I'm planning 5.5 weeks in SE Asia. So far I have planned 1 week in Bangkok, 1 week in Phuket, and 2 weeks in Vietnam (Hanoi and surrounding areas and Saigon). I have several day trips planned while in Phuket including an elephant trek.

I will be traveling with a friend the first 2 weeks (Thailand) so that is fixed. Rest is flexible.

Any suggestions on what to do for the remaining 1.5 weeks?

Thanks for any help.

Some ideas which you can select from:
Siem Reap: 3-4 days--- if you are interested in spectacular temples and arecheology
Chiang Mai - 3-4 days
Luang Prabang -- 3-4 days
Golden Triangle or Mae Hong Son area (northern thailand) - 3-4 days

Personally I think a week in Phuket is way too much time!

It all depends on Budget, i would go up to the golden triangle, stay at the Anantara which is very nice and has an amazing pool. Spend some time with the elephants on the Mahout Training programme and enjoy!

www.anantara.com/

I think you're spending too much time in BKK and Phuket considering the things you want to do.

For best elephant camps, you should go to Chiang Mai. For best beaches, you should pick some other area around Phuket and not just staying in Phuket the entire time as it's very developped. I would also consider Siem Reap to see Angor Wat as mentioned above.

I would recommend the following:

Bangkok - 4 days
Chiang Mai - 3 days
Beach - 4-5 days
Siem Reap - 3-4 days
Hanoi/Halong Bay - 5 days
HoAn/Hue - 4 days
HCMC - 3 days

My friend is fairly limited on budget, hence the limited movement. The Phuket hotel is actually outside the city and more importantly, minimal cost. So I don't think she will want to go elsewhere.

However, I will research your suggestions for the rest of my trip. I will check with her re: what she is willing to spend. Maybe I can get her to exchange free hotel for a different experience!

Thanks all.

You can stay in Chiang Mai very cheaply - $45 to $70 for a VERY nice guest house, small hotel or commercial hotel. It is much cheaper than either Bangkok or Phuket. You can also stay very inexpensively in other areas of northern thailand so I would put that area at the top of your list.You can also get to northern thailand very inexpensively from bangkok.

I would stick to your plan for Vietnam. Hoi An isn't worth it in my estimation. However, i would spend more time in Hanoi than in Saigon. Alternatively I would reduce the time or skip Saigon completely and go to either Luang Prabang or Siem Reap.

you can easily find very decent (if simple) guesthouses to stay in all these places for $20-40 per night. if you're worried about cost of flights, do check out discount airlines and passes. airasia.com and nokair.com have cheap flights within thailand and to Hanoi. www.ivuvu.com has internal Vietnam flights. Bangkok Airways and Thai Airways have discovery passes which you can read about on their sites (3 legs of more). Thai Airways is just within Thailand. Bangkok Airways includes LaosCambodia, and Hong Kong.