurch, and Queenstown, although only Chch has direct flights from the US (from SFO).

Ecuadorean climbing can also be good around that time of year if you’re into some high altitude volcano slogging. 

Andrey Romaniuk wrote:

Hey Martin! 

Itatim - Brazil is a very exotic place with great weather, easy approaches and awesome climbing! Sport, Trad, Mutipitch, etc. Plus tasty food, no crowds, and a bunch of local climbers for partnership.

Two of the fifty Brazilian classic climbs are in Itatim.

https://tradfriends.com/2022/01/03/itatim-a-brazilian-climbing-paradise/

Looks sweet! Too bad my company has beef with Brazil and we're advised not to go there :(

Oman.  Look at Jebel Misht and its French Pillar route.  Long (1000m) and trad.  The El Cap of Arabia.  Lots of other established climbs in the country as well.

Wadi Rum in Jordan.   Essentially all trad with nice multi pitch lines.  Think it’s quite popular now though.

Sinai in Egypt.  Essentially all trad with mostly granite and a pinch of sandstone.

Or for something really different and awesome, check out Ben Amera and its nearby granite domes in the Mauritanian Sahara.  Lots of nice longish lines though mostly bolt protected.

You can check those out on our site; except Mauritania since we’re still here.

Go check out Argentinian Patagonia or Swiss alps my guy

Ray Lovpal wrote:

Go check out Argentinian Patagonia or Swiss alps my guy

If I do that, I'll have no PTO left for our trip

rpc wrote:

Oman.  Look at Jebel Misht and its French Pillar route.  Long (1000m) and trad.  The El Cap of Arabia.  Lots of other established climbs in the country as well.

Wadi Rum in Jordan.   Essentially all trad with nice multi pitch lines.  Think it’s quite popular now though.

Sinai in Egypt.  Essentially all trad with mostly granite and a pinch of sandstone.

Or for something really different and awesome, check out Ben Amera and its nearby granite domes in the Mauritanian Sahara.  Lots of nice longish lines though mostly bolt protected.

You can check those out on our site; except Mauritania since we’re still here.

I might be hooked on this Mauritania idea... PM'ed you

Another plug for Morocco. The Anti-atlas region centered around Tafraoute and Jebel Lkest are a paradise for adventurous trad routes, with rarely another person in sight.

I spent a week in the Karakoram Mountains near the Pakistan-China border, and the adventure getting there was just as exciting as the climb. I also took a day tour in China with https://gowithguide.com/China and it was amazing! I went on a light hike in the Huashan Mountains, where I saw beautiful views and old temples on the cliffs. My guide was super helpful and taught me a lot about the history and culture. We also visited a traditional teahouse and learned about Chinese tea. It was a great mix of adventure and learning about the local way of life. I totally recommend it if you want to see something different.

Avery Jones wrote:

I spent a week in the Karakoram Mountains near the Pakistan-China border, and the adventure getting there was just as exciting as the climb. I also took a day tour in China with https://gowithguide.com/China and it was amazing! I went on a light hike in the Huashan Mountains, where I saw beautiful views and old temples on the cliffs. My guide was super helpful and taught me a lot about the history and culture. We also visited a traditional teahouse and learned about Chinese tea. It was a great mix of adventure and learning about the local way of life. I totally recommend it if you want to see something different.

I think the title of the thread “…place to go for a week or 2 in January” might rule out the Karakoram. Even in summer I think 2 weeks to really get in there and back out is pushing it. I’ve only been there in the Summer climbing season, and can’t imagine that Winter would be very much fun getting around on the KKH.