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Asia Trip :) HK-Vietnam- Thailand

Hi travelers!

My husband and I have sketch our itinerary for our Asia trip in Dec. It looks something like below. I was just wondering if anyone could give me any input about Phuket and whether we should skip it and go to Krabi (?). Also could anyone suggest if Hoi An is worth a visit while in Vietnam?

I understand that some travelers like not to rush or spend much more time in certain places but we have found that we are pretty fast paced travelers :). We had recently done a Europe trip in 25 days from London - Paris -Colmar- Venice- Santorini- Rome without difficulty and once we put our minds to it there is no stopping us. Thanks for your help!

12/11 – Fly out to Hong Kong
12/12 – Arrive at HK at 4pm
12/12-12/15 – Stay in HK
12/15 – Fly from HK to Saigon, Vietnam
12/15 – Arrive in Saigon at 10:25am
12/15-12/19 – Stay in Saigon
12/19 – Fly from Saigon to Bangkok
12/19 – Arrive in Bangkok at 11:15am
12/19-12/23 – Stay in Bangkok
12/23 – Fly from Bangkok to Phuket
12/23 – Arrive at Phuket at 7:40am/8:45am
12/23-12/25 – Stay in Phuket
12/25 – Fly from Phuket to Chiangmai
12/25 – Arrive in Chiangmai at 11:20am
12/25-12/29 – Stay in Chiangmai
12/29 – Fly from Chiangmai to LA
12/30 – Arrive in LA

Posted by
15794 posts

Have you done much research on Vietnam? There's Hanoi, mountain hiking and Halong Bay in the north, fly to DaNang for 1-2 days to see the sights, fly to Saigon. When I was in DaNang, our small group of 4 took a private tour that was great and included Marble Mountain, Hoi An, ancient My Son (similar to ancient Thai ruins, but the best and most impressive are around Siem Reap in Cambodia, including Angkor Wat). I haven't been to the north yet (I'm planning a return trip to the same places you're going around the same time!!) but from my research it looks like there's more to see and do around Hanoi than DaNang.

I've read that Phuket is very touristy and there are much nicer places in the south but I haven't been.

While you're in HK, take the ferry to Macau either for a day trip or an overnight. I'd add a night for that. In HK stay in Kowloon, the mainland side of HK.

Posted by
1394 posts

Phuket or Krabi. Do you mean the towns or the areas?

Both are very tourist oriented with well organized beaches.

I have been to Phuket: (Patong, Karon, Kata, and Phuket town), Krabi: (Ao Nang). I like all of them (except Patong which is a night mare unless you are party animal). I haven't visited Krabi Town yet. Our favorite is Karon, but your taste may be different.

Ao Nang is the most quiet, then Kata, Karon, Patong in order of increasing noise.

Posted by
15794 posts

There are more sights Kowloon side, that's where the markets are and you can watch the nightly sound and light show there.

Posted by
402 posts

Kowloon Peninsula is much bigger than Hong Kong Island in area. Both offer plenty of sights and markets. For a few days, you can at most cover a fraction of them in either location. The MTR will take you from one to the other in minutes. Where you stay need not be decided by the number of sights and markets. Instead, find a hotel that suits your taste and budget, within a short walking distance to a MTR station.