Download the full brochure for the Great Silk Road in Acrobat pdf here (430kb)

HERO's London - Cape Town rally in 1998 was widely acclaimed. In 2001 100 crews took part in the fabulous Inca Trail, a 15,000 mile tour of South America. Now John Brown and his team are preparing their biggest and best event yet: the Great Silk Road Rally. Now to take place in September - December 2004, this 20,000 mile odyssey will link London and Sydney by the 'most overland possible' route. Instead of an airlift from India to Australia, participants will drive or use local ferries all the way to Bali, where they will take an ocean crossing of just 1000 miles.

Like HERO's previous long distance rallies, the Great Silk Road Rally will be two events in one: a Historic Reliability Trial for vintage and classic cars, and a touring Adventure

Drive for modern 4x4s. The Reliability Trial will be a serious competition, run under FIA regulations, in which Gold Medals will be awarded for unpenalised runs.

But both events will be wonderful journeys of discovery. They will take participants through some of the world's remotest and most spectacular regions, with time set aside to explore some unforgettable places. The unspoiled countrysides of Eastern Europe. Istanbul, terminus of the ancient Silk Road.

The rock dwellings and churches of Cappadocia. The mosques and bazaars of central Asia.

Crews will camp in tents or perhaps stay in traditional yurts amongst the breathtaking Pamir and Karakoram peaks.

They'll drive across China's Roof of the World to Xi'an, home of the Terracotta Warriors, and on through the real, original Shangri-La to the Land Beyond the Clouds in the remote and beautiful mountain regions of south-west China.

Then they'll descend into the green terraced hills of south-east Asia. They'll see the fabulous temples of Angkor Wat, enjoy the pleasures of Bangkok, relax on the white beaches of Phuket and take tiffin in the colonial Cameron Highlands, on the way to Kuala Lumpur's Petronas Towers and Singapore's Raffles Hotel. After that it's island-hopping on Indonesian ferries to Sumatra, Java, and the breathtaking beauty of Bali.

They'll drive through the spectacular red deserts of northern Australia to Uluru - Ayers Rock - and the Great Barrier Reef. Then a last scenic run down the hills of the Pacific coast, to our grand finale in Sydney, and the end of an unforgettable journey to the far side of the earth.

For those who can't take three months for the whole trip, there will be shorter options, such as London-Bangkok, London-Singapore, London-Bali and Bangkok-Sydney.

The above itinerary is provisional and liable to change.