SE Asia+China time frame

I am taking a 6 month backpacking trip to Southeast Asia and would ideally like to make it up to China and go to Shanghai and Beijing and finish in Tokyo, Japan. My question is 6 months enough time to allow myself to see 3-4 countries in SE Asia and then go up to China?

I know you can spend 6 months in one of these countries alone but without having to rush but still experiencing a good amount and getting a feel for the country. I'm in the process of planning my route and keep getting stuck at this point. Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

Loads of people have done exactly that. Totally possible.

I just finished 6 months in SEA... and I didn't visit China. So it depends on how many countries you want to see and how in-depth you want to see them.

I'd avoid Indonesia with that time frame. It's an interesting place, but a bajillion islands, so traveling around it can be difficult and you could easily sink 2-3 months there. If you really need your fix, I'd pick one or two major islands to sink the majority of a 30-day visa into. Otherwise you'll lose a lot of time/money just in transport.

For that same reason (need to fly if you're in a hurry), Malaysian/Indonesian borneo can be difficult/expensive to travel around as well.

If you're doing the greatest hits on the banana pancake loop, you could easily hit up Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos. I spent more time in Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam than I would have normally because I spent half my time in those countries traveling by motorcycle/motorbike. A great experience... but time consuming.

Thanks a lot for the the replies! I have a friend that lives in Jakarta so I'm thinking that's the only place in Indonesia I will make it. Is flying from country to country the best option or would you recommend boats or train?

Jakarta is... awful. No offense to your friend, but if that's the only place in Indonesia you'll visit, I wouldn't bother. Maybe said friend would be willing to meet you elsewhere, even in Java? Be a waste of a good visa to spend it all in Jakarta. I mean, I'd be surprised if you could tolerate more than a day or two there, and a visa is good for 30 days.

Again, how you travel depends on your budget, timeframe, countries you're interested in, etc. All important details. Without that type of information, it's kind of pointless to offer detailed recommendations.

If you're not sure where you'd want to visit, then I'd read up a little, and see what strikes your fancy.

No offense taken, I appreciate the feedback. Can I ask why it is so awful though? I was considering trying to make it to Bali because I've heard good things but haven't made a decision on it yet. I do plan on hitting the banana pancake trail but it seems like there are so many things to do I can't pick or choose which.

I think for the most part I am going to sketch a general route and kind of play it by ear. Book a stay at the first hostel and figure it out from there. In your experience is that a good idea?

Thanks for all the help!

The book a hostel and see where you end up after that approach is certainly a good one, and very doable in that part of the world to boot. Plus I mean it sounds like your route will be more or less "head northwards" for the most part.

Only thing I would advise you to consider in advance are your visas. This is a lot more important for Vietnam and China for the most part where you can't just get them at the border, but often you spend a lot of time away from an embassy and you might not be able to head onwards always as planned (for example, a few years ago I was in northern Laos just a few miles from the Chinese border... would've been cool to go over, but the closest consulate was several days journey away, so that didn't happen). It'll all work out though.

If you have a friend in Jakarta by all means go, bet they can show you some redeeming features f the city. I took the train from Jakarta to Banyuwangi where I caught a ferry over to Bali then bus to Lovena Beaches a beautiful chill spot, arranged a DPS airport & flight to Singapore.

Travel by bus/train, I'd start in Jakarta & as previously posted, work your way north until time/money run out, can always pick up where you left off on another trip.

Give some thought to Borneo, not expensive to travel by bus & you will already have the visa for the Indonesian part, a Pelini ship is a cheap way to get there but think they only run once a month so may not fit your schedule. Also think about Myanmar, can get visa in Bangkok the same day if you go to the embassy early in the morning.

My general route is pretty much head northwards and will certainly look into getting my visas squared away before I leave, thanks for the heads up.

I hadn't initially considered Borneo but will definitely look into it now. In general what is the best time to visit Southeast Asia? I've heard late in the year (October-Dec. area) is best but have also contemplated leaving in January. Would one be significantly more better than the other?

Info in guidebooks is great but there is nothing like first hand accounts so thanks!

I arrived in Manilla Nov 6 & left Singapore May 7, weather was good the whole time, though Bangkok was hot/humid in April. Oct is the end of the rainy season in Thailand, January would be fine, good way to start the new year off.

December-January is rainy season in Borneo. I arrived in Sarawak late December, left early January, and it rained every day. The nice days were the ones where it wasn't literally raining from morning until evening.

Jakarta is... dirty. Smelly. Uninteresting. Disappointing. The sights are meager, it's difficult to travel around, congested, and, well, there's so many better places in Indonesia that with limited time there, I feel like I wasted the days I spent in Jakarta.

The rainy seasons are going to vary a lot. What's beautiful and dry on the west coast, may be monsooning on the east coast. The Perhentian islands are pretty much shut from November to February, Borneo gets a lot of rain in December January, and I barely escaped Koh Tao in late November before the rains got so bad they shut down all boat traffic for a week.

The good news is, if you travel with flexibility, you can just leave when somewhere doesn't strike your fancy.

