Tuesday, 5 February 2013

Another useful tips to save your travel expenses?
Planning, planning, and planning. Plan your trip ahead!
(Sounds easy? uh no?)

 Apart from accommodation, transportation is another important aspect that travelers look into their budget planning. However, we sometime get too tired to plan and wish to just go with the flow. (Once in a while, why not?) =P

Tips 1: Consider a Budget Airline 
Budget airlines such as AirAsia, JetStay, TigerAirline, Firefly often offer great deals to travel when you book within certain date. It is a very good idea to subscribe and get the best deal in town. Apart from that, your network (Facebook, Twitter) play an important role to notify you about latest promotion so that you will not miss any of them, make sure you have generous friends that willing to share the news rather than keeping everything in themselves! 
AirAsia flying from Kota Kinabalu to Taipei
Everyone say that budget airline have super small seats onboard, lousy services, and pay-for-every-addons-services. You can imagine squeezing your big ass (If you have one) into a small seat for 7hours if you're traveling from Kuala Lumpur to Tokyo. It sounds terrible but it is a good experience to try on, and trust me, everyone will get use to it sooner or later. About the extra add on services, you can choose not to pay for any. Lessen your luggage to avoid check-in luggage, have your meal before flight, and thats it, JUST PAY FOR YOUR FLIGHT TICKET and end of the story. I Fly one-way from Kuala Lumpur to Tokyo for RM350, Kuala Lumpur to Seoul RM400, Kota Kinabalu to Taipei RM350, Kuala Lumpur to Osaka for RM400, I don't think you can find such deal with MalaysiaAirline, they are simply too "luxury" for me.
Flew from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan for less than RM20/way
Tips 2: Always Look for More Alternatives
Sometime flying is not the only option available to travel from one place to another place. Most of the time it is cheaper to travel domestically than internationally even though the distance is fairly close. For an example, it will be cheaper to travel from Brunei to Kota Kinabalu by Bus/Ferry and fly to Sandakan than taking a flight directly from Brunei to Sandakan. Some may say it involve more time to travel, if your concern is to arrive your destination as soon as possible disregarding the expenses, then you have just enter the wrong website. 

Welcome sign in HoaLomPhone train station @ Bangkok
Furthermore, riding a bus or taking a train can be another good alternatives over taking a flight. Train and bus services are becoming so convenient and affordable to many travelers. From Bangkok HoaLomPhong train station to Aranyaprathet (Boarder of Thailand crossing Cambodia), only cost 48 Baht (RM5). From Aranyaprathet, take a mini bus that cost 10USD (RM32) to reach Siem Reap. In total RM37 from Bangkok - Siem Reap. It might take more time, but think again, you can experience the life of the local people that restrain from limited budget. In addition, it allows you to live, like a local.
Travel in train, like a local =)
Oh, and don't forget you can take a bus to save on your budget. Buses that travel from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan will cost RM40-RM45 depending on the tavel company. Though, you can also take a flight, but make sure you already got a clear plan to follows. 

Price you have to pay if you buy next-day-ticket.
If you fail to plan in advance, and make you booking accordingly, the price you have to pay, can be rather too expensive. 
Price you have to pay if you book a month in advance.
Tips 3: Use various search engine to help you make a booking.
Always remember that not all search engine for flight ticket have unbiased fare. Because these site is often belong to some of the airline to promote their website. Thus, the best search engine is the one without any affiliation with other airlines. Personally i like to use Skyscanner, and Fleapy.com. It allow me to find which day is cheaper, so that i can manage my schedule accordingly. 

Tips 4: Be Flexible with your Time
Airline tickets price can be vary depending on the day of the week, month of the year. New Year's Eve, Christmas New Year, July-August is the busiest time in Europe, as many people go on vacation, and by those time things will be mark up Its' always cheaper to travel in the middle of the weekday than in weekend. Because most of the people travel on weekend and the airline will hike up the price on weekend. Before commit to purchase a ticket, double check the time, date, and particulars.

In addition, always make sure that you got the cheapest deal of the day you wan to travel, if not, wait until another day that offer cheaper flight ticket and travel on that day. Even the difference of a day can mean hundreds of dollars in savings.

