Traveling through South Asia

Dudis

Hi,

I would like to travel to some destinations in South Asia - Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, China, India...

My budget: 2000 pounds (+ the price of flight ticket).

My idea: I don't have any experience with traveling, but my idea is to go alone, buy just one-way ticket and just "be" without any pressure of time.

I want to stay and travel as long as possible with low-cost life and rather to focus for meeting local people and the culture - sleeping through Couchsurfing - or helping people with work. Mainly to see life in different kind of perspective.

So rather than holiday it should be more like adventure.

When to go: ~ 20th February or ~20th March and stay & travel there 1 - 3 months.

Does anyone have experience with this kind of traveling? What would you recommend to go first? Do you have any blogs or articles with this kind of traveling? Any tips?

And.. what kind of visa I will need and when I can get it? I am from Czech but living in UK, London and I don't have any idea how the visa system works.

I will be more than happy from any suggestions, advice and tips.

Thank you!

MasterPoo

Well if you have visa restrictions I'd suggest you at least decide which countries you plan to visit and find out visa requirements for those countries, if it means calling/emailing the Consulate office for each country then do that. Each country will have their own rules and prerequisites for travellers. Also bear in mind you might have to apply in your country of residence for your visa BEFORE travelling, so applying as you go along might not suit you.

If you do require visa/s how long are the visa's valid for, do they allow you to work, are there time restrictions/working restrictions/number of entry restrictions etc.............in short start planning, do your research and at least have a plan and a back up plan. Google is your friend

Some helpful websites I use:

http://www.wordtravels.com

Tripadvisor forums for each country/city you are planning to visit, ask questions/ask for help

SW17

For the kind of travelling you have in mind, in my view 1 month isn't enough to visit all the countries you mention, and even 3 months would be tight to see much of life in such a big region. You might want to narrow your plans a little.

Also, for such a trip duration, no point buying a one way ticket. You may also find that some countries require you to have an onward ticket as a condition of tourist visas or visa-free entry.

BusinessStudent

Hi, I have been to 16 countries in Asia. You could fly into one country and back home from another. I strongly recommend Air Asia, they are very cheap - excellent airline for travelling within Asia.

Voyager2002

BusinessStudent wrote: »

Hi, I have been to 16 countries in Asia. You could fly into one country and back home from another. I strongly recommend Air Asia, they are very cheap - excellent airline for travelling within Asia.

After today's disaster they will probably be even cheaper...

Dudis

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I did some research and I reevaluate my trip. My budget is still 2k pounds and I would like to stay 2 months.

My target destination is now Vietnam, but I would like to stay for a few weeks in Thailand as well.

I have never travelled in this way but I want the feeling like to jump to the water when you do not know how to swim - to survive, you will have to learn asap. My target is to meet the culture and people - "to live there".
The trip is planning on ~ 20th March

There are a few questions:

- So far I checked the prices of tickets and I guess that it is better to buy the ticket with return - I will save quite a lot, so: Is better to buy the ticket to Thailand, then immediately to go to Vietnam, travel and then back to Thailand - visit and discover? Or vice versia? My primary target is Vietnam because so far I read it will be something with the experience to jump to the water when you can't swim.

What is the best option to save money and when I should buy the tickets? Where & when it will be the cheapest? I will probably flight from Prague but I can also from London (Prague is cheaper so far I checked it).

I would like also visit the Kambodia or Laos - which is better? Where are more friendly people?
...and I make trip to Hong Kong or Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur & Signapor) during the time - which one? What is cheaper and better experience?

What else would you recommend? Any tips? Or if you would be me, would you change the plan or make it different?

Thanks everyone for helping, really appreciate it.

paddyrg

Get a Lonely Planet or Rough Guide for where you want to go, and ask in STA Travel about multi hop flights which might appeal (STA are fairly well set up for out of the ordinary requests).

Wherever you go, book yourself a decent hotel for a few nights in advance, so you don't land at the airport, knackered, and have to try to find somewhere. Most reasonable hotels will happily arrange for a transfer to pick you up at the airport, it means you can arrive, get over jet lag and long flight, and know you've got a solid base whilst you start investigating your next move. That next move may even be to a cheaper hotel or hostel to meet other travelers, but you'll be in a position of choice and discernment!

Working overseas - don't expect to do this without a work permit which you almost certainly will not be eligible for. If you do, and get caught, it can mean prison. Think of it the other way round, you can't come to the uk or Czech republic on holiday from (say) Vietnam and expect to work, same applies. As above be very clear about visas and immigration for each country you plan to visit - some will allow maybe 2 weeks tourist visa on arrival, others you might need to get from an embassy in advance. Some will be free, others costly.

Don't worry about coming home early - a month feels a long time when you're away, three months feels a really long time. Either way, your friends at home will barely notice you've gone as life carries on at normal speed, and you can bore them all with travelers tales when you get back (pro tip - people won't really care or be very interested despite it being monumentally life changing for you, and that's normal! Maybe select a few key anecdotes to share with them but that's it).

paddyrg

PS - have a great time