Bino

Seat Sale Guide: How to Get the Best Airfare Deals

June 19, 2011 by Bino 10 Comments

Seat sales by the 5 largest low cost airlines in the region (AirAsia, Jetstar, Cebu Pacific, Tiger Airways and Scoot in no particular order) can prove to be great sources for bargains and are certainly worth looking out for. I can still recall some of the good deals I got which included:

Singapore – Manila (around 3.5 hours flight per way, roundtrip for USD 20)
Kuala Lumpur – Abu Dhabi (around 8 hours flight per way, roundtrip for USD 110)
Kuala Lumpur – Christchurch (10 hours flight per way, roundtrip for USD 170)
Kuala Lumpur – Vientiane (2.5 hours per way, roundtrip for USD 60)

It is during such instances that going for the budget carrier option becomes truly justified, with prices that won’t break the bank.

At the same time however, getting these deals can prove to be equally frustrating with websites crashing and sale fares disappearing quicker than you can say buy, leaving prospective passengers with a strong sense of urgency to get the booking done. I have had my share of frustrations. Though I have not learned to overcome the latter yet, from my experience, there are a couple of things that we, as bargain hunters can do to secure that good deal and make the entire booking process much easier. Read after the jump

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Memories of NZ Pt4: Journey to Paradise

June 14, 2011 by Bino 1 Comment

New Zealand is widely known as the filming site for many a Lord of the Rings films. The films were very popular, which meant that the spectacular scenery of the country was watched by millions. Looking back, the films probably did more for New Zealand’s tourism industry than any other marketing campaign and it was a great tie up between their tourism ministry and Peter Jackson (the director of LotR) who incidentally is a Kiwi.

glorious glenorchy

From Queenstown, we hired a 4WD vehicle and took a morning drive to Glenorchy on the northern edge of Lake Wakatipu. Some of the LOtR filming sites are situated within the vicinity. It was another great day as the clouds cleared up and the sky was as blue as can be. The drive took just less than an hour and covered a distance of 45 kilometers as we traversed past stunning mountains in the horizon.

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Memories of NZ Pt3: Bad Weather in Milford Sound

June 4, 2011 by Bino 3 Comments

We spent a total of four nights in Queenstown and used it as a base to explore the many daytripping opportunities around Otago and the many national parks which are all within a few hours drive from town.

mirror lake

On our first day, we joined a day tour to Milford Sound in Fiordland National Park (a UNESCO World Heritage Site). This tour took us past several quaint villages across the southern part of the island, and into the western coast which has a much wetter climate. Again, we went with Great Sights. The bus picked us up from the hotel at 8AM sharp for the five hour drive. It was a very scenic drive as that morning was my first opportunity to see Lake Wakatipu in the day. We drove past the majestic Remarkables mountain range, into the town of Kingston. Our driver was especially enthusiastic and gave erudite commentaries on the notable landmarks during the trip. We passed by this extremely quaint town called Garston, with a population of only 106. Its known as the most inland town in New Zealand which does not really say much given that NZ is an island nation. What really caught my attention was the small number of people who live there – 106. I suppose it’s one of those towns where everyone knows each other. Having lived in big cities my entire life (Manila, San Francisco, Singapore), I entertained for a few seconds the possibility of spending a night or two in a town where it’s impossible to remain anonymous. But it disappeared not long after we left the town limits and passed by another (larger) town.

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Memories of NZ Pt2: A Town Fit for a Queen

June 1, 2011 by Bino 1 Comment

An old story goes that Queenstown got its name after a local gold digger proclaimed the town to be fit for then Queen Victoria of Great Britain. No queens roam the town currently but it is host to possibly a million or more visitors a year. While there are doubts to the story’s veracity, for sure only a few among that million would disagree with its message. People from all over include this small lakeside community as part of most trips to NZ, making Queenstown the most heavily-visited destination in the South Island.

The town is a tiny urban center of merely 10,000 people but it feels like a much bigger place, owing largely to its popularity as a resort town. It has a compact but relatively dense downtown, a fabulous lake (Wakatipu), majestic peaks across all corners as well as extremely picturesque sites within a few minutes drive.

view of queenstown

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Memories of NZ Pt1: Scenic Turns Everywhere!

May 28, 2011 by Bino 1 Comment

New Zealand. One of the most highly rated destinations in the world, said to be the world’s “youngest country” and adrenaline capital. It is probably one of the few countries in the world that I haven’t heard anything negative about. Everyone I’ve met who’s been there only have praises for this small but progressive nation. Despite a seemingly endless list of good things, New Zealand was originally not in my priority of travel destinations. I’ve heard good reviews about the country. And yes, I may have seen a few shows on TV attesting to the majestic landscapes in the land further down under. But that was about it. In my mind, there wasn’t any mystique about this country. There wasn’t one major attraction that I associated with New Zealand so the strong desire to visit just was not there.

With this being said, I would say that my recent 8-day trip to the country changed the mental filter I initially had. I consider New Zealand to be within my Top 5 most enjoyable travel experiences so far. There are just too many things to try – and I was only able to do a sampler during my short trip. If I were to just put my experiences and general impressions of the whole thing in one word, that word would be “refreshing.”

postcard perfect

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Flying Long Haul – On Budget

May 21, 2011 by Bino 6 Comments

budget airlines give a whole new meaning to the word economy

The idea of taking a flight of ten or more hours on a budget carrier remains alien to most people – despite the growth of specialized carriers such as Air Asia X and Jetstar which market themselves as long haul carriers minus the cost. Until recently, it was an alien concept to me as well. Even with full service carriers, I get fidgety after the first four hours of the flight. Any attempt to sleep beyond 40 minutes at a time becomes futile as the extremely limited incline and space attest to the sardine can nature of ~~economy~~ cattle class….

Southeast Asian Roundup, Pt1

January 25, 2011 by Bino 9 Comments

Have been meaning to post this since I completed a personal goal of visiting all 11 Southeast Asian countries in November last year, but have decided to give a good thought before I post what is probably the most candid entry in this blog so far.

As a traveler, I consider myself privileged to be living in one of the most diverse geographical locations on the planet. I could not imagine any other region (apart from Central Europe, maybe) with so many varied destinations within a 3-hour radius. Southeast Asia is not merely a hodgepodge of people but also notably full of biodiversity hotspots, ancient empires in ruins, and it is also home to some of the world’s most interesting cities.

In my travels through these eleven countries, I found the distribution quite uneven. There were some countries that I really liked, have made multiple trips to and would enjoy returning to in the future. Then, there were also countries where I felt a 7-hour trip was more than enough.

I shall make mention of all these. But a warning to the reader – do note that I am being subjective and providing a personal assessment of these places I have visited. For those who disagree with my views, they’re very much welcome to provide me with return tickets for me to have another look-see….

Things to Do in Vientiane – Ideas For Southeast Asia’s Sleepiest Capital

January 4, 2011 by Bino 9 Comments

basking in the golden sunlight – Pha That Luang

Ahead of my November visit, I was told by all the guidebooks to expect a very sleepy town in Vientiane considering that it is the capital of a country with fewer people than Singapore but 300 times the size. The first encounter I had with the city was on arrival after an annoying flight delay due to rain in KL, during the night before our bumpy trip to Luangprabang. I did not really expect much in terms of fun things to do in the capital.

Vientiane is a town in many sense of the word. It is compact, no tall buildings and still quite provincial. But by no means was it sleepy… or did I miss anything?…

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