Asia-Pacific

Hong Kong – quick travel guide

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SAR…vibrant crowded hilly city spread across many islands, with amazing fusion food influenced by both west and east culture. (Arguably world’s best foodie destination.)

First thing to know is Hong Kong is NOT mainland China…and for HK people, Hong Kong is NOT China! Get that into your head when talking to the locals. They are NOT Chinese, they are HongKongers or Hong Kongese. Different language, different history, different culture. As a tourist, you’ll find English is widely spoken in HK (much like Taiwan) and even at fluent level. You can almost stop and talk to anyone in the street.

Appearance-wise, Hong Kong really looks like a Chinese version of London, New York, and San Francisco all mixed together.

  • British red phone booths (like London)
  • Hilly city (like SF)
  • Dense city with many skyscrapers (like NY)
  • Double-decker trams similar to both London double-decker buses and SF historic tram
  • Hong Kong was occupied by the British for 150 years, in case you didn’t know.

Yes, I think HK is the best foodie city in the world. I said it and I meant it with every ounce of my heart. This is due to the multicultural influence, and high standard for food, AND expectation. No doubt about it, Asians know how to eat and prepare food to a wider range of flavors than anybody else. Other countries might have good food but only when you pay a lot of money, or find the right restaurants, or they’re only good in a few dishes. But here…seems like tons of amazing restaurants are packed in every corner.

Known for tall beautiful city skyline (both day & night)

You could see the main tourist things and get a sense of Hong Kong within 3 days. But the city is really a nice enough vibe to sit out here for a week, a month, or a year. Don’t forget that Hong Kong Island is not the only place to see.

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Korea vs Japan – traveler comparisons

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Both of these countries and lifestyles/cultures are similar in some ways, different in others.

Both are highly developed Asian countries with high standard of living. Also very Westernized or at least western-friendly and western-relatable cultures. Japanese culture has been known about for much longer in western countries but with the explosion of K-POP and korean food some decades ago, it seems more westerners have familiarity with Korea as well.

Let’s go over some comparisons…

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Chongqing – quick travel guide

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Massive hilly main city of China with spicy food, lots of nature (near Chengdu/pandas), and very hot weather.

Chongqing, nearby the more popular Chengdu (panda tourist destination), is the biggest city you never heard of. 32 million people (officially China’s largest metropolitan area) when I went in summer 2024. For a foreigner, this city is known for its super hot weather, lots of nature (in the municipality), extremely spicy food (origin of Chinese hot pot), origin of Chinese foot massage, and lots of west China’s history and culture. Locals refer to it as the mountain city, or “hilly city with many layers”.

Most tourists and foreigners much prefer Chengdu over Chongqing. For being more tourist friendly, more unique things to see, also panda stuff, and that it’s far less crowded. There’s a sentiment that whatever tourist value Chongqing has, you could find it elsewhere in China already. And I agree with that. You should only pick Chongqing over Chengdu if you have a specific reason.

3 days is enough to feel the vibe, try spicy food, take mountain photos, and walk main busy tourist areas. 4-6 days if you actually want to visit the nearby nature destinations.

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Shanghai – quick travel guide

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China’s most international city. Most westerners and expats, English-friendly. Big, clean, quiet (seems all vehicles are electric), cleaner air, modern commercial hub, many business people here.

Despite recent complaints during covid lockdowns (2020-2021) about the government being too restrictive and killing the fun and business liberty, Shanghai is still a very nice place to live. Lifestyle here is very modern and trendy, in contrast to a more traditional or old-school lifestyle elsewhere in China. Whether that fits your taste is another matter altogether.

4-5 days would allow you to explore different areas and enjoy the metropolitan lifestyle.

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China – quick travel guide

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Huge territory of various terrain, food, and intact culture thousands of years old.

China is a really great place to travel because:

  1. There’s so much to see. A wide range of culture, nature, landscape, food, and everything intact for a civilization thousands of years old.
  2. It’s so different from anywhere else you’ve ever been.
  3. It caters to all price ranges. Whereas most countries are either all expensive or all less developed, China has the extremes of both. Which means you can find affordable accommodation and food in nice cities right next to fancy accommodation and food.
  4. It’s safe.

Bottomline, China is such an underrated place to travel. There’s so much to see and do, much of it relatively untainted by western tourism and culture. You actually feel like you’re seeing a totally new place. And the price is quite cheap for such a developed country. It’s loads of fun and feels like a whole new continent rather than just one country. Many of the unique things you’d find in Japan or Korea would be eclipsed by far more variety in China.

You could get A LICK (not even a taste) of China within a week. Like at least 4 days per major city. I honestly feel you could be here a month and feel like you barely saw 2% of the highlights. You would almost have to be here at least 3 months or a year to feel like you comprehended it.

As a reference, I feel America could be comprehensively sampled within a month. Western Europe within 2-3 months. But China?? Again…that civilization has been around thousands of years and their country is so big…I really don’t know, 6-12 months?

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Osaka – quick travel guide

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Western Japan’s biggest city. Smaller, lower-cost, more laidback, and friendlier than Tokyo.

