Comments on: leaving on a jet plane

Question: leaving on a jet plane

pieoverdone — Fri, 18 Mar 2005 08:47:42 -0800

I've decided to go on vacation this year and I'm in the early stages of planning it. My style is backpack/hostel/budget travel. Yes, I already know about Let's Go and Lonely Planet. I'll be leaving 9/2 and coming back the 14th. I've got my destinations narrowed to the following: Tokyo, Seoul, Hong Kong, or Moscow. Any experience/advice please.

By: amberglow

amberglow — Fri, 18 Mar 2005 09:26:44 -0800

Tokyo and HongKong are supposed to be very very expensive. Doing Moscow and St. Petersburg might be a good alternative.

By: bryanzera

bryanzera — Fri, 18 Mar 2005 10:10:28 -0800

Try couchsurfing. We've had nothing but great results with it.

By: spaghetti

spaghetti — Fri, 18 Mar 2005 13:17:56 -0800

A Polish guy I met in Germany who had travelled all over Europe said Moscow was the coolest city he had been to, others I've known have expressed similar sentiments. I don't think any of them had been to Asia though, so the comparison might not help...

By: borkingchikapa

borkingchikapa — Fri, 18 Mar 2005 18:02:42 -0800

Yikes, Japan, Korea and Hong Kong aren't the best backpacking destinations. Never been, but I've heard great things about Russia once you get past the ridiculous visa processes.

By: zardoz

zardoz — Sat, 19 Mar 2005 01:11:23 -0800

I live in Tokyo and it's a crowded, noisy and generally expensive place. Lugging a big backpack around the city ain't much fun. There are plenty of guest houses, though, and a rockin' night life if that's what you're looking for.

It's just a big, big city, with lots to see and do, but if you want to "rough it", I'd recommend another Asian city I've backpacked two different times: Bangkok. Much more tourist-oriented (which is both good and bad). Khao San Road is the seedy but quite fun backpacker's row, with tons of guest houses and restaurants.

Japan is great in so many ways, but it's not the best place for tourism.