If you could go anywhere in Asia/Middle East where would you go and why? Got a 40th birthday coming up in July and want to go somewhere special, open to suggestions.

Well that sort of depends. I mean I would want to go somewhere I hadn't been, in which case I couldn't tell you much about it.

And my choice would be Yemen in the Middle East. In Asia, Ladakh, or for what I suspect would be a very different experience, the Philippines, or, hey, there's Japan.

Places I'd like to return to one day? India - especially the far North; Syria - Aleppo and Damascus are very special. And Sri Lanka has a bit of everything.

But for all I know what you want is a "resort" so you must say more about your personal preferences and interests.

My birthday is also in July but I'm a little bit older than you are. July, IMO, is a bad month to visit the Middle East since it will be very hot! For most of S.E. Asia July will be in the middle of the monsoon season as well. Bali will have the best weather and is a great place to visit and chill out. Spend a couple of days on the beach and spend even more time around Ubud. Beautiful town, hotels, restaurants and the people are very friendly.

I would aim to land as far north as possible at that time of the year. So...Bhutan or Mongolia?

Definitely better to be north or high. If I were going to Asia in July, which I probably wouldn't, I'd go to Ladakh, Nepal or Tibet, none of which I've yet seen. Doesn't look like anyone will be getting to Tibet for a while though, and I think there's an advisory up for Nepal, so that leaves Ladakh. But for my next trip to Asia, hopefully this fall, I'm thinking Japan and Taiwan. Haven't spent time there either, and both seem to be well provided with good scenery and good museums.

But you really have to give us more info about your interests if you want a good answer. Why are you thinking Asia or Middle East (quite different places) in the first place?

thailand is never a bad choice....bali is a very good suggestion also

I think it depends on what your interests are; how much you want to "rough it"; what kind of vacations you like -- do you want to shop a lot, sightsee morning noon and night, eat great food, relax on a beach or resort? Are you into nature treks, indiginous cultures, learning about a religion or political situation?

We were thinking more along the lines of culture and seeing some great sites.I'm going to Beijing and Xian in May, so exclude that. We're not really into shopping or beaches. Bali's great but we've been there; living in Brunei we've been to a lot of places in and around the island of Borneo. I know July is not a great time to travel due to the rainy season but it is my holiday time.

Hi,
You can go in Malasya,Bankok,India,Goa and Nepal.
I think its depend on your time schedule what do you want to celebrate,also it depends on type of celebration.
I highly recommend you Nepal and Bangkok.
Happy birthday and nice weekend
Cheers
Peter
http://www.omegatreks.com/index.php

You seem to be pretty clued-into the weather for July for much of SE Asia, take a look at weatherbase.com and other sites to see rainfall and temps. In my experience, the Middle East is just bloody hot and pretty humid in parts as well in July, so not sure I would choose that. I think Japan would be a good choice, interesting culture, good food, temps should be OK as you are so far north. Australia or New Zealand would be very good choices in July, lots to see and do in both, winter temps in Australia are mild, but you could even ski in Queenstown NZ if you wanted. If you have enough time, you could combine a trip to both. I agree with Ladakh for July, you could also consider Bhutan. The rest of the Indian subcontinent is quite hot and/or in monsoon in July.

I am going to rule out places like Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Laos, etc as I will assume you have been in that close-in area as you live in Brunei. If not, then any or a combination of those would be interesting.

I would avoid Hong Kong personally (I live here), too hot and too much rain (usually) in July, you have other choices in the area that would have better weather in July. Save Hong Kong for a short trip in better weather.

If you were considering traveling as far west as the Middle East, then IMO you might want to consider South Africa or Tanzania; it’s winter temps (relative term look at weather websites for info), but lots to see and do there and I think good game viewing in those months. I’ve been looking into a trip there myself for 2009 and getting some interesting ideas for the place, you can see penguins in Cape Town and then go to safari camps inland. Flight options are not bad at all from a place like Singapore, you can fly non-stop to Johannesburg in about 14 hours, and then connect from there.

Cicerone, I'll ready the penguins for you and the Great White Sharks. That's my destination in July.

Turnjac,
July 11, 12, 13 is the Naadam Festival with archery, horse racing, and wrestling in Mongolia's capital Ulaan Bataar. There are also smaller Naadams throughout the country around those dates. I went in 2005 and plan to return to Mongolia in 2009. You can see the takhis (wild Mongolian horses), ride on non-wild horses through the steppes, stay with nomads, ride a camel in the Gobi, etc.

But with the Olympics in Beijing, I'd actually try to avoid Asia.

How about seeing Great White Sharks near Cape Town? Mid June is peak time with May-Sept being good. There are penguins there too and you can walk with baboons. Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisioned is a ferry ride away. I'll be there this July. You could also go on a safari in South Africa and see lots of wildlife. July is a good time for that. I'd recommend Mala Mala and Phinda, but there are many, many places that are more moderate or higher end than those. Head over to the Africa board for more help.

And Happy Birthday.

Thanks so much for all the great suggestions. Lots to think about. We've been to South Africa and loved it. We've also been to New Zealand, we toured both the North and South Island a few years ago (Dec). I thought NZ was spectacular, particularly the South Island. We haven't been there in winter though. I do have an interest in Japan, that may be viable, i think Tokyo is roughly a 7 hour flight from Singapore. We really only have a max of 9 or 10 days, not sure how much we would be able to see in that time.

Tokyo can be a lot of fun and Kyoto is marvelous.

I am pretty sure that it is hot and humid in Japan in July. Unless you go to the northern part of the main island (i.e. to Tohoku) or to Hokkaido.

When I saw the OP mentioned Asia/Middle East, I thought the (my) answer was fairly simple: Jerusalem.