I'm not sure if this is the right subforum for this but here goes,
I am planning a trip with a friend which isnt til end of 2012 but starting to plan and work things out already. We have 5 months and our RTW idea is:
London to Bangkok (overland to) Singapore to Melbourne (make own way to) Sydney to Auckland to Cook Islands to LA (overland to) New York
We plan to spend 2.5 months travelling around Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and possibly a trip to Hong Kong aswell.
Then the next month is split between Australia, NZ and Cook Islands. In OZ we are only going to Melbourne and Sydney so will probably be 2 weeks or less. Auckland will just be a brief stopover for our flight to the cooks, where we will spend a week or so.
Then the final 6 weeks will be spent between LA and NY which i have done a similar route before so not so worried about this part.
Just wanted advice whether we are trying to rush around asia? And i know the middle part of the itinerary is a bit like city hopping but this is mainly to see friends etc and connect the dots rather than travel across OZ etc.
I have also travelled around thailand before so have a rough idea of this too although i didnt travel on a backpacker budget.
Thanks for any help!
Reply to this Hey
Sounds like an exciting trip!
2.5 months doesn't seem like a rediculous time for SE Asia. You can pick and choose which places you want to see in those countries and split your time accordingly. If I were you I'd keep the itinerary for this area flexible so you can choose where you go and when.
Hope this helps
Reply to this Hey
I would say that 2.5 months to travel around those countries in Asia might be a bit rushed but it really depends on how much you want to see in each country. If it's just the 'main highlights' then you'll probably be ok.
Will you fly between the main cities? This will help with the time too. You'd probably be best going to Hong Kong first then continue to Vietnam, Thailand etc
Sounds like a great trip you have planned though so have a great time.. let us know if you have any more questions on teh specific areas. 😊
Reply to this Sophie/Dale/anyone: What's the cheapest SE Asian country to fly to/from Hong Kong from? Vietnam is really pricey cos no budget airline does the route so you have to fly Vietnam Airlines. So I wouldn't recommend flying from Hong Kong to Hanoi/HCMC first. I like Hong Kong so it would be useful to know where to fly via and with who!
Ceri: You said you were going overland from Bangkok to Singapore. As Sophie/Dale said, it will be better to fly some of the legs as there are some loooong journeys in such a route that will eat into your 'enjoying' time. There are a lot of budget airines in SE Asia that will help you. Check out Air Asia, Jetstar Asia, Tiger Airways and Cebu Pacific for some idea of routes you could do and for what prices.
Reply to this hey,
yeah we do plan to fly some of the longer distances, and take night trains etc. we were going to book these as we go but not sure whether it would be best to book anything in advance?
we were planning to have the first week or so planned and just wing it afterward as we will probably be following the usual path due to our time anyway.
have looked into hong kong and this is why its only a maybe, flights seem very overpriced. we did debate going overland through china but we would have needed to add extra time as we wanted to see some of china if we were going to do that.
i have read online somewhere that it can be cheaper to go Air Asia to Macau.
we will probably have about 6000-6800 GBP to play with after our flights, insurance and vaccinations are paid for. so roughly 1000 a month with extra for our stint in america.
thanks for your help so far!
Reply to this Hey
Personally I wouldn't book in advance. Plan and book as you go. The flight costs don't make that much difference and you have the flexibility to change your route as you go. You have an idea of where you want to go and what you want to do and how long you want to spend in each place but when you are doing it everything changes. You meet someone who tells you about somewhere amazing they have been/are going to that you haven't heard about. You find somewhere nice you want to spend extra time. You want a rest day somewhere. The buses/trains/flights don't work around your schedule. You have a hangover/stomach problem and you need to recover.
Hong Kong is expensive compared to the rest of the area, not only the flights. It's an amazing city but it is pricey. 2.5 months with China added is perhaps pushing your time a bit.
Reply to this It sounds like you've been given some quality information. If you need any ideas or assistance with the LA to NY portion please let us know and we can make some suggestions for you.
Which locations are you planning to see in America? Are you driving across country? Which route? We'll be happy to make some suggestions.
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