Summer 2017
The entire trip will take place from July 21st, 2017 to August 24th, 2017. Our goal is to begin in Bangkok. We plan to make a quick trip to Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat and other historical sites in Siem Reap. Once back in Bangkok, we will head north to Chiang Mai, east to Luang Prabang and Hanoi, then south along the Vietnam coast. We will make stops in Da Nang, Hue, Hoi An, and Ho Chi Minh City before heading back to southern Thailand and down the Thai peninsula to Koh Tao. We’re ending our trip back in Bangkok, where we will spend just short of a week exploring the different parts of the city!
We found a flight we couldn’t pass up and it happened to make a 35-day trip. We planned out the trip so that we can have ample amount of time to see the popular attractions, while making sure to indulge in the amazing natural beauty, the rich history, the local cuisines, and the people along the way.
As we take on this journey across these four beautiful countries, we plan to stray off the beaten path in search of adventure, witnessing sunrises and sunsets from different parts of the world, and learn along the way (after all… journey is everything!). We are excited to share our upcoming trip with all of our family, friends, and travel enthusiasts so welcome and don’t be shy!
Our Southeast Asia Route
We have a pretty concrete idea of the cities and places we want to visit along the way. Many of these places came about after we began researching and speaking with friends about routes and destinations. After last year’s road trip, we feel somewhat proficient in national geography, but these are new places for the both of us, so I’m sure we’re in for some surprises.
Day 1-2: We will begin this journey from our apartment in New York City (once again). From there, we’ll be flying from LaGuardia Airport, through Tokyo, and into Bangkok’s international airport. We get in late, so the first night will be combatting jetlag. Once in Bangkok and settled, we plan to go to Chatuchak weekend market and Rot Fai market for some shopping and quick eats.
Day 3-4: From Bangkok, Thailand, we’ll take an afternoon roundtrip flight to Siem Reap, Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat and other temples in the area. If we have enough time, we plan on visiting a Floating Village near Siem Reap.
Day 5: We plan on staying at a hotel near the Mo Chit bus station in order to get an early start to Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park. In order to see the whole historical park, we plan on renting bicycles. After a day of cycling around the historical grounds, we will cool off by the riverfront, and enjoy the Night Market.
Day 6: From Kamphaeng Phet, Thailand, we will take a songthaew (taxi) to Sukhothai Historical Park, where we’ll be exploring for the day and staying the night.
Day 7-9: From Sukhothai, Thailand, we will take a 3-hour bus north to Chiang Mai, Thailand. Once in the old town, we will explore the many temples the center has to offer. On Saturday, we’ll be renting a motorcycle to go bamboo rafting down the Mae Wang River. On Sunday, we have a reservation to play with elephants at the Elephant Nature Park. Over the weekend, we also plan to check out the Saturday night bazaar and the famous Sunday night market.
Day 10: From Chiang Mai, we will take another bus to Chiang Rai, Thailand, to see the famous White Temple (Wat Rong Khun) and the contrasting Black House (Ban Du), along with the city center’s famous clock tower.
Day 11-14: From Chiang Rai, we’ll take a bus to the Thai-Laos boarder where we will take a slowboat down the Mekong River to Luang Prabang, Laos. Once in the city, we will explore the many temples, including the famous Mount Phousi. We plan to rent a motorcycle to explore Kuang Si Falls and the Sun Bear Sanctuary.
Day 15-17: From Luang Prabang, we are catching flight to Hanoi, Vietnam. One of our days in Hanoi, will be spent out at Halong Bay. The other days, we plan to explore the city’s Old Quarter and we have a reservation with Duong cooking class through the city’s market.
Day 18-19: From Hanoi, we take a short flight along the coast to Da Nang, Vietnam. We plan to rent a motorcycle to visit the Marble Mountains and Non Nuoc Beach in Hoi An, Vietnam. We will then ride to the Son Tra Peninsula and ride up to the top of Monkey Mountain. The next day we will go to My Son Sanctuary and cruise the Thu Bon River back to the ancient town of Hoi An and the famous silk village.
Day 20-21: From Da Nang, we’ll take another short flight down the coast to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. We will spend most of our time in District 1 to make sure we have plenty of time for Ben Thanh Market and the beautiful French history around the old city quarters (Notre Dame Cathedral, Post Office, etc.)
Day 22: From Ho Chi Minh City, we will fly into Bangkok for the day. We will be taking an overnight bus to Koh Tao, Thailand so we plan to visit one of the biggest temples in Southeast Asia, Wat Phra Dhammakaya, because of its proximity to Don Muang Airport.
Day 23-27: Our overnight bus/ferry connection will get us to Koh Tao early. We plan to rent a scooter for a day to end at John-Suwan Viewpoint. We also want to see the smaller islands of Koh Nang Yuan and have a personal longtail boat snorkel trip around the island of Koh Tao.
Day 28: We want to take an early ferry to the town of Surat Thani to find and boat to get out to kayak/hike nearby Ang Thong National Park (we may have to go to Koh Samui…).
Day 29-35: We will spend our last 5 days in Bangkok before flying back to New York City. During this time, we plan to spend 2 days in and around the river, temples, and market area, at least one at other markets. We plan to spend the last 2 days around Lumphini Park to celebrate Joey’s birthday! Even though it’s his birthday, I plan on getting myself a KoAloha ukulele to cap everything off!!!