simon7250

Hi there,

I wanted to gain some advice regarding some travel plans to be put into action in over a years time. It would be great if anyone reading this would kindly help out with your advice.

My plan is to go traveling around parts of South East Asia from between four to six months on an £8000 budget. I aim to do some sight seeing, trips to major cities and trips out into the country side. Albeit the specifics of what I would like to do are not currently in place but that can be built on over the coming months. I will probably end up seeing some of the tourist parts but I want to focus on places where it's off the beaten track.

Ideally I would use the countries transport and hotels/hostels as best I could but may decide to dip into a luxury treat here and there, however I will probably want to keep my costs down.

The countries I intend on visiting are Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Loas. I would like to finish off with going through China's country side and head to Shanghai as it would be nice to go back to a placed I once lived in. If I could aim for China I might be able to take the Trans Siberian to Russia then home to Europe which is a doddle after that

I know Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines are nearby but that is for another trip I am planning later on.

This is my first big travel I will be doing. Travelling alone is not too much of a concern I love the peace and quiet of your own company, especially when it becomes time to relax. However I am happy to meet people along the way and spend time sharing experiences.

I am concerned I maybe naive with my time scale of 4-6 months and that my budget is not as high as some I have discovered when researching travel budgets. The £8000 will consist of transport, accommodation and spending money.

So having read my post I am interested to know what your thoughts are and what advice you may have. If it seems that I have no idea of what I am doing, please say as best to be up front with these things then work on finding out how I could do things better.

Thank you for reading.

Kathie

Does the budget include your tickets to/from SE Asia?

Have you visited any places in SE Asia previously?

thursdaysd

Lonely Planet is a good source of budget figures, both on their website and in their guidebooks. How much this will cost will depend greatly on what level of comfort you require.

Don't forget to budget time and money for visas for China and Russia if you decide to take the Trans-Mongolian (not the Trans-Siberian, that goes to Vladivostok). SEA will be cheaper than China and Russia.

I suggest some quality time with guidebooks to refine an itinerary before you start worrying too much about the budget, although converting to USD at the current exchange rate it looks possible. A four month trip would be 90 USD/day and 6 month would be 60 USD/day. You can manage on that in Thailand, but it will be more difficult in Myanmar, especially if it has to cover long distance transport. See, e.g. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thailand/money-costs

crellston

I think it is a great idea and a very exciting trip. You are doing exactly the right thing by researching well in advance. The more planning you do now will be well rewarded with much better experiences and reduced costs.

As far as budget is concerned for long trips, I find it best to break it down to a daily spend. £8000 equates to £44 to £66 per day for 4-6 months. Should be plenty for SE Asia and how you describe wanting to travel. What could be expensive is the trans Siberian express from Bejing back to Europe. I recall reading an article recently that put the cost at circa £1500. I think Thursdaysd, a regular here did something similar a few years ago and will hopefully see this thread and comment.

Lots of resources online for travel in Asia. Take a look at www.travelfish.org www.seat61.com www.hostelworld.com and Lonely Planet's Thorntree as a start.

Happy planning!

thursdaysd

Hi crellston - think we were posting at the same time. I did do the Trans-Mongolian, back in 2004, as part of a ten month RTW. I put the cost up by having an agency in Australia buy my tickets, and arrange my home stays and some transfers and sightseeing. And kept it down with the home stays, although they aren't something I would recommend.

That trip is partly chronicled on my old website - wilhelmswords.com/rtw2004

I checked my records, and I paid Passport Travel 3,500 USD for the month in Russia, which covered pretty much everything except food. I'm sure something like Russia Experience would have been considerably cheaper.

Kathie

Let me say that visiting Burma/Myanmar is different from the other countries in SE Asia. It has only recently opened up for tourism, so initially had an insufficient supply of hotel rooms. So hotels/guesthouses are more expensive than elsewhere in SE Asia. This is a destination that rewards good preparation. I highly encourage you to do some reading in advance of your trip. You must have or arrange a visa in advance. The least expensive way to get a visa is from the consulate in your own country, second is to get it in Bangkok, and the most expensive way is to get an e-visa (only from the official government website). The visa is good for 28 days and there are no extensions, though some people do overstay and pay a penalty when they leave. You have enough time to visit all of the "Big Four" Yangon, Bagan, Inle Lake and Mandalay. If you can do it, a trip to Mrauk U is well worth it. Take a look at our photos: www.marlandc.com There are three sets from Burma: 2009, 2011, 2015.

Thailand, VN, Cambodia are all well on the tourist track and easy to travel. Laos is less touristed. Lonely Planet will be a good resource for you.

jacketwatch

If you haven't already factor in the value of the pound after Brexit. Will 8k be enough?