Group tours to South East Asia

From November to February, the dry and cool season is ideal for most of the mainland. Some areas are the exception, like Bali, where the driest period runs roughly from April to October. The monsoon season, generally between May and October, doesn't hit every country in the same way:

• Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos: dry season from November to April. The Gulf of Thailand (Koh Samui) is wetter from October to December, and central Vietnam gets rain from September to December.
• Malaysia: the east coast gets its heaviest rain from November to March, while the rest of the country is drier from late May to September.
• Singapore: no clear dry or rainy season, with February the driest month.
• Philippines: dry season from December to May, rainy season from June to November.
• Myanmar: monsoon from mid-May to late October, though the central area around Bagan and Mandalay is more sheltered.

For a single country like Thailand or Vietnam, 10-14 days are enough, or 12-15 if you add the Thai islands or travel the length of Vietnam from north to south. For several countries in the region, plan at least 3-4 weeks. A multi-country trip of two neighboring countries works in 14-18 days (Thailand and Cambodia) or 16-20 days (Vietnam and Cambodia).

Indonesia and the Philippines need extra days for domestic flights and ferries, which can be canceled in bad weather, so leave a buffer day before a key transfer. Plan at least 2 nights per stop, 3 in big cities, and half a day more for each border crossing.

From the US, flights are long, so add a day or two for the arrival: a Thanksgiving break is not enough for the region.

It depends on the country, and the rules change often, so before you book check the country page on travel.state.gov and the embassy's website. You need a passport across the region, since a passport card is not valid for international flights. Many countries, like Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, offer visa-free entry for short stays to many nationalities, while Vietnam and Indonesia require an e-visa or visa on arrival. Myanmar has an official single-entry e-visa.

Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines also ask you to fill out a digital arrival card online before you land: it is not a visa. Bali charges foreign tourists a levy, payable online on the official site.

Use only official portals, such as evisa.gov.vn for Vietnam or evisa.imigrasi.go.id for Indonesia, since many third-party sites look official and add their own fees.

Hepatitis A and B and typhoid are recommended for the region. In rural and jungle areas, it's worth talking to a doctor about malaria prophylaxis, which is a prescription medication, not a vaccine.

Mosquitoes are part of the tropical picture, and the ones that spread dengue are active during the day, mostly in towns and cities. Clothing that covers your body, bed nets, and repellents with DEET, picaridin, or IR3535 help throughout the region. A vaccine also exists for Japanese encephalitis, mostly relevant in rural areas and rice fields in the rainy season, and your doctor can tell you whether it makes sense for your itinerary.

Always consult a travel health clinic before you go, check whether your health plan covers care abroad, and consider travel medical insurance that includes medical evacuation.

Southeast Asia packs a lot of variety into one region:

• Cambodia: the temples of Angkor Wat, in an archaeological park that preserves the capitals of the Khmer Empire.
• Thailand and Bali: the beaches. In Bali, also the rice-field landscape of the subak, the traditional irrigation system, a UNESCO site.
• Vietnam: the historic town of Hoi An.
• Singapore: modernity, with the colonial Botanic Gardens.
• Indonesia: Borobudur, a Buddhist temple from the 8th and 9th centuries, and Komodo National Park.
• Laos: the town of Luang Prabang.
• Myanmar: Bagan, on the Ayeyarwady River.
• Malaysia: the historic cities of Melaka and George Town, and the caves of Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak.
• Philippines: the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River in Palawan and the Rice Terraces of the Cordilleras.

Each country has its own currency:

• Thailand: Thai baht
• Vietnam: Vietnamese dong
• Cambodia: Cambodian riel, with the US dollar also widely used
• Laos: Lao kip
• Malaysia: Malaysian ringgit
• Indonesia: Indonesian rupiah
• Philippines: Philippine peso
• Singapore: Singapore dollar
• Myanmar: Myanmar kyat

In Indonesia the rupiah is the only currency allowed for transactions, and in Laos only the kip is accepted, so don't count on dollars there. It's best to exchange money or withdraw cash locally at each stop, carrying only small amounts, and to check your card's foreign transaction fees.

The budget is generally very affordable, though Singapore is considerably pricier than the rest of the region.

The flight from the US is a major part of the cost, and timing matters too: around the region's big holidays, such as Tết in Vietnam and Lunar New Year, flights and lodging are in high demand. Travel style makes a difference as well, from lodging and restaurants to the number of transfers, especially domestic flights and ferries. In Bali, foreign tourists pay a levy, and the Indonesian visa on arrival has a fee.

Low-cost flights connect the main cities quickly, overnight buses and trains are cheap for longer routes, and the scooter is very common for local travel. Reaching the islands takes a ferry or speedboat. In detail:

• Trains: overnight trains run in Thailand and Vietnam. In Laos, the new railway links Vientiane, Vang Vieng, and Luang Prabang, and in Malaysia the ETS trains connect Kuala Lumpur with Ipoh and Penang. In Indonesia, a high-speed line links Jakarta and Bandung in under an hour.
• Ride apps: Grab operates in most of the region and helps you avoid haggling.
• Islands: ferries are the main link in Thailand and Indonesia, and rough seas can pause service in the monsoon season. The Philippines relies on RoRo ferries for island hopping.
• Driving: traffic keeps to the left in Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia. To rent a vehicle you usually need an International Driving Permit, issued in the US only by AAA or AATA.

The climate is tropical almost everywhere, with high temperatures and constant humidity, though not the same across the region. The rainy season brings heavy downpours that are generally short and mostly in the afternoon. Some differences:

• Singapore: the northeast monsoon is windier and the southwest monsoon drier, with afternoon thunderstorms in between.
• Malaysia: two monsoons, one from the northeast and one from the southwest, with the heaviest rain on the east coast in the northeast monsoon.
• Philippines: a dry and a rainy season alternate, and tropical cyclones are part of the planning.
• Vietnam and Laos: northern Vietnam has a cool winter, and the mountains of northern Laos are cooler than the lowlands.
• Myanmar: three seasons, cool, hot, and monsoon, with the central zone fairly dry.