Thailand for 3 or 6 months
Oct 13th, 2011, 10:46 PM
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Thailand for 3 or 6 months
Hey everyone!!
I heading to Thailand (with some side trips :Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Anyone have suggestions for CHEAP places to stay... thing I have to see, that are NOT in the books...
An example itinerary..?
Im a female travelling alone, anything special I should be aware of?
Also I'm a certified scuba diver so im interested in that too.
thanks !
I heading to Thailand (with some side trips :Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Anyone have suggestions for CHEAP places to stay... thing I have to see, that are NOT in the books...
An example itinerary..?
Im a female travelling alone, anything special I should be aware of?
Also I'm a certified scuba diver so im interested in that too.
thanks !
Oct 14th, 2011, 12:06 AM
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We used the following sites for sourcing cheap accommodation on our travels around the region and elsewhere and found them efficient, easy to use and the reviews were a lot more accurate than some other sites I could mention:
www.hostelworld.com
www.hihostel.com
www.hostelbookers.com
All offer private rooms as well as dorms and many are really small hotels or B&Bs rather than hostels in the true sense. They are often a good place to meet with other solo travellers and obtain current info on the places to see locally. It is easy enough to find somewhere on arrival in a new palce but probably a bit safer to book a few days in advance for your first night and then find somewhere eslse if you don't like it.
With 3 to 6 months you can take your time and overland travel is easy, cheaper than air travel and will get you to some of the palces completely off the beaten track (although that is becoming increasing difficult!).
My favourite places in the region NOT too often mentioned include:
Vietnam
Mai Chau valley - about 1/2 day north of Hanoi
Ba Be Lakes in the far north
Pleiku - central VN
Dien Bien Phu loop
Laos
Muang Sing - for trekking in the far north
Phongsali & Muang Noi also in the north
The Bolavens Plateau in the south ans Si Phan Don island area in the Mekong
Cambodia has some great little islands off the south coast and travelling through the country overland into Laos will take you through some smaller towns like Kratie which are very quaint.
SEA id generally a pretty safe place for women travelling alone. Indeed the greatest threat is probably from other foreign visitors rather then the locals. Take all usual precautions and you should be safer than at home. Keep your wits (and belongings) about you at places like bus stations which are often frequented by pickpockets etc. Likewise getting out cash from ATMs in the street (use those inside banks if poss,
The itinerary options are endless although rather than using Thailand as a base and going for side trips I would probably work out an outline circular trip covering all 4 countries - we didn't and ended up backtracking a bit).
For our itinerary see; http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blo...ai/1/tpod.html and for some extra photos:
http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blo...ai/3/tpod.html
Enjoy your trip - make it 6 months if you can, you will need the extra time
www.hostelworld.com
www.hihostel.com
www.hostelbookers.com
All offer private rooms as well as dorms and many are really small hotels or B&Bs rather than hostels in the true sense. They are often a good place to meet with other solo travellers and obtain current info on the places to see locally. It is easy enough to find somewhere on arrival in a new palce but probably a bit safer to book a few days in advance for your first night and then find somewhere eslse if you don't like it.
With 3 to 6 months you can take your time and overland travel is easy, cheaper than air travel and will get you to some of the palces completely off the beaten track (although that is becoming increasing difficult!).
My favourite places in the region NOT too often mentioned include:
Vietnam
Mai Chau valley - about 1/2 day north of Hanoi
Ba Be Lakes in the far north
Pleiku - central VN
Dien Bien Phu loop
Laos
Muang Sing - for trekking in the far north
Phongsali & Muang Noi also in the north
The Bolavens Plateau in the south ans Si Phan Don island area in the Mekong
Cambodia has some great little islands off the south coast and travelling through the country overland into Laos will take you through some smaller towns like Kratie which are very quaint.
SEA id generally a pretty safe place for women travelling alone. Indeed the greatest threat is probably from other foreign visitors rather then the locals. Take all usual precautions and you should be safer than at home. Keep your wits (and belongings) about you at places like bus stations which are often frequented by pickpockets etc. Likewise getting out cash from ATMs in the street (use those inside banks if poss,
The itinerary options are endless although rather than using Thailand as a base and going for side trips I would probably work out an outline circular trip covering all 4 countries - we didn't and ended up backtracking a bit).
For our itinerary see; http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blo...ai/1/tpod.html and for some extra photos:
http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blo...ai/3/tpod.html
Enjoy your trip - make it 6 months if you can, you will need the extra time
Oct 14th, 2011, 02:10 AM
#3
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check your entry.safety requirements on travel.state.gov
lots of those types of issues newbies should be CAREFUL
clumbusdirect.com backpackers insurance wise
journeywoman.com best solo female site
seat61.com/thailand cheap trains my fac fly airasia.com
any long legs pretty cheap
kohtao.com best Scuba Lotus resort my fav there
theangkorguide.net a must largest temple complex in Asia
hostelbookers.com asiarooms.com good lodging
Happy Journey!
lots of those types of issues newbies should be CAREFUL
clumbusdirect.com backpackers insurance wise
journeywoman.com best solo female site
seat61.com/thailand cheap trains my fac fly airasia.com
any long legs pretty cheap
kohtao.com best Scuba Lotus resort my fav there
theangkorguide.net a must largest temple complex in Asia
hostelbookers.com asiarooms.com good lodging
Happy Journey!
Oct 14th, 2011, 02:14 AM
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www.bootsnall.com my fav backpacker info site
LP has gotten way too commercial for me
duinsure.com gives better insurance rates
than columbusdirect.com sometimes in asia.
Beware world nomads lots of complaints
Crack open some good guidebooks like Rough Guide FootPrint
And do some careful research it will help you a lot.
LP has gotten way too commercial for me
duinsure.com gives better insurance rates
than columbusdirect.com sometimes in asia.
Beware world nomads lots of complaints
Crack open some good guidebooks like Rough Guide FootPrint
And do some careful research it will help you a lot.
Oct 14th, 2011, 01:42 PM
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you might also check out www.sawadee.com for hotels at all levels..
there are great hotel bargains in thailand and they change all the time.. walk-ins usually do not yield the cheapest rates...
there are great hotel bargains in thailand and they change all the time.. walk-ins usually do not yield the cheapest rates...
Oct 17th, 2011, 01:27 AM
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check out http://www.couchsurfing.org/
this site is mainly for staying privately with people that have a spare couch – not so many of those in SEA – but also a great way of meeting other people. It can be locals or other travellers wanting to meet for a chat.
My son have had many great experiences this way, like in Bangkok there is a meeting at a restaurant every Thursday, when my son went there were 40 people. In HCMC they met with local students showing them the city.
I would have loved to have had that possibility in the seventies
this site is mainly for staying privately with people that have a spare couch – not so many of those in SEA – but also a great way of meeting other people. It can be locals or other travellers wanting to meet for a chat.
My son have had many great experiences this way, like in Bangkok there is a meeting at a restaurant every Thursday, when my son went there were 40 people. In HCMC they met with local students showing them the city.
I would have loved to have had that possibility in the seventies