Tung Ma is quite comfy to travel with too!
*But KK-Sandakan road is too bumpy..
*Share with us how do you save on your transportation cost when you are traveling? 
Comment below, Thanks!
byUnknown
in , , , , , , , , , ,
16:09:00

Tips On How To Travel on Budget Pt2

Another useful tips to save your travel expenses? Planning, planning, and planning. Plan your trip ahead! (Sounds easy? uh no?) Apart fr...
Read More

Sunday, 3 February 2013

Hsinchu City Centre - Departing from our friends' apartment situated at Guangfu road （光复路）, we could easy catch a No.1 Bus toward City centre. 15TWD each person and we arrived at city centre (very near to Hsinchu Train Station). Hsinchu city centre nestled with many restaurants and hawker stalls serving local delicacies with affordable price. 
Hsinchu city early in the morning.
very attractive beverage packaging, and it taste good too!
We settled down in a restaurant for a bowl of Oyster noodles (蚝仔面线), and Pork Intestine (香脆肠子). Since we can read chinese, there is not much barriers for us to understand the menu and make an order. We were grateful that we learn the language during our early days.
蚝仔面线

香脆肠子
Tourist Shuttle Bus, Cihu line (台湾好行，慈湖线）- To start off our journey, we took a train from Hsinchu to Zhongli train station（中坜火车站）, followed by Tourist Shuttle Bus, Cihu line (台湾好行，慈湖线）. Out from the train station, turn to your left and walk straight until you see Taoyuan Bus Station （桃园客运）. A day pass for unlimited hop on and off will only cost 100TWD. We also received timetable of the bus leaving and arriving at each stops. We planned our journey during the bus ride, it took us probably 45minutes from Zhongli （中坜）- Sankeng old street（三坑老街）.
San Keng old Street Stop (三坑老街站) - Arriving at Sankeng old street bus stop, we were confused if we were at the right place, because it is so quiet that we could not imagine that this is a tourist spot. Walking toward our destination with the aid of signboard, we saw the peaceful side of Taiwan. Blue sky, white clouds, and many old houses surrounding us. Walking during winter is so much better than in summer time because you don't easily sweat your body wet. This place has more than hundred years history, and it started to gained back its popularity recently.
We were welcomed by a unique bridge that connect us from the bus stop to our destination.
We were very lucky to have good weather today!
200TWD for 2person bicycle, or 100TWD for single person bicycle.
Since most of the shops at old streets don't operate during work day, we rented a bi-cycle to travel around the town. The operator was really kind to fetch us up to the bus stop one by one  when he found out we were almost late to catch the bus back to town, really helpful! 

The Bi-cycle carries us up and down.
SanKeng Bicycle Path （三坑铁马道）- The operator also showed us the road to the bicycle path（三坑铁马道）, designed for cyclist. The path is roughly 1KM long, with pretty broad walkway, it looks more like a car road, than a bicycle road. Moreover, it has butterfly corridor (蝴蝶花廊) and flower pathway (赏桐花径). 
Our first experience riding on this kind of bicycle. 

Take note, picture time (注意，要拍照了).
Along the way we can enjoy beautiful scenery and fresh air. We met many cyclists and we really having some good time here. There are also spots to take beautiful photographs. We spent roughly 2hours in this place and still we having a good time. This place release relaxing atmosphere and places for good pictures. 
Photography session with Liyi @ San Keng Bicycle path.
Add caption
Winter in Taiwan，台湾的冬天！

SanKeng Old Street (三坑老街) - After all, we got back to the old street but most of the shops were closed during weekday. Thus we only quickly ran through the street, and it was really A street. Settled down in the only restaurant, we ordered a big fish for both of us and it was AWESOMELY GOOD. They have fair price too. TWD 260 for more than a kilos live fish.

菜晡，salted vegetables.


三坑老街餐馆，owned by mayor of the village.
三坑老街餐馆，owned by mayor of the village.

Ambience of arriving in your home. 家的味道！
The restaurant is filled with pictures of the owner with numbers of local celebrities, even with the President of Taiwan.

Fish with sugar and vinegar sauce( 糖醋鱼)，270 TWD.
Spending: 
GuangFu Road - Hsinchu Train Station（光复路－新竹火车站） 15$
Hsinchu Train Station - ZhongLi Train Station（新竹火车站－中坜火车站） 57$
Tourist Shuttle Bus （台湾好行巴士）100$
Very good lunch for 2 persons 270$/2（丰富的二人午餐）=135$
Total Spent（总数） = 307$

You can save more if you start your journey earlier and visit to more destination such as  Long Tan Lake, Hakka Culture Hall, DaXi Old Street, CiHu(龙潭湖，客家文化馆，大溪老街，慈湖).

