Thailand/Cambodia/Malaysia/Bali - Dec/Jan - help!

Hi,

My husband and I are going to Thailand/Cambodia/Malaysia/Bali from Dec
23 - Jan 14. Below is a breakdown of the trip:

Flight to Bangkok, arrives Dec 23
Chiang Mai - 4 days
Siem Reap/Angkor Wat, Cambodia - 2 days
Phuket - 4 days
Kuala Lumpur - 2 days
Bali - 4 days
Bangkok - 4 days - fly home Jan 14

A few questions:

- Does this itinerary seem reasonable? Are there some places we should
stay less or stay longer?
- What is the best way to get from one city to the other? We were
thinking of just booking a lot of one way flights on Air Asia. Are
there any other airline sites that I should check out?
- I have read many posts that recommend buying flight tickets once we
reach Bangkok as they may be cheaper than buying from the US. Is this
true? My only concern is the risk of flights being sold out since we
are going during peak time.
- Are there any websites we can check out for reasonable hotel rates?
A lot of friends have recommended just going there and booking hotels
but no one has gone in Dec/Jan. Will we risk not finding a place? How
much are typical rooms with AC during this time of the year?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

PS wrote:
Hi,

My husband and I are going to Thailand/Cambodia/Malaysia/Bali from Dec
23 - Jan 14. Below is a breakdown of the trip:

Flight to Bangkok, arrives Dec 23
Chiang Mai - 4 days
Siem Reap/Angkor Wat, Cambodia - 2 days
Phuket - 4 days
Kuala Lumpur - 2 days
Bali - 4 days
Bangkok - 4 days - fly home Jan 14

A few questions:

- Does this itinerary seem reasonable? Are there some places we should
stay less or stay longer?

Cut out Kuala Lumpur and Phuket. Add 1-2 days to Siem Reap and 3-4
days to Bali.

- What is the best way to get from one city to the other?

Plane is the only realistic way, since you don't have a lot of time.
Overland travel is very slow in most of this region.

We were thinking of just booking a lot of one way flights on Air Asia. Are
there any other airline sites that I should check out?

Bangkok Airways

- I have read many posts that recommend buying flight tickets once we
reach Bangkok as they may be cheaper than buying from the US. Is this
true?

Yes.

My only concern is the risk of flights being sold out since we
are going during peak time.
- Are there any websites we can check out for reasonable hotel rates?
A lot of friends have recommended just going there and booking hotels
but no one has gone in Dec/Jan. Will we risk not finding a place?

Most of the places you named have huge numbers of hotel rooms and
there's no problem finding hotel rooms even last minute in high season.
Siem Reap is the only place where you might want to book in advance.

How much are typical rooms with AC during this time of the year?

I had no problem finding places in the US $10-20 range in the places
you named.

posted:

PS wrote:
Hi,

My husband and I are going to Thailand/Cambodia/Malaysia/Bali from
Dec 23 - Jan 14. Below is a breakdown of the trip:

Flight to Bangkok, arrives Dec 23
Chiang Mai - 4 days
Siem Reap/Angkor Wat, Cambodia - 2 days
Phuket - 4 days
Kuala Lumpur - 2 days
Bali - 4 days
Bangkok - 4 days - fly home Jan 14

A few questions:

- Does this itinerary seem reasonable? Are there some places we
should stay less or stay longer?

Cut out Kuala Lumpur and Phuket. Add 1-2 days to Siem Reap and 3-4
days to Bali.

I agree. KL isn't interesting, and Bali has beaches plus much more. You
may want to stay in more than one place in Bali.

- What is the best way to get from one city to the other?

Plane is the only realistic way, since you don't have a lot of time.
Overland travel is very slow in most of this region.

Before you finalize this itinerary, be sure that the plane connections
that you will need really exist.


We were thinking of just booking a lot of one way flights on Air
Asia. Are there any other airline sites that I should check out?

Bangkok Airways

- I have read many posts that recommend buying flight tickets once we
reach Bangkok as they may be cheaper than buying from the US. Is
this true?

Yes.

My only concern is the risk of flights being sold out since we
are going during peak time.
- Are there any websites we can check out for reasonable hotel rates?
A lot of friends have recommended just going there and booking hotels
but no one has gone in Dec/Jan. Will we risk not finding a place?

Most of the places you named have huge numbers of hotel rooms and
there's no problem finding hotel rooms even last minute in high
season.
Siem Reap is the only place where you might want to book in advance.

How much are typical rooms with AC during this time of the year?

I had no problem finding places in the US $10-20 range in the places
you named.


No comment on the other items.

Photos and commentary on all the above on my web site.

