Long Haul Destination Ideas

blindman

Moneygrabber89 wrote: »

Is there no quick way to get from halong bay to hoi ann instead of going back to Hanoi. Think we will give hue a miss as recently went to Japan do all templed out

When we went I looked at the options and the quickest way was to get a car to Ninh Bin (where we were having a day or two) and then catch a train from there.

There are buses but they are not that regular nor reliable IMHO.

PompeyPete

blindman wrote: »

When we went I looked at the options and the quickest way was to get a car to Ninh Bin (where we were having a day or two) and then catch a train from there.

Seriously? I thought the train from Ninh Binh to Danang took about 14 [possibly longer and uncomfortable] hours.

blindman wrote: »

There are buses but they are not that regular nor reliable IMHO.

I agree, use them as the final option, and never travel on an overnight bus. Recently a sleeper bus in Vietnam got scythed from from front to back by an industrial construction scythe which was being piggy-backed on a lorry. The scythe, which was secured in the vertical position suddenly broke loose into the horizontal.....made a mess and a few passengers met an horrible end.

blindman

PompeyPete wrote: »

Seriously? I thought the train from Ninh Binh to Danang took about 14 [possibly longer and uncomfortable] hours.

.

Yes, 14 hrs but overnight in a sleeper is the best use of money and time and not that uncomfortable IMHO.

PompeyPete

I like overnight train travel too, not done it Vietnam, but twice in Thailand and once on a train with square wheels in Turkey.

They're not everyone's cup of tea though.....my wife for one, she only tags along out of curiosity!

I'll post the timetable in a few minutes.

PompeyPete

Timetables, fares, and a whole lot about train travel in Vietnam...

https://www.seat61.com/Vietnam.htm

Worth noting that the man who runs that website is passionate about trains, a complete 'anorak', and does get some criticism about his rose-tinted glasses.

blindman

PompeyPete wrote: »

Timetables, fares, and a whole lot about train travel in Vietnam...

https://www.seat61.com/Vietnam.htm

Worth noting that the man who runs that website is passionate about trains, a complete 'anorak', and does get some criticism about his rose-tinted glasses.

I linked to that site in post 32 :cool:

Have used him to get the info as to how to book trains in China and India.

No doubt will use it in the future.

Our trips tend to be from 0* to 5* in both travel and accommodation :rotfl:

Mrs B tolerates the 0* for the 5* delights:cool:

PompeyPete

blindman wrote: »

I linked to that site in post 32 :cool:

Sorry, missed it.....didn't realise it was hidden beneath Danang.

Abby_W

Have you ever thought of Malaysia? They speak English pretty well and you can combine a city trip with a beach holiday.

slinga

Abby_W wrote: »

Have you ever thought of Malaysia? They speak English pretty well and you can combine a city trip with a beach holiday.

Flight to KL and then coach to Penang . Loads of things to do in Penang. Not keen on KL so much these days.
Malacca is good as well but in opposite direction to Penang.

You could hire a car.
Malaysian drivers are OK, imo.

PompeyPete

slinga wrote: »

Flight to KL and then coach to Penang . Loads of things to do in Penang. Not keen on KL so much these days.
Malacca is good as well but in opposite direction to Penang.

You could hire a car.
Malaysian drivers are OK, imo.

Sarawak and Sabah in Borneo are part of Malaysia too, and worth a visit.....though I'm not particularly recommending the way we did it...

We flew with Royal Brunei to Bandar Seri Begawan, not too exciting [Saudi Arabia with a smile], but alright for a couple of nights

Then caught a catamaran to the island of Labuan, and on to Kota Kinabalu [KK] in Sabah.....a few nights there.

Then short Air Asia flight to Kuching in Sarawak....a few nights there.

Flew back to KK for 3 nights. Hired a little car for a couple of days, almost never made it back to KK after a hitting rough weather and a lousy road after visiting Mount Kinabalu National Park.

Catamaran back to Brunei [via Labuan]. The South China Sea experience on that leg wasn't very pleasant, and we were delayed a few hours in Labuan.

Just caught our flight home from Bandar Seri Begawan.

Somewhere else ticked off our list.:)