We want to spend time in Thailand, at the beaches relaxing mostly with some time spent with the elephants and a few nights in Bangkok. Its true that World Nomads arent the cheapest. Also would you advise buying my return flight before travel and say travelling to and from Bangkok? So maybe do the east coast beaches first in Thailand (instead of last like my suggestion in the article), then go up to Chiang Mai etc. Improvisation is very easy in Southeast Asia, so you can always just wing it and see where adventure takes you! Thanks. but I liked not getting any notifications etc. Your articles are really very good. Im over all extremely excited to go and explore anything and everything! This post was first published in 2014 big updates in 2017, 2018, and 2020. Hmm, thats a specific question! But, dont want to do a trip to Vietnam an injustice if the weather is less than ideal w hat do you think about this? Latin America is often peoples second backpacking trip after Asia, so the average age is a bit higher there. Does that sound crazy to add some time in the philippines to your 2 months recommended itinerary , should we then skip something not to be running? That was my primary motivator for having mobile data. Its better to have a bit of USD with you for visas or emergencies as its accepted more widely. What Ive shared here is merely some commonwisdom for backpacking Southeast Asia. . If so what would you recommend. Less time spent in transit is more time spent sightseeing or going on activities. Would there be any issues with travel? . I am planning 6 months in SE Asia and plan on roughly following your suggested route. My BF and I will have about two weeks in SEA (November) and are flying in and out of Bangkok. I think this route will be interesting to you if youd like to add a few quieter or more authentic places and maybe keep the Thailand highlights for its own holiday someday. I liked visiting caves and pepper farms around there. Enjoy your Travels! Ideally we are wanting to go to Thailand, Cambodia & Vietnam (& if we have enough money Indonesia for a few days before we fly back home from Bangkok again, this isnt a big deal if we cant afford to get there though). Ideally we were thinking of doing Bangkok > Siem Reap > Hanoi > Chiang Mai > Bangkok. I have hashed together a rough route and time in each country (for SE Asia so far only) and was wondering your thoughts on if it will be long enough in each place/any places that could, if need be, be omitted. Southeast Asia is full of them! Surat Thani is the base for boats to Koh Tao, Koh Phangan and Koh Samui. Your blog is great! Though with 4 months you can go with the flow. Another reason you see them mentioned a lot on blogs is that they have a great partnership program that lets blogs benefit from promoting them. More on budgeting here: http://www.indietraveller.co/southeast-asia-cost-of-travel/. I would love to hear your opinion on it! My first-ever backpacking trip to Southeast Asia lasted a whopping nine months, roughly following the so-called Banana Pancake trail. Traveling Asia for a while? thanks so much for this, Im definitely going to look into getting your book for the full info. I can definitely see arguments in favor of spending a bit more time in Vietnam, as Laos and Cambodia are both a bit smaller and have somewhat fewer sights. Near Ho Chi Minh City its worth going to the Mekong Delta and seeing the floating markets there. Most of these are designed for budget travellers looking for a fun way to explore the world, so were aiming for an outlay of around GB1000 ish (approx US$1300) for your whole trip. Some links may be affiliate links, meaning I may earn commission from products or services I recommend. Its a full schedule for sure, and some of these places are quite far apart. So now Im thinking to buy a returnticket to Singapore, and take a local flight from Singapore to Hanoi to start my trip. Readers often ask me if, say, three weeks is enough to see Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. That can be easier said than done. Avoiding the high season could save you a little money on accommodation. I am not sure where theres good surf. but just realized that its apparently the worst time in terms of weather. Some adjacent countries combine especially well. For example, Thailand and Laos. You could probably spend 10 days in the Chiang Mai region and 10 days island hopping, and then have 10 days to spare for somewhere else. I have roughly 6 weeks to work with. Currently looking into a 6 week trip to SEA by myself. I was wondering what to do, some friends told me thailands beaches are so crowded that I am hoping we can avoid the crowds. We will only be eating street food & only staying in very basic rooms, travelling by sleeper trains/buses when travelling far & doing things very cheap but we do want to do alot of trips like elephant sanctuary, visit temples etc. Its very measured and you could even add in another place or two. . Ill check out the price difference for one way and a return from a different airport. Youll probably spend a fair bit less than that in Cambodia and Vietnam. We have just about 16 days from there. (For instance, if you have a week in Vietnam you might want to focus specifically on Saigon and the south). Thanks! And sorry in advance for asking for itinerary help as it seems like you get a lot of similar questions! End your trip with some quality beach time on the Cambodian islands, or on Thailands Koh Chang archipelago. Hi Samar, how is the availability of vegan food? The great thing about a month travelling in Asia is that you can cover a lot of ground and experience several different countries and cultures. But if you can spend a week or just under in one place, and another, and top things off on a Thai island, youll be less rushed. Apart from creating your route and selecting your destinations, there are many other issues to consider, like travel costs, visas, what to pack, vaccinations, safety issues, not to mention how to tackle some of the annoying challenges you may face on the road. Im a bit unsure whether this itinerary is do-able in the (limited) amount of time we have. So we are young and active and like to be moving. Thanks and sorry if you had already replied to this somewhere. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Glad to hear! thats actually the monsoon season. Reading your description Im counting 1 week northern Thailand, 1 week Laos, 1 week Cambodia, etc. and doing an average amount of tourist activities).
