Thread: Short holiday in December. Any ideas?

Looking at a holiday for a week or so in December but not sure where. We will be starting off from CM (the wife and I) and budget for no more than £500-600. Ideally want to see the beach and do some scubering but open to suggestions. Thoughts so far include:

Fly to Phuket and take the ferry to Koh Lanta to see a friend who lives there

Fly to Phnom Phen and find a beach then maybe go to Angkor Wat (any recommendations of a beach paradise?)

Fly to Ho Chi Min City and split the time between the city and the beach (do they have any nice beaches near by?)

Burma. Something different but may struggle to convince the Mrs of the merits!

Don't want mad touristy places but also want somewhere that has some night life. Ideas?

There are direct flights now from CM to Phuket, so this is a good option and December is a nice time to go. There's lots of good diving off Phuket itself and some of the other islands. You could also book an overnight trip to Similan Islands.

Is it a sleeper boat to go to the Similan Islands? Sounds interesting...

I honestly can't remember and I'm having typing issues with the iPad now.

burma. stay far, far away from phuket

more info?

I have no desire to stay in Phuket. Been there before and its not my thing. Looking like we will fly into the airport there though as there is a direct flight from Changers. Will probably get the boat then to Koh Lanta and stop off at Phi Phi for a day maybe on the way.

What's Koh Lanta like? Nice and chilled or getting commercial like most places. I hope it is not as pricey as Krabi was last time I visited. A nice beach and a few chilled out bars and restaurants will do nicely for me; with a scuba shop thrown in for good measure!

Originally Posted by wildbill

Fly to Ho Chi Min City and split the time between the city and the beach (do they have any nice beaches near by?)

only 5% of visitors to viet nam make a return visit.

Up to 95% of statistics are made up on the spot.

up to 99% of wannabe sexpats who are actually too timid for a change know fuck all of what they speak concerning locales they have never been to or have had the briefest of flings with.

people like toac for example, who have barely touched the ground in asia, offer their knowledge and expertise up and down this board. why don't such people engage in more satisfying pastimes? or at least seek to dispense advice on matters which they may have a more than passing knowledge of?

it's an internet thing.

to be fair though, the number used to be 6% return visitors to viet nam, but that average has since dropped

Originally Posted by 3leggedkitty

only 5% of visitors to viet nam make a return visit.

And what are the statistics for other countries? The stats for just one country are pretty meaningless. And where did you get the 5% figure from? Did you make it up?

Looking at going to Koh Lanta now. Is the best route from CM to fly into Phuket with Air Asia? Looking at about 9600B return but looks like a bit of a mission still from Phuket airport. Any thoughts?

Originally Posted by davejones

And what are the statistics for other countries? The stats for just one country are pretty meaningless. And where did you get the 5% figure from? Did you make it up?

i live here. and i live in thailand when i can. why would i be interested in the stats for other countries? how would i come across any? the statistics are not meaningless, they are actually a useful indicator in some respects.

if you spent less energy on being tuffy the forum smart guy, you would find a website called google? and they will have like, links to all sorts of things? and you could look up viet nam? and maybe put tourism numbers in the search bar? or you might ask me? coz like, i read the vitnamee news sites every day?

and like, if you wanted to compare the numbers for other countries? you could also find that on google?

but since we're engaged here? i could tell you that last i read? that thailand has a return rate of 65% of visitors?

it's a difficult country, but i don't have to tell you not to take my word for it, i only live here. for eight years. it's my home, but if i have friends coming to visit from the west, i'd say let's meet up in thailand, because this place is not quite as amenable is all, and i hate it when people say the country i love is a bit of a shithole, just because it is.