Osaka was Japan’s former historic business center conveniently near Kyoto (Japan’s former political center), before both were consolidated and moved to Tokyo in the east of Japan. Today, Osaka is a cheaper (compared to Tokyo) but still very vibrant city. Lots of fun and nice place to live. It’s in the vincinity of many tourist-worthy sites but they’re kinda spread out so you can do some tourist things here, but not all unless you commit lots of time. Mainly, you’re here for a less-touristy vibrant city life.

2 days is enough to walk through the main sites. 3 would feel more comprehensive. 5 if you want to really lay back, and perhaps visit other nearby areas (such as Nara).

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Kandy – quick travel guide

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Popular cultural tourist city in central highlands. Great food, variety of shopping, good mix of city accommodations or nature lodging.

Great food, lots of things to do and see. And still carries a very local vibe. I enjoyed my time in Kandy a lot. The more you stay, the more you find things to do.

Kandy and nearby tourist attractions can be seen in 2-3 days but with all the farther-out sights, I think 4 days might be better to fully enjoy it.

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Negombo – quick travel guide

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Popular beach city just north of capital city Colombo (and next to the airport). Very westernized, touristy with all big city comforts, and creditcard accepted everywhere.

Feels like a proper beach city with many hotels, restaurants, shops, and westernized touristy area. Everything is very comfy and convenient. The price is expensive compared to the rest of Sri Lanka, but still very cheap by western standards. I also noticed this area tends to be much more full of Germans, rather than Russian (in the south).

The best reason to go here is to be close to the airport and out of Colombo (which everyone recommends you skip). If you check the map, you’ll see CMB airport is actually in Negombo. Making this your perfect final stop in Sri Lanka. It’s not a necessary destination at all (very low unique tourism value).

But can be a nice stop for some days before you fly out of CMB. Luckily, they accept card everywhere here so you don’t have to pull out more cash.

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Trincomalee – quick travel guide

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Northeast beach city, with small beach towns adjacent. Very local and conservative vibe, with pockets of tourist areas during high season.

We came during off-season months of Dec & Jan, also stayed in the outer area of Nilaveli Beach, and felt like we were the only foreigners we saw everyday.

Definitely the least fun place we’ve been on our whole Sri Lanka tour. Beach nearby us was ugly. Everything was far and remote, needed to rent a bike to buy daily food and water. I guess it was nice in that we had time to focus on work stuff instead of getting distracted by tourist stuff. But that’s not why we go places, right?

I’d say 3 days is enough. But also, you need to have a reason to come here. Are you sure you want to see a more conservative part of Sri Lanka? A part that doesn’t have so many westernized food options and tourist things to do? A part that may not be a great place to visit during off-season? Because you might be better just skipping this place.

If you’re simply looking for the least touristy major city of Sri Lanka, skip this and go further north to Jaffna.

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Anuradhapura – quick travel guide

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Many historic sites and ruins inside a big green bicycle-able park with lots of nature and wildlife.

Anuradhapura is the most iconic city in the Sri Lanka’s cultural triangle, and also its first capital before being destroyed by the Cholas in 993 AD. And lucky for you, all the main tourist sights are situated close together (within the “Sacred City”) and easily reached with a bicycle.

There’s also restaurants with GREAT FOOD, and some lakes and other things to see outside of the sacred city. In case you were looking for city comforts or specific conveniences, you can also find it here. Plenty of stores for electronics, clothing, upscale grocery stores, etc.

2 days is the perfect amount of time. You technically could do it all in one daytrip (5-hours of biking), but we felt it was best to have an extra day so there’s no rush, and also you have more time to try different restaurants.

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Sigiriya – quick travel guide

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Tiny town where tourists come to see Sigiriya Rock aka “Lion Rock” (UNESCO site).

Go here for the big UNESCO ancient fortress palace on top of a giant rock sticking out of the jungle. Many cheap and nice nature accommodations to stay. And it’s close enough to several other destinations (between Kandy & Trincomalee). You have no excuse not to visit here.

Come as a day trip or stay the night. Maybe add a day if you just want to chill in a tiny tourist town.

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Ella – quick travel guide

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Sri Lanka’s touristy mountain town. Lots of mountain views, nature hikes, waterfalls and caves, and the Nine Arch Bridge. Oh and good food!

It’s a mountain jungle place where accommodations have you staying right in nature. See birds, monkeys, and green all around you as you wake up to nature everyday. Take little hikes and enjoy picturesque mountain viewpoints all around you. The food is also the best we had up to this point, especially since coming from the south of Sri Lanka (which really didn’t have great food).

2 days is enough to see all the main points. Stay longer to relax more, eat good food, or give yourself more time with nature.

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Tangalle – quick travel guide

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Relaxed beach town with beachside restaurants and remove beaches for a more local atmosphere. It’s still has touristy things like restaurants and bars, but not overly commercial with endless shops.

Tangalle can be a nice 2-day stop to relax and enjoy the long peaceful beachfronts. Or a 6-day stay to fully relax and also take tours to nearby national parks (Udalaware & Yala) to see wildlife, and Africa-like landscapes. We stayed here six days and loved it, but if you’re looking for things to do…then you should continue on to Ella.