Singapore city itself isnt short of a few things to do. Hey Brenna. Thank you so much for your reply, Marek!! My husband and I are planning our first trip to Southeast Asia and were using your Alternative Banana Pancake route as a guide :). Thanks a million I wondered if I might have problems travelling on a one way ticket. Thanks for your wonderful site. Did you have a SIM card for each country? During this time in tropical Southeast Asia it does often rain very hard and every day but its also often very quick, during the late afternoon or evening (this is different from the all-day drizzle thats more common in e.g. Also, would you say 1000 USD each for those 40 days would be enough? Quenstion. My question is how do you travel from Laos into Vietnam? Yeah I did it earlier this year by bus (in the other direction) and it was very easy. I had only 10 days coz i have to go back to my work in Dubai.
Hi Marek! My original plan was to fly into Singapore and work my way up through Malaysia and then across the others countries and then fly to Indonesia. I was thinking of spending about 2 weeks there to visit my family and bask in the sun which leaves me 6 more weeks before I fly back home to Canada from Bangkok. I wil be starting an online master degree that would requires me to have projects done every week. Hey Catherine! I have traveled a fair bit in Asia but, in the end, Im just some guy with a blog who has some biased opinions. Thanks for the wonderful resource. Im still unsure what to do, would you say to get the most out of the experience, you need to be much more of an outgoing person? Cant go wrong with either! A mask and computer for the diving, and a compact camera and GoPro to record this all. Truly appreciate this and so interesting how your advice resonates with what my cousin advised earlier of best to spend 2 countries per month to get the most of it and not feel rushed as I prefer. Instead, Im leaning more towards a tour like this now: Bangkok Chang Mai Luang Prabang (via the slow boat) Kunming, China Somewhere halfway Bangkok. Me and my girlfriend are planning on doing the 2 month route. Intrigued? If Im not mistaken there are two possible bus routes from Vieng Xai which both end in Hanoi one goes via Mai Chau Hoa Binh and one via Thanh Hoa. Thanks so much!!! Less time spent in southern Thailand, which can be more commercial and expensive (Not to be a travel snob I should also say the southern Thai coast is an easy place to have a lot of fun). No worries, hope you have an amazing trip! Care to share your opinion? Bangkok. After picking four or so highlights, I listened to suggestions and was flexible enough to adapt at the last minute to experiences I hadnt heard about. If you fly with budget carriers like AirAsia it does cost extra, though the overall ticket costs are pretty low. Email: Perez418@gmail.com or IG Perez418.
Keep in mind though that Im not writing this blog for people going to casinos or Koreans going on a Boracay holiday. We will ask around to see the best way to get there from Battambang.
