Stopping in Sydney on my way to India

Coming from the east coast of the US (Washington or NYC), how difficult is it to stop in Sydney for a couple days on the way to India? I'll be spending 3.5 months in India and Pakistan this summer, and there's someone I'd like to see in Sydney. Would this be obscenely expensive to do? Any suggestions for how I can pull this off?

your best option would be to look into 'round the world' (RTW) tickets, these would probibly cost between US$ 1500 - 1800 but you could have a look at a european city on the way home.

click on the following links for info on RTW tickets.

the travellers lounge

round the world

bridge the world

sta travel

In case anyone in the future wants to do a similar thing, I gound that the cheapest way by far was to use the suggestion made in a different thread about buying tickets through a Thai travel agent. I got a ticket from NYC to Bangkok, then roundtrip tickets from there to Sydney and back, then to Bombay and back. Works out perfectly

wow, long way round, but if it's cheaper.

the money saved can be spent on a few night on the town in Bangkok, probibly the nightlife capital of the world.

if you need any info on things to do in and around Bangkok send me a PM, my overall dissapointment with Thailand was more than made-up by my love of Bangkok.

Hi Steven, I know this is off topic, but I'm planning on doing a 6 month journey through SE-Asia in 2004 and wanted to take in Thailand on the way. Why were you so disapointed?

Thailand is beautiful, clean, awsome food, very friendly, hotels much cleaner than india and better value for money, the most awsome nightlife you could ever imagine, markets to rival the best in India, and beer chang is lovely, also, you can drink the water anywhere in thailand.

the trains are clean, cheap, comfortable and easy to book, the roads are fantastic, buses are clean, comfortable and fast (though a safety record similar to india), a compulsary meter system for taxis in bangkok,

the islands are beautiful, ko phi phi is the most beautiful place i have ever seen, the beaches are fantastic and the sea is so clear and warm.

all in all, Thailand is a wonderfull place...........

but it's BORING.

Thailand is totaly geared-up for tourism, and absolutly packed with tourists, double-pricing is the norm and their obvious with it.

it is far too organized and expensive in the tourist areas (bangkok, ayutthaya, chiang mai, pattaya, hua hin, surat thani, krabbi, au nang, phuket, ko phi phi, ko lanta, ko samui, ko pha ngan) and unless you know where to go the food can be awful.

the prices on ko phi phi are the same as england.

it is a country where you need to get of the 'beaten track' to see the best of thailand, not easy as virtualy no english spoken outside the tourist areas.

the thai smile is a polite smile and not as genuine as in india.

Thailand has a lot of expats living there and their contempt for the thais is alarming.

i missed india when i first went to thailand, it was not untill i had been there for a couple of months that i realised how much i missed india, nothing crazy or out of the ordinary ever happens in thailand.

i could go on, but that would give the impression that i dont like the place, believe me, i realy like the place, it's just not india.

i have friends who absolutly love thailand.

if a person has plenty of money, learns a little thai, is happy on a busy beach, and has never enjoyed india, they will think thailand is paradise.

make sure you learn about 'saving face'

Everything Steven says I agree with, it's amazing how he almost took the words right out of my mouth!

I would just change the stress and adjust a few things:
1. The markets in Thailand are BETTER than in India because, while Indians are squeamish eaters who eat only one meat and seven vegetables, Thais eat 25 different kinds of greens alone, not to mention 6 or 7 shapes and flavors of eggplant, and every grub that crawls the earth, several kinds of frogs, etc. The people in the markets are not as colorful, though.
2. Yes, Thailand can be boring and the smiles can be fake, but a lot of the smiles are genuine and there is quite a bit of interest in people watching, just not anywhere near as much as India. Nothing crazy, I admit. A friend once said that compared to India any other Asian country looks like Switzerland!
3. Bangkok does NOT have to be expensive; you can get the same meals for under $1 as in the provinces, and the hotels and food there are, as everywhere else in Thailand, better value than in India. The Krabi coast and Ko Phi Phi are expensive. But Phuket and Chiang Mai, which are also overcrowded and western, can be cheap.
4. Yes, the beaches are crowded, but they are not public toilets like in India. So if you find a beach that is not crowded (avoid Phuket, Ko Phi Phi and Ko Samui), it is likely to be relatively clean and peaceful, whereas in India it'll be full of human excrement and one-pen children.
5. You can rent and drive your own car, thus having more freedom than in India to visit out of the way places with ease. Gas is cheap, so car rental on your own comes to the same per day as in India with a driver.
6. The Thais are very generous people and not as much after your money as Indians (I know it's an unfair comparison, Thailand on the average is much more affluent), so you can get free rides and invitations without having to worry about what's at the other end.
7. The double pricing is the same as India, and applies only to touristy areas. The National Parks ARE a ripoff, I admit.
8. I absolutely love Thailand. As much as India? I don't know , they're so different. I also love France, Italy, Mexico, Turkey, Morocco... India is not a one-country love affair for me; I hope I'm not considered a traitor in this forum...

