25 beds, 17 flights and six "cute" rats- Our 10 week trip to SE Asia
Apr 30th, 2010, 06:45 PM
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25 beds, 17 flights and six "cute" rats- Our 10 week trip to SE Asia
My husband and I are 50 and have been retired for the past 3 years after selling our businesses. We sold our home this past year so we can travel full time for a few years before settling down once again.
We just returned from 10 weeks traveling in SE Asia and visited Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia. and Singapore Even in the 10 weeks we didnt see everything we had planned to see but we had a great trip and will return to hit the places we missed.
Our style of traveling is with very little pre planning and we love wandering the towns and cities meeting people and seeing how they live. For this trip we basically had our flight over planned and the first few nights accommodation booked and just took it from there.
Our budget was above hostel but below the 5 star and we had excellent experiences at all the B&B’s and Hotels we stayed ranging in price from $40-60 a night. The service was amazing throughout the trip and the staff at the front desk of most of the hotels were so great at booking local events at fair prices with reputable companies. It was really simple to book as we went.
Flights, buses and trains between places were not expensive and mostly available up to the last minute for booking. This was great for us as we could stay longer in a place we liked more.
Highlights for us-
****The people!!! I think that if you want the most authentic experience you should try to eat locally as much as possible and avoid tour groups!! Wander the local markets and neighborhoods.
*Chiang Mai-Sunday Walking Night Market (some of the best shopping selections and value of the trip), Yui’s Cooking School- A Lot of Thai,
Chiang Rai- White Temple, even though it was quite bizarre and the Saturday night Market
Bangkok-walking the back streets and alleys, seeing the people in their daily lives
*Hanoi- Tet celebrations and the happy young families
Hue- Royal tombs
Hoi An- food and shops
*Our train ride from Danang to Hue made especially amazing by the kindness of the Vietnamese people
*Saigon-War Remnants Museum (my husband spent 4 hours here)
*Siem Reap Angkor Wat was amazing, but the people experiences are what makes Cambodia. (more to follow!)
Melaka- loved the old areas with the Chinese shophouses
Georgetown- the best Indian restaurant ever! We also loved the Chinese Clan Houses
Koh Samui- the final two weeks we spent at the beach, was a great wind down,
Low lights
Jet Lag
Toilets ( oh well, it was an experience!)
Taxi drivers-after a while you just have to laugh!! When you finally get one to take you where you want they are excellent, but especially in Bangkok and Kuala Lampur, they sometimes just dont want to take you, dont know where something is on the map so the wont take you or half way through the trip, they decide thats it! We came to the early conclusion to take it in our stride. We were never in danger or inconvenienced too much and always got where we needed to go. We never had a problem with a cab that was booked by our hotel to get us to the airport or a restaurant.
Singapore-although pretty, it just clashed with the charming places we had been.
Cold weather for our days in Hanoi, which prevented us from going to Halong Bay
More coming....
We just returned from 10 weeks traveling in SE Asia and visited Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia. and Singapore Even in the 10 weeks we didnt see everything we had planned to see but we had a great trip and will return to hit the places we missed.
Our style of traveling is with very little pre planning and we love wandering the towns and cities meeting people and seeing how they live. For this trip we basically had our flight over planned and the first few nights accommodation booked and just took it from there.
Our budget was above hostel but below the 5 star and we had excellent experiences at all the B&B’s and Hotels we stayed ranging in price from $40-60 a night. The service was amazing throughout the trip and the staff at the front desk of most of the hotels were so great at booking local events at fair prices with reputable companies. It was really simple to book as we went.
Flights, buses and trains between places were not expensive and mostly available up to the last minute for booking. This was great for us as we could stay longer in a place we liked more.
Highlights for us-
****The people!!! I think that if you want the most authentic experience you should try to eat locally as much as possible and avoid tour groups!! Wander the local markets and neighborhoods.
*Chiang Mai-Sunday Walking Night Market (some of the best shopping selections and value of the trip), Yui’s Cooking School- A Lot of Thai,
Chiang Rai- White Temple, even though it was quite bizarre and the Saturday night Market
Bangkok-walking the back streets and alleys, seeing the people in their daily lives
*Hanoi- Tet celebrations and the happy young families
Hue- Royal tombs
Hoi An- food and shops
*Our train ride from Danang to Hue made especially amazing by the kindness of the Vietnamese people
*Saigon-War Remnants Museum (my husband spent 4 hours here)
*Siem Reap Angkor Wat was amazing, but the people experiences are what makes Cambodia. (more to follow!)
Melaka- loved the old areas with the Chinese shophouses
Georgetown- the best Indian restaurant ever! We also loved the Chinese Clan Houses
Koh Samui- the final two weeks we spent at the beach, was a great wind down,
Low lights
Jet Lag
Toilets ( oh well, it was an experience!)
Taxi drivers-after a while you just have to laugh!! When you finally get one to take you where you want they are excellent, but especially in Bangkok and Kuala Lampur, they sometimes just dont want to take you, dont know where something is on the map so the wont take you or half way through the trip, they decide thats it! We came to the early conclusion to take it in our stride. We were never in danger or inconvenienced too much and always got where we needed to go. We never had a problem with a cab that was booked by our hotel to get us to the airport or a restaurant.
Singapore-although pretty, it just clashed with the charming places we had been.
Cold weather for our days in Hanoi, which prevented us from going to Halong Bay
More coming....
Jul 12th, 2011, 12:29 PM
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hi we are in our early 50's from Halifax and will be traveling to SE Asia in early December for the 1st time backpacking. We arrive in Bangkok early December. Is there an area in Bangkok you would recommend that we look for hostels or guest housing (one particular area)? We want to visit the north area of Thailand in the Chang Mai before heading back south to Singapore where we will meet our son who will be living there. The we plan of going to manila for Christmas to meet our son's girlfriends family and eventually we'll head back to Singapore and move on finishing in Goa India where we will spend time with a friend before heading back to Halifax. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Jul 13th, 2011, 10:47 AM
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What is your overnight budget? I would suggest that you might be happiest in Bangkok with a budget of at least $45-60. Any less than this and you might be uncomfortable. This will include your breakfast (most places do)
In Chiang Mai I highly recommend 3 Sis Guest house. The service was amazing and it has a great location for the Sunday night Walking Market.
In Chiang Mai I highly recommend 3 Sis Guest house. The service was amazing and it has a great location for the Sunday night Walking Market.
Jul 14th, 2011, 07:14 AM
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For part of our stay in Bangkok we stayed here
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...d-Bangkok.html
It had a good location and price.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...d-Bangkok.html
It had a good location and price.
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