China/Thailand/Vietnam trip

Aim2Please

hey all, was thinking of doing 3.5 to 4 weeks of travel in the above mentioned countries. I was thinking of flying to Beijing in late December from Dublin and then maybe a train to Hong Kong, then on to HoChiMinh in South Vietnam, next Bangkok and then make my way back to Beijing to fly back to Dublin.

Anyone any advice on how easy it is to fly/rail/bus it between these cities? also a rough idea on cost would be great.

regards

Rcuomo

hey
ive never been to china, but have been to south east asia, i envy you heading there. do you not think getting from beijing to hong kong by train will take a little too long? its a massive distance to go, i think flying would be best, maybe a little expensve though
check out this map
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/map/
that website also has good tips for travelling in china

as for travelling in thailand and vietnam, you can fly to vietnam from bangkok, plenty of connections....flying is fairly cheap but would reccomend travelling by bus and train in some places in thailand to see the countryside...

in thailand bangkok cant be missed, chiang mai in the north, and check out hua hin along the coast not too far from bangkok for a small, semi quiet little town. the three main islands in the gulf are definitely worth trip too, check out koh tao, the farthest north one, smallest of them and overlooked by most...it's quiet and really laid back...

PunyHuman

Hi

Perhaps you should consider flying back to Dublin from Bangkok, as this would give you more time travelling.

In Vietnam, I preferred the north to the south. In my opinion Hanoi is a much nicer city than HCMC.

Also, if you have the time, I'd recommend going to Cambodia. If you're heading from HCMC to Bangkok you could do it easily overland - or along the Mekong - through Phnom Penh and Siem Reap/Angkor.

Transport links shouldn't be a problem. Hong Kong has flights to everywhere, Vietnam is linked to China by rail, and there are plenty of buses in Thailand and Cambodia.

Regarding costs, it really depends on your style of travel: will you be staying in hostels or hotels, eating restaurant food or street food, taking flights or bussing it? Also, organised tours can be relatively expensive.

Whatever way you do it though, I'd say you'd be hard pressed to spend more than a thousand euro in a month, excluding flights, insurance, shots etc.

Have fun.

www.talesofasia.com

Aim2Please

Thanks for the replies. Will probably be a mixture of cheap hotels and hostels by way of accommodation, probably will be just two of us going.

Yeah, was thinking of going through Cambodia on the way to Thailand from Vietnam.

Just a couple more questions....

1 -visas. Are there Vietnamese and Cambodian embassies in Ireland or is Ireland covered by their UK representatives? I see there is a Chinese embassy in Dublin and I hear that no visa is necessary for Thailand?

2- Vaccinations . How much do these cost? I think I need

• Tetanus
• Typhoid
• Hepatitis A


Thanks for any replies

PunyHuman

I don't think Vietnam have an embassy here. You might want to get your Vietnamese visa in Beijing.

You can get your Cambodian visa at most border crossings. It's supposed to be $20 but you might pay a bit more. And yeah, no visa is necessary for Thailand.

About vaccinations, see your GP or www.tmb.ie. I got the three you mentioned plus yellow fever and a polio booster. Cost about €150, but it's tax deductible.

Aim2Please

Thanks PunyHuman. Where did you get information on the vaccinations being tax deductible do you remember?

Thanks

PunyHuman

Here is the form you need to submit.

Deductible expenses are any GP visits (travel-related or not), the cost of the shots themselves, and any prescription drugs you purchase to bring with you.

Ginger

Cambodian Visa costs 20 USD and also requires 2 Passport photos with a neutral expression

I flew into Siem Riep and it took about 20 minutes to get it sorted. If you fly out it will cost you about 20->25USD to leave. Also there are no cash machines in Cambodia.

The unit of currency is the riel and its rate is 4000Riel to the USD. There are no coins. It works that all values are quoted in US and if its not an even dollar change will be given in Riel.

The only way to get cash is to get it out on your credit card with the likes of Western Union and they are only avalible in the major spots.

If you want to Angkor, it costs 45USD +1 Passport photo for a 3 day pass.

You can bus it from Siem Riep to Bangkok but the border crossings can sometimes be crazy because of the time in getting off one truck and onto another. Can be easier to fly sometimes. You can also get a ferry from Penom Phen to some of the major islands in the Andaman Sea (Gulf Of Thailand)

I think in my travel diary from around September last year there is some fairly detailed travel plans (http://dev-admin.mobhaile.ie/blog/nolonger) and they maybe of some help.

As for China definately get the lonely planet for there, its pretty on the mark. Also dont be worried when you see people asking to take your photo.. Not many westerners. Even in Hong Kong this is the case then again I do have red hair!!!

PunyHuman

Ginger wrote:

The only way to get cash is to get it out on your credit card with the likes of Western Union and they are only avalible in the major spots.

Not strictly true. Some Cambodian banks give credit card advances and most will exchange traveller's cheques which is fun becuase you're usually given so many neat bundles of crisp notes that it looks as if you've just robbed the place.

The best currency solution for Cambodia, and Vietnam and Laos also, is to carry a bunch of US Dollars in various denominations. They're widely accepted.

Ginger

Come to think of it thats what we did, we got a cash advance from a credit card in a bank.