Cmb/sgn/hkt?

Has anyone been to Colombo, Ho Chi Minh or Phuket?

My gf is meeting me in SIN on her birthday weekend and I want to take her somewhere as a surprise! Kind of limited to stick to oneworld airlines, full rev, or a combo of both due to her ticket eligibility. (We just saw a job at DL going in SIN which I wish she could apply for... but no work permit yet :/ )

Colombo, we could arrive on CX just before midnight friday night, and leave on EK at 1430 on Sunday.

Ho Chi Minh we could arrive on Tiger at 0840 Sat morn, and leave at 1730 Sun night.

Phuket same as Ho Chi Minh.

She has been to Phuket, I haven't.... I know she liked it there but thought somewhere else might be nice.

Anyone been to these places? Any ideas? I'm leaning to SGN... as it seems interesting and gives us the most time, but CMB would be cool also.

Hi Nick,

I have been to SGN. Its hot, messy and noisy. Some people love it...they even claim its the Asia they had been dreaming from afar. Others will just head to Mui Ne (beach, Kite surf), Dalat (lovers destination...) or Mekong River. Its a big city; you can take a half day trip to Cu Chi Tunnels.
Phuket? Head to Koh Phi Phi instead. Much more scenic...and you will avoid hordes of drunk idiots :)

I have never been to Colombo...but it seems a challenging destination.

Good luck :)

I really wanted to make it to HAN iso SGN as I heard it is much nicer... but the flts are more expensive and the timings aren't great.

is Koh Phi Phi aka Phi Phi Island? I've heard lots about that... still full of Australian idiots no doubt :/

Nick--you might want this forum for up-close first-hand info--I think many of the contributors ARE Australian--"idiots", I dunno....but I find their posts helpful now and then
Are you planning to wear your sleeveless t-shirt? (we call them wife-beaters--I think you call them singlets?) chortling, as I type

Nick,

Yes...Koh is the Thai word for island. I think you will fine in Phi Phi.

I agree. HAN is nicer than SGN....but it is also much more noisier and crazy too. HAN its definitely an experience.

ahhh...and Halong Bay is just "around the corner"... :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mrs767er

Nick--you might want this forum for up-close first-hand info--I think many of the contributors ARE Australian--"idiots", I dunno....but I find their posts helpful now and then
Are you planning to wear your sleeveless t-shirt? (we call them wife-beaters--I think you call them singlets?) chortling, as I type

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Was there meant to be a link in this post? Think you might have forgot to put it in cause I can't see it!

Haha NO sleeveless singha shirts etc! I try to avoid other Australians on vacation as much as possible. Why fly somewhere to sit at an "Aussie" themed bar and drink with a bunch of bogans who can barely put together a sentence? Maybe this is why i'm moving to Singapore...

Haha we call them singlets, but wife beater would be understood courtesy of Ryan from the OC fame. Wife beater always reminds me of London also, someone told me once that's what they call Stella Artois

We've been to Ko Phi Phi and Saigon. You only have one day? To get to Phi Phi you will have to take a taxi to the ferry, and take a couple hour (If I remember) ferry ride to Phi Phi. That is a lot of travel time both ways. We stayed at the Holiday Inn on Phi Phi and really liked it. It is nice and quiet (you have to take a water taxi to get there) and our bungalow was fine. I found Phuket to be too crowded for my taste. We stayed at some resort out of town (excellent).

Saigon is one of the few places I was very afraid to cross the street. Think of a crowded street in Bangkok and add a lot more vehicles. We enjoyed our visit and yes, we went on a tour to the Cu Chi tunnels, which we thought were pretty amazing, especially since my father in-law fought for the US army in Da Nang during the tet offensive. If you do go to Saigon, bring very little stuff as there are plenty of bargains to be had.

Ended up picking HCMC... going for weekend in a couple of weeks :) We decided on the park hyatt, i've read good reviews and it looks nice. I find it amusing however when making the booking that it has an area to enter what airline and flight you are on, of course tiger airways is too poorly to be in this list!!