Top 10 Destinations in South East Asia

I am lucky enough to have visited every country in South East Asia.

OK, so I haven’t been to every inch of the place but I’ve a better angle than most so I’d thought I give you guys my top 10 picks!

First let me give you the criteria.

These places/countries are judged on:

• NB – Natural beauty / Historical wonders
• UE – Unique Experiences offered
• CH – The Chill-out Factor (Off the beaten track, smoke etc.)
• CR – The Craic! (Irish term meaning fun or entertainment)
• X – The Girls  (the real X factor)

So here they are…

Naughty Nomad’s

TOP 10 Spots in South East Asia!

😉

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10. Flores, Indonesia

Komodo Dragon

In a word: Wild.

NB – Diverse & Dramatic.

UE – Volcanoes &  Dragons.

CH – Few Tourists here.

CR – Restricted to Weekends.

X – Cute accents; pity there’s not more of them.

Bottom Line: Launch Pad for Komodo and home to some of the most dramatic volcano scenery in the world.

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9. Vang Vieng, Laos

Riverside bar; drugs on the menu.

In a word: Lazy.

NB – Winding Rivers through beautiful karst scenery.

UE – Tubing down the river, drugs on the menu.

CH – Very chilled but too many tourists. Low season is better.

CR – Riverside bars with ‘happy’ pizzas and friends on TV. Night-life limited.

X – A big no no. $500 fine if you are caught with a local girl.

Bottom Line: Great place to flake out for a few days, but no Boom Boom.

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8. Myanmar

Me in Bagan, Myanmar

In a word: Bizarre.

NB – Bagan puts Angkor Wat to shame.

UE – This is why this place is on the list. No American brands, strange clothing, painted faces, fashion shows in every bar and no mobile phones.

CH – Horse carts and only hardcore tourists.

CR – The odd full moon festival and driving the horse cart pissed.

X – Sigh, no phones and the girls don’t drink…

Bottom Line: This country is the most unique in the S.E. Asia and leaves more memories than any other, but night-life is a little frustrating.

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7. Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Drop anchor and light up.

In a word: Popular.

NB – Sunsets over the South China sea accompanied by 1,960 islets.

UE – Spending an exciting night on a Vietnamese boat.

CH – Rack and pack em in the day but lovely when the sun goes down.

CR – Some weed, liquor and midnight swim anyone?

X -Unless you got some horny Americans on your boats…

Bottom Line: It may be a tourist trap but it’s 100% worth it.

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6. Palawan, The Philippines

I took this in El Nino, Northern Palawan

In a word: Adventurous.

NB – Jungles, empty beaches and the world’s largest underground river.

UE – Epic Motorbiking trips . Canoeing to a deserted island.

CH – Your own private beach anyone? Purple Sunsets? Heaven.

CR – Diving ship wrecks and the dangerous dirt bike trails.

X -There’s always a few cuties to date in Philly…

Bottom Line: If you want  adventure, love and escapism; this is the place.

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5. Bali, Indonesia

There's a lot more than Kuta beach.

In a word: Unique.

NB – Great Beaches, beautiful landscapes and endearing rice paddies.

UE – Balinese culture; surfing; diving; motorbiking around the island.

CH – Beers on the beach are good; but a lot of tourists in Kuta.

CR – Plenty of great restaurants, live music and pumping nightspots.

X – Balinese girls are premium with good values. Other options include cheeky Javanese Muslims and crass Australian women.

Bottom Line: It may be a tourist trap but it’s 100% worth it.

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4. Cambodia (in general)

Life is cheap. My friend Dan took this one in the killing fields.

In a word: Lawless

NB – Angkor Wat.

UE – No rules. People go off the rails here.

CH – You can smoke weed out  in the open; on a beach. Nuf said.

CR – Every night is an adventure ; endless debauchery.

X – Khmer girls are cute and love foreigners.

Bottom Line: You may never leave.

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3. Phuket, Thailand

Bangla Road

In a word: Sex.

NB – It’s got a decent beach.

UE – Going to pool hall at 6am and being surrounded by gorgeous women.

CH – Flake out on the sand, oversexed and hungover.

CR – Live music and perfect for pub crawls.

X – Girls, girls and more girls…

Bottom Line: Sex, and lots of it. Spend more than a week here and you will probably catch something.

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2. Borneo, Malaysia

Me and Dan on the skywalk in Mulu, Borneo

In a word: Idyllic.

NB – Unique wildlife, pristine beaches and the world’s biggest cave.

UE – Jungle excursions and staying in long houses.

CH – Back to Nature.

CR – Fantastic pub culture. Get to Rainforest Festival in July.

X – Chinese girls here incredible attractive, probably the best in S.E Asia… They are quite friendly as well! Excellent place for dating hotties and MLTR.

Bottom Line: Something for everyone. So much to do here, not enough time. Everyday here is an absolute pleasure. You’re just ‘happy’ here.