Fore more information and enquiry about 台湾好行，feel free to contact them at:

Taoyuan County Government Tourist Develop Department Tel:(03) 332-2101 Ext:5263
Taoyuang Hsien Government Department of Transportation Tel:(03) 332-2101
Ext:6863Bus Service Hotline：(03)427-2477
Service Hour: 09:00~17:00










byUnknown
in , , , , , , , , , ,
08:45:00

Day Trip to Taoyuan － 桃园三坑老街一日游

Hsinchu City Centre - Departing from our friends' apartment situated at Guangfu road （光复路）, we could easy catch a No.1 Bus toward City ...
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Wednesday, 30 January 2013

The most common comment i heard from my pals and friends around me when i told them i travelled to this and that countries last holiday is, "you're so rich to travel around, i wish i have that much of money to do that". Dafuq? Why locked your mindset that travel always requires bunch lots of $$ ? 

In this post, i will share some tips to travel with budget, even in relative high expenditure country such as Taiwan which i travelled recently. 

Tips 1: Save Your Money On Accommodation
Couchsurfing.org
One of the best ways to get free accommodation is by staying with someone who lives where you're going. There is good website such as Couchsurfing that connect travelers with people in various cities that offer a free place to stay. It can be a bed, of a couch. It greatly reduce travelers' burden of accommodation. In addition, it also help stay and interact with a local.

I joined this community not long ago but i can say it's one of the greatest things to happen in travel. While i love the fact that i can save my budget on accommodation, what draws me to the site over and over again is that i get to see the local side of a city, not a touristy city. I got invited to gathering, events, and sites that aren't in any of my Lonely Planet guidebook!

However at some time, many people are scared to couch surf because they do not feel secure. Sometime it can be a challenge as well, Imagine you're now in a foreign city, with your backpack - in someone house for the first time. You do not know what will happen when you go asleep! What will happen to your valuable stuff in your backpack?
However, things aren't that bad. A day before i reach Taiwan, i received an invitation from a host in Hsinchu, his name is Pranay, from Delhi, India.
Pranay is the guy in very left, beside Liyi. A really nice guy to befriend with.
He welcome us to stay in his apartment because he wanted to meet people from Kota Kinabalu, which he went there not long ago. I really enjoy the warm Hospitality and great conversation with him personally. He provide a room, a clean toilet, and extra quilts for winter (Pillows/ Blankets). I stayed at his apartment for 3 nights before i depart to another district. This way i can save up the accommodation expenses and buy something for him, to appreciate his kindness to share us a place to sleep for nights. 
Q&TaiYu from Taiwan and us visited Leofoo Theme Park.

There are certain criteria i will look into before Surf a couch:
  1. They MUST have picture of themselves, not cartoon or Anime character.
  2. They MUST have complete profile that explain themselves clear enough to avoid vague and doubtful thoughts. Rules and regulation in the house, is utmost important so that you will not disturb the host.
  3. They NEED to have References from travelers that stayed with them. If many travelers can get along well with this host, chances that something will goes wrong will be rather tiny. The more positive references, the better.

In sum, it is always better to talking to the host through email or private message to understand them in depth. It allow me to feel them and knowing what they expect. If things doesn't turn out right, withdraw the request. You will feel the uniqueness of staying with local in a new city, trust me, it worth a try! At the end of the day, you end up saving hundreds and hundreds of dollars on accommodation and making friends globally.

Very simple bed with mosquito net @ Siem Reap Garden Village Guest House
Hostels/Dormitory
Hostels can be an alternatives for budget travelers, like me. In hostels, rooms are dormitory-style, which mean you will have to share some of the facilities like toilet and bathroom with other members in the room. Nowadays many hostels offer single room and double room for solo and couple travelers. Many might think that hostels are dirty, unsecured, they might need to think again now. Most of the hostels i been to offer more value than before. People nowadays have higher expectation toward comfort and cleanliness, so do the hostels standard. They are different from what you see in oldskool movie.
Budget Hostel @ Siem Reap Garden Village Guest House for $1/night
Despite thinking sharing your room with strangers, why not take it as a chance to meet new friends, and share your travel experiences?

From my own personal experiences in Japan, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Penang,  Hostels are safe, secure, and affordable. 

To be continue...

PS: I only share my personal experiences and i do not share methods that i have yet to try.

