I want to go for 2 weeks or so and visit a few countries in Asia. Friend of mine did 6 countries in 3 weeks. I often see sales on airfare to hong kong or singapore in the 600s on United. Any advice on which countries I can group together?
Depends on what you want or what u are hoping to exoerience, off course there is the budget. For me I would go Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. Gives you beaches, shopping, cultural aspects, also they are close so it saves time and money on logistics. This is also probably the cheapest route. If you have the money, I would go China, Korea and Japan. These three will cost a bit more but you will experience some authentic eastern culture. China will offer you a diverse trip. It's huge and the culture and customs vary greatly across different provinces, I would hit Beijing, shanghai, yunnan and Inner Mongolia.. Korea is great as well, food and shopping especially. Not much experience in Japan. But get your money ready, want to have a great time it's gonna cost you. Don't be one of those foreigners that travel to these places expecting to go backpacking, you won't experience anything good, save that for south east Asia. Same goes for hongkong If you have the time India and Indonesia is great too. Just watch what you eat. The *****s is no to be played around with. Never been Vietnam, but supposedly its great Anyway just my two cents, hope it helps
What are you looking for? Backpacking? Shopping? Historical /Cultural sight seeing? Night life? If backpacking and cultural sought seeing , I would do Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam. Maybe China (Bejing, Great Wall) If shopping and night life, then I would go to Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, and maybe Seoul.
Once you figure out the countries you are going to I'll leave some suggestions. Are you planning on staying in Hostels or Hotels??
6 countries in 3 weeks sounds miserable. Go to Vietnam for the entire two weeks. Fly into Hanoi and out of Ho Chi Minh.
Hotels Cultural sightseeing, food and experience the local life. Not interested at all in shopping and blah to nightlife.
Weather tip : summer steamy hot /super sunny or winter that mostly rainy/mild temp, Depend on which months you plan to go. You can do this :Most beautiful beaches located in Philippines , shopping in Malaysia and attraction in Indonesia . All geographically closer to each other.
This. I did 3 weeks Hanoi>danang>hue>Hoi an>Saigon Been to the major cities in China and not even close, Vietnam way better.
I don't get it either. Like I need to go on vacation, take an empty suitcase so I can buy crap I can buy here at the mall?
Sadly, lot of women consider shopping when it comes to international travel. I've backpacked SE Asia with my best friends (all guys) and it was a life experience I will never forget. Now when I go traveling with my wife for vacation, we always have to shop. Blows my freaking mind
Phuket is kind meh. I would go to the islands in the Gulf of Thailand for the fun. Koh Samui, then hop on a catamaran to Koh Phangnang (sp?) For the full moon party, and then on to Koh Toh for the beauty
If there's no shopping it's pretty much off our list, pretty much our #1 criteria. Kyoto is pretty badass as is Tokyo. If you like chaos and amazing shopping go to Tokyo. If you want the zen capital of the world go to Kyoto. Can't speak for other places but have heard good things about Seoul and Hong Kong. Singapore is Marina Bay Sands and that might be it.
Hong Kong is often considered the gateway city to Asia since English is a second language there. If it's your first time to the continent, Hong Kong is a great first choice. After that, there are many good options. Bangkok, Taipei, Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo and Seoul to name a few. I'd start w/ the major cities first. Don't do 6 countries in 3 weeks, that's a bit rushed and tiring. You will NOT get the full experience of each city that way. Good luck.
Airfare in Southeast Asia (and even to Australia) is quite affordable nowadays. There have been a proliferation of low cost carriers in the region (Air Asia probably being the biggest of the bunch). It doesn't really matter if you go to Hong Kong or Singapore. It is affordable to fly from either city to anywhere in Asia. Hong Kong might be better if you're considering going to China as well but otherwise, I don't see much of a difference in terms of mobility across the continent.
