The best solo travel destinations in Asia
For a different mode of travel
Take it up a notch and explore Mongolia's vast and picturesque landscapes by train. We recommend an 11-day bullet train tour that starts in Beijing, China, and ends in Ulaanbaatar.
What to do The Trans-Mongolian railway journey by Intrepid Travel takes you from China's Inner Mongolia region, following the ancient path of tea caravans through to Mongolia's capital of Ulaanbaatar. Set to start in June 2025, it passes mesmerising sites like the unique Asihatu Stone Forest and the Hunshandake Sandy Land in the China portion of the journey, then the Khamriin Monastery in Sainshand and the steppes of Khustai National Park. Spend a day with a family of herders and end the railway journey in Ulaanbaatar by staying in a traditional yurt.
If you prefer a shorter version of the trip that stays within Mongolia's borders, hop on the regular train service from Ulaanbaatar to Zamiin-Uud and Erenhot. The journey takes about two days, and you will cross the steppes and the Gobi Desert, all great landscapes to view.
Where to stay Stay in one of Ulaanbaatar's newest five-star hotels, The Corporate Hotel and Convention Centre, located near the iconic must-visit Sukhbaatar Square. Also consider Zuut Hotel, situated close to the capital's State Opera and Ballet Academic Theatre, where you can catch world-class performances of traditional Mongolian music and dance.
Where to eat Located at the Shangri-La Hotel, Naadam is a great bar and restaurant that serves cocktails, international meals, and vegetarian options. Another safe bet is Modern Nomads, an established chain of restaurants serving Mongolian cuisine.
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Time Out
26-05-2025
- Time Out
The best solo travel destinations in Asia
For a different mode of travel Take it up a notch and explore Mongolia's vast and picturesque landscapes by train. We recommend an 11-day bullet train tour that starts in Beijing, China, and ends in Ulaanbaatar. What to do The Trans-Mongolian railway journey by Intrepid Travel takes you from China's Inner Mongolia region, following the ancient path of tea caravans through to Mongolia's capital of Ulaanbaatar. Set to start in June 2025, it passes mesmerising sites like the unique Asihatu Stone Forest and the Hunshandake Sandy Land in the China portion of the journey, then the Khamriin Monastery in Sainshand and the steppes of Khustai National Park. Spend a day with a family of herders and end the railway journey in Ulaanbaatar by staying in a traditional yurt. If you prefer a shorter version of the trip that stays within Mongolia's borders, hop on the regular train service from Ulaanbaatar to Zamiin-Uud and Erenhot. The journey takes about two days, and you will cross the steppes and the Gobi Desert, all great landscapes to view. Where to stay Stay in one of Ulaanbaatar's newest five-star hotels, The Corporate Hotel and Convention Centre, located near the iconic must-visit Sukhbaatar Square. Also consider Zuut Hotel, situated close to the capital's State Opera and Ballet Academic Theatre, where you can catch world-class performances of traditional Mongolian music and dance. Where to eat Located at the Shangri-La Hotel, Naadam is a great bar and restaurant that serves cocktails, international meals, and vegetarian options. Another safe bet is Modern Nomads, an established chain of restaurants serving Mongolian cuisine.
Telegraph
19-05-2025
- Telegraph
How I helped my son to heal from heartbreak through travel
At 53, I thought the hardest parts of parenting were behind me. Sleepless nights, teenage dramas, the occasional questionable haircut – I survived them all. I thought we were coasting to calm waters. But life, with its savage sense of irony, had other plans. In March 2023, my 19-year-old son Ben was standing on the edge of his future, ready to leap. He'd spent a year working nights pulling pints at Longleat Center Parcs, saving every penny for a ski season in Banff, Canada. It wasn't just a holiday; it was a dream – a launch into adulthood, freedom, adventure. Then came the call that shattered everything. His father – my former husband, an RAF squadron leader – died suddenly from angiosarcoma; a rare, aggressive cancer linked to exposure to aviation fumes. In one brutal moment, Ben's anchor was ripped away. The ski season was cancelled. His dreams crumbled. Ben, who lives with ADHD and usually buzzed with energy, grew still. Too still. He tried to stay busy – pitching bell tents at festivals, pouring pints – but drifted, lost in his grief, and the final straw, splitting up with his girlfriend, his heartbreak pouring out in love songs scratched alone into the walls of my garage. It was agonising to watch. How do you heal a soul shattered by loss? I didn't have the answer – but a desperate call to an old friend, a travel agent at Suntrek Holidays, offered a spark of hope: a group tour through Southeast Asia for 18 to 35-year-olds with Intrepid Travel. When I suggested it, something flickered behind Ben's tired eyes. With the steady hand of my new partner Pete, a former dive master who lived a few years of his life on Thai islands, we helped Ben map a rough route beyond the group tour – a path into solo travel. In May 2024, with a brand-new rucksack and a heart still heavy, Ben trepidatiously boarded a flight to Hanoi. The travels which followed were nothing short of epic, each stop another stitch in the fabric of his recovery. He landed in Vietnam, exploring the bustling sensory explosion that is Hanoi, the limestone cliffs of Cat Ba Island, and the surreal river landscapes of Ninh Binh. He wandered the ancient citadel of Hue, meandered the lantern-lit streets of Hoi An, and absorbed the fast pulse of Ho Chi Minh City. In Cambodia, he felt the heavy weight of history in Phnom Penh, relaxed on the beaches of Koh Rong, explored the pre-Angkorian temples of Sambor Prei