Well at long last my dream of goign to SE Asia will be a reality. I will have about 3 weeks to spend, and plan on focusing in Viet Nam, then on to Thailand. Perhaps a day or two in Laos but that won't be the focus. I will be travelling with my wife who is much more dainty traveller than I am. I wouldn't care about sleeping on floors or camping the whole time, but she prefers things like a restroom. We will be there from Mid-May until June. In Vietnam I definitely want to see the Sapa area, of course Hanoi and Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City. This is just from my research and since I haven't actually been there I would welcome any advice one could give. Even though the floatin market seems cliched I know my wife would really love it, and it sounds pretty cool to me too. Other interests are scenery, meeting nice people, cultural sights, and cuisine probably in that order. Then in Thailand with lodging appearing to be really inexpensive, and after pushing my wife into roughing it some in Viet Nam, I would like a lot of luxury beach time, but not the most touristy beaches like Pattaya if possible, or at least for a short time, if someone really thinks that is a great place that I must see. I also want to spend just a few nights in Bangkok, and then see temples, scenery, possibly do some hikes rent a moped, relax, enjoy the beaches, massages(legit ones) and live it up. I have an all region DVD player and enjoy Japanese, Korean, Chinese Cinema. So cheap DVD purchasing, and advice on where to do this would be great too. I welcome advice, warnings, off the beaten path suggestions, eateries, lodging, bars, anything. Thanks.
DVDs are all pretty cheap there. I went to China this summer so I assume it would be a simlar price where you are going. The ones sold on the streets arn't too bad (better than New York or and US bootlegg), for the prices at least (usually between $0.60-$2.00, and usually in English). But if you dont want to take the risk, the DVDS in real stores are great prices as well. I didnt se and above $6.50 and saw some as low as 2 bucks.
Cool, thanks. Was there any confusion coming back through customs with anything you bought on the streets?
i thought the same thing so i put them into a cd case, but they it wasnt really neccessary. I dont think they looked at one person's bags, pretty minimal security (much less than US or Europe).
Do not skip Angkor Wat/Siem Reap if you have the chance, a huge mistake. There are daily flights from BKK and Saigon/Hanoi, so it is on your way and you really don't have an excuse not to see it over 3 weeks. Sa Pa is ok and probably worth it; know that you have to take the night train there and back so it's a 3-5 day affair. A day trip to Ha Long bay from Hanoi is also worth it. Don't bother spending a lot of time in Saigon; it's a decent party town but not tons of tourist attractions in the city itself. Hanoi is nicer (and cheaper), IMO. Hoi An and/or Hue is worth a stop in between. Do not go to Pattaya, it's all for whoring. In Thailand head for whichever beach area is not in rainy season (they are all developed, not a lot of isolation left unless you head for one of the smaller Ko's; avoid Samui, it's too developed.) I have heard great things about Langkawi in Northern Malaysia however. Laos for one day is not really worth it, I would skip it. If you want to go to northern Thailand, Chiang Mai is really cool but really crowded. Chiang Rai is a little more authentic, IMO. I could write a book on Bangkok. Random recommendation of the day: Go to Old Maps & Prints at River City shopping complex, (Yotha Road, Si Phraya stop on the public ferries, near the Sheraton Hotel) (www.classicmaps.com) Joerg is a very, very, very knowledgeable map dealer and usually has beautiful stuff. If you don't know or care about old maps or prints -- you will after you go to his store.
malaysia is having a huge 'visit malaysia' campaign for next year, since its her 50th. so you might get ridiculously cheap bargains, and the country is really putting it all out for people to come by, so making plans should be easy.
Thanks for all the advice and replies. Keep them coming if people have more. Thanks. I will definitely check out the classic maps shop. That sounds pretty cool. I had thought about Chinag Mai, but I will investigate and probably go to Chiang Rai now. How much time should someone devote there? Thanks for the all the advice.
