4 most affordable countries for Backpackers

Imagine getting rid of 9-5 desk job, packing bags and becoming nomadic for certain period of time, wandering from one city to another exploring every single place that you fantasized about. The thought itself is Wooooow, isn't it ??

Here are 4 beautiful South East Asian countries that can be discovered economically.

1. Cambodia  

This country has variety of choices to bargain. There are tropical beaches, royal buildings, and exquisite sceneries.  And of course, ample of cheap beer!! :) It is one of the cheapest countries in Asia. A beer cost for approx. 50 dollar cent and you can accommodate yourself in a hostel for like 3 odd USD. This practically fits within anyone's budget. Angkor Wat is the leading tourist attraction in Cambodia & and it the largest of all Angkor temples. Apart from this, Bokor Hill Station, Silver Pagoda, Sihanoukville, Preah Vihear are major tourist attraction. 

Currency :- Cambodian riel

2. Vietnam 

The composition of Wild jungle, white sandy untouched beaches, amazing and cheap street food Vietnam is chosen by every traveler on their itinerary. The extended sight from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City draws attention of most of the travelers. Transportation within the city is quite cheap. Street food is obviously cheap 1 USD for a bowl full of rice. Accommodation will cost around 6 USD approx. in decent hostel. The magnetic places in the country are Ho Chi Minh City, Mekong Delta, Nha Trang, My Son.

Currency :- Vietnamese dong

3. Indonesia

Be it leisure, shopping, culture, history, diving, trekking or nature, Indonesia will not dishearten you. Indonesia is a fairly substantial pertaining 17000 islands. Stay in Indonesia costs around 5 USD approx. varying from one location to another.  Street foods cost around 1 USD - 2 USD and local beer can be as cheap as 1.72 USD. Bali is the favorite foreign paradise. Apart from that Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Lombok are also considered as tourist hub.

Currency :-  Indonesian rupiah

4. Thailand

When we say Thailand, all it flashes in our mind is fabulous diving, cheap yet amazing street food, 365 days party!! Transportation in this ragged destination is quite easy, it cost 1USD to 7 USD depending upon the means of transportation, accommodation will cost around USD - 7 USD in moderate guesthouse and food cost approx 1 USD per meal. Thailand attracts tourist by all means.

Currency :-  Thai Baht

    

Thank you for reading this post <3

Mesmerizing Munnar (Part II)...

Just as we said, here we are with the second part of the post on Munnar. You can view the first part here.

The reception desk at our hotel helped us in planning our travel in and around Munnar and even suggested the order in which we may visit the place so that we would get enough time at each of the touristy places :-) After all the much needed suggestions, we went ahead exploring Munnar and again enjoying the picturesque tea plantations and the clear sky all the way along...

  
We went to this one flower garden which had some of the most amazing flowers and plants. We were tempted to get one of these plants home but the poor thing could not survive here in Mumbai for more than three months...

 

On our way to Mattupetty Dam, guess where did we go??? 
 

Elephant Safari !!!!

It takes pretty long for you to reach your turn of safari. Our ticket no. was 62 or so and the on going no. was 51. Even though there were about 8 elephants, we waited for almost an hour for our turn of the 15 mins ride. The Mahouts take really good care of the elephants and they allowed the elephants to rest in shade after a few rounds :-) 

Soon we headed over to Mattupetty Dam. 

 
With such a beautiful background, it is difficult not to be tempted to pose around :-P

There is this tiny little place which served super fresh food. We asked them to put up a table outside so we could enjoy this beautiful view. 



We then went to a tea factory where the guide patiently explained the entire process of making tea. The ardent tea-lover in me, made me buy different types of tea. BTW it was here that we came to know about "White Tea" which are actually tea buds and apparently have superb health benefits (**Mind you it is very costly, about 20 gms was for Rs. 160/-**). We were not allowed to take any pictures inside the factory for obvious reason. 

Did I tell you, we went to Munnar in August and we were lucky it was clear most of the times we stepped out. However, we could not visit a few places as the roads were closed due to fog and mist in the rains. 


There shall be another post (**and hopefully the final one on Munnar**) on the remaining places we went to.

Mesmerizing Munnar (Part I)...

Have you ever been in a place which was not your first choice but you loved it so so much that you thank your stars that the first option did not work out??? Well that is what happened when we were planning a trip to Kerala. We did not want to have a routine travel package which clubbed 3-4 places in Kerala but wanted to just sit back and relax at one place. Our first option was Alleppey or Allapuzha but it just did not work out (**Thank God for this**) and we ended up going to Munnar. 

Trust me, you would not want to sleep during 4 hour drive from Cochin to Munnar and miss these...

You can actually notice a change in the surroundings after a few kms... Soon we were greeted with this view....

Isn't it just amazing... Feels like you are driving on the clouds (**The roads are superb too**)... Its hard to believe that you come across all these in a span of just a few hours. Let me leave the remaining things for you to experience first hand and not spoil the fun :-)

We stayed at Fort Munnar which was a bit out of Munnar city (almost 15 mins drive away from the main Munnar city) but the view was amazing.

