golfdude

Hello,

Our kids are aged 10 and 8. If I have two choices which one might be better overall for travel from October 26th till November 10th ?

China or Singapore/Bangkok ?

Will it be cold in some places in China like Shanghai/Beijing ? Are there lots of kids things to do in China ?

I just have a feeling that Singapore might be a tad boring compared to China.

Thanks.

Kathie

Why Singapore/Bangkok rather than, say, Thailand? Both are big cities, and while very different from each other, it won't give you the variety you could get from a Thailand vacation.

Singapore is a city-state, so there is not a lot of variety (urban/rural. etc). There are a lot of things kids would enjoy in Singapore (the famous zoo for instance). But I'd choose Thailand for a family vacation. Bangkok is a big city, exotic and exciting, go north to have time with elephants. Your kids could wash elephants in a river. There are two excellent elephant camps: Elephant Nature Park and the Thai Elephant Conservation Center. And you could finish your time in Thailand with a beach stay.

I prefer Thailand over China for lots of reasons, and I think it is much more kid-friendly.

Kathie

for weather, check www.weatherbase.com

dgunbug

I also prefer Thailand over china and concur with kathie.

AskOksena

Warm greetings golfdude and best planning wishes for potential holiday in our fine home of Singapore.

Regarding our sweet city-state of SIN, some Scottish cousins (with two children roughly the same age as yours) holidayed in Singapore a few years back over the Christmas & New Year celebrations. The quartet truly loved their time in SIN. Mind you, there were good, extended SIN & Scotland family reasons involved -- and a strong and understandable desire to temporarily escape their Scottish winter.

Knowing your ultimate budget, honoured to offer Singapore lodging suggestions (and potential flights with my main business travel carrier, Singapore Airlines). With judicious planning, a Singapore holiday does not have to deplete the cheque book. One planning resource is:

www.yoursingapore.com To date, Singapore is proving to be a most satisfactory environment for family, work and residence.

As noted, numerous child-friendly activities in Thailand. Am privileged to call Singapore home, but will always have a soft spot for regular Thai business meetings and occasional holidays (and a place I'll always cherish, beloved Bangkok).

Concerning China (Beijing/Shanghai) will leave that to some esteemed China experts on this board. My rather recent mainland China exposures this year have been three separate business travel stays at the Pudong Shangri-La in Shanghai. My brief working visits have largely entailed one office building, the hotel, and the airport. What I've seen, have loved; hope to visit with the mrs. one day for proper holiday.

All for now; savour your planning. Signing off from a particularly festive morning in our Singapore - National Day - with all sorts of festivities later today and evening. Early and warm Friday and weekend wishes to you and all,

macintosh (robert)


... Singapore Girl, You're a Great Way to Fly ...

Magster2005

I am a fan of both Thailand and China. While I enjoyed Singapore, it will definitely seem tame compared to the other two countries. I think your kids would enjoy Beijing (Forbidden City, Great Wall day trip etc.) but it will be pretty chilly by then. So, I would vote for Thailand. As Kathie described, Thailand offers plenty of variety. And it really is the land of smiles!

rhkkmk

they are too young to really enjoy china and the visa costs are a killer.

I would prefer Thailand too with kids---bkk for a few days and then the beach---always with a nice pool.

Cicerone

I see from your other posts that you are also considering to Europe as well, so you seem to be in the very early stages of planning. Also, without knowing anything about your interests or those of your children, it is hard to provide specific advice. So I will just provide some general advice.

“China” is of course huge and has a wide variety of climate, but if you are talking about northern China, then yes in late October and early November it will be cool to downright cold. See weatherbase.com and other websites for information. You would want winter clothing. The advantage is that sights are far less crowded. You can of course go to southern China which is a bit more temperate.

My issue with the cities in China is that the air pollution levels are very, very bad. Even more so in the winter. For kids I think it is even more of an issue. For kids that young, while the Great Wall is certainly memorable and some sights like the Forbidden City and acrobats are attractive to kids, there may not be as much to do as you would find elsewhere. I don’t know how many museums you can get kids that young to go to, and I assume their taste for shopping and trying exotic foods (pig’s ear, fish stomach, etc) is limited.

