I went with my friend Hannah, we were both very lucky to have money in savings which gave us the chance to do some amazing things so by no means am I loaded. We planned and booked everything through a company called STA Travel which claims to be the largest company for students and young people (although older people can use it too!) It provides exclusive discounts and offers and seemed the best place to start planning our trip. We literally went in one day and sat down with a guy (Steve) and within an hour or so we had planned our whole trip right down to the flight itinerary and all we had left to do was pay! It was overwhelmingly quick. Check out what they have to offer here: www.statravel.co.uk
Our flight route was:
Bangkok-Syndey-Auckland-Nadi-LA
Our full route (inland travel) was:
Cambodia- Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, Sihanoukville
Vietnam- Can Tho, Ho Chi Minh, Da Lat, Nha Trang, Hoi An, Hue, Hanoi, Cat Ba
Thailand- Bangkok, Phuket, Phi Phi, Krabi, Koh Phangan
Australia- Sydney, Byron Bay, Noosa, Fraser Island, Airlie Beach, Whitsunday, Brisbane
New Zealand- Auckland, Bay of Islands, Hot Water Beach, Waitomo, Rotorua, Taupo, River Valley, Wellington, Kaiteriteri, Westport, Franz Josef, Wanaka, Queenstown, Tekapo, Christchurch, Kaikoura
Fiji- Nadi, Beachcomber, Waya Lailai, Barefoot
America- LA, Las Vegas, San Francisco
ACCOMODATION
Hostelworld.com and Hostelbookers.com were our best friends whilst travelling, definitely worth booking your accommodation through these rather than direct with the hostel/hotel as you'll save money.
In South East Asia we only stayed in a hostel once, this was because there was no real price difference between a hostel and a hotel, they were both dirt cheap. In one hotel we got 2 nights with free breakfast for £5! There wasn't one place we stayed that was a complete dive either, they were all pretty decent for a backpacker.
Everywhere else we stayed in hostels, the cheapest we could find! Hostels are the best places to meet people too especially if you are travelling on your own, that was one downside to staying in hotels throughout Asia is that we didn't meet as many people as we thought we would.
I can't remember every place we stayed but I'll list a few that I can remember and would recommend:
Sun City Hotel- Nha Trang (Vietnam) £7.66 per night
Little Hanoi Hostel- Hanoi no.48 (Vietnam) £5.57 per night
SK House- Bangkok £13.11 per night
Bangkok Centre Hotel- Bangkok £23.14 per night
Milky Bay Resort- Koh Phangan (Thailand) £36 per night (We had a package booked)
Wake up!- Sydney £19.72 per night 10 bed mixed dorm
The Attic Backpackers- Auckland £13.99 per night 10 bed mixed dorm
Smugglers Cover-Nadi (Fiji) £6.09 per night 34 bed mixed dorm
Banana Bungalow- LA (Hollywood Boulevard) £23.90 per night 6 bed mixed dorm
Green Tortoise Hostel- San Francisco £30 per night 4 bed mixed dorm
The main two hostels we stayed at during Australia and New Zealand were either Nomads or Base, these are the two most popular places for backpackers, maybe not the cheapest but I would definitely recommend them for meeting people.
VISAS
You will need to get a visa for Vietnam- This can be done by either posting your passport to the Embassy of Vietnam or going to London to their offices. There are different types so make sure you get the right one for your trip, as I was only entering once I only needed a single entry visa. I think I ended up paying around £60 which covered not only the visa but postage for the passport. I got all the details I needed by emailing them from their website, don't worry I know it doesn't look legit but it is! http://www.vietnamembassy.org.uk/
I also paid for a visa to get into Cambodia when we crossed the border so I don't think you have to get one prior.
You don't need one for New Zealand or Fiji (unless obviously your going over to work) but you will need an ESTA for America https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/ which I think cost me around £20 and you will need a tourist visa for Australia which I got through STA for £14 at www.statravel.co.uk
MONEY
Instead of having to get loads of different currencies changed and carry around all my cash I decided on getting a cash card. I browsed around and compared different ones but I decided on the STA one as it was the most suitable for me. Hannah went with the Post Office and had 4 different cards for each country but it's bad enough me remembering one pin never mind 4 so I stuck with the STA Travel Prepaid Mastercard Cashcard, £22 for ONE card. This allowed me to top up my card in pounds and then use it in every country I was visiting. Transactions in stores and such were free but it cost a certain amount to withdraw. If you want to read up some more on this card then follow the link here: http://www.statravel.co.uk/prepaid-mastercard-cashcard.htm
BACKPACK
I'm tiny. So tiny. So finding a backpack right for me wasn't the easiest of tasks. I tried on so many but none really fitted me perfectly and if it did it wasn't one I wanted. I really didn't think I could handle packing all my stuff into one that only opens at the top, it would have stressed me out way too much so I found one that zipped open all the way round and opened like a suitcase. It didn't fit me perfectly as the shop assistants get all technical with the back structures and stuff but it was the nearest I was going to get. I settled with the Osprey Farpoint 55l which is a 45l bag with a 10l detachable rucksack on the front. This really wouldn't be suitable for someone who packs a lot, people were shocked I had fitted 4 months worth of stuff into such a small bag...and so was I. I didn't want to get anything bigger though as it would have been way too heavy and I'd have ended up on my back like a turtle.
As far as the backpack itself goes, it is really lightweight and has compartments in all the right places. I bought it online for £99.99 which isn't the cheapest but was definitely worth paying the price for one that suited me best especially as I was going away for quite some time.
EXTRA TRAVEL INFO
GREYHOUND
To travel around Australia we used the Greyhound buses- they were quite difficult to sleep on but they saved paying for a nights accommodation. We bought the 'mini traveller pass' which got us from Sydney up to Airlie Beach for $399. http://www.greyhound.com.au/
The pass basically allows you to hop on and hop off as many times as you want between the two destinations but you can only travel in one direction so you won't be able to get the bus back down or visa versa. You have to book your bus before the travelling day, you can do this in one of the Greyhound stores or online.
I advise you look around for other bus companies in Australia though as I heard there is cheaper but if not Greyhound is okay (even though the wifi didn't work on ANY of the buses we went on) We also used the Greyhound in America.
FUNKY CHICKEN-RANGI TOUR
We decided the easiest way for us to be able to see the North and South Islands in New Zealand in the time we had was to do a tour so we booked one called the Kiwi Experience: Funky Chicken-Rangi through STA for around £400 odd...it's advertised on the website for £810 but there is always discounts going on so I wouldn't advise paying that price! This tour took us the whole way round both Islands starting in Auckland and ending in Auckland.
This was literally the best tour EVER. You meet so many people doing New Zealand this way than you would travelling around on your own. You basically sort out a bus itinerary at the Kiwi Experience office or you can phone up and if you need to change your buses for example if you decide to stay longer in one place then you can do so. The only issue would be if the bus you plan to be on is full then you will be put on standby and hope that people don't turn up for their bus otherwise your trip might be delayed.
The bus drivers are awesome and each day you get on the bus to a new place they will send around clipboards for accommodation and activities and they basically book it all for you! It was so relaxed and easy-going compared to Asia and Oz when we were having to sort and book everything ourselves. The buses also stop at places along the way that you probably wouldn't see otherwise and the drivers will help you sort out your itinerary as much as possible. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.
If there is any other information that I may have missed out, feel free to ask me any questions:)
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