It took two and a half weeks this year to get our visas back from Washington, DC. When we went in 2009, it took a week to get our visas back.



Burma is expecting the largest number of visitors ever this year. So expect your visa to take longer than usual. The visa is good for 90 days from the date of issue, meaning that you have to enter Burma by that date. Once you enter Burma, it is good for 28 days. No extensions are allowed.

The visa cost is US$20. The application requires a lot of information, including flights into Burma, itinerary, and a job history.

The visa form is available here: Applying for tourist Visa

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We also used our agent to book at boat for us between Sittwe and Mrauk U. There is a public (government) boat that runs several days a week, but is not practical if you have a schedule to keep. There are a number of different kinds of boats one can take – a speedboat that is both very loud and rather dangerous (like other speedboats on rivers in SE Asia), tiny uncovered boats, and fancier, covered boats. Because we are staying at the Princess, we decided to splurge on the Princess boat.

On our first trip to Burma, we found that the agent could get us better prices for Balloons over Bagan.

Of course, travel agents can also arrange guides for you. We opt not to do that, as we seldom use guides, and when we do we’d rather hire one on the spot after we’ve had a chance to interact a bit.

Also on our first trip to Burma we arrived in Yangon on a national holiday, so Scott’s Market, the recommended place to exchange money was closed. Our agent changed money for us at a rate equal to that available at Scott’s Market.

Because we are heading to Mandalay soon after we land in Yangon from Bangkok, we may ask the agent to exchange money for us when they meet us at the airport to give us our tickets and vouchers and to get paid.

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Have a plan B, and do your research so you know your options. Don’t expect that airline personnel will necessarily know the best alternate routes to your destination or that they will know which other airlines fly to your destination.

Utilize your status with frequent flier and hotel programs

When there is a problem, consider what kind of leverage you might have. Being a member of the airline or hotel loyalty program is helpful, but it’s even more helpful if you are a premium member. If you have often stayed at a particular hotel, you can use that as leverage. When I say leverage, I don’t mean making threats “I’ve been staying here for years – if you don’t take care of this right now I’ll never stay here again!” If I were the hotel manager I have to admit I’d be saying to myself that I could only hope the nasty customer wouldn’t return!

Instead, take the approach that you have been a good customer and that you are sure the hotel wants to take care of the problem. Take the approach that you are working together to take care of the problem.

Airline problems are often due to weather delays or equipment delays. Conventional wisdom says to try to take flights early in the day so you can catch a later flight if necessary. Of course, that is not always possible. On my way to a meeting in Montreal, we landed in Washington DC for the connection to Montreal. There were thunderstorms in Montreal so the flight was delayed. It was getting late, and I expected we might not fly that night. I called an airport hotel, the Hyatt, and they had no space. At the time I was a diamond passport member, so they assured me they would find a room for me.

Soon, it was clear to me that the plane would not fly. I went to the Red Carpet Club and asked that they book me on the earliest flight out the next morning. I utilized my Red Carpet Club membership, my United Premier Executive status and my hotel loyalty program status, all of which paid off. I had a good night’s sleep and my flight to Montreal in the morning was as smooth as can be. The flight was overbooked – so if I hadn’t gotten my reservations as early as possible the previous afternoon, I wouldn’t have gotten on that flight.

How can you make your delay more pleasant?

We were flying from Kuching, Malaysia to Bangkok via Kuala Lumpur several years ago, when our flight out of Kuching was delayed. I wasn’t too worried, as I figured that there must be frequent flights from Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok, so we could just get on the next flight. Fortunately, we were flying in Business Class on Malaysian Air, so I knew they would accommodate us.

When we arrived in KL, I went to the Malaysian Air desk to get on the next flight, only to find that it was 5 hours later! My guess about how frequent the flights must be was way off. I checked on some other connection options, but turned up nothing. So what could I do in the Kuala Lumpur airport for all that time? Go to the Business Class Lounge.

Here is a real advantage to flying a premium class even on relatively short international connections.

The Business Class Lounge at Kuala Lumpur Internation Airport is lovely. We sat down and looked around. They have comfortable seating, lovely food, good champagne, and a spa! I have to say that was the most relaxing time I’ve ever had waiting for a flight. We had arrived hungry and cranky from a delayed flight that caused us to miss our connection, and by the time we left the lounge to take our flight to Bangkok we were relaxed and content. We filled our time with a visit to the spa, champagne and good food.

Next : Managing illness or minor accidents while traveling

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I love the Fodor’s Forum.  There are lots of well-traveled people who post reports on their trips and will answer questions about your planning.  The Fodor’s forums have become little travel communities, and people who post regularly have gotten to know each other.

