Activities

With beautiful beaches and untouched reefs, Indonesia is a dream for snorkelers and SCUBA divers alike. We both are SCUBA certified and took full advantage of the opportunity to get some bottom time. We dove on Gili Air, which was a great place, but the gem was Komodo National Park. Make it out that far and you will be rightly rewarded for your efforts. The whole area is a National Park, above and below the water, making some of the healthiest reefs we’ve had the privilege to enjoy. Diving is one of those activities, though, that will always be on the pricey side. This is not an activity you want to take a risk with old equipment or questionable staff. Our diving splurge in Indonesia, including Advanced Certification for Donny and Nitrox Certification for both, certainly counts for the bulk of the Activities category. It also surely increased the daily expense of being in Indonesia, though it is an optional expense.

Our Thailand expenses are a little different, since they were spread out over three separate visits between September 2011 and January 2012. We arrived in Bangkok, and spent about a week there, before heading north by train to Chiang Mai. After another week or so there, we head into Laos. The next time we crossed the Thai border was via the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge into Nong Khai, in northeastern Thailand. A few days there, and we were headed to Phuket for a mid-RTW rest stop at a Marriott timeshare! A few months later, we returned to Bangkok again just in time for Christmas and New Year’s.

Watch out if you’re visiting China in summer! We were there in July and August, just in time for all the university students and families to snatch up the budget-priced seats on the trains. We were stranded on several occasions without any option of where to go. In one case, we ended up having to buy an airline ticket rather than lose more days when we were more than ready to move on. This obviously increased spending in the overall “Transportation” category.

Planning to visit South Korea? Have it on your RTW itinerary? Just curious? Here is what we spent, and what we spent it on during the 23 days we were in there in June of 2011.

In the case of Japan, the rumors are true: it can be VERY expensive. If you’ve got hotel reward points or friends/family to crash with, this is the place to use them! In our month in Japan we used some cost-saving methods to make our trip more economical. See below for details.

The magical kaleidoscope that is India.

Returning home after an extended trip abroad means putting down your backpack one last time and realizing you now have the option to unpack it. Suddenly everyone speaks your language….

Our visual journey through Vietnam.

A photo essay of the beautiful places and people of Cambodia.

One of our favorite stops! Laos is a truly amazing place. Check out some of our favorite shots from our too-short time there.