South East Asia Tour - How long should I spend touring?

Hi,

I%26#39;m planning on touring South East Asia, a new area for me, but I don%26#39;t know how long to spend there. I want to see some temples, but not loads!

I%26#39;m planning on flying into Bangkok and straight onto Cambodia, Viet-nam, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, then Singapore, then flying back to Bangkok to go home! -most of the time taking buses instead of domestic flights.

I%26#39;ve got the lonely planet guide, and decided that maybe Cambodia is worth 2 weeks, and I%26#39;m thinking 3 weeks in Viet-nam, 1 week in Laos, 2 in Thailand, and about 10 days doing Malaysia and Singapore as well as flying back to Bangkok. In all, about 9 1/2 weeks. Is this reasonable?

It%26#39;s from September - November/beg December. - What is the weather likely to be like please?

Please suggest and criticise, as I%26#39;m a novice to this area and have no idea, so I%26#39;ve been making guesses!

Thanks,

Andy

South East Asia Tour - How long should I spend touring?

Sounds very reasonable and as you begin to firm up on destinations you could come back to this great forum to ask specific questions.

A few things to think about in the meantime:

a) Your Visa situation in each country and how/where to obtain when necessary, in cost and time.

b) Perhaps consider not back tracking to avoid extra cost eg, you are flying into Bangkok, then coming back to Thailand to tour, and then returning to Bangkok to return home. You may be able to do your travel in a more straight line instead of in a circle - ie in at one location and return home from another. Will save heaps in time and cash.

c) Public transport is quite good in SE Asia and will include trains, buses, trucks and motor cycles. Quite slow, but a wonderful way to see countries, meet the locals and other travellers. Domestic flights can be reasonable too.

Weather will be good at that time of year.

Do some %26#39;%26#39;searches%26#39;%26#39; in the box at the top of this forum, and for other countries, great source of free and concentrated knowledge. Good Luck!

South East Asia Tour - How long should I spend touring?

Hey Andy!

I am soooo jealous! I spent 6 weeks in Thailand on my honeymoon ages ago and am now returning with my entire family. 2 weeks for Thailand seems like too little for me. We are going for 3 weeks in July and I can barely seem to fit everything in that I want to do. I know that in Thailand it is the rainy season. I think that you can work around the weather because I don%26#39;t believe that it rains all day every day. I also believe that the rainy season is somewhat varied around the country. Do a search for more exact info.

My sister-in-law recently went to Cambodia and Laos and said that Laos was amazing, but she wasn%26#39;t too thrilled with Cambodia (not sure why). I don%26#39;t know how old you are, but I was also in Singapore on my honeymoon and I would skip it. It felt like one huge antiseptic shopping mall. People were nice, but it was lacking the vibrancy of the other countries that you are looking at. Vietnam should also be great and I%26#39;m hoping to make a small excursion there after Thailand.

You can sort of just arrive in Bangkok and sort things out as you go. I love not feeling pressured on this type of trip and you never know who you might meet and where you might feel like going. Anyway....enjoy and I%26#39;m sure that no matter what you do, it will be fantastic!

Debbie

Hi,

Thanks for the advice, in answer to the questions, I%26#39;m 20 and not bothered at all about shopping, so Singapore could be dropped from the list.

Also, I tried fying into one place and out the other, but a return to Bangkok (拢450) is only a little more than a single, but to fly to Singapore and out of somewhere like Hanoi seems to cost a lot more annoyingly.

So 3 weeks would seem like a good amount of time in Thailand then?

Thanks!!

Andy

Also, would you say a mixture of coachsurfing and hosteling is the way to go, so I don%26#39;t get a bit lonely, but still soak up as much culture as possible? - or would it be possible to stay with families for a fee in some areas of SE Asia?

Thanks!!

Hi,

';Also, would you say a mixture of coachsurfing and hosteling is the way to go, so I don%26#39;t get a bit lonely, but still soak up as much culture as possible? - or would it be possible to stay with families for a fee in some areas of SE Asia?';

You could stay with a local family, as you say, soak up the culture. Check it out here - http://www.travelblog.org/fred.php?id=263771

Often travelers forget the Responsible travel part - to see first-hand how your money benefits local people and communities. A supplementary income enables a better quality of life in small villages and a chance to share their culture, history and lifestyle with the outside world.

PM,if you need more info.

I would do about 10 days in Cambodia (depending how much you really want to see) but you will need more than 1 week in Laos.. I have just come back from there, and spent 2 weeks (and it was a rushed visit of the North!)... the transport is slow and unreliable and everything is spaced far apart...

For some ideas feel free to look through my blogs at www.travelblog.org/bloggers/reet

Another great website I use to plan my travel (and it had fantastic itineraries for South East Asia, as well as really informative %26#39;Feature Stories%26#39; on everything possible thing you need to know is www.travelfish.org

Reet xx

You are getting excellent advice and references on TA. The key as a young man, is to decide what are the cultural and natural aspects that you need to immerse in; in addition to connecting with people your age that may have valuable tips to shape your travel choices.

Thailand offers Bangkok%26#39;s Khaosan Rd backpackers hang out with good guest houses, American breakfasts, lotsa beer,padthai, travel agents, good money changers and cheap clothes and trinkets. The big payoff is first hand traveller info,for all of SE Asia. Also help getting visas to Vietenam and inexpensive travel arrangements and small group tours. The southern beaches are more scenic with the touristy things aformentioned. Northern Thailand also caters to tourism, but trekking and hill tribes, visits overland/water/air to Laos, Myanmar and China offer more laid back travel solutions over big and busy Bangkok as a hub. Vietnam north to south (Sapa to the Mekong Delta and beyond) by train/bus is usually 3 weeks to 4 weeks depending on your notion of chill out time at each stop. Many use this route and head overland/water to Cambodia. The most reliable low cost airline is Air Asia. It might save you time and wear and tear on ho hum bone jarring overnight bus rides. They fly just about every where for around $50 to $60 one way and now you can book and pick your seat on line for a fee. Bangkok and KL are their dominant hubs for domestic and regional routes.

Yes, santized Singapore is not for the young at heart. It%26#39;s a good behaviour corporate culture at work and in the streets. Not a place to get culturally involved. Too many BMW%26#39;s and Mercedes that patiently drive by as opposed to using the passing lane and risk offending the cops. Malaysia is a country hellbent on infrastructure modernization. That means it%26#39;s transportation by land and air is inexpensive, comfortable and likely the best in SE Asia. Food, specially protein portions are more generous and less soupy. But do not count on 900 year old temples; just more colonial and contemporay wonders. Of this melange Penang and Melaka have interesting historical assets and small enough to cover in a day or two. Malaysia does have some fair natural beaches and rain forests. You might be there at a good time for this.

Make the best of every surprise and you will not miss a thing.