Three years ago, in the summer of 2017, I went on a backpacking trip across Southeast Asia with two friends. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done. This was my first extended trip. I was there for 2 months and I travelled to Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Indonesia, with two friends, Tasha and Neha, for most of it.
I still look back at photos from time to time and I also read through my old travel journal to transport myself back there. Everything was great: the food, the people, learning about the history and the overall vibe. I fell in love with Southeast Asia and caught the travel bug. I honestly can’t stop talking about – even 3 years on…
This blog post runs through my itinerary and key recommendations for everywhere I went. I have also added references to how long I spent in each place (excluding travel on night buses). So if you’re planning a trip for Southeast Asia and don’t know where to start, this post is for you! If you’re interested in hearing about my travel experiences in each place in more detail, please read my original blog posts from 2017. I will link to those as I go along. Before I get into it, I’d thought I’d share some of my top tips for a trip to Southeast Asia:
- Learn how to use chopsticks, ideally before you go. I’m awful with chopsticks. I struggled, especially as forks and knives were not always readily available. However, I improved during my time there.
- Try the local beer in each country. My favourite was Bia Saigon.
- Eat as much as humanely possible. The food is cheap and delicious.
- Don’t leave your phone or other valuables in your motorbike storage even if it locks. This was how my phone was stolen.
- Try to learn about the history of the different cities that you visit. I learnt so much and it enriched the whole experience.
Laos
I spent a week in Laos which was very green and rural in comparison to the other countries I visited. It was a slightly low-key introduction to Southeast Asia, with fewer tourists but still catered to backpackers. I remember landing on my own in Luang Prabang. This was after being on the smallest plane I’ve ever flown on from my connection in Thailand. I was exhausted after approx. 24 hours of travelling, but was excited for the next 2 months. I also had my first temple visits and market experiences in Laos.
Luang Prabang (2 nights)
The Night Market was incredible. I bought my first pair of typical backpacking “elephant trousers”, although I chose to pick ones that didn’t have elephants on them. We also woke up early before sunrise to see the monks at the Alms Giving Ceremony. We followed this with a trip to Kuang Si Falls, a beautiful waterfall, with a Moon Bear sanctuary.
Vang Vieng (2 nights)
The drive from Luang Prabang had some amazing views. Vang Vieng is a party town, but we participated in as much of those vibes as we wanted to. Once we got to Vang Vieng, we went tubing, which was so fun. We also stopped at Sakura Bar, which is one of the most popular bars in Vang Vieng.
Vientiane (3 nights)
At the COPE Visitor Centre, we learnt about the “Secret War”. I could not believe that Laos is the most bombed country per capita in the world. We also visited Buddha Park, which is full of Buddha sculptures and is a bit outside of the city.
Vietnam (my favourite in Southeast Asia)
Vietnam continues to be one of the best countries I’ve ever visited. We were there for 3 weeks and that still was not enough. The food was incredible and cheap – I’m talking max £5 for a 3-course meal including a drink. There was also such diversity in landscape. Vietnam was so many countries rolled into one. We visited big and small cities, we relaxed by the coast, we trekked in the mountains and explored UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Vietnam was also the birthplace of another nickname for me to add my to my vast collection: Go Chi Minh.
In terms of food, I would recommend everyone try Pho Bo (the famous Vietnamese noodle soup), Nem Ran (Vietnamese spring rolls), and Bun Cha (also known as Obama noodles). If you’re looking for places to eat, I recommend the following:
- Hanoi Food Culture in Hanoi
- Family House Restaurant in Hue
- Banh Canh Ca Loc Di Huong in Hue
- Banh Mi Phuong in Hoi An
- Ben Thanh Street Food Market in Ho Chi Minh
Hanoi (2 nights)
We went on a free walking tour around the city on our first full day in Hanoi, visited the Temple of Literature and the Hoa Lo prison. We also looked around the shops and haggled for some accessories.