Bumpy: glad to hear your plans working out -- if you get a chance, perhaps you could update the other thread you mentioned with the details of who you dealt with and prices you found as it will probably be of interest to others. have a good trip!

Thanks for the feedback! I've heard of a few mixed impressions regarding Thailand. any info is much appreciated. For me Thailand is a definate "must see".

You know, I assume that lots of you have far more experience with world travel not only in India. I think it would be nice if there would be a forum here on indiamike for other "backpack" destinations since quite a few people combine India with other destinations. I'm sure a lot of you have remarkable suggestions for places like Thailand, Vietnam etc...

Again I know this is a forum dedicated to India, but it might help those travelers who are going for the long haul.

Cheers!

yeah thailand is a must see....everything is nice and perfect,organized and easy but as steven said it can be very boring
despite the nigthtlife and the fantastic food,I think the thais have one of the best cuisines in the world(after vietnam and some others in asia),but thailand is not much of a challenge,
but why don t go to Laos?It s very easy to get to laos from thailand,just take a bus and you re there!
Travelling in Laos is much more fun (and hard work sometimes),the tourism is still developing in Laos,so you can find some very nice and unspoiled places,the people are just great in Laos!!!
I ve been there last year for my first time and definetely not my last time

I stopped over in Thailand and Cambodia in 1970 on the way home of my first long trip -- the viet-nam war was still going and Bangkok hotels were filled with young GI's on 5 day R&R leaves. I think some of Thailand's tourist development is a result of some of the experiences of those days. Certainly the infrastructure of good roads, telecom and transport developed very quickly, and I think some of the sex-tourism hangover stems from those days too -- prostitution was always a local thing -- some tourists just tapped into it.

I started going to Thailand regularly in the 80's as my 'work-life' involved long stretches of work in rain/windswept 'isolated postings' and by converting most of my overtime to additional vacation time, I could get away for 5 or 6 weeks in the winter and would head for Cha Weng beach on Koh Samui as fast as a 747, train, and express boat would take me. Paradise!

I know its a real bore when people say the likes of 'you shudda been here 10 years ago' and I don't mean to -- I think places like Thailand will always be terrific for first time visitors -- the cuisine, the culture, people, islands, ease of travel -- consider it a break from 'hard travel' sort of the way Goa is after you've been on the road for a while in India. So Koh Phi Phi and Koh Samui didn't have electricy until the mid 80's and a generator ran until the last toke/Singh/Mekong consumed and it was flashlights and candles. Progress. There are still places like that in SE Asia if that's what you like, just a bit harder to find.

I've wondered about Watson's other comment about expanding the forums -- it seems to me that a Nepal section would be particularly relevant as, in normal times, probably most Indian visitors on longer trips will want to take in Nepal and I don't think we'd have any trouble answereing a lot of the easy questions and may even pick up a specialist contributor or two. The same logic leads to Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh, but, personally these don't seem in the same category as Nepal to me.

Haven't been to Laos or Burma, but on my list. By all means consider Sumatra if the politics ok when you go -- send me a PM if you want any particulars.

Well, I ended up deciding not to go with the Thai travel agents after all. For about the same price I bought a RTW ticket from Malaysia Airlines for $2000 after taxes

You guys have to check out this itinerary. It's the most roundabout flight path ever: Newark->Dubai->Kuala Lumpur->Sydney->Kuala Lumpur->Delhi->Kuala Lumpur->Dubai->Newark

Thankfully it's on Malaysia Air, with their good food and awesome in-seat entertainment systems. As you can imagine from the itinerary, I get a CRAZY amount of frequent flyer miles (33,808), which can be applied to Northwest or Delta.

I opted for a 3 day stopover in Dubai on my way there, and 1 week in Kuala Lumpur to have some time to take the train up to visit a friend in Singapore and see a little of the countryside as well.

On the subject of forums for other countries: One for Pakistan would be good. It's a natural place to visit in addition to India, especially if you're interested in the politics of the region. I'm going to be spending 3 to 4 weeks of my Indo-Pak trip this summer there, and will have plenty of info to share for those who are interested.

Bumpy Jonas...there's a section on Pakistan in the Across the Border forum. Pakistan is fantastic!

Duh!! i've never noticed this section

I'm pretty absent-minded today... I've even posted in that forum!! [iamslow]