If you plan on making Singapore part of your itinerary, I'd be glad to give you some tips. Basically.. if you like shopping and cheesy tourist attractions, you really should come
I lived in Vietnam for six months just ended this June, then travelled to Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia .. still on the trip now. Like S. Fisher said, Saigon is just another big city... not really worth it unless you use it as a base to explore the Mekong Delta (floating markets.. although Thailand has those too within easy reach from Bangkok) or getting a flight to Angkor Wat. Hanoi is good in the North.. one or two days in that city.. and also as a base to explore Halong Bay, Sapa (take the Victoria train.. luxury compartment for your wife if she's into good train travel) and especially Ninh Binh.. worth at least a day trip out from Hanoi. Laos is wonderful.. my favorite SE Asian country. Don't miss Luang Prabang.. even if you fly into there from Bangkok or Hanoi.. worth three days.. spend it at the boutique luxury hotel Suavanapram (sp?) where the royal family used to like to stay. I personally liked the Malaysian beaches more than Thai beaches.. whiter sands, quieter, less touristy and the people are warm and open to hospitality.. Pulau Tioman is a great choice.. just edging the southeastern border of Thailand. Oh yeah.. don't miss Angkor Wat either.. a 2-3 day tour of the complex is a lifetime experience. Feel free to shoot me an email if you have questions. Enjoy! The region has great food, warm and courageous people, and such diversity! You can travel like a mendicant or a colonialist... but you'll love it. cur.ve
Singapore is good as a base to start out from and also a place to take a break from roughing it. As far as culture and scenery not much to see in Singapore. For hitting the beach you might want to check out Phuket. They had recovered quite a bit just one month after the tsunami and are probably totally back on their feet by now. Since they are eager to get tourists back it might not be as crowded as Koh Samui and the other eastern resorts and are probably some good deals. When I was there I stayed in Patong and had a phenomenal deal on a 4 star hotel so you definately don't need to rough it. Patong while the main tourist town is rather seedy but there are several other resorts on the island that are quieter and more laid back. There are some other resort areas along pennisular Thailand closer to the Malay border that I've heard are great like Krabi and aren't as crowded as other parts of Thailand. Langkawi in Malaysia I've heard is nice but not as spectacular as the Thai resort areas. Also Langkawi got hit by the tsunami and I haven't heard how much they've recovered. My guess is that they are probably OK.
Tioman is really nice but out of the way. I'm not sure how close it is Thailand and is itself a 1 hour boat ride from the Malaysian east coast. I've been there twice and roughed it both times in fairly primitive resorts, sleep in a hut and no running water, but I think there is a modern resort on the island too.
I would spend 2-3 days in the north, make sure you do at least a day trip out into the surrounding hill-tribe villages which is the primary attraction of the region, rather than the cities (though Chiang Mai the city has a fair amoount of attractions, it's just very crowded in high season (now). Chiang Rai itself is sort of a smaller version of Chiang Mai. If you do go to Chiang Mai, the Rachamanka Hotel is absolutely perfect. It's not the nicest or most luxurious hotel I have ever been but it is probably the most aesthetically pleasing to the extent where it is almost indescribable.
I will probably go to thaiuland next year (around November). I'm really looking forward to it. So tell us on the board what you did, and how it was. (i defenitly want to go to the angkor wat), but i fear I will not be able to
I'm going to be in Singapore in January, not sure for how long as I'm still working out details but let me know if you want to get a Tiger and catch a Rox game on sattelite.
I've been to Phuket, b/f the tsunami...A friend went there a while afterwards and said it was nice again...I have a blast there and did the tour where they filmed "The Beach"...Do some research, but we had fun...
I've been to Thailand three times previously and I'm going there for a couple of weeks in early December. The hotels are very inexpensive. You can get a very nice room for 50 to 70 a night. What thing I would recommend is to hire a driver and a car. You can do so for about 40 bucks a day with gas and tolls. It is great. They drive you to anywhere you want to go and wait for you until you are done. It beats taking a taxi. They even grab your shopping bags and takes them to the car if you don't want to carry them. They give you alot of flexibility in regards to travelling around because they will take you anywhere you want go even if its 2 hours away. Just take a tour book so you can point to places you want to go just in case the driver doesn't speak English well. If you have time, I would also go to Phuket and go take and island snorkling tour. It will be the most beautiful waters and beaches you will ever see. Fish will literally jump out of the water and eat from your hand.
I'm going to Singapore after Thanksgiving for work. Singapore is nice for about two days and then you get bored out of your mind. The food there is great though.
Sounds cool.. just let me know when you've got things finalised. Visiting relatives? Anyway, don't forget that live games are in the morning here.. but I suppose beer goes down well any time of the day, so it doesn't really matter
