glennaa11

I agree that Japan seems a bit unrealistic for that budget.

I just spent some time in Taiwan which is surprisingly affordable and a really nice country. It is also very cheap to get around with lots of buses that go everywhere. According to my friend you can take a bus to pretty much every little town in the country from Taipei. The scenery is fantastic too. And Taipei is cheap to get around. The MRT costs next to nothing and is a great system. There are lots of buses going all over town for cheap too. And some (many?) of the buses are bilingual (i.e. announcements of stops in English and Chinese).

Unless there is some non-obvious reason though, I think sticking to SE Asia would give you plenty to do and save you some time and money on the flying part. Vietnam is interesting. Burma is fascinating and while not as cheap as it used to be, can probably be done.

The only other thing I would add is that 3 months is a long time. Especially for a first timer going solo. My luxury 1 month solo trips are usually plenty for me. By the end I am typically ready to go home. I did 5 weeks last year and it definitely felt like 1 week too long. I enjoy being on my own, but it can weigh on you sometimes, especially when you get sick or injured. I assume you will meet some folks along the way. But if your schedule is very set then chances are you won't meet a lot of traveling companions who will be with you for long.