island vacation

[Barbarian Conan]

You went at the wrong time and did it the wrong way. 3-4 week return flight in the off peak season, book the first few nights accom, then travel around as and when you see fit. Basically backpacking.

Scooters, beaches, cheap beers, amazing street food, mushrooms. Bliss

Whats your street food system?
The street food I've had was hit and miss. What looked like chicken nuggets on a stick was probably chicken hearts or some other crunchy chewy part of what I hope was chicken.

Backpacking with mates or on your own is probably fun. With a gf/wife thats probably not going to fly.

 

[Eedubz]

Whats your street food system?
The street food I've had was hit and miss. What looked like chicken nuggets on a stick was probably chicken hearts or some other crunchy chewy part of what I hope was chicken.

Backpacking with mates or on your own is probably fun. With a gf/wife thats probably not going to fly.

Eat what you see the locals eating. Noodles from the guys with the mobile kitchen strapped to the side of their scooters are my #1.

 

[^^vampire^^]

thanks, which dates you booked for?

Went to Thailand about 2 - 3 years ago. Did one week at the sunset beach resort was kinda nice. Try go over June/July then get the agent to book 1 - 2 nights on Phi Phi island, 2 - 3 nights on Koh Lanta and then 2 - 3 nights in Krabi. You can organise transport between them easily using the tour operators that stand around at kiosks on the side of the road. I was skeptical and a bit worried but they all seem to use a central organisation to manage everything so all works out fine. June/July is monsoon season but it only rained once while we were there. Managed to get some amazing hotels for super cheap.

 

[Stefanmuller]

Went to Thailand about 2 - 3 years ago. Did one week at the sunset beach resort was kinda nice. Try go over June/July then get the agent to book 1 - 2 nights on Phi Phi island, 2 - 3 nights on Koh Lanta and then 2 - 3 nights in Krabi. You can organise transport between them easily using the tour operators that stand around at kiosks on the side of the road. I was skeptical and a bit worried but they all seem to use a central organisation to manage everything so all works out fine. June/July is monsoon season but it only rained once while we were there. Managed to get some amazing hotels for super cheap.

Also went end of June. Booked everything myself, and prices that time were literally half price because it is their low season (or monsoon season). It will rain almost every day for half an hour between 4 and 5pm, almost like in Pretoria in summer.

 

[RustyPrincess]

Thailand, specifically Koh phi phi was amazing, and very affordable for South Aricans
Zanzibar just felt like a giant toursit trap, everything was charged in dollars, and you need to take a private taxi to go do any of the tours and things.
Reunion - I loved Reunion, such a beautful island, not exactly the cheapest destination, since they use the Euro, but it is incredibly gorgeous. You have to hire a car to get around, and they are geared more towards French speaking tourists than English, but we got by with a lot of pointing and a copuple of badly said french words. Definitely a place to add to your list. We took a helicopter tour over a volcanco. It was really cool.

 

[Spliffcat]

Nosy Be and Hellville.
Cheap rum was 2 rand a liter.
Cheap Zebu steaks and fish.
I very nearly did not come back home.
Madagascar by the way.

 

[Azbubu]

Nosy Be and Hellville.
Cheap rum was 2 rand a liter.
Cheap Zebu steaks and fish.
I very nearly did not come back home.
Madagascar by the way.

That's a terrible Haiku.

 

[TheFriendlyGhost]

All inclusive jol in Mauritius. 4 hours flight, beautiful.
It is very very expensive if you have to pay for food and drinks a la carte, especially at hotels.

Belle Mare for the quiet tranquil side of the island
Grand baie for the vibey nightlife, restaurants
Flic en flac for a slight mix of both, close to tamarin/le morne and port louis and chamarel for your day trips.

^ this. I enjoyed the Flic en Flac more. This was purely because it's on the east coast and you get the morning sun and afternoon shade (get's pretty hot there). Island is small enough for you to be able to tour leisurely. You can make friends with the bar staff and they will 'comp' your drinks (ie allocate to a room that's on full board).

 

[Kornhub]

Zanzibar is very rural. You will spend most of the time at the resort or you can go on tours.

Mauritius is nice, very commercial. Was there in September last year and it has become extremely expensive. Best to do a fully inclusive at club med or similar unless you want to pay R400 for six pieces of sushi. Only great restaurant is Luigi's in Grand Baie, everywhere else is pretty bleak.

Thailand was good. If you go in Monsoon season you can get great deals at 5* resorts.

What he says about Mauritius. Went to Bali last year and basically things cost the same as here. Very nice but full of Aussies. Want to do reunion one day. Morroco I heard is amazing !

 

[jones123]

just a correction Flic en Flac is on the west coast

been there at sugar beach hotel , was absolutely stunning !

 

[paul5186]

Nosy Be and Hellville.
Cheap rum was 2 rand a liter.
Cheap Zebu steaks and fish.
I very nearly did not come back home.
Madagascar by the way.

+1 loved it there as well. Mmmm zebu and rum and panache beer.

 

[paul5186]

Reunion - I loved Reunion, such a beautful island, not exactly the cheapest destination, since they use the Euro, but it is incredibly gorgeous. You have to hire a car to get around, and they are geared more towards French speaking tourists than English, but we got by with a lot of pointing and a copuple of badly said french words. Definitely a place to add to your list. We took a helicopter tour over a volcanco. It was really cool.

Went to Réunion last year. Was fantastic. Drove around the island staying in different towns. Also took the helicopter trip. Also drove on that road with 1000 hairpin bends, wife was freaking out. Stayed in St Pierre, St Marie and hellville.

 

[Mike Hoxbig]

Me and the wife, age 57 about, want to go and visit an Island. I saw on Master chef, they were in Zanzibar, and though why not go there. Is there someone who has been to the other 2, Mauritius and Seychelles , or is there perhaps another one. We do not plan to go to everyone. Morocco is also on my menu, I have heard they got tasty food there.

Zanzibar is very nice, but also very underdeveloped. Depending on where you stay (I stayed in the north), if you want to do anything away from the resort, be prepared for a long drive on terrible roads. Make sure to book your tours through the hotel, they will arrange the taxi etc. for you. ATMs are hard to come by outside Stone Town, so make sure you have enough cash on hand because a lot of places don't accept cards. But if you're looking for somewhere to just chill and enjoy the beach, this is a very good and affordable option. If you do go here, make sure to get a direct flight! The airport at Dar es Salam is terrible and there's nothing to do while waiting 4 hours for a connecting flight.

Mauritius is much more developed so getting around is a lot easier, cards are accepted at most places and ATMs are plentiful. There is also a lot more to do in terms of tours, places to visit and things to do. Plenty of pubs etc. It's pretty much South Africa on an island so it's not very hard to adjust when you get there. But it can get very busy during peak periods - think Durban or Cape Town during December.

Seychelles is pretty much like Zanzibar, but can be very expensive.

Out of the 3 I'd probably still pick Mauritius, as it has the best balance between things to do and nice beaches to chill. But I'd definitely go there during off-peak periods. Second choice would be Zanzibar for a chilled and affordable holiday. Third would be Seychelles.

 

[handyman007]

So what are we looking at, about R 20k for a week per person?