So, my teaching contract in Korea ends in late November, and we're planning our major end-of-contract trip before heading home for Christmas. We need to get all of this arranged soon but unfortunately we can't seem to decide on which places to visit. It all sounds awesome. If anyone has some advice of any kind whatsoever, it would be greatly appreciated! It will be just my girlfriend and me on this trip. We'll have about 15 days in late November/early December. The only things we are pretty sure about is that we will begin the trip in Beijing, China and finish in Taipei, Taiwan. The reason for this is that flights North America from China/Taiwan are a helluva lot cheaper than from anywhere else in the area. Here are the countries we are considering. We'll probably want to pick two from this list and focus on them rather than spending 2 or 3 days in each one. I really want to minimize stress and hassles: Phillipines - nice beaches, plus they speak English! Malaysia - everyone raves about this country. Good food, beaches, sights, atmosphere. Probably #1 on our list. Cambodia - Ankor Wat. Laos - Known for great food and cheap prices. Viet Nam - Also great food and spectacular scenery. Thailand - Beaches, food and nightlife. I'm down for a relaxing beach vacation with lots of water activities (snorkelling, surfing, kayaking, etc..) but we'll also want to toss in some touristy stuff (sightseeing, visiting major landmarks) and adventure stuff (hiking, climbing a volcano, jungle canopy hiking, etc..). Any advice about the region or travel tips would be welcome!
I've been to Malaysia and Thailand. Thailand especially Bangkok is somewhat dirty. It reminded me of my travels in India, except Bangkok had a bit more infrastructure like freeways. Pattaya Beach in Thailand is a good place, but I realized you are going with your girlfriend. I really enjoyed Malaysia alot. Its very clean and very modern and oh so beautiful. Alot of Western restaurant chains as well. Everybody is pretty nice and friendly from my experience. It reminded me a bit of Singapore, but without all the big buildings, even though KL has its share.
From that list, I think Malaysia and Thailand would provide you with a good 'mix' (fun-in-the-sun on the beach and some sightseeing). But Malaysia is definitely top spot on that list...I don't think the rest measure up.
I have spent extensive time in all of them I would do Northern Vietnam and Cambodia -Angkor, maybe with a sidetrip to Luang Prabang in Laos - becareful because it is high season in November there, so I would advise you to book ahead.
Man, if you don't go to Japan and Korea you're seriously missing out EDIT:: Oh wait, you ARE in Korea.. LOL nevermind.
underage hookers. maybe you can adopt some babies like Jolie did. I was suppose to go to Cambodia in October...but **** happens.
Given that you have 15 days and knocking off two days for flights in and out, and another 1 day to fly between countries, you're looking at 13 days. Beaches: By far, Malaysia, hands down. Culture: Angkor Wat is a lifetime must. N. Vietnam has some cool mountain tribes. People: Laotians are great! Food: I like Vietnamese and Laotian. Malay is also good. So, looking at the distances and time (assuming you don't spend any of the 15 days in China), I would: -------------------------------- Option 1 -- Vietnam: Hanoi: 1 day: flight, rest, book train tickets to Sapa ahead Sapa: 2 days: Overnight train, sightseeing, trekking, rest, Hanoi: 1 day: train back from Sapa, rest, water puppets, etc. Nha Trang/Phu Quoc/Mui Ne: 4 days: 1 day flight, rest, beach time 3 days (eat, drink, party, smoke, whatever) Cambodia: Seam Reap: 3 days: fly from Saigon/HCMC to Siem Reap, See the best of Angkor Wat.. rent a guide Bangkok: 1 day: fly to Bangkok and make a connection to Phuket Phuket: 2 days: beach time in Thailand Return: 1 day: fly back to Taipei Option 2 -- Singapore: 2 days: flight, rest, city sights/shop Malaysia: KL: 2 days: take train up to Kuala Lumpur or flight, rest Beach time! 5 days: 1 day transport to one of the beaches -- Pulau Langkawi, or my favorite, Pulau Perhentian near Kota Bahru, sit your ass on the beach: snorkel, scuba dive, volleyball, eat grilled shark, etc. Cambodia: see above I'm assuming this is possible if you plan most of the lodging and connecting trips ahead. It's still a pretty close shave if you want to fit everything in. The best beaches require a connecting flight or longer train/bus rides from the major airport hubs. Enjoy the food, R&R and everything! Oh, you can search for SamFisher's posts or ping me for my Flickr stream if you want to get an idea of the area.
Do not go to the east coast of Malaysia(Pulau Perhentian, Pulau Tioman or Pulau Redang) in November, it the rainy season then... you can go to Pulau Pinang, Pulau Langkawi or Pulau Pangkor at that time. I recommend P.Pinang, great food and nice beaches.
From your list, I would recommend Vietnam and Malaysia. Since I haven't been to Cambodia or Laos, those would be my personal choices.
I've been to Thailand, but you're with your g/f so I can't recommend everything... Phuket was a nice and I hear it's back to normal... Cambodia is on my top 5 list so I would definitely recommend it so when you come back, you can tell me what not to miss... I've also been to Manilla and it was nice and yes English speaking...I didn't go to the beaches but I hear they rocked... cur.ve has a rocking itinerary...
wow, kinda shocked how many of you like my country, malaysia. just fyi, malaysia is humid, some people cant stand that. some time during the year, we get haze from the forest fires in indonesia. singapore would be affected too. the petronas twin tower and the kl tower are just that. towers. i dont know why our tourism department keeps pimping those 2 up. there is a huge mall under the petronas twin towers though with high class shops, and there is a park to chill out. and kl tower is surrounded by a forrested hilly area if you like hiking. but them buildings arent that special unless youre really into architecture or height. ive been to vietnam. i remember i made a thread about it asking for opinions. halong bay is awesome.
about the beaches, pulau perhentian is a new one thats not receiving too many tourists. its well worth it if youre not into crowds and i think its relatively cheap. also go to the borneo part of malaysia, the states of sabah and sarawak.