Most of these posters travel independently, and many stay in higher-end accommodations.  There are “flashpackers” and budget travelers who post here as well.  There are occasional reports of group tours, but the regulars prefer independent travel and will “hold the hand” of a newbie trying to plan their first independent trip to Asia.

Lonely Planet has a forum called Thorntree.  More oriented toward backpackers and those who like to “rough it,” there are some posters who stay in upper-end accommodations.  There are many knowledgeable people who know about a destination that is rarely visited by travelers.  Those people are invaluable resources.  When I was planning my trip to Malaysian Borneo, I found a poster on the Thorntree who had written a long post on where to see orangutans in the wild.  Nowhere else did I find this kind of detailed information.

Trip Advisor is a useful site for hotel reviews in particular.  Many people love it, though I find it less user-friendly than some other sites.  I find the ceaseless advertisements distracting, but others have learned to tune it out.

Forum Etiquette

To get the most out of these wonderful resources, there is some forum etiquette that you should observe.

First, familiarize yourself with the site.  How is the site organized?  You’ll want to ask your questions in the right place.  There are usually separate boards for different areas of the world and some forums allow you to tag your question with a country tag, for instance.  Both Fodors and Thorntree have this capability.

Next, read some posts on your intended destination.  Learn how the search function works.  Try searching for an answer to your question before you ask.  Some boards, such as Thorntree, have FAQs (frequently asked questions) that can give you basic information you might be seeking.

Now, you are ready to formulate your question.  What do you need to know?  Take into consideration the research you’ve already done on your trip. Travel forums are great places to get a specific question answered.  In addition to travelers, there are often locals who post on these boards and can give you reports “from the ground” such as at times when there is civil unrest.

Dos and Don’ts

Don’t ask about the weather!  There are weather sites for historical information www.weatherbase.com is my favorite.  And if you need to know the weather today, there are sites for that, as well as the local newspapers being online.  Sometimes you need weather info that isn’t covered on weather sites.  For instance, people often ask about the rain patterns during monsoons – does it rain all day or for briefer periods?  Those are reasonable questions.  Also, even if you don’t mind rain during your beach vacation, you may want to know whether the sea will be too rough for swimming or the water too murky for snorkeling.

Don’t ask questions that are so general that someone would need to write a guidebook to answer the question.  For instance, “What should I do in Thailand?” is unlikely to elicit much helpful information.  But a specific questions such as, “Where can I do bird-watching in Thailand?” or “I’m looking for old house museums in Bangkok” will likely get you clear, specific answers.

Give people enough information that they can be helpful.  A post like “Looking for a hotel in Hong Kong” won’t get you much more than lots of questions.  Even “looking for a moderately priced hotel in Hong Kong” isn’t very specific – your moderately priced isn’t necessarily someone else’s moderately priced.  A post requesting “looking for a hotel in Hong Kong under US$250 a night that has a swimming pool” or “best business hotel on Hong Kong island, price unimportant” will get you responses and perhaps additional questions such as preferred location, dates of travel and such.  You don’t have to get it all in the first question, but do give enough information so people can begin to help you.

Come back and respond to your own post.  Follow up with specific information people wanted in order to be more helpful and thank posters for their advice.  It is always appreciated when someone returns to the forum after the trip to report their experiences, especially if no one had current information on the question you asked.  So if people only knew that there were no ATMS two years ago, coming back to say,  “Just returned from Pokara, Nepal. ATMs are now available there” will enhance the information available on the forum.

Don’t ask for lists:  “What are your five best places to visit in Asia?”  Or “What are your 10 must-see places in China?”  Both of these questions are too general to get useful information.

Don’t ask posters to plan your trip.  “I want to go to SE Asia.  What is a good route to follow to see as much as possible?”   Show that you did some homework before you posted.  “Angkor Wat is a must-see for me.  I have three weeks in SEA Asia, what are reasonable destinations to combine with Angkor?”  You’ve given people enough information to give you some ideas for your itinerary.

If you want recommendations on what to do, give your specific interests. So if you want to ask about shopping, tell people what you want to shop for and the places you’ll be.  “Going to Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore.  Where is the best place to buy silk yard goods?”

Give a title to your post that will let people know what you are asking.  Forums generally show titles only, so you want to make sure the right people are clicking on your post so you’ll get some good answers.  A thread titled “Travel help, please” won’t get the attention of the people who know the answer to your question, but “Looking for a Malaysian beach for November” will get the attention of people who know about Malaysian beaches.

Don’t ask people to research airline prices for you, that’s what airline sites are for.  It’s fine, though to say “I can find an airfare of US$1000 from Washington Dulles to Narita for October on ANA.  Is this a good airfare or should I wait to see if it will come down?”  While no one has a crystal ball, there will be travelers who fly this route regularly who can say – “It’s a great fare – grab it!” or “You should be able to get a sale fare for a $100 or so less if you wait another month or so.”

