Excursion Help - Bangkok - Dubai, April '14

[forgap]

I would like to pick the brains of those of you who have done this itinerary. We plan to stay two days in Bangkok before our pre-cruise to Angkor Wat. Any advice about Bangkok is appreciated! As far as our excursions, here are the ones that interest us thus far. Please feel free to weigh in if you think the excursion is a dud or a must do!

 

Ko Samui, Thailand - "Elephant Riding" (includes elephants, monkey show, ox-pulled cart, food demonstration, and Namuang Waterfall)

 

Singapore - "Singapore's Iconic Tour" (river Bumboat ride, Taoist Temple, Raffles Hotel, Sultan Mosque)

 

Kuala Lumpur - "Kuala Lumpur Countryside and Handicrafts" (Batu cave, pewtersmithing)

 

Panang, Malaysia - "Penang's Spice Trail" (tropical spice garden, cooking demonstration) OR "Georgetown Heritage and Tea at the E & O" (Wat Chayamangkalaram Temple, Khoo Clan Ancestral House, Tea at the E & O, and Chew Jetty settlement)

 

Phuket, Thailand - "Spectacular Phang Nga Bay"

 

Galle, Sri Lanka - "Galle and Its Surroundings" (Galle Fort, Handunugoda Tea Estate, Museum of Folk Culture) OR "Madhu Ganga River Safari" (eco reserve tour and visit to an ancient Sri Lankan Temple)

 

Colombo, Sri Lanka - "Pinnawela & Kelaniya" (elephant orphanage and 3rd Century Temple) OR "Colombo City & Kelaniya Temple" (Lunch, shopping, Temple) OR "Ingirya Tea Plantation"

 

Cochin, India - "City Highlights and Harbor Cruise" (Dutch Palace, Jew Town, St. Francis church, Chinese fishing nets, harbor cruise)

 

New Mangalore, India - "Highlights of Mangalore" (cashew processing plant, Gokarnath Temple, St. Aloysius Chapel, visit to a private home) OR "A Day in the LIfe of Mangalore" (shopping downtown Hampankatta, private home visit)

 

Mormugao, India - "A Tase of Goa" (Se Cathedral, Shantadurga Temple, Spice Farm, Goanese lunch)

 

Mumbai, India - "Elephanta Caves" AND 'Bombay by Lights" (night market, scenic drive, Bollywood film, trendy bar) AND "Religious Beats"

 

Muscat, Oman - "Dolphin Watching" (dolphins and snorkeling)

 

Dubai, UAE - "Walking Tour of Old Dubai" - (Bastakia area, Sheikh Saeeed House, Heritage and Diving Village)

 

Phew! Yes, it's a long trip! Any help is MUCH appreciated!

[Keith1010]

In Muscat, I would have chosen a tour that would give you a feel for the city including a visit to the Grand Mosque versus seeing a dolphin show.

 

Singapore, regardless of what tour you select some other places to consider would be Chinatown, Little India, The Zoo and the Orchid Garden.

 

For Bangkok I would arrange a private tour through the Hotel. It is a great city but not easy to do on your own. Be sure to visit Temples and the Grand Palace. If you like silk considering visiting Jim Thompson's who sells a nice range of silk items.

 

You have selected some nice tours in many of the other ports which will include some of the key places to see.

 

It is an outstanding itinerary.

 

Keith

[forgap]

Thanks, Keith! The dolphin excursion is seeing spinning pink dolphins in the wild and then snorkeling in a spot with beautiful fish and coral. I feared that by the time we got to Muscat we would be weary of mosques and city tours and we might need a dose of nature.

 

I understand that Singapore is easy to do on your own so we may ditch the tour midway and try to see the spots you mentioned. Re: Bangkok - I had read that an evening river cruise was very nice. I also thought I'd take a Bangkok culinary tour that was lauded in trip advisor. More advice is welcome!

[Gilly]

Forgap, much of your itinerary is familiar and I've blogged about our experiences on our Regent cruises if you'd like to read how we got on http://www.elegantsufficiency.org/ - either click the "cruises" button or follow a tag to whatever country you want to read about. I'm never sure how much I want to know about these places in advance, though - sometimes, it's good to have a surprise!

 

One "must do" is the Mumbai street market and the Bollywood film. We are familiar with India and have travelled independently as well as on guided tours, but we still found this a blast! http://www.elegantsufficiency.org/blog/2011/4/28/was-the-word-fun-mentioned.html

 

Oh my, I am so envious of you travelling to my favourite part of the world. Yes, I'd return every year except that would mean I couldn't get to visit new places too ;-)

 

You'll have a ball, whatever you choose to do.

