Crossing the border: Traveling to Several Countries in Southeast Asia

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Crossing the Border: Traveling to Several Countries in Southeast Asia are a fantastic way to explore the region. Asia Travel Guide suggests Southeast Asia's patchwork of countries makes blending locations, cultures, and vacations easy. We've selected five tours that, in around two weeks, provide a glimpse into a pocket of the subcontinent, but you'd need months or years to explore the area properly with My Way Travel.

Each pair of countries has something unique to offer, whether on a popular or less-visited itinerary. Traveling by land or water allows you to pause and explore some of Cambodia's lesser-known attractions, such as ancient Khmer temples and pristine national parks.

Ta Prohm, Siem Reap

Cambodia and Koh Chang, Thailand

For a whole Cambodian experience that ends on a tranquil beach

Since most of the country's "must-see" sites are there, most visitors stay in Siem Reap or Phnom Penh. Although the silent capital and the magnificent temples of Angkor are undeniably important, they only provide a glimpse of the nation.

Beginning in Siem Reap, your two-week trip will take you south through rural Cambodia to the commercial port of Kampot and the mangrove forests of Koh Kong. Follow this, and you'll reach Cambodia's pristine coast, where you may choose between crowded public beaches and secluded private isles.

Royal Palace, Phnom Penh

The best beaches are in Thailand, which you can reach by driving north along the Cambodian coast. From here, you may reach Koh Chang in a matter of minutes by boat. Despite being one of Thailand's biggest islands, Mu Ko Chang National Park has kept it relatively unspoiled.

Koh Chang is more accessible from Cambodia than the rest of Thailand, which helps keep the island peaceful and the hotel rates low. The modern, sustainably built Dewa Hotel beach was perfect for me: a wide strip of white sand that gently sloped into the clear water.

Koh Chang Island, Thailand

Highlights of the journey:

Phnom Penh is an up-and-coming metropolis. Forget its convoluted past and enjoy a tour of the city's new wave of artisan brewers instead. You may meet enterprising Khmer locals ready to show you their (sometimes novel) brewing processes and welcome you to sample anything from robust ales to Pilsners inspired by German brewing traditions.
Kampot is a French colonial village with fading pastel shophouses and riverfront cafés at the confluence of two rivers. I went on a regional tour and saw pepper fields where they've been growing the spice since the Middle Ages.
Koh Kong is an unspoiled wilderness area with the Cardamom Mountains and winding rivers. Located on a bend in the Tatai River, 4 Rivers Floating Lodge is a great place to stay while exploring the area. Your tent is a platform above the river, so you can kayak from there or go hiking through the second-largest rainforest in Asia.

4 Rivers Floating Lodge

My inside tip

The dawn at Angkor Wat is a major draw for tourists. Avoid the morning rush at Angkor Wat by visiting one of the lesser-visited temples, such as Banteay Srei. Wait till sunset to take advantage of the superior light quality it provides for photography.

Northern hills of Vietnam and Laos

Seek out the local culture and breathtaking landscapes of Southeast Asia.

If you want to see Southeast Asia's most stunning landscapes and have two weeks to spare, visit the northern parts of Vietnam and Laos.

In this area, national boundaries are absent. The border crossing is unremarkable, but getting here is challenging due to the steep valley walls, dense vegetation, and swift rivers. The local hill tribes have never legally recognized the boundary, so their traditions and dialects are distinct from those of neighboring settlements.

I suggest going to one of Laos' major towns, Luang Prabang, located west of Hanoi. The journey from Hanoi to the White Tai settlement of Mai Chau takes around three hours, and it is here that the first wooded mountains appear on the horizon. If you keep heading west into Laos, you'll reach the kind of environment that most people will only see in a nature documentary. The ethnic hill tribes and their riverbank villages are yours to explore until you reach Luang Prabang.

Mai Chau, Vietnam

Highlights of the journey:

The Vieng Xai Caves are an extensive network of tunnels and caverns that served as Pathet Lao's last stronghold. I found them in the valley with the most verdant vegetation ever. Visit the hospital, church, and bedrooms where hundreds took refuge from bombardment during the Laotian Civil War on a guided tour.
Nam Et-Phou Louey National Protected Area is a huge crumple of forested mountains with a slender road around its perimeter. The Khmu people who live in the area have started collaborating with park rangers to provide overnight stays for visitors. You arrive at a typical Laotian bungalow after a longtail boat ride down the river while admiring the night sky.
This path provides several chances to interact with hill tribes and local populations. Some people may put a cup of rice wine into your hands as you enter their house, while others will welcome you more warily.

Vieng Xai Caves

My inside tip

The Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi is a great place to start. This comprehensive museum will introduce you to the many cultural groups you may encounter in the future.

Thailand and remote Myanmar

For those looking to revisit cherished destinations

Even if you've previously visited Myanmar and Thailand and seen all the top sights, you should consider going back. In little over two weeks, you can travel from Bangkok to the southern border of Myanmar, stopping at secluded temples, border towns, and little-visited islands.

Chiang Mai is one of the culinary hubs of northern Thailand, and it is the perfect place to take a cooking class with a local family and sample dishes from all across the city. For its tranquil environment of ruins sprinkled with statues of Buddha and spires fashioned like lotuses, the medieval city of Sukhothai is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sukhothai Historical Park

Start planning your trip to Cambodia

Start thinking about your experience. These itineraries are simply suggestions for how you could enjoy some of the same experiences as our specialists. They’re just for inspiration, because your trip will be created around your particular tastes.