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Sri Lanka – quick travel guide

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Island country off India’s southern coast, and very similar to in culture and geography to south India.

Known as one of the cheapest and most convenient travel destinations. Because it’s a small country, easy to get around (since everything all in one island), very inexpensive. Lots of transportation…cheap trains and buses, taxis are cheap enough for foreigners to take 2-hr rides. The locals are friendly and many speak enough English. Internet is good enough. Everywhere feels very safe and accessible.

As a foreigner, you’ll find Sri Lanka to be very undeveloped and wild. Wild beaches, train-tracks running all over the country (past beaches, through jungles, around mountains), people walking on train tracks, people hanging out of train cars, very local vibe in many places and not overly touristy as other countries. Nature everywhere and you feel like you’re living in it (whether for good or for worse), rather than looking at it.

The default VISA period is one month and that’s a good amount of time to comprehensively immerse yourself on the Sri Lankan island. If you need to extend, you can do it easily enough online or through the tourist office.

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Unawatuna – quick travel guide

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Classic local favorite beach town with many beachside restaurants along the road. Not really a city.

Unawatuna is a local favorite spot for many and it’s easy to see why. Beautiful beaches with a chill vibe, not crowded, great sunset views, and cheap accommodation easily found right next to the beach.

Although you could stay several days, there’s probably very little to do other than sit on the beach and you may get bored. We did just a 1-day stop through here.

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Galle – quick travel guide

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Skippable local beach city with a touristy “Dutch Fort”, close to better spots in south Sri Lanka.

This city isn’t a worthy tourist destination. No beautiful beaches, mostly all local areas and local food (good if you want cheap food). It’s for passing by when you’re going between other southern coastal cities in Sri Lanka.

The only thing here is to check out the Dutch Fort, take pictures around the walls. And maybe buy or pickup things that can only be found in a bigger city. There are much more markets here and options to choose from. A friend went here to find bigger repair shops for his broken mobile phone.

A 2-hour pitstop is more than enough for me.

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Hikkaduwa – quick travel guide

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Nice beach town known for having corals and turtles, and many Russians. And OK for surfing.

It’s a small beach town with a nice relaxed vibe without being pretentious. Plenty of water activities to do around here, and close to other towns for other excursions and activities. You can stay here a couple days or a couple weeks.

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Tokyo – quick travel guide

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Hyper-stimulated and mega-dense, iconic capital city of Japan and Japanese pop culture.

Tokyo is perhaps the most known and recognized city in Asia by westerners. The other most recognized Asian countries (by westerners) are probably China and Korea. But what are their capital cities? Fewer people know the answers to that. It helps Tokyo is easy to spell and remember. Also that Japanese culture is also more familiar and previously introduced in Western media and other subcultures.

We know Tokyo is one of the biggest and most populated cities in the world. But what do you see when you actually get there?

A proper visit to Toyko should be 5-7 days. There are many areas to wander, tourist attractions, museums, parks, gardens, and activities to do.

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Japan – quick travel guide

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Ultra-dense, ultra-modern technology yet traditional culture, super fun and safe country of polite perfectionist people.

Japanese is one of the most “known” and recognized Asian cultures by westerners. The other most “known” Asian cultures (by westerners) are probably China and Korea. It helps a lot that Japanese culture has been previously introduced in Western media and other subcultures. And that many westerners have tried Japanese foods. And so many people have heard many things about Japan already.

But what do you realize when you actually get there?

  1. That Japan is everything you thought it would be. Just like how Italy is very Italian. Japan is very Japanese. It’s very much a caricature of itself (in a good way).
  2. That Japan is even more than what you thought it would be. Many people think because they ate heard Jpop music, seen it in movies, and ate sushi, ramen, curry, teppan grill, etc…that they are familiar with Japan. But no! Just like how Mexico is more than just tacos, beaches, and mariachi music…Japan is so much more than how western pop culture portrays it.
  3. Japan is a comfortable blend of exotic yet familiar, modern yet traditional, fun yet safe place to travel. Foods are not too crazy. And things function more or less in a familiar western way. The people here are polite and helpful, and speak enough English to make even first time travelers feel comfortable.
  4. Very easy to get around in Japan. Lots of public transportation. The language although is not similar to English or other Western languages, can be pronounced easier than other Asian languages (since Japanese isn’t a tonal language), and is also written in legible latin characters.
  5. I highly recommend Japan for first-time travelers wanting a new

2 weeks is a good amount of time to pass through the main 3 destinations in Japan…Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. With maybe a day trip out to nearby destinations here and there.

  • 3 weeks would allow a much fuller image if you’re already enjoying what you see.
  • And a month would be great if you really want to experience the far ends (northeast and southwest).

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Don’t buy the JAPAN RAIL PASS

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The JR Pass most likely WON’T save you MONEY or TIME.

  • Visiting for 10 days or fewer, or 5 cities or fewer?
  • Using the bullet train only a fewer times?
  • Most staying in places longer than just 3 days at a time?

Then you’ll probably save money and time by NOT buying the pass. I mean it! Please do not be fooled by endless blogs and affiliate links encouraging you to buy the pass. It is not the safe option!

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