I've settled on a couple dates for traveling now! Winter break will be in New Zealand (check out the planning post); I'll travel to Indonesia and Singapore for Spring break; and then onwards to .South East Asia for Summer* break.
*I don't know what to name my Nov 30 to Dec 25 holiday. It will be summer time in the southern hemisphere... but I'll be returning to the US afterwards where it's winter... and I'm traveling to tropical SE Asia...
I've been building out a list of places to visit in SE Asia. Here is the rough framework of everything I'm looking at!
Monsoon Seasons/Timing
Thailand
dry season: November to February
hot season: March to June
rainy season: May to October
Vietnam
North/South
Dry: December to March
Hot/Rain: May to Aug (more rain in south than north)
Nice: Mar - Apr, Sept - Nov
Central
Nice: Feb - Aug
Typhoon: Aug - Nov
Rain: Aug - Feb
My Availability
Winter break is June 21 - July 10.
Spring break is Sept 17 - Oct 2.
My last day of work is Nov 30.
Aiming to be in Philly Dec 25-31
Thailand
My friend Hunter says: 3 days Bangkok, 1 day Chiang Mai, 1 week in Phuket
Visa Requirements
Visa obtained on entry if under 30 days
DOS Warnings
Far Southern Thailand: Periodic violence directed mostly at Thai government interests by a domestic insurgency continues to affect security in the southernmost provinces of Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat, and Songkhla (level 3). U.S. citizens are at risk of death or injury due to the possibility of indiscriminate attacks in public places. Martial law is in force in this region.
Non-City Specific Activities
Cooking class
Stay at a resort/spa
Safari - not gonna see many, they're probably trained
Massage
Diving cert?
Chiang Mai (a city in the north)
North west corner, providence and city share the same name
(indicates location if outside city)
Can fly (1.5hr) or take the train (11 hrs) for $80 ea
Royal (Grand?) Pavilion at Hor Kham Luang
Doi Suthep-Pui NP rice and tea crops
Wat Phra Singh - largest in province
Wat Chedi Luang - partially destroyed in earthquake 1545
Wat Tha Ton - decent overlook of valley (border with Myanmar, 3hrs from city)
Wat Phra That Doi Suthep - awesome overlook of nearby mountains
Kanta Elephant Sanctuary - (1 hr outside city) (do the one in Phuket)
Night Bazaar
Ploen Ruedee Night Market - food
Tha Phae Gate - edge of old city
Bai Orchid and butterfly farm (northern city)
Insect museum
Kanchanaburi
Western province, just outside Bangkok
Consider this
Contains the River Kwai
Mon bridge, neat wooden pedestrian bridge over the river
Wat Thaworn Wararam, chinese influenced wats
Huay Mae Kamin Waterfall
Sai Yok NP - gibbons, elephants, waterfalls
Also has the Thailand Burma railway, railway of death, now a tourist railway.
Bridge over the River Kwai
Wat Tha Khanun - overlooks the kwai river and thai - burma border
Wat tham sua - hilltop wat
Erawan NP - asian elephants, Erawan falls,
Bangkok
Wat Arun
Rama VIII bridge
Lumpini park
Grand palace and Wat Phra Kaew
Wat Phra Dhammakaya - 1 million golden buddhas
Train night market ratchada
Wat Pho (phra?) and the Laying Buddha
Wat Ratchanatdaram
Chinatown
Worlds largest malls #6/7 - CentralPlaza WestGate and CentralWorld
Binh Tay Market
*Chatuchak market
Floating markets
Chonburi
East of bangkok
Big city, cool temples, lots of nightlife
Pattaya city is the main place to be,
Big Buddha
Koh Si Chang overlook
Nong Nooch Tropical botanical gardens
Prasat Sut Ja-tum, (Sanctuary of Truth), giant wooden pointy wat
Ban Bang Phra Reservoir
Koh Kham - little island off the coast
Phang Nga (greater Phuket) and Similan Islands
Mid west of the tail
Khao Phing Kan - “james bond island”
Ban Ko Panyee fishing village - 100 house village on stilts in a bay - super dodgy
Similan islands - diving area, a little difficult to get out to and beautiful (day trip)
1 day island tour - John Gray Sea Canoes
Phuket
Island towards the south of the tail, west coast. Below above and west of below.
Where Hunter lived
Rent motorbikes - don’t rent jet skis ever - stop at every intersection and give way, nobody stops for you
Kata, Karon, and Kalim beaches
Sirinath NP
Tidepools
Big Buddha
Hiking - lots of great hikes
Restaurants
Beaches
Krabi, Koh Lanta, and Phi Phi Islands
To the east of Phuket
Railay beach - neat little peninsula with high cliffs
Phi Phi islands - insane geography with beach
Wat Tham Suea “tiger cave temple” - great overlook
Sa phra nangl - blue water pool with cave
Koh Lanta - island worth checking out?
