Companions forum

Hi!

I'm a 24 y.o. male, just graduated from Uni in the UK, taking a year out to work/travel before starting a permanent job in September.


I'm planning on travelling around SE Asia for two months from March 15th. I fly to Hong Kong on the 11th, plan to spend a few days there before flying on to Hanoi. I'll travel around the North of Vietnam a little (Sapa, Ha Long Bay) then travel South through Vietnam. I want to try and do this by Motorbike... I hear you can buy one for a few hundred dollars, then sell it on at the end of your trip (sounds simple right? Ha, we'll see!)

There are a couple of reasons I want to go by motorbike- Firstly, i'm 6ft7 and the thought of spending long periods of time on a public bus is making me uncomfortable already! However, the main reason is I want to try and get off the beaten track a little... Be independent, make my own way through the country, in my own time. Take the side road into small towns/villages, homestays maybe? I'm not an experienced motorbike rider, i've only ridden a few automatic mopeds but I hear this is literally the best way to see the country and i'm excited about making it happen.

After travelling through Vietnam, i'll move into Cambodia, travel North into Laos, then cross into Northern Thailand (Chiang Mai etc). My flight leaves from Singapore on the 20th of May, but i'll probably look to end my trip a couple of days before that date in Bangkok then fly from BKK to catch my homeward flight.

A little about myself... I studied Chemistry in the UK, i've lived for a year in the USA (where my family currently lives) and a year in Australia (International Study Year). I've travelled around Australia and NZ, parts of Europe, parts of the USA, i've hitch-hiked (for charity!) from England to Morocco and travelled a little in Morocco, i've also been to South Africa and Swaziland. I've never been to the countries i'm visiting on this trip, but on the way home from Australia I spent 2 weeks in Malaysia and a night in Singapore. As far as a travel companion, i'm adventurous, i'm pretty flexible, relaxed but anxious to make the most of any opportunity... My budget will be pretty small, so I won't be looking to stay in expensive hotels or do many organised tours that cost hundreds of dollars... However, I do have a decent job lined up so I don't mind working myself into a bit of debt for a good trip!

I'm currently looking to do this on my own, but i'm a little anxious about the motorbiking part... I'd feel uneasy riding around Vietnam on my own... A travel companion would be great (just in case something goes wrong on the roads!)

I'm thinking of roughly following an itinerary like this one (in reverse)
http://www.travelfish.org/trip_planner/thailand-indochina-tour1

And here are a couple of articles about motorbiking that got me excited for it!
http://www.travelfish.org/feature/94
http://www.travelfish.org/feature/192

Feel free to comment here, or write me a personal message with any questions/comments etc...

-Chris