Sapa (2 nights)
We had a 3 day trip to Sapa, the home of the local Hmong people, in Northwestern Vietnam. This included a 2 day trek, mainly around beautiful landscapes and terraced rice fields, and 1 night at a homestay. The food at the homestay was incredible and the family was very keen on us taking one too many shots of rice wine.
Ha Long Bay (2 nights)
Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, known for its blue-green waters and limestone cliffs. We took a 2-night tour, staying on a private island, with boat and kayaking trips in the day. It was stunning.
Phong Nha National Park (1 night)
We had a motorbike tour (not self-driven), visiting the 8 Lady Cave, Paradise Cave and the Dark Cave.
Hue (2 nights)
We walked around the Imperial City on our first day in 40 degrees heat – it was ridiculously hot. On our second day, we had a custom motorbike tour with Motorvina. We visited some pretty cool spots: the tomb of Minh Mang, an abandoned water park, the Thien Mu Pagoda and Pont Couvert de Thanh Toan (a bridge). Spending the day before the Hai Van Pass riding around Hue also gave us a feel for riding and building up our confidence on a motorbike.
Hai Van Pass
One of the many highlights of Vietnam and my whole trip was riding the Hai Van Pass. Starting in Hue and finishing in Hội An, we did have a few stops along the way: a fishing village, Elephant Springs, Lang Co (for lunch) and the Marble Mountains. I did the full Top Gear experience.
Can you imagine? Little old me on a motorbike riding through a 21km long beautiful mountain pass, and on my second ever day of riding a motorbike. If you don’t feel comfortable riding, you could always sit on the back of a guide’s motorbike, which both Tasha and Neha did. Otherwise, if you want to ride but have limited experience, hire a guide so you don’t have to navigate. We made sure we had got some practice in the day before during our custom tour around Hue.
Hội An (2 nights)
We did stay outside of the Ancient Town but pretty much spent all our time walking around the Ancient Town. I would recommend going to the Cloth Market to get some tailor-made clothing (ignore all the high-end shops any guides will take you to). I got some tailored wide-leg trousers and a skater dress appropriate for work. Both Tasha and Neha got custom-made shoes as well from the Shoe Market. Hội An’s Night Market is also one not to miss either! We did spend some time at the beach and also went on a boat tour too, which added to the overall experience.
Nha Trang (2 nights)
We visited the Nha Trang beach early in the morning when we arrived in Nha Trang. We spent the rest of our time in Ninhvana, an exclusive resort outside of the main town.
Ho Chi Minh / Saigon (2 nights)
Ho Chi Minh is the largest city in Vietnam. The main attractions worth visiting were the War Remnants Museum and the Ben Thanh Market. We also went to the famous Cu Chi Tunnels. We did want to visit the Cao Dai temple but didn’t have enough time.
Cambodia
Learning about the history of Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge regime struck an emotional chord with me whilst I was there. We were there for just 5 days, but this was enough to develop a deep appreciation for Cambodia and its people.
Phnom Penh (1 night)
Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital city, although very busy, felt very different to Ho Chi Minh. The first place we visited was the S-21 Prison, also known as the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. This prison, converted from a school, only had 7 survivors, out of 20,000 people. The next day we went to the Choeng Ek Genocidal Centre, one of Cambodian’s killing fields, where the Khmer Rouge’s prisoners were sent to be executed.
Kampot (1 night)
We had limited time in Kampot, which was a stopping point on our way from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. To make the most of our time, we hired a tuk-tuk to take us to the local sights: The Secret Lake (another Khmer Rouge spot), a pepper plantation and some salt fields.
Siem Reap (2 nights)
We spent our first day walking around the town. Our first stop was Pub Street, where I had some delicious Khmer chicken curry, before returning to our accommodation for an early night. We woke up at 4 am on the following day for our Temple Tour of Angkor. Watching the sunrise over Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world, was worth the early start.
We spent the remainder of the morning exploring various temples, including Angkor Wat and the Bakan tower, Prasat Kraven, Sras Srang, Banteay Kdei, Ta Prohm and Bayon. The scale and the details of the whole complex was impressive.