Do ask about hotel booking sites.  “Has anyone used charliesluxehotelsforless and are they reputable?”  or “How do you usually book your hotels in Singapore?”  If you’ve done your research, you can check and see if anyone has gotten a better price.  “Best price I can find for the Pen in Bangkok in October is US$200 per night including breakfast for two on the Pen’s website.  Has anyone found a better price?”

Interpersonal interactions

The posts on these forums are interpersonal interactions.  As such, they are prone to the complexities of any interaction between people.  But because they are internet interactions, you have much less information that you usually do in interacting with people.  Social scientists say that in face-to-face interactions, we get more than 90% of the communication not through words, but through body language, tone of voice, facial expression, etc.

Online you don’t have the luxury of all of that information.  Thus, it can be easy to have misunderstandings.  Also, this is the world wide web we are talking about.  Thus, there will be posters for whom English is not their first language, and posters who speak different kinds of English.  Australian English and British English have not only different spellings from North American English, but some different vocabulary and different shades of meaning for many words.

I remember a post on a board when someone had asked about traveling with children.  They had gotten many good responses about things to do with kids at their destination when a new poster arrived saying that she couldn’t believe how anti-children the posters on the board were – calling children baby goats.  Someone quickly clarified that “kids” is a term of endearment for children in the poster’s culture.

Attend to the tone of your post.  People who post with a friendly tone usually get friendly posts in return.  People who arrive with an agenda to be pushy rather than to offer or request information may not be treated kindly on travel boards.

Travel boards are emphatic about their no-advertising policies.  Spam from someone trying to disguise themselves as a traveler seldom gets by the regulars and the moderators of these forums.  You may see unfriendly responses from posters to such spam.  This will be deleted when the spam is reported to the editors.  Rarely, you will find a really nasty post from a “troll,” or someone who posts on the web just to stir things up.  Ignore any such posts, as they will soon be deleted by the editors.

So familiarize yourself with online travel forums.  You will gain some great information for planning your trip and you may make some online friends of the other travelers on these sites.

Technorati Tags: getting help online travel questions, Independent Travel, internet travel forums, travel forum etiquette, travel forums, traveling independently

My rule for planning a great trip is know thy self; know thy destination.

Know thyself: What have you loved or not about past trips?  What do you consider to be your best travel experiences?  What do you enjoy doing?  Are you a city person or do you want to spend time in nature?  Do you like to be around a lot of people or in more isolated areas?

Do you enjoy museums?  Shopping? Visiting cathedrals and temples and wats and pagodas?  What kinds of food do you enjoy?  What do you want from the hotel where you are staying?  These are all questions to consider as you begin your planning.

Know thy destination: There are so many resources for learning about your destination.  Guidebooks are invaluable.  You’ll need to find a guidebook series that suits your interests.  For some destinations you may well want more than one guidebook.  Some guides are great for preparation; some are great to take along on the trip.  Go to a travel bookstore or the library and browse guidebooks for your destination.

Travel Guidebooks

The Lonely Planet series is renowned as the source of choice for backpackers.  But it also has great details for getting off the usual tourist track.  If I’m headed for somewhere a little offbeat, if I need to know how to get from remote destination A to remote destination B the Lonely Planet is my guide of choice.

The Fodor’s guides are information-rich.   They give good details on places you’ll want to visit and the background information you’ll need to appreciate those places.

The Insight Guides are another favorite of mine.  The photography is great and really gives me a sense of my destination.  They also publish some “Compact Guides.”  These are often guides for a particular city, and offer highlights and walking routes that take you to interesting places that other guidebooks don’t mention.

There are, of course, many other guides – look at them all and buy what appeals to you.

Other Resources to Help You Plan & Learn About Places

In addition to guidebooks, consider other books about your destination, both fiction and non-fiction, historical and contemporary.

There are also lots of travel magazines.  These magazines are as different from each other as individual travelers are.  There are the slick magazines such as Conde-Nast Traveler.  While this is not one I find useful, it may appeal to you.  There is the National Geographic Traveler with the wonderful photography.

While I don’t find this one useful for planning, it might give you ideas about places you want to go.  The only travel magazine I find helpful in my trip planning is the International Travel News.  An odd publication, it is a compendium of reports from travelers, printed on newsprint and published monthly.  There are reports of high-end tours, of independent travel to the ends of the earth and everything in between.  You can request a free sample issue online and see if it fits your needs.

The Internet has brought travel forums to our desktops.  These are invaluable resources and the topic of our next post!

Technorati Tags: Independent Travel, independent travel planning, travel planning, Travel Planning Resources, traveling independently