winter stay recommendation

[12345]

I enjoyed Tenerife some years ago, it was 20 degrees or so in January. Affordable apartments too at that time of the year

 

[void]

Thanks Jafo, I am actually lurking and taking notes, as I also plan to see some new places, though I am more looking for a place to escape the scorching heat from April-July.

Ok, here some adventurous ideas: Indonesia, especially east of Lombok (but first drop by the Gilli islands for a week or longer), check out Flores or even Timor Este (this one isn't indo anoymore), or Kalimantan and Sulawesi. Lots of nice places or island off the tourist trail in Philippines as well, if you don't mind the Philippines.

If you like untouched islands, Koh Chang/Koh Payam in south Thailand (different Koh Chang than the one near BKK, very little tourism coz too far for most) have been almost private when I went there (no other people, beside of some stoned guys manning a little shop and the guesthouse owner who took the same boat to the island to open her gh just for me and my 'team'.

If you just want to chill in comfort, few places offer the same price/value as Jomtien in Thailand (don't overlook Bangsaray near by, even nicer and cheaper but further away). Pretty easy to find a condo with a huge pool and gym and Russian babushkas as neighbors for less than $200 monthly - if you double that you can get a place with a Jacuzzi in the living room or on balcony for just a bit more. But you'd be living in Babylon, and spiritual standards are at the bottom there.

Lots of alternatives like Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Pai (but all a little cooler in winter - for EU standards still 'hot'). If you are <35, Koh Phangan might be still fun, though overloaded with tourists and nomads nowadays.

Let's me also mention Mui Ne, Danang or Hoi An in VN, Koh Rong (and overlooked Mondulkiri/Ratanakiri) in Cambodia.

You could also check Ishigaki (SP?) island in Japan, which is closer to Taiwan than to Okinawa, and really nice. Some great smaller islands around Kyushu as well.

There are many different opinions from people and I haven't been there yet, but Lankawi in Malaysia seems interesting too, duty free island, free 3 months on entry, no tourist crowds, can go by boat straight back to Thailand or Malaysia. Also Malaysian Borneo seems very interesting, as there are different people living there, and they even had a British sultan in the past for quite a while.

If you prefer South America, why not Nicaragua (don't overlook Little Corn and Big Corn islands) or Argentina (while it's cheap). Or if you looking for more exciting experiences, Brazil and Colombia seem to be a good choice. EDIT: I forgot Isla Margarita (Venezuela), might be good to scoop up a house or condo there if still cheap (a bet on Venezuela's future, high risk/high reward).


I know what you mean. It's not such a daily occurrence in Japan anymore though.
If someone takes a picture of you (mostly without asking for permission), it's one of the countless Chinese 'tourists' that come to Tokyo to load up of taxfree good for resale in China. They just can't help it.

man, thanks for sharing, interesting ideas

 

[Forester]

You mean Posadas, Argentina?

Yes, that's it...

PS. I go to these places for the reasons I mentioned previously, e.g., here in this post: "Go where you are forgotten and left the f*ck alone."

Yes, this I understand fullly.

 

[void]

You could also check Ishigaki (SP?) island in Japan, which is closer to Taiwan than to Okinawa, and really nice. Some great smaller islands around Kyushu as well.

I was looking into Okinawa couple of years ago but let it go due to the weather conditions in winter - does it make a difference a little bit south close to Taiwan? We are so spoiled that Canary islands are too cold for us in winter :/

 

[cryptofriendly]

I was looking into Okinawa couple of years ago but let it go due to the weather conditions in winter - does it make a difference a little bit south close to Taiwan? We are so spoiled that Canary islands are too cold for us in winter :/

It's around 25-27 C in December, but one can also encounter few cooler days. That's Ishigaki, the furthest island, the others are cooler. SEA like south of Thailand and further down, would be a better choice if you are looking for a really warm winter.

 

[polonieth]

do you have your own recent experience?

Yup I was there last winter.

The OP wanted:

"Warm place, sun, sand, sea (diving, snorkeling, surfing), opportunities to hike, lush green, the less tourists and holiday industry the better."

Sri Lanka has all that. There are plenty of surf and snorkel spots in Hikkaduwa and lots of hikes and greenery if you go towards Ella.

It's not super touristy either, a lot of decent Russian women (and families) in the touristy areas, but there are loads of quiet beaches between Colombo and Galle.

You can live the luxury life, or go for the cheaper homestays. I did both and liked it all. Internet reasonable, mobile internet pretty good too. Food also good.

