Travel Ideas?

[Marsh]

Hey guys,

I am planning to go travelling this summer, from june to august on my own. I have a few ideas on where to go but im not entirely sure about a few things, so if anyone has any relevant input/ideas that would be great!

1. Travel se asia, mainly vietnam, cambodia, thailand, singapore (maybe malaysia). Question though, will it be too damn hot in the summer?

2. Mideast/Africa: Ideally Kenya/South africa, egypt, dubai, lebanon and turkey. Really trying to get an idea for what it would be like backpacking/ going solo to these places in the summer (again, too hot?)

3.West/east europe: i've been backpacking through europe before, but haven't gone to spain/portugal or to eastern europe (croatia/czech/serbia etc). Is it worth going?


Basically i'll have 8-10 weeks to travel, and Im not too picky about where I go, just want to travel. If anyone as any ideas or suggestions, I would definitely appreciate any input!

Thanks

[msommers]

It really depends on what you want to see. I saw Spain and also Croatia/Czech/Hungary which are all pretty cheap in comparison to the rest of Europe, especially Hungary. For Czech and Hungary, I'm not sure how far you could venture out passed Prague/Budapest because of severe language barriers but I could be wrong. Croatia was goregous, I cannot say enough good things about it. It's more outdoors-type of activities however. I met quite a few backpackers who were doing only Eastern Europe because of cost but there is also history to see.

I guess it really depends on what you're wanting out of a vacation. I don't have any personal experience with the other places of mention. You could even split it up, 4 weeks in Eastern Europe and 4 weeks Northern Africa.

[Marsh]

Thanks, thats good info to know. I usually plan a big vacation every year, in the next couple of years I will end up seeing all the above and more anyways.

Europe in the summer would be good but potentially pricy...and as for the others i dont think i know anyone who has gone during summer months, so im not sure what the cost would be like

[davidI]

Originally posted by Marsh

1. Travel se asia, mainly vietnam, cambodia, thailand, singapore (maybe malaysia). Question though, will it be too damn hot in the summer?

It would still be great travels, but hot and sticky at this time of year and possibly quite wet. Thailand has really been hit with bad flooding the last few years and I've had friends who are resident there get stuck. Not positive if it was May / June, but I do think it was around those months. Likely the cheapest of all options though.

Originally posted by Marsh

2. Mideast/Africa: Ideally Kenya/South africa, egypt, dubai, lebanon and turkey. Really trying to get an idea for what it would be like backpacking/ going solo to these places in the summer (again, too hot?)

It's possible to backpack Africa and the Middle East, but it's more difficult and expensive than you would expect.

South Africa is certainly doable with the http://www.bazbus.com/
There are also some decent hostels and it's possible to rent a car on the cheap if you want to hit a game park. I can recommend a great hostel in Cape Town so there's always the option of heading there, and finding a group to rent a car with or tagging along on someone else's trip. It's more expensive than you may expect though.

Kenya is tougher. Buses aren't very reliable and there isn't much other cheap transport. Paying for a tour is almost your best bet. Accommodation would also be tough. Thing with Africa is that a lot of the game parks and sights are away from urban destinations, so you almost need to be organized with a tour operator who has tents and stuff. If you had a big group, there's always the possibility of renting a car and equipment, but with all of the corruption and things that could go wrong I think it would be a hassle.

Dubai is not really a hostel / backpacker destination. A good stop-over point though. Also, visas are very expensive for Canadians now. http://baldpacker.com/united-arab-emirates-dubai

Egypt is doable, but once again, probably easier and more enjoyable on a tour. Not the easiest or most convenient place to get around or find decent accommodation. Pretty hectic. Security may be an issue at the moment as well.

Lebanon - haven't been. Heard it's great, but would worry about security at the moment.

Turkey - haven't been but definitely doable as a backpacker destination depending on the places you choose.

Originally posted by Marsh

3.West/east europe: i've been backpacking through europe before, but haven't gone to spain/portugal or to eastern europe (croatia/czech/serbia etc). Is it worth going?

This would be my recommendation if you're a single dude. May/June = college girl hunting season.

Spain / Portugal / Czech are all great. I haven't been to Croatia or Serbia yet.
I may head to the Balkans for a month in May/June as well so you'd be welcome to join up for a couple of weeks if you're interested and assuming my plans work out.

I'll probably choose 2-3 countries out of Bosnia, Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Croatia and spend 1-2 weeks in each.

Or, I may head to Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. I think those 4 countries would be manageable in a month, though if I like a country I'll probably have to go back.

Ukraine / Romania is another option...