[Keith1010]

Thanks, Keith! The dolphin excursion is seeing spinning pink dolphins in the wild and then snorkeling in a spot with beautiful fish and coral. I feared that by the time we got to Muscat we would be weary of mosques and city tours and we might need a dose of nature.

 

I understand that Singapore is easy to do on your own so we may ditch the tour midway and try to see the spots you mentioned. Re: Bangkok - I had read that an evening river cruise was very nice. I also thought I'd take a Bangkok culinary tour that was lauded in trip advisor. More advice is welcome!

 

That makes sense for Muscat given what you said.

 

Singapore is very easy and very safe to do on your own. Taxis are readily available and the drivers very helpful. We use the subway system as well which is also clean and very easy to sue.

 

Getting onto the river in Bangkok is great whether during the day or the evening.

 

I would not take those tuck tuck cabs or whatever they call them. They are scams.

 

We did use the sky train which was easy to use.

 

While Bangkok has some of the nicest people you will meet and the same can be said for Thailand which is why there are so many five star hotels do be careful because there is also those are are just the opposite. We were warned about this and it actually happened to us twice. If you do go out and about on your own and you look like you are lost or just need help and you see someone in a suit approach you just be cautious because some of them are known to ask you a bunch of questions including what hotel are you staying at, what is your full name, etc and what they are trying to do with this information is to figure out your room so they can break into your room and safe knowing you are not there. It really does happen. But like any city around the world you see the best and sometimes the worst. But I really would recommend a tour.

 

For some of these places keep in mind that in the afternoon they can get quite hot such as Singapore and Bangkok so it's good to do a lot of the outdoor touring in the morning.

 

Keith

[forgap]

Keith and Gilly, thank you so much for your informative posts! Gilly, I followed your blog, live, and have re-read it twice. I like your interests and your unique point of view! Keith, your tips are very helpful. We are pretty "street-wise". I am also "heat-wise", living in Atlanta where it is frequently 90+ with 90+% humidity! Keep it coming - all your tips are so very helpful!

[Keith1010]

forgap, you are very welcome. I like the heat too so it was no big deal for me.

 

Like I said, it's a great itinerary.

 

Keith

[Gilly]

Forgap, I am just so envious - I could do that itinerary over and again and never get bored. Oh well, I'll just have to explore South America next year instead ;-)) You are lucky to be used to the heat and will manage so much better as a result - we Englsih flowers wilt in such temperatures!

 

I apologise for touting the blog (again) - it seemed easier to give the url than to go into detail here. I hope you get to the Dhoby Ghat in Cochin - as interesting as the grand sights are, there's nothing like seeing everyday life going on at close quarters and Cochin was a particularly good place for that.

 

Re Penang. From memory the E and O hotel was a mere step away from the berth, so would be something you could easily do independently. On that day, dh and I did different tours but both ended up in a similar area and there was considerable crossover. I think that like several places in that region, tourism is managed by means of closely-organised and carefully planned "experiences", which either float your boat or not. We can take them for a while but then need to break free and go off piste! Penang was a fairly easy place to potter about but there wasn't anything of great interest as far as I can recall - though it was hot and we were glad to return to the cool ship.

 

And much as I enjoyed the souk and the mosque in Muscat, I'd swim with dolphins, for sure!

[forgap]

Gilly, what's the Dhoby ghat? There are only 2 tours offered in Cochin....both are basicly city tours with one offering an additional harbor cruise. We really wanted to take a cruise of the back waters. We were willing to do it in our own but there are only 1/2 day tours at a minimum. The launching point was two hours from our berth andd we will be in Cochin from 12 - 8.... Made me nervous! 2 hours there, 2 hours back, 3-4 hour tour.....too close for comfort. Maybe Regent will add some more tours as we get closer.

[Gilly]

Forgap, the Dhoby Ghat is the laundry http://www.elegantsufficiency.org/blog/2011/4/25/other-peoples-laundry.html . In Cochin, that's an enclosed yard with booths for washing clothes and a large, covered in shed where the ironing is done. It's open to tourists - in fact, there's a donation box there to support the community so no need to feel bad about gawping. What happens is amazing - you can see huge packs of laundry being brought in by bicycle, it's sorted, washed in remarkably simple conditions, hung out on lines to dry in the sun before being ironed with the most amazing old irons, folded and returned to the owner. Quite how it doesn't go missing is one of those mysteries of Indian life! There's a Dhoby Ghat in every Indian city (one in Mumbai is enormous, of course) but this small operation in Cochin was small enough to be manageable. I'm fairly sure that, if you asked any guide in the city, they'd take you there.

From memory, we took a morning walking tour and then four of us caught a taxi with a guide to go shopping there (Cochin's a good place to do that, too) We wanted to buy a few bits and pieces - I wanted a tiffin tin, some spices and some jewellery - and it was one of those times when we wanted to break out from the group. It was this driver who took us there but others on Regent tours had dropped in there too.

