Has anybody traveled though Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam?

Question

i don't wanna fly. can someone provide me with an itinerary? trains, buses and ferry is much prefered. i only have 3 weeks, will it be enough? i'll be traveling with a female friend, is it safe? i want to start and end in singapore. thanks!

Answer 1

3 weeks just isn't enough.  3 weeks is barely enough for each of those countries.

Cut it down to 3 countries including Singapore.  Yes, it's safe.  

Answer 2

Singapore is a good country to go to! Very clean and modern! Go for it

Answer 3

Three weeks is not going to be enough time to visit all of these places, especially if you do not want to fly.  I took two weeks to cover Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, and Malaysia, and though I enjoyed it, it was exhausting, I didn't make it to all the destinations that I had in mind, and I used planes to even be able to manage that schedule.  Further, it is generally accepted that it's difficult to do Vietnam justice in even a month (which is why I cut Laos and Vietnam off of my last vacation and plan to dedicate a month-long, whirlwind vacation to just those two countries next year).  That being said, you can definitely do buses/trains between Singapore and Malaysia and Thailand and Cambodia quite cheaply, but the latter trip is an all-day, harrowing ordeal, not for inexperienced travelers.  If you want more specific itinerary help, while I do not recommend Lonely Planet travel guides (I used them on my travels through Asia, and the maps were horribly inaccurate, and the guides failed to take into account the additional difficulties that would be faced by minority travelers), the Thorn Tree forum on the Lonely Planet website is great--you can get great info from real people who have recently been to your destination; another good source, specifically for Southeast Asian travel, is www.travelfish.org.  You could also check out the itineraries of www.intrepidtravel.com, www.gapadventures.com, and other tour companies to get an idea of what you want to do/where you want to go/how long it will take.  As for your other questions, I was a female traveling alone, and I felt perfectly safe the vast majority of the time; as long as you use common sense, you will be fine, especially given that you are traveling with a friend.  Read the "women travelers" portion of your guidebook(s) for more specific info.  Also, you may want to reconsider flying into and out of Singapore; my travel agent told me that Bangkok is the "gateway to Southeast Asia" and that it is cheapest to fly into that city and then make your way from there.  I hope this helps.

Answer 4

I tried Singapore-Malaysia and stopped in Thailand. I was robbed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia so I will not attempt to do it again...

Be careful in Malaysia if you will go ahead with your plans, its dangerous.