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1. Boracay, The Philippines

What more could you want?

In a word: Paradise.

NB – White beaches, palm trees , turquoise waters and violet sunsets. Ahh!

UE – Mongolian Buffets, Mojitos and free love.

CH – In low season this place seems to good to be true. Think Disney land with no ques; hammocks and female acoustic sets.

CR – Ram-shackle discos by the beach with live music and cheap drinks.

X – Romantic, sexy and artistic; these Filipinas are addictive. Plenty of creamy Japanese and Korean tourists around too.

Bottom Line: For this nomad, this place is paradise.  Go in Low season.

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Honourable Mentions

I decided to only include places I’ve actually been in the top 10. I contacted some fellow globe-trotters to give their top 10 as well. I’d like take this opportunity to thank everyone involved! The only problem was everyone had different picks!  But it’s nice to see there was some consistencies.  Here are some other picks from fellow travellers…

• The Malukus/ Sulawesi, Indonesia
• Pie, Thailand
• Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia
• Northern Laos
• Hoi An, Vietnam
• Luzon, Philippines
• Northern Vietnam
• Koh Phi Phi, Thailand
• Dili, East Timor (I’ve been here, it just missed the list)

Check out my S.E Asia City Guides!

Please share your favourite places! Leave a comment below!

Manila City Guide

Metro Manila

Manilla in a word: lustful.
C.O.H: 5 / 5
Q.O.G: 3 / 5
S.T.L: 1 / 5
City guide ratings explained

Costs €$£

Beer: Around  €1
Bed: €10 for a double room
Bud: €1 per gram
Board: €2 a basic meal
Budget other: €10  airport departure tax
Currency Conversion

Overview

Manilla is riddled with guns and poverty, but it’s more laid back and less hectic than Bangkok. One night here and you’ll never be the same again. Just follow my night-life recommendations.

Cathleen Lee, Filipina

The Girls

You really have your pick in Manilla -tanned, toned, petite cuties everywhere. They’re all super friendly and speak English with sexy Latina accents. The women here are also the coolest in East Asia. They are playful and up for anything. If there was a Sex Olympics, the Philippines would probably win the gold. There is a lot of average looking girls but you do encounter the odd stunner! Nearly 90% of girls here want to meet a western guy. But beware, if you want to avoid the hookers and are in Manila for more than two days click here; if you want to avoid the lady-boys click here. There are plenty of normal, genuine girls to choose from. Day game is where it’s at in Manila. They are very approachable -in malls, the street or just about anywhere. You might even meet the love of life here. Filipinas are said to make the best wives in the world.  This is my favourite country in South East Asia for a reason. Manila is your playground.

Here are 10 reason for dating a Filipina girl.

Nightlife Recommendations

Manila has a lot of options with cheap beer and great live music. And if there’s a girl involved? Well why not!

If you only have one night in Manila here’s the plan:

Cowboy Grill

Come here to start your night for some of the best steak around. They got great bands and  beer by the barrel! then…

Manila Bay (formally LA cafe)

This may just be the best bar on the fucking planet. WOMEN GALORE! 24 hours a day! (see pic) But beware, this is “freelancers” bar and it’s seedy as hell. You will need to fight the girls of with a stick. Personally, I’ve never paid for sex in my life, but I’ve never went home alone from this bar! Some of these girls are working but know some just want intimacy with attractive mates. Pick the right one, play it cool (& play it shy) and money won’t come up in conversation once. They won’t even ask for a drink. Even if you get unlucky,  this place is a tourist attraction in it’s own right. There’s great live music upstairs every night.

Getting High (courtesy of webehigh.com)

Legislation: the new revised narcotics act states that an individual may be arrested if he is in possesion of any parapharnalia with residue. about 5grams can land you life as the death penalty has been abolished for the meantime.
Posession of any drug is considered a henious crime.

If you get caught and convicted, your facing 20+ years in one of the worse prisons in the world OR your gettin the death penalty!!!! BE DISCREET!!!

Law enforcement: If you get in trouble, try to get out as fast you can with the minimum number of people and pesos getting involved. Keep a few US $100 bills in your wallet (no ID, just money). The green $$$ talks if you get busted.

another report we received is: “Cops are easy to bribe, if you do it quickly, blind them with Grant and Jefferson, don’t make it reach the station becuase you will have to bribe more people. if you see a cop pretend you don’t understand, then when he tells you he’s gonna arrest you say something like: why don’t we just settle this here and save us both the trouble, say you are making a “pakiusap” and tell him you respect him as an officer. it always does good to stroke their ego before offering a bribe. Don’t show any ID and as much as possible pretend you are not a tourist”

and also: “Philippine drug laws are extremely strict, especially for foreigners!!! Bribing most cops will buy you a “Get out of jail free” card. If you ever get caught just flatter the officers about their “professionalism” and how you believe their country is “by far” the best on Earth!!! After about 3-4 minutes of that tell the officers you want to make a deal! Friends of mine have done this with no problems, but DONT let them take you back to the station! You\’ll wind up having to bribe every officer and it’ll cost you around $3000 as opposed to maybe $400. I smoked daily when I was in the Philippines and I did standing transactions right in front of my condominium(Busy Metro Area), and saw “Pulisya” roughly 5 times in 3 years!!! Im also not a fool!!! If you have ANY common sense this shouldnt be a problem!!! Dont risk 25 years in a Filipino prison(Ungodly Filth) because you think you’ll never get caught! Be discreet and cautious about your business
!!!”