Am so excited and now Im even more excited! Seems a shame to write it off on the basis of PP and Sihanoukville (which in my opinion arent the best places anyway!). Hope to hear from you soon, many thanks! However as these rainy seasons are at different times all across SEA i think with some clever planning we should be able to see everything we want to see and still successfully avoid the monsoon. If we had a month or two we would have loved to attempt the full loop that you suggested, but the idea now is to break it up into sections and do them one trip at a time. An Apple Watch does seem like much bling and I personally avoid wearing watches/jewellery when I travel. Is there any reason you would advise against doing the normal route (Bangkok to northern Thailand etc) but the opposite way round (Bangkok into Cambodia, Vietnam then fly to Northern Thailand as we are avoiding Laos)? If things stabilize again one day, dont hesitate to go there. I was thinking of taking a bus from Bangkok to Siem Reap, then going south to Koh Rong, but now youre making me have second thoughts. Hey Sammi. Vietnam 10 Not much springs to mind that dont fall into those categories you mentioned. Gibbon Experience (express tour)
Theres some good advice here and I dont mean to be critical, but I do have to say that genuinely I think for some people it can be quite rewarding to pack a lot of different destinations into one trip. Id still keep The Philippines in for consideration, especially given your interests (but thats just my 2 cents ). Also Im finding organizing things very daunting as I havent really looked into where i want to go or how im going to get from place to place but everything i read on it and everything people have said about it is that its fairly easy to just go out there and go day by day not really having much of a plan! One more question is that I know fall is Monsoon season and our trip is a bit close (July-August) so I just wanted to know if we would have to be weary of weather during this time or if it should still get mostly sunny days? We are leaving from Bali and are wondering if we can start in Cambodia and go this way around. Just a little unsure where to start in terms of planning things, or worried Ive left it too late. However i could really use your help and opinion on something. It can be nice to book ahead (by a day or two) to ensure a spot in your preferred hostel, but theres always many options. Well be spending 6 weeks in these 3 countries (roughly 2 weeks in each, well take it as it comes ;)) cheers. If I had 4 weeks (and this is totally subjective) I would probably leave north Vietnam for another time and focus on central/south Vietnam + Cambodia for about 2 weeks, then fly to Indonesia and focus on Bali and maybe Lombok/Gili Islands. First, your blog is so fantastic and is one of my favorite travel blogs Ive found. Lonely Planet has a combined guide for North Thailand, Laos, Vietnam & Cambodia its OK but not amazing. To do basically 3 countries in 2 weeks is a lot. No guarantees I guess but I didnt have any issues. If its beaches youre looking for then your friends are kind of right about Thailand, though you can still find some less crowded beaches there. Youll often find other travelers going down these lines, hitting up some of the regions top sights. The best way to get around each country? I love your blog! We are happy to go via the Northern Terretories of Vietnam like you suggested in your itinerary, how I cant find any information on how to get across the border into Vietnam and the transport options! Not sure if it makes most sense to start in Bangkok and do a loop or would you recommend starting somewhere else? Hello You Designs. I will travel to Indochina in november/december for 3 weeks. Jump on a flight from Hanoi to Cambodia to do the Angkor Wat complex for 3 days. How much do you think it would cost? With 6 weeks I recommend sticking to about 3 countries max so you can really get the most out of them. According to my plan, I am thinking of travelling from December 28th, 2017 to February 2nd, 2018 and heading to Singapore on Feb 3rd from one of those countries spend weekend with relatives and see Singapore for a day before heading to USA. We have flights already booked out of Bangkok at the end but still havent booked our flights in (from India). Im getting the sense SEA is a perfect area for a first time travelers though and its exactly what I want so Im having trouble deciding to go somewhere else. Think I just need to decide how long and how much I want to spend. Well be in South East Asia for 2 months. The 2 week guy just wants to tube in laos and travel thailand so im guessing Nam and cambodia would be the after new year thing. Yep that strikes me as quite doable in 1 month. Siem Reap first of all, thanks for all the amazing blogs! You could always earn some money in Australia/NZ, then go back to Southeast Asia for a second round of travel Good luck with the planning. The only activity where Ive somehow never seen single dudes are cooking classes! Vientiane (>> Fly to Phnom Penn) What do you advise for a Vegan like me who wants to visit Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and possibly Laos? 
I am US citizenship, and are there any countries that I must Visa prior leaving? Hi Marek! In Japan, many travellers like to take the bullet trains. Do you think trying to hit some major points in Thailand, Vietnam and Laos/Cambodia is too ambitious? But yeah you should be able to spend quality time with 3 weeks in each country .
Hi, Marek! Many of my favorite travel memories in Asia are not of grand or iconic locations. Bali sees lots of tourists and is very easy to enjoy. Many backpackers then like to take the two-day slow boat from the Laos border to Luang Prabang along the Mekong. To learn more, please refer to my disclosure. I going with my significant other in mid December. More, how much per day needed to food, accommodation (think basis but clean), train rides, treks etc. My sister and I will be traveling through Thailand and Cambodia together for three weeks. With that in mind, does this route make sense: Bangkok Got me really excited for my trip. Of course, there are a million ways to travel through Southeast Asia and this is just one other way.