--
MisterMax

http://buten.net/max/
Slideshows of Egypt, Jordan, Angkor Wat, Bali, Crete, France, Hudson
Valley, Malaysia, Maui, Morocco, Mt Holly, Myanmar, Shanghai, Sicily, St
Tropez, Singapore, Thailand, Tour de France.

In article .com,
says...

Flight to Bangkok, arrives Dec 23
Chiang Mai - 4 days
Siem Reap/Angkor Wat, Cambodia - 2 days
Phuket - 4 days
Kuala Lumpur - 2 days
Bali - 4 days
Bangkok - 4 days - fly home Jan 14

A few questions:

- Does this itinerary seem reasonable? Are there some places we should
stay less or stay longer?

Cut out Kuala Lumpur and Phuket. Add 1-2 days to Siem Reap and 3-4
days to Bali.

While skipping KL is an option, adding 3-4 days to Bali is nonsense,
because Bali has no nice beaches. The highlights of Bali are its culture
and the mountains. If the OP is looking for a nice beach the area around
Phuket is indeed a good choice (Koh Phi Phi, Krabi etc.).
--

Alfred Molon
http://www.molon.de - Photos of Asia, Africa and Europe

In article . com, PS
says...

Hi,

My husband and I are going to Thailand/Cambodia/Malaysia/Bali from Dec
23 - Jan 14. Below is a breakdown of the trip:

Flight to Bangkok, arrives Dec 23
Chiang Mai - 4 days
Siem Reap/Angkor Wat, Cambodia - 2 days
Phuket - 4 days
Kuala Lumpur - 2 days
Bali - 4 days
Bangkok - 4 days - fly home Jan 14

A few questions:

- Does this itinerary seem reasonable? Are there some places we should
stay less or stay longer?

It depends on what you are interested in. But generally speaking you
should stay at least three days in Siem Reap, simply because there is so
much to see.

If you are looking for a nice beach, skip Phuket and instead fly to
Krabi. From there either take a boat to the islands (Koh Phi Phi for
instance) or head to Rai Leh.

Bali has no nice beaches but a very interesting culture and sceneries.

You might skip KL in favour of Singapore.

You can browse my site - there are photos of all places you are planning
to visit except Bali.

- What is the best way to get from one city to the other? We were
thinking of just booking a lot of one way flights on Air Asia. Are
there any other airline sites that I should check out?

Air Asia is ok. Be prepared for some delays though and narrow seats.

- I have read many posts that recommend buying flight tickets once we
reach Bangkok as they may be cheaper than buying from the US. Is this
true? My only concern is the risk of flights being sold out since we
are going during peak time.

With AirAsia you can book in advance through their site at
www.airasia.com

- Are there any websites we can check out for reasonable hotel rates?
A lot of friends have recommended just going there and booking hotels
but no one has gone in Dec/Jan. Will we risk not finding a place? How
much are typical rooms with AC during this time of the year?

It's the peak season, so in some places it's advisable to arrive with a
hotel booking: Koh Phi Phi, the islands in general, perhaps Bali. In the
other locations you can easily find a hotel when you arrive, but perhaps
don't arrive late in the evening. In some places it can be complicated
to find a hotel on Xmas or New Year's eve.
--

Alfred Molon
http://www.molon.de - Photos of Asia, Africa and Europe

"Alfred Molon" kirjoitti
s.com...

While skipping KL is an option, adding 3-4 days to Bali is nonsense,
because Bali has no nice beaches. The highlights of Bali are its culture
and the mountains. If the OP is looking for a nice beach the area around
Phuket is indeed a good choice (Koh Phi Phi, Krabi etc.).
--
I must say I don't understand your obsession on beaches. There are beaches
on Bali for sure. I have been to Bali once and it was superb. It has a
mountain which is more than 600 meters taller than the highest peaks in
Scandinavia (Norway). It reaches higher than the tallest mountain in Bavaria
and all of Germany. It has dramatic rice terraces. It has gigantic volcanic
formations about everywhere (as in so many places in Indonesia). It has most
dramatic shore lines. And definitely, it has most lovely beaches next to
nothing. I strolled once from Kuta to almost to Tanah Lot. Absolutely a
gorgeous strip of sand separating land from sea. I can recommend Bali to
everyone. Time is not an issue. The lack of it might be.

alfred = full of ****
"Alfred Molon" wrote in message
...
In article . com, PS
says...

Hi,

My husband and I are going to Thailand/Cambodia/Malaysia/Bali from Dec
23 - Jan 14. Below is a breakdown of the trip:

Flight to Bangkok, arrives Dec 23
Chiang Mai - 4 days
Siem Reap/Angkor Wat, Cambodia - 2 days
Phuket - 4 days
Kuala Lumpur - 2 days
Bali - 4 days
Bangkok - 4 days - fly home Jan 14

A few questions:

- Does this itinerary seem reasonable? Are there some places we should
stay less or stay longer?