Where to buy marijuana in Manila: Sagada-sagada is a haven for pot smokers, its kind of like Amsterdam because it has coffee shops and the locals are very tolerant (in fact they encourage cannabis), it’s a tourist destination for hiking trecking and other out door activites, Once you get down the bus locals may offer you anything from sensi, pollen, hash to charas. Sagada is famous for its pollen and hash. its very easy to get any cannabis products here. the police will only catch you if you smoke near the station, otherwise its okay, you can smoke in your room or better yet in the mountains while doing a treck. Sagada is about 14hrs from manila, you take a bus that goes straight to Bagiou the you take another one that goes to Sagada, the ride is pretty rough but when you get there its woth it. The locals speak impecable english.
Banawe- is home to the famous Ifugao rice terraces. It is also home to some sweet hash and weed. Although the locals are tolerant it is somewhat of a second rate Sagada. If you look like you toke kids will come up to you and offer hash.
Pasay- go to ‘o farrel street (along park ave.) and ask around for butch he’ll hook you up with a sweet 5er. that’s about 50grams of weed.

and also: “Baguio- Baguio is 6 hours from Manila by bus. Get yourself to Cubao and ask where the bus station is. Once you arrive get to “Botanical Garden” and the adjacent parks.You’ll know your in the right place because there are LOTS of horses for horseback riding everywhere, and it reeks of horseshit at the entrances!!! Tell one of the horse guys “Marijuana?”. He will ask you how much,he’ll leave and come right back,pay,and puff away!!!!!!!!!!! In Baguio never give them the money before you get the weed!!! Baguio is one of the largest manufacturers of cannabis in Asia, and its only a 5 mile town!!!!!!!!!
Malate- Find Pablo Ocampo Street, and locate Vito Cruz Cityland. Directly in front of the building, and across the street, there are a group of tricycle drivers(Yellow Tricycles). Get the attention of one of the drivers,or you might go so far as to get inside the tricycle. Once your in the tricycle he’ll probably ask you “Where to BOSS” or something to that effect. Then just tell him “Marijuana my friend?”. He will understand and probably just nod his head yes! Then you make your order. Before I found my current hydroponics dealer I did exactly this EVERYDAY!!! Once you make a good deal, get the guys cell number so you can text contact him during your next craving! Conceal your address and name!!! Your on your way to a Shitty stone, but its better than nada!!! I know my fellow Cannaseurs agree!!!!”

Marijuana prices: It’s quite cheap in manila, they sell weed in very small bags that are good to fill a joint, we payed about 100 pesos (2 dollars) for 7 of those bags.
and a recent report added: “Kilo from $380 Qty deals will get 2 to 3 foot “stalks” unpressed. Nice, sometimes seedless, sticky, available next day., quality varies shipment to shipment.

Smaller Deals Quality may vary. Street dealers will charge $50 US for a pressed amount the size of a Marlbor Box.”

another reporter added:
“$1=Php 50
1 kilo of brick weed (yuck) Php 3000
1 kilo of unpressed stalks PHP 5000
You can buy a 5er which means Php 500 you get 3-5 unpressed stalks a “tea bag” is about Php 50
hash- php 80 a gram (sagada)
pollen- php 60 a gram (sagada)”

and also: “Baguio-15g(Midz)=P1000($20 US)
1 Kilo(Midz)=P2500($60 US)
15g(Baguio Gold)=P4000($80 US)

1 Hash joint= P10($0.60)
Malate- 1 Bag(Roughly half gram)(Regz,Street Weed)=P20($0.40 US)(I recommend u buy about 20 Bags for each person in your group to enjoy a long night of blazing)
Cebu-Pre rolled pinner joints(Coin Toss on Quality)”

Brands: Sagada sensi
Bagiou gold
Laguna weed

More information: As in all Asia you have to be very careful who you ask, cause sometimes you feel like everybody is just trying to rip you off, but once you meet the right people you will see..:) smoking with filipinos and filipinas is very cool, they are super friendly and you can be quite amazed by the way the think..good luck.

My Manila Experience

I’ve been to Manila twice and never spent a night alone. Each night with sexy, beautiful little creatures. I love this fucking country.

Me in Philly