You have a good chunk of time and could easily combine Singapore with Thailand. I lived in Singapore for 5 years and find it a great mix of cultures. It has pockets of Asia: India, Malaysia and China. You can get a mini-version of each. It has the best food in Asia, IMO. It’s also got great public transport. It is also an air hub, so can make for convenient flights, and a good place to recover from jet lag and get an introduction to Asia. And of course for kids there is the fantastic zoo, day and night version and they are adding a river safari. And there is the Singapore Flyer (like the London Eye) and then Sentosa Island. And there are beaches (not fabulous, but certainly nice for a bike ride and a seafood meal, or plan ahead and do a really wonderful beach add-on for a few days at a place the Nikoi Island, see http://www.nikoi.com/. Note that this is getting on toward the start of the rainy season in Singapore, and the east coast beaches of Malaysia and Thailand. Phuket and that area on the west coast is not affected.)

I have to throw in a good word for Hong Kong, where I currently live. Weather is fabulous then, in the mid 70s and dry. Air pollution then will be a toss-up, could be good, could be bad, will depend on prevailing winds at that time. But lots to do and see. We also have great food and public transport. Easy flights from the US as well, and onward to other places.

You could also combine Singapore or Hong Kong with Bali if you did not want to go to Thailand. Bali is also be in the rainy season, but for Bali it does not matter as much IMO, they don’t get the same amount of rain.

silverlex

As a Singaporean I would think we have a great city for kids. Doing both Thailand and Singapore together may be a great way to experience South East Asia. I would recommend you fly into Singapore and enjoy the first few days here as there is little to adapt to apart from the heat and humidity! Otherwise it is super efficient and safe and comfortable. For the children and adults you can spend a full day at Resorts world enjoying the rides in Universal Studio and the best aquarium in the world. Beaches are OK, but I would do that in Thailand. Then there is the River safari and the Night Safari which are great. Much to enjoy in just say 3 to 4 days after which you could fly off to the Bangkok's frenetic streets and exotic outskirts and also do a resort stay in Phuket or Koh Sam Mui or Krabi or even a Club Med Phuket where you can leave the kids to their own supervised activites in safety. All short flights. You have 15 days - what a treat it will be. Enjoy planning and get the kids involved! Do China on the next visit to Asia when the children would be a little older and can enjoy culture and history more.

golfdude

Hello,

Thanks for the wonderful tips.

I read about Laos in one of the travel mags few days back and then did some research online. It seems like a very nice place to visit.

So now I am thinking of doing Singapore-Thailand-Laos for 14 days from Dec. 21st 2013 till Jan. 3rd 2014. My questions are:

1) Is 14 days enough for these 3 places ?
2) I read about a place called the Elephant Conservation Center in Laos. Seems like a nice place to visit with kids. Any opinions ?
3) Overall is Laos is good place to visit in terms of natural scenery, culture etc. ?

We are pure vegetarians. While there will not be any problem for us in Singapore and Thailand, can we find vege food easily in Laos also ?

Thanks a lot.

Kathie

14 days is not enough time to do justice to three countries. Laos does not have well-developed tourist infrastructure. Some places have adequate lodging, some do not. Luang Prabang in particular does not have enough lodging for all the people who want to visit.

You are rather late in planning this trip, and many places will already be fully booked. You are traveling at the busiest and most expensive time of the year.

If you are interested in giving your children a chance to interact with elephants, there are several places in Thailand I can highly recommend. I don't know how well the elephants are treated at the Elephant Conservation Center in Laos, but be aware that humane treatment is not a given in this part of the world. Laos does have lovely scenery and is much less visited than Thailand - which is good news/bad news. On one hand there will be fewer tourists, but the infrastructure is not as good.

Thailand and Singapore would be plenty for two weeks. In Thailand, take a look at the Elephant Nature Center and the Thai Elephant Conservation Center - both are highly reputable places, both in the Chiang Mai area.

You will be able to get vegetarian food everywhere in SE Asia. do note that fish sauce is a commonly used seasoning and you will have to ask if you don't want it in your food.

golfdude

Hello,

Which would be a nice beach location in Thailand for a family with small kids (ages 8 and 10) ?. We want to do activities like snorkeling, diving etc.

We are planning 3-4 days in Bangkok, 3-4 days in a beach location in Thailand and the final 4 days in Singapore.

How does that sound ?

Thanks.