Kuk, and marvelled at the grandeur of Angkor Wat in Siem Reap. Then onto Thailand, where Bangkok's chaos and nights on Khaosan Road gave way to island bliss on Koh Kood and serene sands on Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao. He trekked through Khao Sok National Park's ancient rainforests, soaked up the creativity of Chiang Mai and the bohemian calm of Pai, before looping back through Phuket, Krabi and Ao Nang. The journey took him next to the Philippines, where he navigated Cebu City, dived in Moalboal, refused to swim with whale sharks in Oslob (after much ethical debate), embraced the magic of Siquijor and drank, but didn't surf, in the surfing haven of Siargao. In Malaysia, Ben got lost – and found – in the cityscape of Kuala Lumpur. Then he crossed into Indonesia, to North Sumatra's Bukit Lawang, a place that would change him forever. It was here that Ben joined an orangutan conservation project (booked through Malaysian Wildlife), and met a mentor he'll never forget: Embera. 'What can I say about Embera?' Ben later wrote to me. 'He's about 60, from Java, and has worked at the project for a decade. He's a man of few words but with a heart bigger than the jungle.' Over two months, Embera became Ben's guide – not just through dense rainforest, but through life lessons. He taught him which flowers soothe bee stings, how to de-tail a scorpion, which ferns are edible, and how to skin a banana tree for food. He had an uncanny ability to spot orangutans where others saw only leaves. Despite the language barrier, Embera's mischievous sense of humour and generous spirit broke through. Ben gave him the nickname 'Raja Hutan' – King of the Jungle – a title Embera, ever humble, accepted with a shy smile. In the jungle's ancient silence, Ben found the guidance and fatherly kindness he so desperately needed. By the time we reunited in Phuket for Christmas, I barely recognised him. He'd shed his grief like a skin. He spoke with the calm certainty of someone who'd faced himself in silence – and found a new confidence. Along the way, real life delivered its lessons far better than any nagging mother could. His good looks meant he had to fend off unwanted attention from all directions, becoming a reluctant but increasingly diplomatic escape artist. Somewhere along the way, he self-appointed himself a chaperone for lone female travellers, often acting as an impromptu big brother to those who looked vulnerable. He missed flights, made costly mistakes, lost money he couldn't afford, and discovered that living like a pig wasn't sustainable: leave dishes out, and the ants, lizards, rodents and highly unwelcome bugs would move in with enthusiasm. Fire ant invasions have a way of teaching urgency and cleanliness no parenting lecture ever could. Out of necessity, Ben learnt to wash up promptly, stay organised, do laundry regularly, and manage his own life in a way no amount of reminders from me ever achieved. He grew alert, responsible, prepared – and, above all, independent. But Ben's journey didn't end there. Next he circled back through Thailand – Phuket, Koh Tao, Koh Phi Phi, Koh Lanta – a dance between discovery and reflexion. He ventured into Borneo, across Kuching (Sarawak), where he stayed for three months as conservation volunteer for sun bears and again, incarcerated orangutans, which made him question some of the ethics of conservation. Disheartened and conflicted as he departed the project, he headed to Pontianak (West Kalimantan), and Kota Kinabalu (Sabah), expanding his world with every step. He will finish his travels with a final stretch in the Philippines, where we will rendezvous and travel with him for three weeks before he heads to Marine Conservation Philippines to qualify as a dive master, learning the same skills as my partner, Pete, who planted the diving seed in his mind. He was reluctant at first, harbouring a deep fear of the ocean. After his first two dives, he sent me a message stating 'I am fish' – and never looked back. This September, Ben will return to the UK, heading to Falmouth University to undertake a degree in video production – a course secured, in part, by an extraordinary reference from one of his conservation project leaders. In the space of a year, he's transformed from the broken boy who couldn't see past his next shift, to the young man standing with camera in hand, ready to tell his own stories. As a mother, letting him go was terrifying. Watching him set out alone across continents felt like a gamble against all my fears. But now I know: we can't always shield them from life's cruel twists. We can only prepare them to weather the storm – and trust that, if we've done our job right, they'll find their own way. And as he steps into the next chapter, I'll be cheering him from the sidelines, backpack at the ready, for when the next adventure calls. Ben says... 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Times
05-05-2025
- Times
Overland from Bali to London — why not? This is how I did it
'You're going where without flying?' asked the bemused receptionist at Uluwatu Breeze Village guesthouse in Bali. 'To London,' I replied. 