If you have any useful tips on how to reduce travel expenses, do not hesitate to share at comment box below, thank you!

byUnknown
in
12:58:00

Tips on How to Travel on Budget

The most common comment i heard from my pals and friends around me when i told them i travelled to this and that countries last holiday is,...
Read More

Wednesday, 23 January 2013

As soon as we settled down in Hsinchu town in Pranay house, Liyi and me were invited by my Couchsurfing host for a day trip to visit Leofoo Theme park 新竹六福村. Without much doubt, we accepted and even invite Q & Taiyu (Our Taiwanese Friends) to join us for this trip. 

City bus in Hsinchu cost 15NTD/ entry and going most main road, we took Bus no.1 which travel from train station (city centre) toward GuangFu Rd(光复路), pass by 清华大学，科学园，高铁站. We gathered at 清华大学 early in the morning before depart to the theme park by Taxi. After 30minutes of Taxi ride, which cost about 800NTD/way, we arrive Leofoo Theme Park. 

Thanks to Mukesh, all of us enjoyed discounted entrance fee at 530NTD/person, instead of 890NTD.
We arrived before the park opening hour, but the crowds were already happening.
These 2 Monkeys are Leofoo's Mascott
Once we got in to the theme park, these Alpaca (草泥马／羊驼) were really cute and attract our attention. These animals too were newly introduced into their animal Zoo. Hence, they promote heavily to boost popularity.
草泥马／羊驼
The journey begin with the "BIRD FLY HIGH" 飞行部落, where everyone can enjoy watching bird performance and talent show presented by these trained birds, which include Parrots, Bucerotidae (犀鸟）, Flamingo, and many other types of birds.
This bird call "Money", it can fetch money from audience and then sent it back to her again.

This Painter is expert in drawing abstract painting, it's painting can be anything.

Recycle Parrot that place rubbish into the bin. 

What's more is that the theme park provide shuttle train for visitors to see the wildlife animal closer! These are some photos taken throughout the journey. 
An abandoned jeep, i guess its solely for display only.

Zebra from the Zoo, not wildlife.
One of the most popular animal in the zoo, Giraffe!
Giant deer 
Lone Mountain Deer 
Hairy bufollo? Its American Bison!
草泥马，草泥马！
Straight after the train tour, we witnessed wonderful dance from international dancer as well as the Alpaca and Mini horses. Everyone were excited to grab a photo together with Alpaca, and so do we! Besides, we also got the chances to grab some photos with beautiful dancers from abroad. Everyone fall into the happy-photo-hour with anyone they like. 
Q and Taiyu!
Me and Liyi!


The Sexy dancer and us!
The Alpaca Lunch, cost 200NTD with fries and drink, pretty expensive, but its expected in a theme park.
At first it seems like less excited, but got stunned once it run, 囧
Sky Shoot! I don't even have enough time to scream, then it stopped.




Conventional Pirate ship.



Nice teeth!
巨嘴鸟，different from 犀鸟，originally from Brazil.

Final photo before we leave the theme park.
The theme park closed at 5PM during public holidays. Hence we have to got out early to avoid traffic. But seems like we were still late to exit the theme park, because there were already big crowds waiting buses to go back. At the end, we took a taxi and get back to the point where we gather, and to the city centre for dinner. It amazed me when i notice all the food court is literally "next" to the 城隍庙 temple. We can even heard the ongoing talk and presentation organized in the temple while we eating. 
Night scenery @ 城隍庙
城隍庙
城隍庙

It was really an exhausting outing for us, from morning until we reach home at 10pm. I really enjoyed the hospitality of Taiwanese in food industry, and also tourism. They are professionally trained, and treat customers in the way the world should, they greet properly, provide information, being polite, and always carry smile on their faces. Moreover, the food in Hsinchu is awesome, special 肉圆 only in Hsinchu，贡丸 with filling and soup，蚝煎（OA JEN）. Even a plate of ordinary fried meehoon made in Hsinchu shines. Finally, if there are any question regarding the planning and budget for the trip, please do no hesitate to ask me and i will try to assist fellow traveller as much as i can because travelers should help each another. 



byUnknown
in , , , , , , ,
08:18:00

Hsinchu Day Trip － 新竹六福村一日游

As soon as we settled down in Hsinchu town in Pranay house, Liyi and me were invited by my Couchsurfing host for a day trip to visit Leofoo...
Read More

 

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