Travelling for first time with my girlfriend..advice?
Posted by Threeland on March 26, 2010
my girlfriend and I are planning to go travelling in March to South East Asia and possibly south america (dependent on money)
We should have roughly £7000 between us and would like to go for roughly six months, is this possible? Ideally we'd like to go to India first then Thailand and just sort of see what happens though I'm interested in Indonesia,Laos and malaysia...How possible is it to do all this with the time and money we have?would a trip to south america be out of the question? I dont mind doing things on the cheap but I dont want to be scraping by the whole time...can anyone recommend good travel agencies in those countries? Any suggestions of things to do while we're out there? Just any advice in general would be great as I am a complete novice and we have very little time to sort it all out....
Reply by barbara on March 26, 2010
I think getting airfare to South America AND hanging out for 6 whole months on vacation is stretching it a bit unless you want to live with rats.
Having said that, I think you could certainly hang out in Asia for a while on that kind of cash if your travel there doesn't break the bank.
There are an abundance of cheap hotels in Thailand (I've never been to other countries listed, but I'd guess the same would apply), and they aren't the height of luxury, but they are okay. You just need to do as much research ahead of time on these as you can.
One tip is to avoid Western hotels, shopping, attractions. For instance, when I was in Bangkok, you could get a very nice massage in a Marriott for $100. OR you could go to a place across the street and get the same thing for $10. You could go shopping in a gorgeous mall and find Western prices. Or you could hit the street markets, which are more fun anyway.
All of that said, keep in mind the political situation in Thailand isn't completely stable. Try to anticipate if that will impact you.
Mostly, if you're trying to make your budget stretch, I'd think you'd need to plan, plan, plan.
Reply by phileasfogg on March 27, 2010
I agree with Barbara re: Thailand. It's much the same in Malaysia and India, the two other countries I know from your itinerary.
Very specifically for India (where I live): work out your itinerary very carefully, because the country's huge - compared to Thailand, Malaysia or Laos, especially - and there's loads to see. By the way, I noticed you mentioned that you're travelling in March. That'll help reduce your expenses in India, at least, since the tourist season's ended and you should be able to get cheap hotels. On the flip side, summer's started and it's terribly hot - in Delhi the temperature's already hitting 40 degree Celsius.
Also, for India, one site I can recommend for finding economical hotels or cheap airfares is www.yatra.com.
Madhulika
Reply by amanoya on March 29, 2010
Go backpacking?
In Indonesia, you can bargain for almost anything! But I don't think now is a good time to visit Indonesia because it's now rainy here. Best time to visit is July - October, I recommend Komodo Island, Lombok, and Raja Ampat (I think Bali is overrated ;) ).
It's easy to find a good travel agent, I think you'll find one once you arrive at Sukarno-Hatta airport(Jakarta). Advice for taxi: don't take any taxi other than Bluebird!
Have a nice trip
amanoya - discoverindonesia.net
Reply by koshkha on March 29, 2010
I'd like to offer some different 'advice' that's not actually about the where and when of your trip.
If it's the first time you've been away together you will either come back really strongly committed or ready to kill each other. Try to be very open in advance of going about what you want to see and do - if one of you wants to get drunk and party every night and the other loves museums and culture, you could find there's a lot of strain on the relationship. If you want to go to different places, talk in advance about whether you'd consider splitting up for part of the trip - better to get that out in the open before you hit the road.
Also money - try to make sure you have similar ideas about what you are willing to spend on. If one of you is scared of staying in hostels or budget accommodation, or if you are the kind of people who haven't got used to spending out of a shared 'budget', it might be good to talk honestly and openly about any concerns that you might have.
Good luck - I'm very jealous!
Reply by runawaygourmet on August 02, 2010
That's a lot of money, but I don't think it won't suffice for a few months. Barbara's right. Asia offers plenty of beautiful holiday getaways that are super cheap, but ONLY if you forget about the western ways of living. That being said, avoid eating in expensive restaurants because there many decent hole-in-the-wall eateries that offers scrumptious meals instead of eating in western food joints. Rather than using a cab every time for transportation, you could commute via bus or motorbikes. There are many more which you would learn on the way. Just don't be shy to connect with the friendly locals. :)
Among the countries in Asia that I have visited, I must say that Thailand and the Philippines are the most affordable-and-budget-friendly destinations that I have visited there. Check out Cebu city (http://cebutourist.com/ ) and Koh Chang (http://koh-chang.info/ ).
Reply by koonel on August 03, 2010
My advice is to have a "rough idea" of where you want to visit and a place to fly home from. For the rest of your trip you might benefit from a less structured trip. If you were to fly to Asia, Bangkok for instance, you can arrange transportation to other countries from that area very easy. March is at the end of the high season pricing, highest prices for hotels is around Christmas-New Years. You can get some good prices on hotels that have private toilets, A/C and TV in Asia.
From Thailand you can easily use land travel to get to Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia. Each of these countries are pretty cheap for hotels, food and other attractions. Thailand does tourism pretty good and has excellent bus and rail transportation. You can even take a train from Bangkok all the way to Singapore if you want.
You can use debit cards in many countries so you do not have to walk around with a bag full of money. But, you do have to notify your bank that you will be overseas or any withdrawals may be denied. Having a spare card also helps in case your card gets mangled. My preference are hotels that have safety boxes or room safes and I use them all the time! It is not the hotel staff you have to worry about - a fellow tourist could also steal your stuff!
Read up on the countries you want to visit. Some may require visas you need to get ahead of time and others (depending on the passport you travel under) you can just show up at the airport and be stamped in. Read the Visa Requirements ahead of time! Make sure you have 6 months remaining in your passport by the time you reach the end of your trip.
I have to agree with one of the previous posts that 6 months is a long time to be out with a girlfriend. You may end up hating each other or committed for life. Perhaps a shorter trip with a few more amenities might be more welcome.
Good luck.
Reply by TravellingB on August 17, 2010
Hi Threeland,
I reckon that six months in Asia is a great trip all of its own, but it's definitely possible to do 3 months South America and 3 months SE Asia. In general, I think that the less you rush around, the better experience you'll have.
As a starting point, I would arrive in Thailand and travel the amazing Indochina loop into Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. There are so many stunning things to see, as well as some AMAZING beaches - budget lots of beach time so you don't feel rushed. After that, you could go to India and Nepal. India is probably the highest country on culture shock in Asia, so Thailand is a gentler way to ease yourself in to the traveller lifestyle. India really is incredible, and it's absolutely vast. You'll need a minimum of a month to cover the greatest sights.
Hope that helps. If you need more information about Round the World flights and tricky itineraries, try http://www.travel-nation.co.uk. They're leading experts. Equally, if you want organise some of your trip in SE Asia, try http://www.thailandtravelplan.co.uk, where you can build your trip and travel at your own pace.
Safe travels!
Reply by denisenicho on November 26, 2010
Indonesia is a beautiful and one of the most visiting countries in Asia and it has lots of attractive and incredible places.Most people will say Bintan because it is classically more popular and generally more touristy - you will find heaps of expats, tourists in these areas visiting because it is very popular both are great places but to tell you the truth i would go to a different part of Indonesia there are other places which you be much more culturally enriched, less touristy and more enjoyable than these areas
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