The summer is really starting to fly by and our trip to Southeast Asia this November is going to be here before we know it. With that, I have been busy working on my Southeast Asia trip planning. And as always, I am sharing my travel planning process with you. Not because I think everyone should use the same itinerary or planning process that I do, but if you find parts of it helpful, that makes me happy.

I am always telling the people in my life that I almost enjoy planning trips as much as I do taking them. They don’t believe me, but it’s the truth. There is something special about knowing little about a destination and having to dive in and learn more about it. Sometimes, I investigate destinations so much that I already feel like I know them when I arrive.

In my first Southeast Asia trip planning article, I laid out the rough itinerary that we decided to use for our trip. With that settled, we booked our roundtrip airfare to Bangkok, and I started putting together a more detailed itinerary. If you would like to review our rough itinerary, I have included that for you to review below. In this post, which is part two of my Southeast Asia trip planning, I will be filling in the details. I discuss which tours we plan to take, and where we are going to need to book flights, hotels, and transportation.

Rough Itinerary

This is the rough itinerary that we decided on for our trip. As you can see, our trip will span 15-days, with 13 of those days available to explore Southeast Asia.

In my first Southeast Asia trip planning article, I labeled the days 1 thru 15. However, seeing as though the first day of our trip will be lost due to time change and travel, I decided to label it “Day 0” in this post.

Our real exploration begins on the second day of our trip, which I am now calling “Day 1” of our trip. If you want to learn more about why we decided on this rough itinerary and what we plan on seeing at each destination, I have linked to Part 1 of my Southeast Asia trip planning below for you to review.

• Day 0 – Fly to Bangkok, Thailand
• Day 1 – Arrive in Bangkok, Thailand
• Day 2 – Fly to Chiang Mai, Thailand
• Day 3 – Chiang Mai, Thailand
• Day 4 – Chiang Mai, Thailand
• Day 5 – Fly to Da Nang, Vietnam
• Day 6 – Da Nang, Vietnam
• Day 7 – Fly to Siem Reap, Cambodia
• Day 8 – Siem Reap, Cambodia
• Day 9 – Siem Reap, Cambodia
• Day 10 – Fly to Phuket, Thailand
• Day 11 – Phuket\Phi Phi Islands, Thailand
• Day 12 – Phuket\Phi Phi Islands, Thailand
• Day 13 – Fly to Bangkok, Thailand
• Day 14 – Fly Home

Touring Chaing Mai, Thailand

After arriving in Bangkok very late at night, we will stay in a hotel next to the airport as we are flying to Chaing Mai the following day. That means Chaing Mai, Thailand will be the first place we get to explore on this trip. It also meant that Chaing Mai was the first place to focus on for my Southeast Asia trip planning. In addition to finding a hotel for our three-day and three-night stay, I also needed to coordinate airport transports and tours. For more details on the tours we booked, I have provided details below.

Doi Inthanon National Park Tour

On the first full day of our stay in Chaing Mai, I have booked at Doi Inthanon National Park Tour. The park is one of the most beautiful places in the Chaing Mai area and this is one of the city’s most popular tours. In fact, it is so popular that the tour tends to fill up well in advance. Luckily, I began our Southeast Asia trip planning well in advance and was able to reserve us spots on this tour.

Chaing Mai Temples and Golden Triangle Tour

The second full-day tour that we are taking in Chaing Mai is one that I am very excited about. On this tour, we will be visiting some of the area’s most renowned temples. There are some simply stunning temples in the Chaing Mai area, and I cannot wait to see them in person. We will be also stopping at a local Karen village to learn more about their culture and get to tour the infamous Golden Triangle near the Laos and Myanmar borders. This should be an incredible cultural experience and I absolutely cannot wait for it.

Other Planning Needs

In addition to the tours we booked, I have also taken care of some additional travel plans for our stay in Chaing Mai, Thailand. This includes the following:

• Booked flight from Bangkok to Chaing, Mai on morning of Day 2 of our trip.
• Booked 3 nights hotel in Chaing Mai.
• Booked flight from Chaing Mai to Da Nang on morning of Day 5 of our trip.
• Booked airport transfers for arrival and departure.

Touring Da Nang, Viet Nam

After spending three days in Chaing Mai, we will be traveling next to the coastal city of Da Nang in Viet Nam. Here, there are some very specific things that we would like to see. However, the first order of business in our Southeast Asia trip planning for Da Nang was to book a hotel. We will only be spending two days and two nights in Da Nang, so we need to make good use of our time.

We found a hotel near the coastline, which looks incredible. I also arranged for airport transportation to-and-from our hotel so that we don’t have to waste valuable time sorting that out when there. That just left our sightseeing needs, which I accomplished by booking a fantastic tour. For more information on the tour, please see the description and link I provided below.

Golden Bridge, Dragon Bridge, Monkey Mountain, and Marble Mountain Tour

While there is a lot that I would like to see in Da Nang, the primary reason we are visiting is to see two incredible bridges. The first is the Golden Bridge, which is also known as the “Hands of God”. This amazing bridge is located in the Ba Na Hills amusement area on the hills on the outskirts of the city. It features two giant stone hands that look like they are holding the bridge up. It is an absolutely spectacular bridge that I cannot wait to photograph.

The other site that we want to see while touring Da Nang is the Dragon Bridge. This ornate bridge features a dragon that spans the length of the bridge and breathes actual fire. It looks amazing and should be very cool to see in person. This tour that we booked will take us to both bridges, plus some additional sites that look incredible.

