I'm a novice traveller - have worked my way independently around North America but generally stuck to decent hotels etc.
I'm hoping to see as much of Vietnam and Cambodia this summer as possible with my boyfriend and have been looking into the Majestic Angkor and Vietnam Adventure tours. We're both fascinated but these amazing countries and want to explore all they have to offer.
Unfortunately, I have a few niggling doubts! The only month we can go is August - is the rain unbearable? I don't want to spend a fortune on travelling there to have the trip ruined by constant rain. Ditto the humidity as I am asthmatic.
My other concern (and please don't laugh) are the spiders. I have horrendous arachnophobia and have recently discovered that Vietnam has quite a selection of huge spiders - something I am obviously keen to avoid!! I don't want this irrational fear to get in the way of my life, but what are the chances of me coming face to face (so to speak) with this wildlife on the tours mentioned? My worst nightmare is waking up with a huntsman in the room and having the experience ruined for me.
Sorry to sound so pathetic!
Re: Weather and general concerns!
Two things Suz:
1. Avoid Skuon (75km North of Phnom Penh)if afraid of spiders.
2. SEasia is very humid so take that into account when planning.
When I was there in Nov 05 it was at the end of the rainy season. While it rained almost every day for at least a little while, there was only one day where it was so heavy it was a "get out the ark" type of downpour.
Still, I think you should go. I had a fantastic time.
Re: Weather and general concerns!
Hi Suz,
Thanks for your questions.
Well I can't promise that it won't rain and that you won't run into any spiders. I'm tempted to tell you about the enormous spiders I saw at the Mok Fah Waterfalls in Northern Thailand, but I won't!
As Jetblast says, you really should go if it's something that you want to do and you shouldn't let your concerns put you off. It's only natural to experience some doubts when planning a large trip but you have to put things into perspective -
Yes, it will rain some of the time and will be humid but millions of Western tourists travel to this part of the World each year and they keep coming back! I know that any fear is irrational - I have a terrible phobia of wasps - but what I would say is that you will be staying in good accommodation throughout both of these tours and there is no camping involved.
You'll also find that on the paths that these tours travel the natural wildlife has rescinded somewhat due to being eaten by the local inhabitants or scared off by lots of people and the chance of encountering any dangerous animals - including spiders - is very slim.
I would talk to your doctor about the humidity and your asthma as it's certainly a more humid environment than here in the UK and the cities in particular can be quite 'steamy'. I'm afraid I don't know how this might affect your asthma.
And as for the rain, as Jetblast says, yes you will encounter rain in August in this part of the World but it's unlikely to be a continuous downpour and more likely to come in the form of short sharp showers that don't last long, and which the sun dries up when it comes out again afterwards.
I too was a huge fan of travelling to North America before I worked at the Imaginative Traveller and I loved travelling there with my friends (and still do) but trust me when I say that if this is your first trip over to Asia you are going to LOVE it![[Smile]](smile.gif)
I hope this helps.
Regards,
Brendan
Re: Weather and general concerns!
[quote]Originally posted by jetblast:
[b] Two things Suz:
1. Avoid Skuon (75km North of Phnom Penh)if afraid of spiders.![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
[/b][/quote]...unless you like them [url=http://www.frizz-restaurant.com/spiders.html]deep fried[/url]
Re: Weather and general concerns!
Ah the memories!
That's what I like about SE Asia. On the Bkk-SGN by bike tour, which I highly recommend, spiders were just one course on the fear factor buffet that was made available.
I need to go back!
Not to hijack the thread but Jez and Jeremy - I noticed that the Vietnam by bike tour is listed on the website but does not have any departure dates listed in the next year. Has this tour been killed?
Re: Weather and general concerns!
I'm not entirely sure that Suz wanted to see the deep-fried spiders and I was going to keep that one under wraps! We're only joking with you though Suz, I didn't see one big, nay, one spider at all in Northern Thailand, there was a huge jungle hornet in our wooden hut but that's a different matter...
I'm afraid Vietnam by bike is no more and is no longer available in 2007. On the flipside Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh City by bike continues to be a really popular tour. We have one or two small bugs on our website at the moment, meaning that some tours that no longer exist are still displayed, apologies for any confusion.
Regards,
Brendan.
Re: Weather and general concerns!
Don't worry - you haven't scared me! I shall get myself down to STA Travel this weekend. Thanks everyone for your advice, it's great to hear how much people enjoyed these countries.