Southeast Asia: 4 multi-country trips through the region

The jigsaw of nations across Southeast Asia allows you to combine countries, cultures, and experiences with ease. To explore it thoroughly you’d need months or even years, so we’ve picked out four trips that, in about two weeks, give an insight into a pocket of the region.

Each country pairing offers something a little different, along both the well-known routes and lesser-trodden paths. These journeys are by land or river, giving you time to stop off at remote Khmer temples, explore rarely visited national parks, or simply try a cup of rice whiskey along the way.

• Cambodia & Koh Chang, Thailand

• Northern hills of Vietnam & Laos

• Off the beaten track Laos & Cambodia

• North Thailand & Laos

An in-depth tour of Cambodia followed by a relaxing beachside stay in Koh Chang, Thailand

By Southeast Asia specialist Dom

The “must-see” Cambodian sights tend to be clustered in Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, with visitors predominantly in satellite around the two cities. Undoubtedly, the Temples of Angkor and the stoic capital are significant, but they give just a small impression of the country.

This two-week trip through Southeast Asia starts in Siem Reap but takes you beyond these attractions, driving south into rural Cambodia to the trading port of Kampot and the mangrove forests of Koh Kong. This leads you to the Cambodian coastline, which either has very basic (and busy) slices of beach or exclusive private islands.

Instead, I recommend driving north along the Cambodian coast into Thailand. Here, you’re a boat ride from the island of Koh Chang. One of Thailand’s largest islands, it’s dominated by Mu Ko Chang National Park, leaving it comparatively undeveloped.

While Thailand is one of the most visited countries in Southeast Asia, Koh Chang is fairly quiet because it’s easier to get to from Cambodia than Thailand itself. The Dewa, a contemporary property built from local materials, had just the beach I was looking for: a long slip of blonde sand shelving into an aquamarine sea.

Highlights of this Southeast Asia trip:

• Phnom Penh is steeped in history, from the pre-Angkorian art found at the National Museum of Cambodia to French-colonial architecture that you’ll see along its boulevards and the confronting stories you’ll learn about at the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. A privately guided city tour will help you unravel the city’s (and the country’s) past and present with a local who knows it inside and out.
• In the rural areas around Kampot, you’ll find an abundance of fruit farms, growing everything from sweet pineapples to spiky (and pungent) durians. But the real star of the show here is pepper. On a tour of the region, you can visit pepper farms that have been cultivating the spice since the 13th century. The variety is so prestigious that some call it “the Champagne of pepper”.
• Koh Kong is a tract of wilderness that encompasses pristine mangroves, serpentine rivers, and the forested Cardamom Mountains. On a curve of the Tatai River, Canvas & Orchids Retreat allows you to spend time getting to know this remarkable landscape. Kayak directly from your private tent (which floats on a platform above the water) or hike into the virgin rainforest (deemed the second largest in Asia).

My inside tip

Most people visit Angkor Wat to see sunrise, but I suggest leaving it until the afternoon when the crowds have dissipated. Linger until dusk for a quality of light that makes for excellent photographs. Alternatively, for a smaller, quieter temple experience, I like Banteay Srei.

Northern hills of Vietnam and Laos for a slice of local life and Southeast Asia’s best scenery

By Southeast Asia specialist Alex

If it’s the scenery of Southeast Asia that interests you, and you have two weeks to spare, the mountainous highlands that stretch across the region are at their most dramatic in Northern Vietnam and Laos.

Here, you’ll find a region that seems to eschew international borders. Sheer-walled valleys, impenetrable jungle, and rivers dictate travel here (the border crossing itself is unassuming). There are many traditional communities who live in this region, and you’ll find customs and languages that are endemic to each.

I recommend a journey from Hanoi, west to Luang Prabang (one of Laos’ larger cities). It takes about three hours to reach the White Tai community of Mai Chau from Hanoi, and it’s here the forested mountains begin to rise on the horizon. As you go west into Laos, you’ll see lots of rural villages springing up from the riverbanks, sheltered by the trees. It’s only when you get to Luang Prabang that city life comes back into focus — albeit a very peaceful one.

Highlights of this Southeast Asia trip:

• Hidden in the greenest valley I’ve ever seen are the Vieng Xai Caves, a subterranean city of caverns and grottoes that were converted into the final headquarters of the Pathet Lao. On a guided tour, you can explore the hospital, chapel, and bedrooms where hundreds sheltered from bombing during the Laotian Civil War.
• Just one spindly road encircles the edge of Nam Et-Phou Louey National Protected Area, a massive crumple of forest-covered mountains. The local Khmu people have begun to work with conservationists to offer you a one-night experience in the park. You travel in by longtail boat and, as night falls, float down the river looking up at the stars before spending the night in a traditional bungalow.
• There are ample opportunities to meet traditional communities, such as Akha and Hmong people, on this route. Each have their own distinct architecture, clothing, and traditions. I suggest going with a guide who can help you navigate the language barrier and forge stronger connections during your visits.