Rock climbing on Krabi
Surat Thani and Ang thong marine national park
Lower part of tail
Nice water
Sleep in huts along the water
Khao Na nai luang - wat that overlooks the jungle
Great diving or go on a boat tour of Khao Sok NP
Koh Sumui - tourist island
Wat Phra Yai - big buddha on top of wat on island
Koh Phangan - another island with “full moon parties”?
Koh Tao - diving island
Khao Sok NP - cool resort stay in shacks
Vietnam
Visa Requirements
Have to apply for an eVisa - takes 3 days to process, $25
DOS Warnings
No warnings
Jack’s Recommendations
Bro, if you are comfortable on a moped or bike. I’d recommend driving through the country.
Highlights are Hanoi (Capital in the north), Ho chi min city (city in the south), Sapa (spend a night or two there - far north by China), Hoi Ann (outside Da Nang in central) is super sick (ancient town).
Yes, ninh binh national park, cu chi tunnels ( these are the tunnels the Viet Cong made). SAPA has a mountain you might want to check out it’s pretty easy climb (fansipan mtn)
(Don’t do) de nang is a road trip - go to ha long bay instead (double checking this)
Ha long is better than Da Nang and Hoi Ann. Take an overnight cruise to Ha Long and sleep on the bay
Best way to travel Vietnam is to rent motorbikes and drive the entire coast.
POI
Thousand Islands - Ha Long Bay
Watch Top Gear Vietnam special
Hue Imperial City - outside Da Nang
VinWonders - cool looking amusement park on the central coast
Ho Chi Minh City
Cu Chi tunnels
War remnants museum (top gear)
Golden dragon water puppet theater
Central post office
Independence palace
Nguyen Hue st
Bui Vien St
Ho Chi Minh sq
Book st
Saigon Notre Dame Cathedral
Saigon Centre
The Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument
Museum of Vietnamese history
Peoples’ Committee Building
Binh Quoi Village
Chinatown
Ben Thanh night market
Hanoi
Old Quarter
Temple of Literature - Vietnam’s first museum
Museum of ethnology - discusses different ethnic groups of Vietnam
Vietnamese women's museum
Lotte observation deck
St. Joe’s cathedral
Fine arts museum
Ho Chi Ming Mausoleum
Chua Tra Quoc - huge pagoda
Vietnam military history museum
Imperial citadel
Duong Lam ancient village
Presidential palace historical site
Ta Hien St - neighborhood
Quan Thanh temple
Hang Gai St - markets
Hoi An
New Suits (top gear)
Top Gear
Hải Vân Pass mountain road
The citadel (battle grounds)
Took train from Dong Ha to Ha Long
Laos
Visa Requirements
Have to apply for an eVisa - takes 3 days to process, $50
If you plan to travel from Vietnam to Laos by land, request an adhesive visa be affixed to your passport instead of a detachable one.
Lao immigration officials require proof that travelers have departed Vietnam, something that can only be shown with an adhesive visa.
Vietnamese officials remove detachable visas from passports when travelers depart Vietnam, leaving travelers with no proof of their Vietnam departure.
This situation can result in Lao officials requiring travelers to return to Vietnam.
DOS Warnings
DOS has a Level 3 travel advisory - need a tourist visa gained at entry port
Don’t wander off the trail - shit-ton of bombs and IEDs
Don’t travel to the Laotian border with Burma or Xaisomboun Province
POI
TBH - there doesn’t seem to be much here. It’s a country we could “cross off”.
Could do a river cruise across the Mekong from Thailand. Huay Xai is a little river town that you can cruise to.
Cambodia
Visa Requirements
Can apply for an eVisa - takes 3 days to process, $36
Need digital passport photos
Appears that you can obtain a visa at the border, but double check
DOS Warnings
DOS has a Level 1 travel advisory - Thought it was way higher tbh
POI
Phnom Penh
*Tuol Sleng Genocide museum
CBD - The Royal Palace, National Museum, Central Market, Wat Phnom, the art street, riverside
*Royal Palace - closed because COVID? (Mar 2022)
Wat Phnom
National Museum
Central Market
Russian Market
Sisowath Quay against the River
Samai distillery
Foreign Correspondents Club (FCC)
Siem Reap
***Khmer ruins at Angkor Wat
Angkor National Museum
Pub street
Landmine museum - a little far out of town
Made in Cambodia market - downtown every day
Koh Rong
Beaches, off roading, zip lining - seems like we could do this elsewhere
Battambang
nah
Burma
DOS has a Level 4 travel advisory - don’t go