Hi SweetLikeChoc,
Out of your suggested places,I have only been to Goa and Thailand.
I am a real Goa lover,we go every year in January (have done for the last 11years)and if you want guaranteed sunshine,friendly people,excellent, very cheap food and drink,nice beaches(some better than others)then i think Goa could be for you.A lot depends on what you want from your hols and perhaps your age group,We range from 49 - 56.But all ages can be found in and around Goa. We always manage to do it on approx.£2,000.Why not have a look at the Goa forum,I'm sure you will find it interesting. As you may have gathered...I love the place,others may say differently

Hi Milliemeg,

Thanks for your reply, Goa does sound very interesting and looks like a beautiful country. When you say you do it for around £2000 is that bought as a package or a diy? Also how much spends is within that? Sorry for all the questions

Sweet

We tend to do a package,it suits us but i know a lot of people prefer DIY and from what i read on the Goa forum a DIY holiday can work out cheaper.
Having said that,we have never paid more than £600 each for 14nts B&B (January 2010 is £575 each).
We then take £1000 in TCs but always put at least £400 back in the bank. We don't scrimp and scrape on holiday and we eat whatever takes our fancy,we also drink honey bee brandy or whisky during the evenings.
During the day we eat at the shacks,good snacks at cheap prices.
Don't forget, if you do decide on Goa,you will need a visa.
Nice to see you are looking at the Goa forum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Millie,

Thank you so much for all your help and advice. Goa looks beautiful and within budget, but there is one thing worrying me and it is going to sound really stupid but i have a big fear of dogs and lots of people keep mentioning the stray dogs and that terrifies me.
I encountered 1 on a beach in the dominican a couple of years ago and it went for me and i was terrified, but on the other end of the scale there was a small pack of dogs 2 grown dogs and 3 or 4 puppies and they were fine and really friendly.
So is this something i need to be afraid of? because i would hate something so trivial to ruin such a special occasion.

Sweet x

P.S - I loved having a read through the Goa forum lots of useful info

Although I have dogs of my own I am wary of dogs I do not know,So I just ignore any stray dogs around and have not had any trouble.Now and again on the beach you might get a couple of dogs starting to fight but the shack owners usually soon sort them out.It would certainly not put me off my hols.
What type of holiday do you like? We like a mixture of scenery,beach,walking and sightseeing..all of which there is plenty. Goa has a very relaxed atmosphere and it can be as quiet or as lively as you want it to be.
p.s. Were you looking at North or South Goa?
We always go North,some people don't like the Baga,Calangute.Candolim stretch,but it has what we like and we also go out on trips(taxis are very cheap..but get a price before you get in and always,always haggle.

Hi Millie,

Re: The dogs ..... Awww thats quite comforting then, because i would hate that to put me off going to Goa as it seems fantastic.

We are quite easy to please on holiday weather it be lazing on a beach or off sightseeing, a mixture of both is a bonus which is wot Goa seems to have, I will be honest tho i am a bit of a beach bum so tend to enjoy that side slightly more lol. I dont like it too lively and noisy but again not too quiet either so havent quite decided on north or south yet.

Someone said the south had better beaches which would be more us, and still had a nice town with restaurants and shops, just slightly more quiet than the north but you can get a taxi from the south to the north for the day, does this sound right ? If yes then i guess the south would be more ideal but the cheaper deals seem to be in the north........

What do you think?

Sweet x

As we have never stayed in the south,only gone for the odd day trip,I really cannot give a fair comment on the South.
I think I would prefer it too be a bit livelier and travel to the peace if and when wanted,The savings would probably pay for the taxi fares!
But the BCC stretch is not annoyingly rowdy,or else we certainly wouldn't be there,just more sunbeds and some watersports.If you enjoy swimming be careful as the current is quite strong and accidents have happened.
The BCC strip also has lots of excellent eating places,we try to eat at a different one each night of our stay,but we do have our favourites that we tend to use more often.

Thanks for all your help Millie, you have been great and very informative. Have you ever been to any other long haul destinations that you really liked? Hated?

Kenya? Thailand? Cuba?

Sorry to be a pain its just the more info i have the more chance of making the right decision. Goa is defo a contender tho, and i quite like the idea of Kenya with mini safari, Thailand i dont think i could afford and cuba im not sure whether to go for the cayos or varadero with havana trip.

In regards to Goa do you normally book in advance or last min cheapie?

Sweet x

If you are prepared to DIY your holiday you could do Thailand. We've done three centre Thailand (Phuket Krabi Bangkok) for £650pp in the past staying in good quality three star hotels. Our last holiday this March cost us £850pp but we upped the quality of the hotels, and it was a bit longer than two weeks. Hotel standards in Thailand are generally high - certainly when compared to hotels in the Med. You could always keep your eyes open for any tour op specials. You can go for any number of nights as flights to Thailand go every day so if 14 nights is too much look at doing 12 nights for example.

Krabi has quite a wow factor - especially when you takes trips to the islands in Phang-Nga bay or visit Railey with opportunities for diving and snorkelling as well as just whiling away your time on a beach. Eating out is cheap - a good meal for two in the evening can be had for £10-15.

That sounds fab Sunbear. I would definately want a minimum 14nts preferably a little longer if we did go to Thailand.
I was trying to DIY and it seemed very difficult and really daunting cos i did like the idea of a multi centre in Thailand, i even shortened it to just Bangkok and Krabi but still really difficult. Maybe thats just because i have no experience of that part of the world, as much as i would love to.

Sweet x

Can you remember any of the hotels you have used Sunbear? x

Sweetlikechoc..We have also been to Kenya,Sri Lanka,Kerala,Thailand and Gambia(not long haul i know,but a winter holiday)

These are purely my opinions:Kenya..we did 14nights AI and that included a 3 night safari,absolutely brilliant and will go again in the not too distant future.Not a lot to do outside of the resort but the food was really good,as was the evening entertainment.Felt a little bit intimidated by some of the locals and not sure if i would have ventured out on my own or with just another female.

Sri Lanka..again 14nts AI,hotel right on the beach,excellent food,plenty of it,again as in most AI resorts not a lot to do unless you do the trips.We did a super trip which included climbing Sigarya Rock,well worth doing.

Kerala..Did several years ago so i expect it has changed a lot.Quite hilly and a bit smelly. lovely scenery.

Thailand..Stayed in Pattaya,not one of the best places,but a friend of a friend got us a really great deal on 14 nts hotel and we found reasonable price flights.Would go again,but probably to somewhere like Krabi or Koh Samui.
Gambia..Again could feel a bit intimidated by locals,but did some excellent trips.

As for Goa,Within about 3 weeks of getting home I start to shop around for my next holiday in Goa. I like to know it is booked.

Thanks for all the info Mille that is fab, Will defo let you know what we decide, all your advice as been much appreciated. Thanks xx

Hi Sweet,
I've put links to a few of the hotels we've stayed in recently Ones in Phuket the others in Krabi including Koh Lanta which is in Krabi province.

http://www.naithonburi
A hotel at a very quiet resort on Phuket - we like it but appreciate many people will find the resort too quiet as its winding down by 9 in the evening. Stayed here a couple of times.

http://www.krabisands.com
Small family run resort we've stayed at a couple of time handy for day trips to islands in Phang-Nga bay. Seems to have got a bit expensive from the first time we stayed.

http://www.lanta-cliffbeach.com/
Great new hotel on Koh Lanta...not directly on beach but in beautiful location with fantastic views. As it was new it was doing some good opening offers.

Have to admit if Pattaya was the first place we visited in Thailand we would not have gone again to the country. Luckily it wasn't and we been over ten times now.

Have been to Kenya as well. really enjoyed tha safari side of the holiday centred round the Tsavo national parks. The beach side was OK, but going on the beach was hassle all the time so people tended to stay in hotel grounds.

Thanks Sunbear, I will check them out

Sweet x

Cuba - Nice but little nightlife other than in Havana where you perhaps only stay for 2-3 nights. Other nightlife is really Hotel based style entertainment. I went in February weather was nice but pools were freezing. Hotels can be quite lively as a lot of Canadians come down for what for them is a cheap all inclusive holiday in the sun.

Kenya - Wonderful country a safari a must. You are up very early for this so you wont want and there will be no nightlife. In resort Hotel based and not normally late in the night jut a small show and some music around the bar. Might be tight on your budget if you want a good safari as well.

Vegas - Not been but again if you want to do all the trips i.e. Grand Canyon then budget could be a little tight

Thailand again could be tight on budget if you want to move around and see plenty of places.

Kind Regards
Stewart

Thanks Stewart some good info I will let you know wot i decide. Tbh at mo im not sure whether to book something within the next couple of weeks or wait and try and get a good late deal.

Sweet x

Cuba - Nice but little nightlife other than in Havana where you perhaps only stay for 2-3 nights. Other nightlife is really Hotel based style entertainment.

It depends a lot on what sort of nightlife you are looking for - if you go to one of the beach based resorts with mainly AI tourist hotels, especially places like the cayos or Varadero then this is true but towns/cities like eg Vinales, Trinidad, Barracoa, and especially Santiago all have really thriving live Cuban music scenes and a good selection of bars with live music as well as more nightclub like places. Every town of any size will have a Casa de Musica and also probably a Casa de la Trova as well as an Artex bar with live music. But it is all going to be very Cuban in style with hardly any European or US music being played and discos are a rarity because of the Cuban preference for dancing and listening to live music.

SM