Help me plan my dream itinerary for 2 weeks in Southeast Asia

October 14, 2019 9:03 AM

I want to spend 12/20/2019 to 01/04/2020 traveling in Southeast Asia. Help me put together my dream itinerary!

Duration : The plan is to depart NYC on 12/20/2019 and return to NYC on 01/04/2020.
Destinations : I'm pretty much completely open to which countries I visit. Should I visit a few countries or go deep on one? Open to suggestions/advice!
Companions : Will be traveling solo, so "romantic couple-y things" aren't really on the agenda.
Safety : I'm a dude about 6' tall, so I'm not super concerned about personal safety, however I don't want to take unnecessary risks.
Money : I have a reasonable amount of money to spend, so I'm not particularly cost-sensitive on this trip.
Things I'm really interested in : food, history, art, outdoor adventures, city life, village life, canoes/rafting
Things I'm interested in : religious/holy sites, beaches, places where other young(ish) people will be traveling
Things I'm not at all interested in : sex tourism, sketchy places where I'd probably get robbed, piloting a two-wheeled vehicle, really difficult hiking trails, all-inclusive resorts, shopping, cruises

Details
I love hiking and doing outdoorsy activities, and am even interested in things like rappelling/abseiling. However, one of my feet has an issue, so while I can do a fair amount of hiking, I can't really do anything that involves a lot of tricky footwork or really rough trails.

I'm not religious or looking for spiritual enlightenment, but I am interested in religious/holy sites if they're fun to explore, have interesting history/artwork/architecture, feature really cool views, if the journey there is a fun adventure, or if it's just an interesting experience in general. But the two days I spent in Kyoto just visiting shrine after shrine after shrine was maybe a bit much.

I'm interested in city life and definitely want to spend at least some time checking out urban environments, but I live in a big city, so I don't need to spend a ton of time doing this. I wouldn't mind spending NYE someplace fun. Maybe Bangkok?

Very interested in rural/village life. However, I am a white guy who has never been to SE Asia before and doesn't speak any languages other than English and Spanish. I am relatively street-smart and don't have any problem finding my way around foreign countries where I don't speak the language. But having said that, I don't know how difficult that will be in rural SE Asia. I am open to hiring guides if guides are available.

I like beaches and wouldn't mind spending at least some time chilling on one. But for me a beach is sort of a one-day thing, and then after that I'm ready to move on.

And yeah, that's about it. If you want to suggest specific points of interest, that's awesome! Or if you have suggestions for a route or itinerary, that's even more awesome!

Thank your for the help and suggestions!

posted by panama joe to Travel & Transportation (9 answers total)

I really loved Bali and would encourage you to dedicate a week to it. Most people who go to Bali go south near the airport for the beaches. That's nice, although in the worst parts of Kuta it's Australian tourist hell. But the really neat part of Bali is up near Ubud, towards the foothills. Absolutely beautiful places, and lots of tourist infrastructure. Even better Ubud is the center of the arts and religious life in Bali. Gamelan music, amazing paintings, carvings, it hits all your notes of wanting to learn about some religion + cultural stuff. The best experience would be to arrange a visit during some temple festival; there's a huge number of them and they are open to visitors. But pretty much any time there will be plenty of music and dance and culture on display.
posted by Nelson at 9:30 AM on October 14, 2019 [1 favorite]

As a practicality, it's roughly a 12 hour time difference and your first day or more, you will be exhausted from the flight and completely jetlagged in a hot and humid climate. I find it easier to spend that time in a city with numerous distractions and 24 hour minimarts so that when you wake up ravenous at 2 AM, you can find something to eat.

Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand is an excellent destination for independent first time travellers to SE Asia. It will be temperate and dry, has a metric ton of guesthouses and hotels that even the height of your holiday season trip can't fill. The city "inside the moat" is lovely to walk or bicycle around and of course, incredible food. There are all sorts of excursions to nearby areas or you can hop a bus and go to a smaller town like Pai. CNX is a cheap flight from BKK (domestic airport) or book a sleeper (in advance!) and take an (inexpensive) overnight train. How often do you get to do that?

On preview: Bali is absolutely the best but this time is monsoon season there
posted by TWinbrook8 at 9:40 AM on October 14, 2019 [2 favorites]

I stayed in Chiang Mai, Thailand over the NYE holiday in 2009-2010. There are LOTS of options for outdoorsy activities. We went on a 4 day hike, with overnight stays in villages. Would recommend. The hiking was long, but not particularly strenuous. We did the countdown thing at some random square in Chiang Mai, with the obligatory paper lanterns, drinks, musical/dance performances. Weather was hot and humid, as expected, but nothing unbearable.
posted by sacrifix at 9:42 AM on October 14, 2019

I'll put in a word for Taiwan as a destination. Taipei is a lovely city, with lots to see and do. Hiking on Xiangshan (Elephant Mountain) is super great (link to a tweet w pic I posted last time I went), and you could watch NYE fireworks being shot from Taipei 101. And the food, OMG the food!
posted by gemmy at 10:46 AM on October 14, 2019

Some things I enjoyed:

Chiang Mai - hiking nearby and cooking classes.

Southeast Asia is full of temples. You’ll find them everywhere.

Siem Reap in Cambodia is huge and worth seeing.

Railay Beach, Thailand if you’re interested in rock climbing (not sure your foot would be up for it )

Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Hoi An, Vietnam. Beach is a bike ride away.

Ko Lanta - super chill beach in South Thailand.

Luang Prabang in Laos

Southern China is nice too. Lijiang or Yangshuo as two options.
posted by backwards guitar at 10:56 AM on October 14, 2019 [1 favorite]

I'd pick one country - there's so much to do in most of South East Asia, you don't want to rush around a lot. Thailand seems like the best option for you - great cities, beaches, rock-climbing, opportunities to visit smaller towns/villages, fun parties, and so on. It's also an excellent introduction to SE Asia as it's very culturally rich yet easy to travel around.
posted by lunasol at 11:06 AM on October 14, 2019

I have to recommend Isan, the northeastern part of Thailand. It ticks a lot of your boxes (great food, interesting temples/culture, excellent value, not hugely urban [though there are some large towns/smaller cities]). You can also safely assume that Isan will be quite far off the usual Thai tourist track of Chiang Mai-Bangkok-the islands given its relative distance from those places, and yet it's comparatively very easy to travel around compared to rural parts of the rest of Southeast Asia, given how saturated Thailand is with cheap domestic flights and the fact that there are two major train lines running through the region.
posted by mdonley at 11:34 AM on October 14, 2019 [2 favorites]

Yogyakarta in Indonesia is amazing, and should tick your boxes.
posted by frumiousb at 4:20 PM on October 14, 2019

If you do end up in Isan, Wat Phu Thok is an incredible monastery, built into the side of a mountain, that is open to visitors.
posted by kokaku at 5:51 PM on October 14, 2019