The only downside for me was the lack of beer choice. Only really Lion Lager, which is decent enough, but nothing in terms of craft-type stuff. Can't really think of much else I found a negative. Driving places can be slow, and I guess bureaucracy there is slow and hard to get stuff done. But if you are just a tourist working from a laptop then no real issues.

 

[toums]

i spend my winters in Malta
fairly small but still ok

Winter in Malta, really? if you want to stay in EU ok... Malta/ Canaria Island / Cyprus / Madeira are ok.. But if worldwide as a game play, you never stay in Malta winter time.. (december-march at least)

If you just want to chill in comfort, few places offer the same price/value as Jomtien in Thailand (don't overlook Bangsaray near by, even nicer and cheaper but further away). Pretty easy to find a condo with a huge pool and gym and Russian babushkas as neighbors for less than $200 monthly - if you double that you can get a place with a Jacuzzi in the living room or on balcony for just a bit more. But you'd be living in Babylon, and spiritual standards are at the bottom there.

Let's me also mention Mui Ne, Danang or Hoi An in VN, Koh Rong (and overlooked Mondulkiri/Ratanakiri) in Cambodia.

You personally like Pattaya (Jomtien) ? I was there for first time this year, after many long trips in TH. I am agree, Pattaya is cheap (except Club in walking street) but it's SO ugly beaches there, even Jomtien, to put any feet in the water honestly... And walking during the day and just see cheap charlie (70+) with slutty poor thai.. funny to see for 1hour, but sad and useless if you are 'very' wealthy..

Mui Ne in Vietnam is one of the best places I've seen for the beach in Vietnam, but boring AF and full of Russians (nothing against them, but the vibe is different). The Hoi An / Danang area can be a good compromise; and I think that in SEA, Vietnam has experienced the least inflation compared to neighboring countries.

man, thanks for sharing, interesting ideas

Dont know if you are into it, but middle east can be a good choice for winter time (OMAN/UAE/JORDANIA, even EGYPT..), good weather but not too hot at this time.

 

[sergeylim88]

i stay in Malta end of October till middle of Jan (or end of Jan)
occasionally there is some humidity, but mostly it is nice weather.
if it becomes too humid, I just leave earlier

 

[cryptofriendly]

You personally like Pattaya (Jomtien) ? I was there for first time this year, after many long trips in TH. I am agree, Pattaya is cheap (except Club in walking street) but it's SO ugly beaches there, even Jomtien, to put any feet in the water honestly... And walking during the day and just see cheap charlie (70+) with slutty poor thai.. funny to see for 1hour, but sad and useless if you are 'very' wealthy..

Not at all, it's just a good value as a place to relax and work in the winter, I don't find the well-fed Thai females there attractive, so I spend time on my projects instead. It's not far from BKK, easy and priced well,. Any non-island beach close to BKK will be crap.

But as you say, there are much better places, it's just convenient, And from BKK there are cheap flights to everywhere, good as a base.

For beautiful beaches it's the islands on the west side of South Thailand, Koh Rong/Saloem in Cambodia, little islands in the Philippines, or untouched beaches in Myanmar. I think Sri Lanka is a great option for that too, as some suggested here.

Mui Ne in Vietnam is one of the best places I've seen for the beach in Vietnam, but boring AF and full of Russians (nothing against them, but the vibe is different). The Hoi An / Danang area can be a good compromise; and I think that in SEA, Vietnam has experienced the least inflation compared to neighboring countries.

I stayed in Mui Ne for a while, while having an apartment in HCMC for a year. It's actually really fun with an own motorbike, the actual city has a nice shopping mall, and there are lots of interesting places all around, not just up and down the beach road, but inside the mainland too. Easy to make friends with locals, and the 1 kg lobster at a local place was just 100,000 VND cooked and served, less than $5. As you say, with Hoi An being so close to Danang, one being small, and the other one a real city on the coast, one can choose the place that suits one best.

Dont know if you are into it, but middle east can be a good choice for winter time (OMAN/UAE/JORDANIA, even EGYPT..), good weather but not too hot at this time.

I'd also add Tunesia and Morocco to Egypt, but all of these countries have a special hassle factor, which might interfere with having good time. Cape Verde might be more interesting, if one doesn't care about old stones and museums.

 

[meze99]

void, have you been to Mauritius? Seems like a nice place for any budget, especially if you are white (for some reason many locals genuinely like the white people there). You would need a car though, since public transportation there is bad as it is the case on most islands. Seychelles are not far from Mauritius, so you could go there on a short trip as well, or stay a few months in each country.