My inside tip

Start in Hanoi with a visit to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology. This extensive museum will set you up with an introduction to some of the communities you’ll meet later.

Southeast Asia off the beaten track: Laos and Cambodia

By Southeast Asia specialist Heidi

I’m often asked by veteran visitors to Southeast Asia to plan them something new. This ten-day trip, which I’ve tried and tested, would fit the bill. It takes you through southern Laos, nudging the Thai border, before entering northern Cambodia. Aside from a few determined backpackers, I barely saw any other visitors during my own trip. I suggest adding on time in Siem Reap to slacken the pace at the end of your journey.

Starting in the Laos capital, Vientiane (which in itself feels like a large town), you get a glimpse of commercial Laos before plunging south into narrow river valleys that cut through limestone hills.

The drives are long and the valleys can feel endless, but you can stop at traditional riverside villages along the way, or take a boat into the yawning mouth of Kong Lor Cave. So unexplored is this region that I was one of the first visitors to camp in Nam Theun National Protected Area, a rich ecosystem of evergreen forest, pine stands, cloudforest, and riverine wetlands.

As you continue to drive south, the Laos landscape flattens out as the Mekong and its tributaries thread in. This was once the Kingdom of Champasak, and you’ll see remnants of once-grand temples between wooden-stilted houses and buildings dating back to the French colonial period.

After crossing into Cambodia, you’re a short drive from the border town of Preah Vihear. This 9th-century Khmer complex leads onto the Angkor Road, an ancient trade route you can follow to Siem Reap.

Highlights of this Southeast Asia trip:

• In Nam Theun, you enter the park by longtail boat (there are no roads) and stay on a sandy riverbank. You also have the opportunity to hike through the surrounding deciduous forest.
• Wat Phou Temple has what I wish Angkor did — barely a visitor in sight. The temple runs across Cambodia from one side and Thailand the other. Built to celebrate the Hindu god Shiva, it’s a well-preserved complex of intricately carved sanctuaries linked by a system of staircases.

My inside tip

This isn’t for you if you’re looking for a luxurious journey through Southeast Asia, but I took real pleasure in the sheer remoteness of SpringRiver Resort, near Kong Lor Cave. Along the banks of a moss-green river are a collection of traditional stilted bungalows, where you can sit and watch river life pass by.

Northern Thailand and Laos for a Southeast Asian journey that balances adventure, comfort, and authentic cultural experiences

By Southeast Asia specialist Alex

For me, travel is about the journey. It’s true that a network of short flights make travel across Southeast Asia quicker, but if you tackle a route by land, the slower pace really allows you to explore.

That doesn’t necessarily mean you have to stay on terra firma. I suggest including a day cruising along the Mekong from the Laos border, stopping to visit villages along the way.

Starting in Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand, you can travel northeast to Chiang Rai, where the roads narrow and villages get smaller. It’s a natural progression to continue on to Laos, where, after meandering past stilted houses and rural communities by boat and car, you eventually reach Luang Prabang and return to relative comfort.

The borderlands between Chiang Rai and Luang Prabang are occupied by communities who descend from the Shan, migrants from northern China. As you travel through the region, you’ll happen upon many of these communities, who share a history but have developed very different beliefs and traditions.

Highlights of this Southeast Asia trip:

• Cruising the Upper Mekong, you’ll see jungle-clad hills and giant boulders pass by from the teak deck of your boat. The occasional stilted village signals the only development. The boat moors in Pakbeng, where you can spend the night in a riverside lodge overlooking the gingery-brown water.
• There are opportunities to visit many rural communities along the route, from the Tibeto-Burman Lisu in Thailand to the Khmu, the largest ethnic minority in Laos. During my own trip, some Akha villagers showed me their sacred swing, an important cultural item. Each member of the village has a special day when they can swing to their heart’s content, and it’s also used for courting rituals.

Which are the best countries to visit when travelling to Southeast Asia?

Where you go on your next trip to Southeast Asia depends on your interests. If you’d like to hone in on wildlife spotting, you could trek through the Borneo jungles in search of orangutans, pygmy elephants, and monitor lizards. For a cuisine-focused trip, you might like to taste your way through Thailand’s best street food, while Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam lend themselves well to cruising and history-focused trips. By combining multiple countries, you can experience more of Southeast Asia in a single trip and spend time comparing and contrasting the cultures, histories, and landscapes of this storied region.

Which is the best country for a first-time visitor to Southeast Asia?

Thailand and Vietnam are ideal destinations if you’re visiting Southeast Asia for the first time. They’ve long welcomed international visitors, so you can choose from a wide array of hotels almost everywhere you go. Whether you’re interested in food, culture, and history or the great outdoors, you’ll find plenty of experiences to enjoy in both countries that also give you an insight into the region as a whole. That said, you can go almost anywhere in Southeast Asia as a first-time visitor, especially if your trip is planned by a specialist who already has deep connections with the country.