Hey Samar. Id like to visit Chiang Mai for Songkran (do you think somewhere else is better?) Doing all of Vietnam in a month will be tricky, but if you have a two week itinerary definitely head to Halong Bay and take a cruise. This post may contain affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links. amazing things to do in Siem Reap, click here. From Da Lat you can do some of the easy rider trails, which involve motorbike rides along wild mountain roads.
Singapore city itself isnt short of a few things to do. Hey Brenna. Thank you so much for your reply, Marek!! My husband and I are planning our first trip to Southeast Asia and were using your Alternative Banana Pancake route as a guide :). Thanks a million I wondered if I might have problems travelling on a one way ticket. Thanks for your wonderful site. Did you have a SIM card for each country? During this time in tropical Southeast Asia it does often rain very hard and every day but its also often very quick, during the late afternoon or evening (this is different from the all-day drizzle thats more common in e.g. Also, would you say 1000 USD each for those 40 days would be enough? Quenstion. My question is how do you travel from Laos into Vietnam? Yeah I did it earlier this year by bus (in the other direction) and it was very easy. I had only 10 days coz i have to go back to my work in Dubai.
Hi Marek! My original plan was to fly into Singapore and work my way up through Malaysia and then across the others countries and then fly to Indonesia. I was thinking of spending about 2 weeks there to visit my family and bask in the sun which leaves me 6 more weeks before I fly back home to Canada from Bangkok. I wil be starting an online master degree that would requires me to have projects done every week. Hey Catherine! I have traveled a fair bit in Asia but, in the end, Im just some guy with a blog who has some biased opinions. Thanks for the wonderful resource. Im still unsure what to do, would you say to get the most out of the experience, you need to be much more of an outgoing person? Cant go wrong with either! A mask and computer for the diving, and a compact camera and GoPro to record this all. Truly appreciate this and so interesting how your advice resonates with what my cousin advised earlier of best to spend 2 countries per month to get the most of it and not feel rushed as I prefer. Instead, Im leaning more towards a tour like this now: Bangkok Chang Mai Luang Prabang (via the slow boat) Kunming, China Somewhere halfway Bangkok. Me and my girlfriend are planning on doing the 2 month route. Intrigued? If Im not mistaken there are two possible bus routes from Vieng Xai which both end in Hanoi one goes via Mai Chau Hoa Binh and one via Thanh Hoa. Thanks so much!!! Less time spent in southern Thailand, which can be more commercial and expensive (Not to be a travel snob I should also say the southern Thai coast is an easy place to have a lot of fun). No worries, hope you have an amazing trip! Care to share your opinion? Bangkok. After picking four or so highlights, I listened to suggestions and was flexible enough to adapt at the last minute to experiences I hadnt heard about. If you fly with budget carriers like AirAsia it does cost extra, though the overall ticket costs are pretty low. Email: Perez418@gmail.com or IG Perez418.
Keep in mind though that Im not writing this blog for people going to casinos or Koreans going on a Boracay holiday. We will ask around to see the best way to get there from Battambang.
