Last week of March- Thailand? Somewhere else?
 

Just got word I'll be in Singapore March 21st-25th for work, and want to tack on a week at the end- somewhere else in SE Asia- last week of March/flying out April 2nd (I'm flying in the week before, so will have time to explore Singapore then)

Where would you go? I'm not big on hiking/climbing (climbing up Mandalay Hill was traumatizing!) but open to pretty much anything else.
When I travel alone, like I will be this time, I like to hire local guides for a day or two, so suggestions on top notch guides would be great. Culture, artwork/crafts (and how they're made) history and architecture are very interesting to me. Oh and food :) And I'm not opposed to sitting on a beach for 2-3 days either :)

I'm thinking I might like to head to Bangkok for a few days then Chiang Mai. But I'd love to hear suggestions of other stops you'd make- thanks!

(Oh and flights aren't booked yet, so while I most likely will be flying back out of SIN, I may be able to fly back to the US out of a different city)

As much as I love Thailand, I don't recommend for that time of the year. All of mainland SE Asia - Thailand, Burma, Laos and Cambodia will be very hot, and there will be smoke from burning fields.

At that time of the year, I'd go the other direction from Singapore - to Bali and Java. Bali has marvelous crafts and central Java has Borobudur and Prambanam. Click on my name and look for my Java report form a couple of years ago or just go to www.marlandc.com and take a look at the Java photos.

March/April - as Kathie said, north of Thailand will be smoky. Bangkok will be unbearably hot. You could head down south to one of the many islands..smoke haze doesn't affect them.

If you are keen, you could head to the Maldives from Singapore. The Maldives have some of the prettiest fishes around easily seen while snorkelling. Maybe a tad expensive though.

Well I recommend you Thailand. I have visited there and captured wonderful memories. Thailand is considered as one of the best tourist’s destination in the World. It attracts millions of tourists around the world. Thailand offers all types of entertainment from relaxing at the beaches to shop at amazing shopping centers. Thailand is considered as one of the hottest tourist destinations in the world. From beautiful beaches to Thai cuisines, Thailand is the place which will meet all your needs at the time of travelling.

Chiang Mai Night Bazaar is one of the city’s night time attraction which is especially considered for families. The night bazaar offers standard souvenirs, you will discover at Bangkok’s street markets.

In March I would avoid Thailand mainly for the reasons given already - the smoke in the north in Feb and March this year was particularly awful. I disagree with the suggestion above "You could head down south to one of the many islands..smoke haze doesn't affect them." we were in Khao Lak and Phang Nga in late March and, whilst it wasn't choking with smoke as it was in the north, it was very hazy indeed. So March so that the karsts of Phnag Nga bay were barely visible much of the time.

Given you interests and the time you have, I would probably head to Phnom Penh for a few days and maybe head south to the riverside town of Kampot ( 2 hours by car). You could even squeeze in a trip to one of the islands for some beach time.lots of info here:
http://www.travelfish.org/country/cambodia

I've been in Bangkok the last week in March and yeah, it was hot, but I'm not as heat sensitive as some others. So, it depends on whether the heat will affect you in a big way or not. If that's when you have to come to S.E. Asia, then I wouldn't cross off Thailand, except for the smokey parts, just due to the heat. My best friend, her daughter, and I did it the last week of March and we were all fine and we walked nearly everywhere as the sky train had not been finished that long and at that point and we really didn't take the time to check it out and use it.

Another friend and I were also in Singapore, but around the first or second week in April, and yeah, it was hot then and we even flew up to Kuala Lumpur. But, again, we were fine and it didn't stop us from doing anything that we wanted to do. We still had a ball.

Happy Travels!

Thanks all!

How bad is the smoke? I mean, I know it won't be as pleasant as other times, but it wouldn't stop me from walking around? I did Bagan in June, and I don't forsee how any place could be hotter than that (114 most days).

Thanks Crellston for the info on the islands, I wouldn't have thought the smoke went down that far.

The thing with the pollution in the northern Thailand, Laos, Burma region is that whilst the burning of the fields and forests happens each year once the dry season has arrived, some years are worse, much worse than others. There are many factors such as wind direction, rainfall etc. All of which have an effect. You could be fine next year, maybe not. Sadly there is no way of predicting.

Twice we have visited in the Feb - April period when it was horrendous. This year In Chiang Mai visibility was down to maybe 30-4O metres and Doi Suthep, the mountain close to the city disappeared. Many people were wearing paper masks and some, actual gas masks! Would it stop you walking around? Probably not, unless you have any sort of repiratory issues, but it wasnt that pleasant. This year was especially bad apparently.

Southern Cambodia and its island should be fine. I have never had any problems in that area.

I was in Burma late May of last year, no issues with pollution, however it was hazy in Bagan, but I feel that had more to do with the heat than burning.

Since you will be in Singapore beforehand, maybe you could wait til it's closer and see if it's a good or bad year? If it's bad, maybe go to southern Cambodia as mentioned? PP is nice, but I prefer SR - the temples, the food and the Victoria Angkor :)