China-SEA itinerary help
Hi folks,
Long time lurker, first time poster. I've read through most of the forum and want to say thanks for all the great info.
I'm a 30 y/o canadian, single, professional, traveling solo. I am also a bit anti-social so don't tend to meet many new friends on trips (by choice!) I like big city life, people watching from park benches, historical sites, museums, natural sites, the journey itself, endless self-guided walking tours. I do not like shopping, organized tours, partying, drinking, tourist hoards, excessive planning. I'm a semi-budget traveller, but finally making a bit more $ to splurge on that flight over a 24hr train, mid-range hotels vs grungy backpacker dives etc.
I'm flying in to HKG Aug 1st, out from BKK Aug 27th. Planning to spend the last 10 days in Cambodia/BKK. Trying to decide what to do with the rest of my time. Always wanted to "see China" and have numerous "plans" but not enough time to do it all.
Must sees - Beijing, Xi'an.
Not for me - Tibet, any activities that would be boring solo - cruises, 30hr train rides, etc.
On my list - dunhuang, turpan, chengdu, chongqing, guilin. maybe shanghai though it seems not so "chinese" and missable.
I know this is a hot, wet and busy time to be visiting but no other options unfortunately. Being from Newfoundland the heat will likely kill me since it never cracks 30 degrees here ever.
My initial thoughts for the 16ish days in China:
HKG x3 with day trip to Macau
PEK x3 with trip to wall,
Xi'an x2 mostly for warriors, also city walls.
That leaves 8 days to play with. I realize HKG to PEK is quite the trot, so flights for sure. Is this enough time to head west on a silk road type deal maybe to Dunhuang or even Urumqi/Turpan? Or would it be smarter to head down through Sichuan/Chongqing from Xi'an and leave silk road for next time? Or maybe I should consider Kunming/Dali or other Southwest areas.
Either of these areas less crowded than others? I don't mind crowds of people per se, but crowds of tourists are such a turn off. I get that its high season but any areas where crowds aren't such a concern? How far in advance will hard sleepers need to be reserved in August? I've read they're both impossible or simple to get.
I figured I would catch a flight to Phnom Penh or Siem Reap when finished in China. Have considered cutting China out almost entirely and going through Vietnam overland but this trip all started because I wanted to go to China, and flights were over $1000 more to PEK/SHA vs HKG/BKK that I booked. Also Angkor is something I can't wait to see so I'm going for it.
Sorry for the long post, but any helpful hints/suggestions from the experts around here are greatly appreciated!