 

Fingers crossed that more tours are added nearer the time! It's a fascinating and very walkable city, once you've negotiated your way out of the docks - but it's a long stretch through a huge warehouse/goods area to get anywhere, which makes it difficult to go out independently without taking a taxi.

[Keith1010]

forgap, in Dubai try to visit two of the malls there. The newest one which was built a few years ago with the aquarium. Just an absolutely beautiful mall. Also visit the one with the indoor skiing.

 

You might want to visit the gold and spice souk. Tip: If you want spice get it at the grocery store. I kid you not. They are pushy there but it's part of the experience.

 

Keith

[xrvlcruiser]

Dubai: The Mall I like is the one with the Egyptian theme - don't remember the name. The stained glass ceiling is fabulous.

 

Peggy

[Keith1010]

Here is some additional information on the two Dubai Malls I mentioned earlier.

 

This is the Dubai Mall. I call it the Mall of all Malls.

 

http://thedubaimall.com/en/Index.aspx

 

This is the mall with the indoor skiing.

 

Mall of the Imirates

 

http://www.malloftheemirates.com

 

 

Keith

[forgap]

Thank you for the links. We arrive in Dubai and the cruise ends the next day. We will only have the first day in Dubai as our flight (using points) leaves very late that first evening. Do you think it is more worthwhile to cruise the mall vs. old Dubai or can we do both? I've heard that traffic can be brutal in Dubai. Plus we are cooling our heals in Paris the next day for 10 hours before our flight to Atlanta. Just enough time to lunch with family!

[Gilly]

My personal choice would be to explore the souks and alleys of old Dubai, because, when all is said and done, a Mall is a Mall - however huge and spectacular. But of course, I have no idea if you've been there before - or if you're likely to pass that way again, Forgap? Last time we were there (maybe third time?) and having been to several souks at ports along the way (as you may do, too), I had a blast of total-excess in the Dubai Mall and enjoyed the people watching in air-conditioned comfort. Both are attractive options, I'd say your choice depends on your mood that day. Do you have to decide now or can you keep your options open?

[Keith1010]

Thank you for the links. We arrive in Dubai and the cruise ends the next day. We will only have the first day in Dubai as our flight (using points) leaves very late that first evening. Do you think it is more worthwhile to cruise the mall vs. old Dubai or can we do both? I've heard that traffic can be brutal in Dubai. Plus we are cooling our heals in Paris the next day for 10 hours before our flight to Atlanta. Just enough time to lunch with family!

 

You are right. Traffic can be a mess at times.

 

If this was me, spend about an hour at the old souk area. That is plenty of time and those folks can be very (and I mean very) pushy but as they say it is an experience. Then spend maybe an hour at each mall or if you can only do one you may want to see the one with the aquarium. Very easy to do both of these.

 

And you can just play this by ear. If you are too tired from all the other touring you can do less.

 

Keith

[forgap]

Very helpful advice! I think we'll try to do it all. Carpe Diem!

[PaulaJK]

I love your itinerary.

 

The 'must do's for me would be Phuket's bay and Cochin. Goa also sounds good but I have not done that particular tor.

 

If this is your 1st time in Singapore and Dubai then I think that you will be missing many of the main sights for those citites. I agree w. Keith and Gilly about Dubai. Unless you have been to Mumbai previously, you are missing some of the common sights...the British architecture, ghobi, train station, Ghandi museum.

 

Bangkok offers several days worth of sights and yes, the evening dinner cruise offers another view of the city. We used the boat from the Shangri La Hotel and it was done well.

[WesW]

Hi Jennifer & Georges;

 

Our Voyager cruise last December visited, Cochin, Goa, New Mangalore (we boarded in Mumbai). We also visited Kuala Lampur, Penang, Phukett, Sri Lanka, and Singapore. We loved Kuala Lumpur Countryside and Handicrafts and Highlights of New Mangalore (private home viz was delightful/highlight) both are keepers. We also visited Oman in April and Dubai (pre cruise) last year on the Voyager. Today, tomorrow am in Tampa, FL @ Frequent Traveler University (for us miles/points hounds) but will send Georges and you some excursion pix this coming week. Look fwd to getting back to Atlanta tomorrow nite.

[forgap]

Thank you, Wes! Best to Ida.

[TedC]

We enjoyed the "bird zoo" in Singapore. For us, it was MUCH MORE INTERESTING than the "night zoo"!

[Keith1010]

TedC, is the bird zoo part of the regular zoo or is a separate site.

 

We've done the zoo and the night zoo and we enjoyed the zoo quite a bit more than the night zoo.

 

Keith

[TedC]

Separate zoo - I hope it's still there! We were first in Singapore 20 or 30 years ago when we visited bird zoo.