Singapore to Hanoi

A quick recap of my tour from Singapore to Hanoi last month:

First of all, I absolutely love how easy and cheap it is to tour in SEA. I would set out in the morning with no idea where I’d end up at night. There are just so many cheap accommodations (€5-€10 a night) all over SEA, that you don’t have to worry about it. Didn’t bring my camping equipment for this one, as I hate hot nights in tents. Supermarkets and street food everywhere you look. No need to carry cooking equipment. Only had slight difficulties finding food during Ramadan in Malaysia and southern Thailand.

And then the people, absolutely amazing! I was very curious to see what the hospitality was like, as these countries do get a ton of tourists. However, I was blown away by the amount of interest people had in me. When taking roadside breaks, I got gifted so much food and snacks that it was hard to carry it all from time to time!

My (completely subjective) thoughts about each country:

Singapore: Amazing bicycle infrastructure, but I was very happy to leave and hit quieter roads.

Malaysia: Palm trees everywhere you look! After Kuala Lumpur, I rode up through the middle of the country, which is incredibly remote. Can highly recommend! My favourite stretch was from Gua Musang to Jeli. People seemed a bit more reserved at first, but open up once you start talking to them. One time I got caught in a thunder storm and lightning hit less than 100m away from me while riding. Crazy thing to experience!

Thailand: Potential downside of taking the middle/east route through Malaysia, is that you have to cross conflicted areas in southern Thailand. I actually didn’t know about it until I was in the middle of it. Bomb attacks happened in a small village two days before I had lunch there. The locals in that area were extra curious, as they probably don’t see a lot of tourists. Riding in Thailand was amazing, as road infrastructure is well-developed and there are large shoulders. I did have a lot of dog chases though. Traffic in Bangkok was a nightmare to cycle through. In total I rode nearly 100km through the city, that’s how huge it is! The nature in eastern Thailand was incredibly flat and boring in my opinion.

Laos: I only have good things to say about Laos, except the road quality! Literally every kid would wave at me. I mainly rode along parts of the Thakhek Loop. Having been on the Ha Giang Loop in Vietnam I was fearing tons of tourists, but in reality I only saw a few and was surprised by how friendly the locals were! I’m very sad I only spent a few days in Laos, I will definitely come back to see the north!

Vietnam: Vietnam has stolen my heart, again! I’m very biased as I already lived in this country for half a year. The nature in the north was my favourite of the whole trip. You can go from rain foresty mountains to riding through open rice fields within minutes! Traffic can be chaos until you get a hang of the flow. I keep repeating, but again the people were so hospitable. Also very loud, with karaoke playing on the streets at nearly all hours.

All in all, this trip exceeded all my expectations. I had been to the area already as a ‘regular tourist’, but seeing it on a bicycle gave me a whole other perspective. Feel free to ask any questions!