Am so excited and now Im even more excited! Seems a shame to write it off on the basis of PP and Sihanoukville (which in my opinion arent the best places anyway!). Hope to hear from you soon, many thanks! However as these rainy seasons are at different times all across SEA i think with some clever planning we should be able to see everything we want to see and still successfully avoid the monsoon. If we had a month or two we would have loved to attempt the full loop that you suggested, but the idea now is to break it up into sections and do them one trip at a time. An Apple Watch does seem like much bling and I personally avoid wearing watches/jewellery when I travel. Is there any reason you would advise against doing the normal route (Bangkok to northern Thailand etc) but the opposite way round (Bangkok into Cambodia, Vietnam then fly to Northern Thailand as we are avoiding Laos)? If things stabilize again one day, dont hesitate to go there. I was thinking of taking a bus from Bangkok to Siem Reap, then going south to Koh Rong, but now youre making me have second thoughts. Hey Sammi. Vietnam 10 Not much springs to mind that dont fall into those categories you mentioned. Gibbon Experience (express tour)
Theres some good advice here and I dont mean to be critical, but I do have to say that genuinely I think for some people it can be quite rewarding to pack a lot of different destinations into one trip. Id still keep The Philippines in for consideration, especially given your interests (but thats just my 2 cents ). Also Im finding organizing things very daunting as I havent really looked into where i want to go or how im going to get from place to place but everything i read on it and everything people have said about it is that its fairly easy to just go out there and go day by day not really having much of a plan! One more question is that I know fall is Monsoon season and our trip is a bit close (July-August) so I just wanted to know if we would have to be weary of weather during this time or if it should still get mostly sunny days? We are leaving from Bali and are wondering if we can start in Cambodia and go this way around. Just a little unsure where to start in terms of planning things, or worried Ive left it too late. However i could really use your help and opinion on something. It can be nice to book ahead (by a day or two) to ensure a spot in your preferred hostel, but theres always many options. Well be spending 6 weeks in these 3 countries (roughly 2 weeks in each, well take it as it comes ;)) cheers. If I had 4 weeks (and this is totally subjective) I would probably leave north Vietnam for another time and focus on central/south Vietnam + Cambodia for about 2 weeks, then fly to Indonesia and focus on Bali and maybe Lombok/Gili Islands. First, your blog is so fantastic and is one of my favorite travel blogs Ive found. Lonely Planet has a combined guide for North Thailand, Laos, Vietnam & Cambodia its OK but not amazing. To do basically 3 countries in 2 weeks is a lot. No guarantees I guess but I didnt have any issues. If its beaches youre looking for then your friends are kind of right about Thailand, though you can still find some less crowded beaches there. Youll often find other travelers going down these lines, hitting up some of the regions top sights. The best way to get around each country? I love your blog! We are happy to go via the Northern Terretories of Vietnam like you suggested in your itinerary, how I cant find any information on how to get across the border into Vietnam and the transport options! Not sure if it makes most sense to start in Bangkok and do a loop or would you recommend starting somewhere else? Hello You Designs. I will travel to Indochina in november/december for 3 weeks. Jump on a flight from Hanoi to Cambodia to do the Angkor Wat complex for 3 days. How much do you think it would cost? With 6 weeks I recommend sticking to about 3 countries max so you can really get the most out of them. According to my plan, I am thinking of travelling from December 28th, 2017 to February 2nd, 2018 and heading to Singapore on Feb 3rd from one of those countries spend weekend with relatives and see Singapore for a day before heading to USA. We have flights already booked out of Bangkok at the end but still havent booked our flights in (from India). Im getting the sense SEA is a perfect area for a first time travelers though and its exactly what I want so Im having trouble deciding to go somewhere else. Think I just need to decide how long and how much I want to spend. Well be in South East Asia for 2 months. The 2 week guy just wants to tube in laos and travel thailand so im guessing Nam and cambodia would be the after new year thing. Yep that strikes me as quite doable in 1 month. Siem Reap first of all, thanks for all the amazing blogs! You could always earn some money in Australia/NZ, then go back to Southeast Asia for a second round of travel Good luck with the planning. The only activity where Ive somehow never seen single dudes are cooking classes! Vientiane (>> Fly to Phnom Penn) What do you advise for a Vegan like me who wants to visit Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and possibly Laos? I am US citizenship, and are there any countries that I must Visa prior leaving? Hi Marek! In Japan, many travellers like to take the bullet trains. Do you think trying to hit some major points in Thailand, Vietnam and Laos/Cambodia is too ambitious? But yeah you should be able to spend quality time with 3 weeks in each country . Hi, Marek! Many of my favorite travel memories in Asia are not of grand or iconic locations. Bali sees lots of tourists and is very easy to enjoy. Many backpackers then like to take the two-day slow boat from the Laos border to Luang Prabang along the Mekong. To learn more, please refer to my disclosure. I going with my significant other in mid December. More, how much per day needed to food, accommodation (think basis but clean), train rides, treks etc. My sister and I will be traveling through Thailand and Cambodia together for three weeks. With that in mind, does this route make sense: Bangkok Got me really excited for my trip. Of course, there are a million ways to travel through Southeast Asia and this is just one other way.
Hey Samar. Id like to visit Chiang Mai for Songkran (do you think somewhere else is better?) Doing all of Vietnam in a month will be tricky, but if you have a two week itinerary definitely head to Halong Bay and take a cruise. This post may contain affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links. amazing things to do in Siem Reap, click here. From Da Lat you can do some of the easy rider trails, which involve motorbike rides along wild mountain roads.