'But tomorrow I just need a taxi to the bus station.' I've always been fascinated by the concept of travelling overland, settling into a long train or bus journey and watching landscapes and cultures change as I cross regions and nations. In 2019, my mental health was at rock bottom after losing my stepdad to cancer. I had a desperate need for a sudden change, so I decided to travel, solo, from Bali in Indonesia to London. The catch? I'd do it all without flying. This coincided with the first series of Race Across the World, in which five couples venture on a long overland journey, many of them with little travel experience. My trip would look a bit different — I would have my phone and credit cards, for example, but wouldn't have any on-the-ground support. I also wouldn't be taking the most direct route, but would instead be visiting countries that interested me along the way. From Bali, I planned to take ferries and buses across the southeast Asian mainland, from Indonesia to Singapore, north to Malaysia and through Thailand, then east to Cambodia and Vietnam. In China, I'd swap to sleeper trains. Keen to experience an extra two countries, I'd enter Mongolia, take a ride on the Trans-Mongolian railway, which runs from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia's capital, to Moscow, and change trains in Russia before entering Kazakhstan. In central Asia, I'd cross over into Uzbekistan and then back into Kazakhstan before taking a ferry across the Caspian Sea. Then I'd travel through Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, into Europe and take trains — and buses when I ran low on funds — all the way from Bulgaria to Calais in northern France. From here, I'd take a ferry to Dover in Kent and then a train to London. Before I left the UK, I learnt basic Russian to help with my travels in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, both former USSR countries; Russian is still the lingua franca of the region. Wanting to pack as light as possible, I crammed the necessities into a cabin-baggage-sized rucksack. After I put together a spreadsheet of predicted expenses of transport, accommodation and everyday costs, I budgeted about £1,500 a month. I secured a Chinese and Mongolian visa at the relevant embassies in London and planned to apply for a Russian transit visa at the embassy in Mongolia. Azerbaijan required an e-visa and all other countries were visa-on-arrival or visa-free. I planned to book everything on the go, so when I arrived in Bali, all I had reserved was my first five nights of accommodation there. Then I took a bus to the west of the island, boarded a ferry to Java and took trains and buses to Indonesia's capital, Jakarta. Here, my first challenge awaited. I'd decided it would be a good idea to sweep straight up 774 miles on slow-moving roads to the Sumatran city of Pekanbaru, located in the middle of the island, without stopping. Here, I could continue towards Singapore. • Indonesia travel guide The bus could take any time between 25 and 60 hours — and there was an unspecified delay at the station. Not understanding any announcements, I had to rely on the helpfulness of the staff, who alerted me when my bus finally rolled into the station, four hours late. After 59 hours, including seven stuck in Jakarta's traffic, five rest stops eating nothing but plain noodles and Oreos — and engaging in topics of conversation that ranged from Sumatran tigers to the Jakarta car industry with other passengers — the bus finally arrived in central Sumatra. Crossing the rest of southeast Asia was easy by comparison — Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam generally have good transport options and services catered towards tourists. While China has fewer western tourists than other countries in Asia, and English isn't widely spoken, my visa was already secured and the country's fantastic railways and high-tech cities make overlanding a breeze. • Singapore: I thought this stopover city would be boring. Here's why I was wrong Today, travel to Russia — which was on my 2019 route — is advised against, but the trip would still be possible by entering Kazakhstan from Xinjiang in western China. Friendly, English-speaking locals and a small but tight-knit travel community gave me the knowledge I needed to travel through Kazakhstan, central Asia's northernmost country. The highlight was a local camping trip from Almaty to the Assy plateau, bright-green grassland lined with snowy peaks and dotted with nomad yurts. In Uzbekistan, south of Kazakhstan, I travelled along the former Silk Road by rail, hopping between Samarkand, renowned for its 15th-century observatory; Bukhara, one of the holiest cities on the ancient route; and Khiva, a city dating back about 2,500 years. A 30-hour train in platzkart (third class, consisting of beds in an open carriage) later, I crossed back into western Kazakhstan (which also borders Uzbekistan) and prepared to take a Soviet-era cargo ship across the Caspian Sea. There's no timetable — you simply find a local contact and ask when to be at the port in Aktau, western Kazakhstan. Mine informed me I should arrive at 4am. The terminal was abandoned for an hour before I found another two tourists (they'd been told to arrive at 5am). At 8am, we were checked in. At midday, we boarded the 24-hour ferry, which would take us from Aktau to Baku, Azerbaijan's capital. • An expert guide to southeast Asia's best boutique hotels After a night train to Tbilisi, Georgia's vibrant capital, a bus to Kars in eastern Turkey, a sleeper train to Ankara, Turkey's capital in the centre of the country, and an overnight bus to Istanbul, I was on the European backpacker route. Then I entered the EU and used a combination of trains and FlixBus through Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Germany, Switzerland and France to reach Calais. Five months after I left Uluwatu, tears of joy stung my eyes as I saw the white cliffs of Dover appear on the skyline from a P&O ferry. Looking back, I'd recommend anyone attempting this to spend longer than I did on this trip — about eight months would be ideal. But I managed to travel from Bali to London without flying, with a small budget, employing on-the-go research and a lot of grit and determination. Anyone who has that could do the same. • In Europe, I used official rail websites to find timetables or • I booked this trip through a variety of different sites, but I recommend for transport booking in southeast Asia, for train reservations in China and for train tickets in Kazakhstan. • In Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Georgia, I booked trains at the stations; in Turkey I used the official Turkish train TCDD website.
