Hi rpbourne, I think you have inadvertently given me good guidance. My choices are 3 days HK and 8 days Seoul or 6 days HK and 5 days Seoul. Sounds like you advocate fro more time in Seoul?

Yeah for me I would totally do 3 and 8. More time in Seoul, enough time in fact that you could hop down to somewhere else in South Korea. Gyeongju, Sokcho, whatever. That would be my preference.

This being my first visit to HK, I would hit a few museums, trip to highest hill for panoramic views/photos, boat ride to see skyline, and nightlife. If time permitted, I would add a half day trip to Macau.

Yeah, food food food and the pictures you snap while walking between food. Skyline, tram to the victoria peak, and yes Macau is you want.

Both counties have a lot to offer outside safaris. There are historical sights in both countries. Cultural festivals which tend to be around the peak tourist seasons. There are cultural tours that you can do like in Nairobi you can visit the bomas of Kenya and learn about the different tribes that are in Kenya and their traditional practices. You can try local cuisines and night life. There are mount climbing and hiking options. There are horse riding activities and camel rides and then there are the beach vacations which can be combined with things like dhow cruise and more.

Hi Mate
Similar plan to myself... my plan is to Hike up the mountain during the day (North/West), see sunset then move to the east Peak and stay overnight at the East Peak hotel.
Get up to see sunrise at the East peak, begin to descend and do the plank walk (south Peak), perhaps get the cable car back down and then back to Xian to connect to my flight to ZJJ.

You can store bags at the visitor centre where you get entrance ticket from, apparently. I'll probably do that

OP, you've gotten a lot of clickbait and conventional wisdom (e.g., college towns, which frankly are often unpleasant for people who are neither town or gown. Almost all of the examples are larger in population than your parameters. The places that are closest to what you laid out are typically artsy little towns that are usually within an hour of a medium to large metro area: Nashville, Indiana; Yellow Springs, Ohio; Berkeley Springs, WV; or perhaps "second house" towns (Hudson River Valley or Catskills have some although they also have large older towns with often significant problems, Cape Cod has lots of places like this) or their cousins towns that serve people with big pieces of "weekend property"--there are a number of these in the Virginia horse country W of Washington DC; I think Idaho and Montana have a lot of these places.The populations of these towns are often bigger than your requirements and the places that are connected to second homes can be quite dead and have limited services outside of a peak season.

As for moving now---the economy is rapidly cratering. The limited and often byzantine safety net in the US and the legislation that has been past so far pretty much means things are getting worse faster than elsewhere in the world. I wouldn't think about relocation without good reason in the near term.

URL: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bh0ymgUnee3/?taken-by=raul.saez21

Destination: Mountains above Delphi. Delphi, Greece. Eruope.

Context: After visiting the Delphi archaeological site I decided to do some hiking in the mountains around. There was an amazing view of the snow-capped peaks of the Peloponnese and the flowers marking the beginning of spring.

I have done Pikey Peak Trek. My trip schedule was as follows:

1) Kathmandu to Jiri to Shivalaya by bus.
2) Trek to Bandar.
3) To Gomba Danda (basic room at teahouse).
4) To Pikey Base Camp.
5) To Pikey Peak in the morning (panoramic views of Himalaya including Mt. Everest) and to Bhanjang.
6) To Juni Besi (visit monasteries and village).
7) To Thupten Chholing monastery in the morning and back to Juni Besi for lunch and then to Phurteng (views of Mt. Everest and other peaks).
8) To Ringmo to Phaplu.
9) Fly out to Kathmandu.

There is operating flight from Kathmandu to Phaplu on Monday and Wednesday by Tara air. I bought flight ticket, hiking permits and guide through trekking agency based in Kathmandu. You can book flight directly with the Tara Air if you do not want to use trekking agency or guide. Gaurishanker Conservation Area hiking permit checks in Shivalaya. I had TIMS card but there was not check post. The food and accommodation is USD20 to 25 per day.

Like you, I as an Australian, find the US interstates a peace of cake to drive, usually well made, well signed and good drivers. One of the nicest things I've done in the US is to spend a few hours floating down a quiet stretch of the Snake River near Jackson Hole (I think). Nothing wet and wild, an inner tube and beer (I think), if you have the time and inclination you may enjoy it.

The suggestion of $6000 US for 6 months travel sounds about right to me. Hopefully your international flights in and out of SE Asia will be budgeted separately.

For Vietnam, if you start traveling in August, you're in the height of the rainy season in the north. Vietnam is a country with lots of microclimates, so the rainy season doesn't peak everywhere at the same time. Probably the worst area is Central Vietnam, like Danang, Hue, Hoi An, which gets absolutely soaked with rain mid-Sept/Oct.

If you've got 6 months to travel, consider adding a visit to Indonesia or some places in India. Both countries can be done for around what you'd pay in the SE Asian countries you listed.

Thanks so much for all the suggestions!!! Plans have changed slightly (don't they always!) and now the dates are Jan 4 to 14 (so VERY soon!). I am looking at booking hotels and my spouse is pretty insistent on a very low key and no fuss trip. He is eyeing Playa Del Carmen, Akumal or Tulum.

Two questions: (1) Are these three places that different from each other in terms of the beach and the overall "vibe"? I have never done a "resort" type vacation, and I am a little nervous about it---husband grew up with them so sees the perks. (2) Does anyone know the current beach conditions? I would hate to go for almost two weeks on the beach with the intent of sitting on the beach and have it be piles of decomposing seaweed so thick it is too hard for a little kid to get in the water (as it was in the spring of 2015 when we went to Mahuhual).

Thanks so much!!