Other Planning Needs

In addition to the tours we booked, I have also taken care of some additional travel plans and identified other things we need to take care of for our stay in Da Nang, Viet Nam. This includes the following:

• Booked 2 nights hotel in Da Nang.
• Booked airport transfers for arrival and departure.
• Entering Viet Nam will involve the most complicated VISA process of our trip. I will need to research this fully before arriving. I already know that we will need to bring two passport photos with us for our VISA application.
• Booked flight from Da Nang to Siem Reap on afternoon of Day 7 of our trip.

Touring Siem Reap, Cambodia

After touring Da Nang, we will be hopping on a flight and heading to Cambodia to tour the Siem Reap area. This is one of the parts of the Southeast Asia trip planning that I had the most fun with. With the legendary Angkor Wat and a number of other unbelievable temples in the area, I am so excited to visit this area.

In addition to the sightseeing tours that I had to booked, I also needed to find accommodations for 3 nights in Siem Reap, arrange for airport transfers, and find a flight to Phuket after our stay in Siem Reap is over.

Angkor Wat Sunrise Tour

As you know, travel photography is my passion, so I made sure to book a sunrise tour of Angkor Wat for this trip. I can’t think of a better way to photograph this iconic temple than in the brilliant light of a beautiful sunrise. This is one of the tours I am looking the most forward to on this trip to Southeast Asia.

Phnom Kulen Waterfall National Park Tour

After getting our fill of the breathtaking Angkor Wat the previous day, our second day in Siem Reap will be all about touring the breathtaking scenery in the area. We have a trip planned to tour Phnom Kulen Waterfall National Park. In addition to the gorgeous waterfall, there are a number of other incredible sights that we can’t wait to see on this tour. For more information on this tour, please see the link below.

Other Planning Needs

In addition to the tours we booked, I have also taken care of some additional travel plans for our stay in Siem Reap, Cambodia. This includes the following:

• Booked 3 nights hotel in Siem Reap.
• Booked flight from Siem Reap to Phuket on the morning of Day 10 of our trip.
• Booked airport transfers for arrival and departure.

Touring Phuket, Thailand

From Siem Reap, we will then fly back to Thailand to continue our Southeast Asia adventure. However, this time we will be heading to Southern Thailand. In Phuket, we will be exploring the incredible islands and sea stacks that make this stretch of coastline one of the most amazing coastlines in the world. Essentially, this stop of our trip will be all about photography, photography, photography.

In addition to booking several tours that will allow us to explore the coastline, I also had to book a hotel for our three nights in Phuket, airport transfers, and a flight to take us back to Bangkok at the end of our stay in Phuket.

Phi Phi Islands Sunrise Tour

The first full day in Phuket, we will be exploring one of the area’s biggest tourism draws. This is the day where I will finally get to see the breathtakingly gorgeous Phi Phi Islands with my own eyes. Because I want to get the best photos of this area that I can, we will be taking a sunrise tour of the islands. This will allow me to get some stunning photographs of the island as the sun comes up. It is an adventure that I am dreamed of planning for years and finally got to do it as part of my Southeast Asia trip planning.

James Bond Island and Phang Nga Bay

On our second day in Phuket, it is back out on the water to do some more exploring of the beautiful coastline. This time, we will be exploring the renowned Phang Nga Bay and the infamous James Bond Island. Made famous by the movie “The Man with the Golden Gun”, this stunning little island is beautiful. It is everything that I think of when I think of Southern Thailand in one image. On this tour, we will have a sunset cruise dinner on our way back to Phuket. This, I hope, will allow me to capture some incredible sunset photos in this amazing landscape.

Other Planning Needs

In addition to the tours we booked, I have also taken care of some additional travel plans for our stay in Phuket, Thailand. This includes the following:

• Booked 3 nights hotel in Phuket.
• Booked flight from Phuket to Bangkok on the morning of Day 13 of our trip.
• Booked airport transfers for arrival and departure.

Touring Bangkok, Thailand

Our final stop on our trip will be back in the incredible city of Bangkok. While we don’t have a ton of time to explore, we definitely want to make sure we catch all of the highlights in our limited time in the city. Essentially, we will have one full day to explore. We won’t be able to see everything we want, but I am hopeful that we will get to see some of our top items in the city.

In addition to finding a tour option that will allow us to see the highlights in a limited time, I also had to book a hotel near the airport. We will be leaving to return home early the next morning, so being near the airport is a must. Because most of the hotels near the airport offer transfers, we don’t need to worry about that.

Bangkok Tour Options

The two options that we are looking at for a Bangkok tour are linked below. In the first, a guide will drive us to the top temples in Bangkok in one afternoon. After the tour, we can check out the floating market before returning to our hotel. The other option is to book a hop-on-hop-off tour bus pass. These buses take you to all of the top highlights in the city.

The problem is, we would need to take a taxi to one of the stops to get on, then figure out how often they run and when we need to be at the stops. Otherwise, we may not see everything we want. The good news is, we have plenty of time to decide. In fact, this tour may be a decision we leave until we get to Bangkok and access the situation.

Other Planning Needs

I have also taken care of some travel plans and identified other things we need to take care of for our brief stay in Bangkok, Thailand. This includes the following:

• Booked 1 night stay near the airport for our first night in Thailand. We will be arriving after 11pm and will be flying to Chaing Mai the next morning.
• Booked 1 night stay near the airport for our last full day in Thailand. We will be arriving in Bangkok in the morning, touring the highlights of the city, then flying home the following morning.
• Because our hotel is so close to the airport, transfers to and from the hotel to the airport are included in our stay.
• I need to find a tour that will work for our limited time on the last day of our trip that will show us the highlights of Bangkok in a half-day. There are a few tours I am looking at, including the hop-on-hop-off tour bus.
• We will need to sort out the VISA exemption process for re-entry into Thailand before our trip. We will be arriving in Thailand, touring Chaing Mai, then leaving Thailand to see Viet Nam and Cambodia before returning to tour Phuket. This will require a second VISA exemption.

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