 

 

I honestly cannot stop yapping on and on about this place. There shall be another post on the various places to visit in and around Munnar...

15 Countries/Islands offering visa on arrival for Indian citizen

Destination decided, Tickets booked, but the most important hurdle of stamping visa on the passport needs to be resolved. Here are few countries/Islands that allow Indians get their visa after landing. 

Let’s have a look ;)

1. Seychelles

Visa Protocols :-

• Valid Passport on the arrival date at Seychelles and on the departure date.
• Return ticket.
• Hotel Reservations.
• Adequate amount of money to last the whole holiday in the Seychelles. 

2. Hong kong

Visa Protocols :-

• Original Passport, having minimum Six months validity and at least two blank pages.
• Return Air Ticket showing exit from Hong Kong, within fourteen days.

3. Bolivia

Visa Protocols :-

• Valid Passport.
• 1 passport size photo.
• Travel Itinerary.
• Hotel reservations.

4. Kenya

Visa Protocols :-

• Valid Passport
• 3 months of maximum stay of visa can be obtained by paying $50.
• Authentic travel documents
• Bank Statements, to prove sufficient funds in order to cover the stay in Kenya.

5. Maldives

Visa Protocols :-

• Valid passport
• Confirm Return ticket
• Hotel reservation.

6. Thailand

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport with a validity of at least 6 months.
•  Return flight ticket within next 15 days.
• Hotel reservation
• 1000 Baht as Visa fees
• One passport size photograph

7.  Cambodia

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport with a validity of at least 6 months.
• One passport size photograph
• 20 USD Visa fee in cash
• 500 USD in Cash as a proof of sufficient fund for 15 days.

8. Laos

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport with a validity of at least 6 months.
• Visa-on-Arrival application form dully filled.
• Two recent passport-size photographs.
• Return ticket highlighting departure within 30 days from Laos. 
• Hotel reservation in Laos
• 40 USD to be paid in cash.

9. Indonesia

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport with a validity of at least 6 months.
• Confirm return ticket.
• Visa fee of 25 USD in cash.

10. Nepal

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport
• Two recent passport-size photographs.

11. Fiji

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport with a validity of at least 6 months.
• Confirm return ticket.

12. Macau

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport with a validity of at least 6 months and 2 blank pages
• Foreign currency or international credit card.

13. Myanmar

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport
• Two recent passport-size photographs.

14. Jordan

Visa Protocols :-

• Valid Passport
• Two recent passport-size photographs.
• US$30 for a single entry visa.

15. Mauritius

Visa Protocols :-

• Passport with a validity of at least 6 months
• Nominal visa fee
• Two recent passport-size photographs.

Huh, isn't it easy & interesting and more importantly stress free :)

Thank you for reading it.

ANDAMAN ISLAND

The fusion of world’s best class beach, exotic marine life, coral reef, lush green forest, when the group of 572 islands comes together makes ANADAMAN ISLAND. This island is exclusive, but it was anonymous for centuries because of their isolation. Although this place belongs to India but geologically it is closer to South East Asia.

Places of Interest:-

• 1.      Radhanagar Beach :- White sand, turquoise blue water, tranquility are the distinctive characteristic of this stunning landmark. Located at Havelock Island, this one is known as Asia’s best beach & world’s seventh best beach. 

•   Limestone Caves :- Situated at Baratang Island, 90 km away from Port Blair, Limestone caves have come well-known tourist charm. The route is similarly eye-catching as it covers through tribal reserves. Stalactite and stalagmites and limestone structure makes these caves remarkable. It is certainly worth visiting.

• 1.      Cinque Island :- A nature reserve with unusual corals and under-water marine life, Cinque Island has fine sandy-beach and sand–bar connecting North and South Cinque Islands and tropical rain-forest. There is no organized ferry service to Cinque Island. To visit, one may contact private boat operators in Port Blair to hire a boat with due permission from the Forest Department.

 

• 1.      Chidiya Tapu :- 30 kms away from the main city, Chidiya Tapu is situated.  This is the best place to see sunset and bird watching and hence this is also known as “Sunset Point" and "Bird Island”. Chidiya Tapu Biological Park, Chidiya Tapu Beach, and the Sylvan Sands and Munda Pahar beaches are the major fascination of this place.

• .          Neil Island : - This tiny island is located at southern part of Andaman. Because of unexplored nature beauty, Neil island is becoming sizzling tourist hub. The sea surrounding this island is quite shallow and full of coral. One can walk and see this island in about 2 hours.

Thank you for reading this post <3

My 10 favorite Travel quotes

1. "Not all those who wander are lost" - J.R.R Tolkien

2. "Travel far enough to see yourself" - David Mitchell 

3. "To travel is to live" - Hans Christian Andersen

4. "A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving" - Lao Tzu

5. "Paris is always a good idea" - Audrey Hepburn

6. "Tourist don't know where they have been, Travelers don't know where they are going" - Paul Theroux 

7. "Travel teaches toleration" - Benjamin Disraeli 

8. "A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles" - Tim Cahill

9. "I want to make memories all over the world"

10. "Never stop wondering, Never stop wandering" 

Thank you for reading this post <3