Thailand
We spent a week in Thailand, which was a very eventful week. I didn’t get the chance to explore the Northern part of Thailand, but I wanted to experience some of that Thai island life. It was easy to understand why some people may never leave. The vibe in Southern Thailand was incredibly chilled.
Krabi (1 night)
Tasha and I flew to Krabi from Bangkok, after a bus ride from Cambodia to the Thai border and a fast taxi ride to the Don Mueang airport. Neha had decided to go up north to spend some time with her uni friends. I must shout out the Cube Hostel, our accommodation in Krabi, which was run by the sweetest lady.
Ko Lanta (3 nights)
We had to take a minibus and ferry ride to get to Ko Lanta. It was off-season, so it did rain quite a bit, but this meant it was incredibly quiet, which only enhanced our ability to explore the island. We walked to Phra Ae (Long Beach), chilled, visited Relax Bay, and ended our day at Bubu’s Bar.
The second day, we decided to hire motorcycles from our accommodation and drive around the island. We went to the East Coast, riding past mangroves and also stopping by the Sang Kha Ou fishing village. To catch the sunset, we rode to the West Coast, stopping at Klong Nin beach. Finally, we drive down south to Ao Kantiang for dinner. We ate at Thai Thai and ended our night at Why Not bar.
On our third day, we went to the Mu Ko Lanta National Park. Unfortunately, on our final morning in Ko Lanta, we went back to Long Beach, where our phones got stolen. Not a great way to wrap up our otherwise perfect island stay.
Bangkok (1 night)
We only had just under 48 hours in Bangkok, all without a phone, but we survived, mainly as Tasha had been before and knew her way around a bit. With a bit of luck, we navigated around, visiting Lumphini Park, the Erawan Shrine and Khao San Road. We also watched a movie in the Central World Shopping Mall and got foot massages. We had dinner at Ethos, a really good vegan restaurant (disclaimer: I’m not vegan).
I’ve also since been back to Bangkok with my family since my first trip (after my trip to Malaysia last year) and saw a few more of the big sights: Wat Arun, the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and Pad Pong night market.
Indonesia
I don’t have a blog post on my time in Indonesia, as this was a separate part of my trip. Whilst Tasha and Neha returned to London, I wanted to visit one of my uni friends who is Indonesian. I spent about 10 days in Indonesia and had a whale of a time.
Bali and Gilly Trawangan
Coincidentally, during the time I was planning to go, my friend’s brother was getting married in Bali, and her family extended an invite to me, as well as some other uni friends. It was my first Indian wedding (my friend is Sindhi) and it was an amazing 3 days of events. I did not expect to party so hard (there was an afterparty every night), but it was an honour to partake in and watch the different events, including the Sangeet, Baraat and the traditional wedding ceremony.
Along with our other uni friends, we spent some time after the wedding seeing a bit more of Indonesia. We spent a few days in Ubud and a few days on Gilly T. In Ubud, we went to a yoga class (because why not), we visited the Tegallalang Rice Terrace, and watched a traditional Legong Balinese dance in the centre of Ubud. I didn’t get a chance to go to Mount Batur or Uluwatu, but don’t worry Bali, I’ll be back. On the island of Gilly T, we mainly chilled. The highlight was the full body massage I had on our penultimate evening.
Where to next?
I’d happily go back to Southeast Asia, as I had a fabulous time there. Southeast Asia will always have a special place in my heart. I wouldn’t even mind re-visiting some of the places I saw the first time. Do let me know if you have plans to visit Southeast Asia and where you plan to go. I hope you found my suggestions and itinerary useful!
However, I am also quite keen to visit South America as I’ve never been. I was meant to be going to Peru for 2 weeks this summer (August 2020), but coronavirus had other plans. This would have been my first extended solo trip, with a plan to do the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, but this will have to wait. For now, 2020 has staked its claim as the ‘Year of the Staycation’.