Navigating SE Asia

Getting around SE Asia is a lot harder than we ever thought. Call it blind optimism or stupidity but we truly thought we could hop around SE Asia like you could Europe. Well, my friends while it is moderately affordable to get around, getting from point A to B is a logistical nightmare. But half the fun I suppose (if you have time to spare). For example, we wanted to see Singapore but due to tight funds, we knew we couldn't afford it. So we intentionally took a 20 hour layover and got to do a free tour of the city! Boom, another stamp in the old passport!

Conversely, traveling SE Asia also means at times you are stuck pondering whether to stay in the outskirts of a town for cheaper or to spend more to stay centrally located. How much is transportation? Is it safe to walk around? Which beach on Phuket is the best to stay by? Every time we decide to move from one location to the next, we open Pandora's box of travel reviews, hotel booking sites and more. It can be daunting, however, if you take some time to do research before you book, it can really save you time and money.

One app we love is Rome2Rio, just about anywhere in the world you want to go, plug in your location and where you want to go and it will tell you how long, how much and the various paths you can take. Yes, it is amazing! It has saved us from numerous folly's and made us realize time and time again, that just popping from one place to the next, is a little more cumbersome than we expected.

Our twenty hour layover was worth it, Singapore was incredible: