WHAT ARE EVERYONE'S THOUGHTS ON THE SUITABILITY OF THE MALAYSIAN AND THAI ISLAND AREAS FOR MORE SENIOR (OVER 50'S) HOLIDAYMAKERS? I AM PLANNING ON SPENDING TIME IN THE AREA AND AM ANXIOUS TO "FIT IN" WITH OTHER "TRAVELLERS", MY LAST HOLIDAY WAS A BIG MISTAKE- A CRUISE AFTER TAKING EARLY RETIREMENT- I NEED SOMETHING MORE ADVENTUROUS .. ANY FEEDBACK WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED
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I cannot speak for malaysia but when I traveled in Thailand
to the islands in the Gulf, I found the crowd to be very
young - i.e. out of college backpackers. I think an older
person might feel out of place on Ko Samui or Ko Pan Gan,
especially if traveling solo. I have not been to Phuket,
but understand that (because there is more upscale
accomodation) there is more variety among tourists age-wise.
Also, I have traveled to Bali and Viet nam and found that
there were many more tourists of all ages in both than in
Thailand -- especially Viet nam. Have fun.
Like you, I took early retirement at the beginning of this year. I went off on a six month trip through SE Asia to celebrate.
However, I have been 'in training' for this most of my life so it was pretty easy for me.
Contact me at my e-mail address and we can talk about it.
I've gone the cruise route myself as well as Club Med and that sort of thing, and felt probably much the same way as you did. What I'd like to know is how adventurous you really want to be, and how much you enjoy being alone. I've spent time both by myself, and with my wife or my daughter at various places in Thailand. Yes, there are lots of young people all over the place there. It's an easy place to get started when you have little travel experience, and a great place to party. There are places in south thiland where I felt more comfortable than others - for example Railay Beach near Krabi
Anyway, give me a shout. This applies to any other recently retired types who might want to talk about their experiences. maybe we need our own Thorn Tree list :-)
I am an old broiler (female) and have just come back from a trip to Thailand with another oldie. We had just the best time. We had five days in Krabi and did trips out the the islands in long tailed boats, swimming and snorkeling and climbing into limestone caves to see the prehistoric cave drawings. Then we had 8 days in Phuket for shopping. We loved every minute of our holiday, and will try anything once. In Phuket we stayed at the Patong Beach Hotel (I've stayed there for 4 years in a row) and have found the other guests great, always happy to have a talk with you. But holidays are what you make them and as I will talk to anyone even if they don't speak English I never feel lonely even if on hols by myself. In hindsight next time I would spend longer at Krabi and less in Phuket. It was the low season in Krabi and although it rained most evenings there were few tourists and most beaches were almost deserted. We stayed at the Phra Nang Inn in Krabi and it was beautiful, rustic but very comfortable and the staff were wonderful.
Why are you anxious about fitting in with other travelers?
I am 52, have been traveling since I was 22. The age of
other travelers whom I encounter makes no difference to me.
Some are interesting, some not. Usually, the older the
traveler, the more interesting, as older people have had
more life experiences and often have had more travel
experiences.
I often treat younger travelers to share my vehicle or a
meal at a nice restaurant. I received such favors from
older travelers when I was younger.
If, on the other hand, you are concerned about fitting in
at youth hostels and low budget hotels, I can understand
that you would probably want more comfortable
accommodations and hopefully would have the money to pay
for them.
I am 30 and have been travelling off and on since 23. I must
admit that I, too, don't often seek the company of the early
20's crowd anymore. However, as somebody above this post
said, interesting people come in all ages (or something like
that). Actually, I often seek out travellers in their
fifties and older because their perspectives are so
interesting to me. Perhaps you'll want to skip Ko PhanGan at
full moon if you're not into lots of wild parties, but it's
such a beautiful island, it would be a shame to miss it at
other times during the month. Samui sounds like it has a
similar crowd to the cruise types, so perhaps that's not for
you. Malaysia is much less frequently explored and so I
found my chances of running into more interesting
travellers was greater there.
... even I found the "young" people in thailand too much to
bear. If I ever hear one more person bullshitting on about
their opium trek in Chiang Mai...
I would second the advice from the person above and
recommend malaysia. You will find that there is a much
greater proportion of interesting travellers than you will
get in thailand, more people your age, and absolutely no
all-night raves! (of course, you might want to go to an all
night rave... if you do you should avoid the full moon party
in koh phangan as it is a very watered down, tacky, money
spinning, no good, waste of time tourist trap.)
You'll find plenty to do in malaysia, great trekking,
wildlife, beaches, cities - it's all there. If you're
looking for something a bit more adventurous, you can always
hop on the ferry and cross to Sumatra for a while.
Leon.
For what its worth I think age is just a state of mind. Have
fun whatever you end up doing.
My wife and I have just returned from travelling in Bali and
Java. Although around 50 and a decade or two older than our
fellow travellers we had a great time. We climbed Mt Bromo
in Java and Mt. Batur in Bali, travelling on shuttle buses
and staying in budget to medium accom. We had no problems at
all with our younger companions. See our trip report at -
http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~pincha/balitrip.htm
My wife and I are around 60; however, she's an old jock,
very much into triathlons and needs to be able to run, swim
and bike---just running and swimming would be OK, though.
We're looking for a place to rent for approximately 3-4
months from December through March and wondered where would
be the best area(s)something like this might be done in SE
Asia, particularly Thailand, Malaysia or Indonesia. I was in
Thailand 25 years ago and spent an obligatory year in Viet
Nam before that. Also, I've worked in many countries outside
the USA and also we've made similar winter residence in
various Central and South American countries for 3-5 months
as a time, so we're not strangers to the ways of rest of the
world and are flexible. We hoping suitable places could be
rented for anything up to $600/month, more or less.
When I went to Malaysia the first time, I went to Penang and
Langkawai. Penang catered to a mixed crowd of tourists of
all ages and nationalities, and had a lot to see. Langkawai
had great diving and island hopping. If you'd like specific
information, please e-mail me.
. . . . but still around 25 years old somewhere inside.
OK, so I can't skydive anymore, and over-organized so-
called 'raves' like the full moon party make me yawn, but I
don't have problems enjoying my travels. In fact, had a
helluva good night - till 4 or 5 am - at a Thai nightclub
in BKK a couple of weeks back, where I was not only the
only falang, but without a doubt the oldest there, and
never gave it a thought. What are you worried about - what
others will think ? Waste of time - just get out there and
do it !
Good to read more news from other 'older' travellers.
I posted a message on the Activities branch of the Thorn
Tree a month or two back asking whether there were any
other over-50's out there on the trail. (I'm 54) The
message is still there with 20 or more responses - have a
read if you're interested. Seems that there are lots of us
still around and all totally addicted to the travelling
life. Suspect many of us started back in the 1960's and
haven't ever really given up this way of life.
I've just come got home after another short solo trip to
Malaysia and Indonesia - had a fantastic time and met some
great people of all ages. Talking and travelling with
younger backpackers makes me feel 30 years younger - age
really is totally irrelevant though.
Great suggestion above from Kindred Spirit to add another
branch to this website ... I'd love to know where people
like me exist ... I never meet them back in the world of
work in southern Australia! Hope to bump into some of you
along the way somewhere, some time.
I have travelled solo to the Thai islands, Malaysia and
a host of other places. I've yet to feel out of place for
my age but on a recent trip to the French Polynesia, I was
advised by 'kids' from Australia that I'd probably feel out
of place at their hostels. My problem is that I don't
think of myself as old! I'm off shortly to Indonesia; it
will be interesting to compare my adventures there at 30
with those of me now at 50.
Any other lucky travelin retired babyboomers : feel free
to e-mail me.
If you're going to Malaysia I would recommend Taman Nagara,
the rainforest national park in the centre of the
peninsula. Coming from Europe, I had never been to a place
like this. You have to get there by boat, so it feels quite
adventurous, although the trip is actually very relaxing,
and once there you can be as lazy or energetic as you like.
There is a range of accommodation from camping to air-con
hotels and a few well-priced restaurants, or you could take
food with you. The LP guide-book has good information.
One of the most interesting people I ever met was an 80+
year old lady who was in Bangkok completing the last leg of
a series of trips around the world that had commenced while
her husband was alive. She was travelling alone. I spent
an incredible evening with her talking about her travels
and we found that we would both be in Hong Kong a few weeks
later at the same time. Her parting remark to me was "If I
don't see you in Hong Kong, I hope you find a long dong."
Who says you have to be young to travel in any country?
Just go and enjoy yourselves. Oh, and by the way, keep an
open mind!!!
If you want adventure and you go and seek it out, than
knowbody any age can put you down brother. Go For It, there
are many young travelers who enjoy chatting with a schooled
chap such as yourself. Teach people learn from people and
don't give a flying shit what people think or say about
you.!!
Live long and have a great trip!!!!
Oh, if you're even thinking about doing the trek to SE Asia
then you simply must go - without another thought about
your age. I'm 24, and although I only encountered a few
"older" people on my travels, I found my conversations with
them to be the best and most informative - and it is all
relative you know - intersesting is interesting at any
age. And though it is bombarded with youth, I think
Thailand is the easiest to travel through for a first run,
so get your sailing legs steadied and venture out to where
ever the day takes you - feel free to email me about what
you've seen - I love to hear others stories from abroad!
PLEASE LEARN THAT IT IS much easier to read a message typed
in lower case rather than upper case letters.
I'm 49, and have been a budget, adventure traveler since I
was 20 years old. Budget travel has changed dramatically
since I first started travelling. In the 1970's older
travelers were respected for their knowledge and advice, and
fit-in well in any budget travel scene. It was a different
era. There were no "tourist buses" or shuttles. Everybody
had to take the public local transport. Generally speaking
in today's world there seem to be just so many "air head"
travelers out there whose only interests seem to be "rave
parties", drugs, and mindless conversations that have no
substance. Many younger travelers seem to ignore older
travelers and make no attempt to converse with them. There
are places to avoid if you are over 45, such as Koh Samui
and Koh Phangan. But don't despair. Travelling in South
East Asia out of the highest of the high season helps. I've
found that budget places on the islands of Indonesia outside
of the main tourist areas are still very enjoyable for over
45's, especially those that are set-up with meals at a set
time and at one long table. Avoid the trendy touristy
locations (Phuket, Pattaya, etc.), and go to the quieter and
more remote places. Places on Lombok, Sulawesi, Flores,
and Malukku in Indonesia are recommended.
Listen to "seasoned but still...." I really prefer indonesia
and think most "older " travelers would to- But I have
really enjoyed the young people i (generaly) meet. Just go
for it , you will have a ball- I am
45 and still
if you haven't already, dump the wife and pick up a little
thai floosie go lie on a beach together and then see if you
feel 50 something after a week or two. you'll find smiling a
large part of your life again.
If you go to tourist places, then you can easily see what
kind of crowd is being catered to, and pick you age group.
Ho hum. If you're going adventure travelling, you get away
from cliques and crowds, and people of all ages will tend to
interact because they're thrown together by mutual interest
in their off-the-track location.
For a beginning traveller of any age in SE Asia, the
Philippines is a good starting point. English is very widely
spoken, the people are loving, and there are a lot of lesser
beaches away from the Boracays and Mindoros to get tanned,
exchange notes with a smaller group of people, and acquire
the mindset. Then go out to more remote areas, with a secure
beach head in Asia to fall back on, and possibly with new
travel partners.
As an older traveller, you are probably more financially
independent than many younger backpackers. This may make it
possible for you to charter excursions by boat, etc., to
more remote locations, and then look for compatible people
to take along and share whatever section of the costs you
feel like subletting. Many younger travellers lack the
capital to organize the show, but are overjoyed to sign on.
In 20-plus years of adventure travel, we've put together
some great little teams of travellers in this way, several
of whom have remained lifelong friends.
In many places, you'll see white message boards with
requests for people to sign up for similar excursions. Since
these always depend on getting enough people together to do
the trip, your money is more important than your age, and
once aboard, you get a chance to share experience and your
warm personality, and make friends. Age is likely to be the
least of the cultural divides you'll need to learn to cross
while travelling.
I will always remember, though, being 34 years old and
lying toasty warm on the floor of a Karen longhouse on the
Pai River, cuddled under blankets with my equally "aged"
wife with those trek smiles and tecnicolor dreams just
beginning to roll, and overhearing a 19-year-old airhead who
was experiencing a very steep learning curve on our little
expedition saying to another fellow traveller, "Just look at
them. They're having so much fun reliving their youth." It
takes all ages.
I'm 56 and started out in India in 1966. I still have Thai
girls crawling all over me every night. Erase the numbers.
Get rid of the "age" thing.
Do what you really want to do.
You only live once and inheritance taxes are very high.
Enjoy.