Still, it sounds like you're early in the planning process, and I'd say a little research would go a long way.

I got my visa for Vietnam rather easily in Cambodia. Many guesthouses will take your passport, and viola, two days later a Vietnam visa (for a small fee of course). If you want to spend any amount of time in Thailand, fly in. Border visas are for 15 days, flying in gets you 30. Easier than worrying about doing a border run. Malaysia is easy, they just stamp you in for 90 days. Malaysian Borneo gets you another 90 days, and returning back to the mainland gets you, you guessed it, another 90 days. Laos was a pretty simple border visa process. The most difficult part of getting a border visa for Cambodia was the number of scammers on the Thailand/Cambodia border. If you take that route, don't believe anyone who claims to be a border agent unless they're packing heat. Just ignore the scammers and walk straight to the border itself.

How much of that six months are you planning on spending in China? I'd say that would affect your itinerary and schedule quite heavily. 4 months in SEA and 2 in China is a much different trip than 2 months in SEA and 4 in China.

You also haven't really mentioned your budget. Another big factor.

Actually that is exactly what I was thinking was 4 months in SEA and 2 months in China. I was thinking about flying into Singapore heading up to Kuala Lumpur and basically going northward from there. When is the monsoon season for mainland SEA? Would it be better to leave in Oct. or Jan. for that trip?

As far as budget goes; while I haven't been planning this a very long time I have always known it was something I was going to do so I've saved a substantial amount and won't be constrained by any type of budget issues. I plan on spending somewhere around 10-12k for the 6 months. I don't know if that is realistic or an over estimate but it is what I've figured without having to miss any experiences and possibly stay at some of the slightly nicer hostels. You only live once so no sense in penny pinching on a trip such as this IMHO.
(On a side note just watched A Map for Saturday, great movie about solo travel!)

Thanks!

Well if you fly into Singapore and go north, you'll miss out on Indonesia completely. With only four months though, maybe Indonesia and the other island countries may be better as a different trip?

10-12k for 6 months is pretty realistic. I tried to budget 1k a month, but I spent 8 in my first 6 months, and have ~6-7 left for my last 6 months. Honestly, I could have gotten away with much less if I wasn't drinking so much.

It's different on different coasts. Malaysia and Thailand both have opposite coasts that could have very different weather when you're there.

With four months, you won't be able to see everything, but you can plan a pretty damn good trip. So I'd figure out your timeline, then Google average weather during those times of year, and plot a course northwards.

Personally, if I did it again, I'd spend less time in Vietnam and more in Cambodia and Laos. I loved Vietnam's smaller cities and towns and motorbiking between them. The larger cities and tourist destinations were just like unappealing versions of things I had seen in other SEA cities. Plus, if you time your trip right, you'll probably have had enough beach time in Thailand and Malaysia that you won't feel the need to trudge up Vietnam's coast.

You could take the train from Singapore all the way through Malaysia and all the way up to Bangkok easily, stopping whenever it strikes your fancy (you'll have to book separate tickets of course). Very affordable, especially in Malaysia, sometimes cheaper than the bus, and much more comfortable. From Bangkok you could run over to Cambodia (since your 15-day visa is liable to be close to up by then if you crossed from Malaysia), pass on into south Laos, up to north Laos, and back into Thailand for the northern areas. I didn't go to China, but you may have to cross back into Laos or fly after that, but Chiang Mai has a pretty functional airport. Or you could skip north Thailand (my heart would break a little, I'll admit) and give north Vietnam a try.

I will warn you, the sleeper bus between Vietnam (Hanoi) and Laos (Vientiane) is hands-down the worst bus I've ridden on, and I'm including public/chicken buses on small Indonesian islands in that evaluation. The rudest and most insane (possibly drugged out) drivers, loudloudloud music the entire time, and an overflowing toilet. It was a 24-hour trip that our driver did in 18, which would sound like a positive if he didn't accomplish it by driving like a maniac.

If you're going to be taking sleeper buses a lot, you may want to invest in some Valium (or whatever the non-brand name of it is, certain countries like Laos are more likely to give it to you if you say the chemical name), dramamine, or sleeping pills. It's baffling how SEA buses play music/music videos non-stop at deafening levels. Ear plugs and headphones just don't cut it.

I really can't express how much I appreciate all the incredible advice. I didn't even know if I would get any responses but this has been excellent.

Thats what I'm thinking I'm going to do is get on a train and get off whenever I feel like it. A 24 hour bus ride sounds pretty terrible and I might opt for a quick plane ride if thats even an option.

Ideally I'd like to leave when the weather is best so I'll have to look up best times to be there like you mentioned and then just decide if i want to wait until the holidays (Thanksgiving, X-mas, NYE) are over and leave or be on the road for them. Although, I imagine it would be interesting to celebrate NYE abroad.

One question about vaccinations, what is necessary and what is not?

I agree do NOT take sleeper buses, unless you have a burning desire to know how a caged chicken feels, I never experienced a problem with drivers but the contraptions were designed by a deranged lunatic & are rolling death traps IMO!