It depends on what you are interested in. But generally speaking you
should stay at least three days in Siem Reap, simply because there is so
much to see.

If you are looking for a nice beach, skip Phuket and instead fly to
Krabi. From there either take a boat to the islands (Koh Phi Phi for
instance) or head to Rai Leh.

Bali has no nice beaches but a very interesting culture and sceneries.

You might skip KL in favour of Singapore.

You can browse my site - there are photos of all places you are planning
to visit except Bali.

- What is the best way to get from one city to the other? We were
thinking of just booking a lot of one way flights on Air Asia. Are
there any other airline sites that I should check out?

Air Asia is ok. Be prepared for some delays though and narrow seats.

- I have read many posts that recommend buying flight tickets once we
reach Bangkok as they may be cheaper than buying from the US. Is this
true? My only concern is the risk of flights being sold out since we
are going during peak time.

With AirAsia you can book in advance through their site at
www.airasia.com

- Are there any websites we can check out for reasonable hotel rates?
A lot of friends have recommended just going there and booking hotels
but no one has gone in Dec/Jan. Will we risk not finding a place? How
much are typical rooms with AC during this time of the year?

It's the peak season, so in some places it's advisable to arrive with a
hotel booking: Koh Phi Phi, the islands in general, perhaps Bali. In the
other locations you can easily find a hotel when you arrive, but perhaps
don't arrive late in the evening. In some places it can be complicated
to find a hotel on Xmas or New Year's eve.
--

Alfred Molon
http://www.molon.de - Photos of Asia, Africa and Europe

In article , Markku
Grönroos says...

I must say I don't understand your obsession on beaches. There are beaches
on Bali for sure. I have been to Bali once and it was superb. It has a
mountain which is more than 600 meters taller than the highest peaks in
Scandinavia (Norway). It reaches higher than the tallest mountain in Bavaria
and all of Germany. It has dramatic rice terraces. It has gigantic volcanic
formations about everywhere (as in so many places in Indonesia). It has most
dramatic shore lines. And definitely, it has most lovely beaches next to
nothing. I strolled once from Kuta to almost to Tanah Lot. Absolutely a
gorgeous strip of sand separating land from sea. I can recommend Bali to
everyone. Time is not an issue. The lack of it might be.

Well, the beach in Sanur sucks heavily and in any case if you are
looking for a nice beach there are much better beaches elsewhere in SE
Asia than on Bali. Bali is a destination which has better sights to
offer than its beaches.
--

Alfred Molon
http://www.molon.de - Photos of Asia, Africa and Europe

In article , pied piper
says...
alfred = full of ****

Welcome to my bozo bin.
--

Alfred Molon
http://www.molon.de - Photos of Asia, Africa and Europe

"Alfred Molon" kirjoitti
s.com...

Well, the beach in Sanur sucks heavily and in any case if you are
looking for a nice beach there are much better beaches elsewhere in SE
Asia than on Bali. Bali is a destination which has better sights to
offer than its beaches.

I haven't been to Sanur, so we have to rely on your description at this
point. However, the island is rather large.... The geographic size of the
island is around five thousand and six hundred square kilometers. The Sanur
beach is merely a tiny bit in the set of the Balinese beaches. I have
pointed out several adjacent beaches which together compose one large fully
passable beach of tens of kilometers in length.

It is true that this beach is facing an *ocean* and the sea bed bends truly
sharply (water depth reaches several hundred and thousand meters, not so far
(a few kilometers out to the sea perhaps) from the shore line. This results
entirely different swells from those in Thailand where most of the beaches
lie on shallow waters (resembling a bit of that giant underwater bank east
from the Yucatan peninsula). The mass of water breaking to the shore and the
under current back to the sea IS massive on Bali compared to most beaches in
Thailand (where this phenomenon is next to non existent). For unexperienced
swimmers this may cause a true danger. Personally I liked the beach life on
Bali very much. Kuta was time to time a bit crowdy but never excessively
packed as you can see in many places in Europe. The beach from there
northwest bound was almost deserted (meaning no instant access to services
like cold beers).

Also the views from the cliffs of Ulu Watu are just outstanding.
Outstanding they are in so many places on Bali. Perhaps the most annoying
thing on Bali is those people who persistently and aggressively try to sell
you something on the streets. In this fashion Thailand is much better and
Thais are grossly more courteous: they typically don't approach you at all
and when they do and you say "no", they get the picture immediately and go
to some place else.

Unfortunately there are those all famous wackers on Bali who find it a good
idea to detonate bombs in busy streets.

Indonesia is so full of gorgeous beaches that one can pick up any of them in
a playground of approximately 10 million square kilometers in size
(equalling with Europe whose eastern edge is marked by the Ural mountains).
Some of them are easily accessible while some of them aren't.