 

[void]

void, have you been to Mauritius? Seems like a nice place for any budget, especially if you are white (for some reason many locals genuinely like the white people there). You would need a car though, since public transportation there is bad as it is the case on most islands. Seychelles are not far from Mauritius, so you could go there on a short trip as well, or stay a few months in each country.

yep, we spent about half a year in Mauritius - I concur with what you say, it's not a bad option at all, yet it has its flaws like every place
I can only recommend Reunion island next to Mauritius, this island has it all in case one is able to tolerate French mentality and police state....

 

[toums]

yep, we spent about half a year in Mauritius - I concur with what you say, it's not a bad option at all, yet it has its flaws like every place
I can only recommend Reunion island next to Mauritius, this island has it all in case one is able to tolerate French mentality and police state....

No offense but I deduce that you don't know well France if you compare French mainland and french territories (caribbean and african ones). Life and mindset are so SO different. Most of the time they are f****** racist with 'white' people. Lot of stories with that.

 

[jafo]

""No offense but I deduce that you don't know well France if you compare French mainland and french territories (caribbean and african ones). Life and mindset are so SO different. Most of the time they are f****** racist with 'white' people. Lot of stories with that.

Please, let's not go here. Both sides are 100% wrong, and that "discussion" will only fuel further division and hatred. Nobody needs that!

Let's stay on TOPIC:

"Winter stay recommendation"​

 

[void]

No offense but I deduce that you don't know well France if you compare French mainland and french territories (caribbean and african ones). Life and mindset are so SO different. Most of the time they are f****** racist with 'white' people. Lot of stories with that.

I'm not here to argue about general stuff like nations, race, mentality, religion, mindset etc. I don't know other territories but I lived for quite some time in Reunion and I just expressed what I feel (which can be totally wrong in your eyes)

 

[toums]

Please, let's not go here. Both sides are 100% wrong, and that "discussion" will only fuel further division and hatred. Nobody needs that!

Sure, i didn't want to divide anything/anyone. Just wanted to mention that It's totally irrelevant to talk about 'France' mentality if you dont know anything else than French african / carribeans territories. It's opposite on almost everything.

But i am agree, you have very beautiful place and sea/landscape there, if you can handle their post-colonialism mindset and contempt and aggressivity (i am not talking about holidays and/or spending only little/some time there)

I'm not here to argue about general stuff like nations, race, mentality, religion, mindset etc. I don't know other territories but I lived for quite some time in Reunion and I just expressed what I feel (which can be totally wrong in your eyes)

That's the point, you mentioned yourself the 'mentality' of French, in your previous post.

 

[daniels27]

PS. I know China and Japan very well, but I would NOT recommend China (or Japan) for vacation due to the language barrier and the number of photos you will be asked to take with the locals. Seriously, this is just such a turn-off for me in China. On any given day, they would ask you to take pictures with them at least 100 times.

Yes, but this sounds a lot like 2004 or something. Where have you recently been asked for photos in China?

 

[jafo]

Yes, but this sounds a lot like 2004 or something. Where have you recently been asked for photos in China?

Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, Changchun etc. This is VERY normal (at least for me), but especially now that there has been a major exodus of foreigners from China: Opinion | An exodus of foreigners is under way. Does China want them any more?

PS. As recent as 5 weeks ago!

 

[daniels27]

Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, Changchun etc. This is VERY normal (at least for me), but especially now that there has been a major exodus of foreigners from China: Opinion | An exodus of foreigners is under way. Does China want them any more?

PS. As recent as 5 weeks ago!

Then let me check again. We normally only have this in smaller cities where we used to joke that we should charge them 10 RMB per photo. Haha. Never had this in eastern Shenzhen though.

 

[jafo]

Then let me check again. We normally only have this in smaller cities where we used to joke that we should charge them 10 RMB per photo. Haha. Never had this in eastern Shenzhen though.

Well, in the grand scheme of things for a city with millions of people, a few dozen times a day isn't that noticeable to others. It's just tiresome to me, and I don't want to be rude, so I stop and accommodate them, and then others jump on the opportunity to also have their picture taken. This is where it gets out of hand because others all of a sudden think one is famous/known or something and also want pictures. I don't say "no." I'm a guest, and I'm polite.

My suppliers also didn't notice it either until we went out together and they left me alone.

Also, the language barrier makes it quite difficult for OP to enjoy his vacation. Not to mention that tourist visas are only for 30 days (in general).

PS. Why don't you recommend places in China where OP can go on vacation? Who knows, OP may like it.