OUR NEXT TRAVEL DESTINATIONS

The last long distance flight to Mecca to perform our Umrah via Amman Jordan with a stop in Bangkok has put us off from making another trip to another destination longer than 6 hours. So for now we will take a break from long flights, limiting ourselves to just regional destinations or just Asean destinations. We have in mind such destinations as Chiang Mai and Phuket in Thailand, Jogjakarta, Indonesia, Siem Reap in Cambodia, Shanghai and Hongkong in China.
The spate of promotions by AirAsia has made it possible for retirees with a small pension like us to travel. They have benefited us immensely. The cheap fares to Kuala Lumpur is something we will always grab. Even if we are not going to travel beyond KL, we can always use the cheap fares to visit our children in KL.
We did secure such low promotional fares on 22nd November when the basic fare was just at RM10 each way per person. The total fare inclusive of airport taxes, convenience fees came to RM142.00 averaging to about RM71.00 per person which cheaper than the bus fares.
The next step was the purchase of the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Jogjakarta which came to a total of RM230 for two persons return but excluding the exit tax from Jogjakarta on the return flight. Hey that's just RM115 return fare per person.
For this trip we bought rooms in Jogjakarta from 22nd November to 25th November 2011 at the Malioboro Inn which cost us USD150 for the three nights. It was a mistake really as we had wanted to book the Malioboro Hotel which is located in a shopping complex and thus much more convenient. Anyway the inn is also a few minutes walk away from Malioboro Street, the heart of Jogjakarta.
For the visit to places of interest, we will just scout around at the travel agents on our first day of arrival as we are sure they can be easily done. What we have in mind is to visit The Borobodur on the second day and a day tour to Solo the next day.
We booked our KL trip for February 2012 on 16th March 2011 with AirAsia and the fare is a mere RM70 return for 2 persons. The whole fare inclusive of taxes and fees came to RM182.
A few days ago AirAsia went on another promotional blitz and advertised fares as low as RM0.10 or 10 sen on certain sectors including Siem Reap in Cambodia which had been on our wish to go to list. I was prepared to purchase the fare on the launching date which began at 12.00 noon on 23rd May 2011. On that day the AirAsia website was jammed with people trying to access the site. The jam only eased off in late afternoon and only then was I able to access the site to purchase my flight to Siem Reap on 27th February and the return on 1st March. Of course I didn't get the 10 sen fare to Seam Reap. On those dates the basic fare that I managed to get was RM50.00 per pax per sector. At this fare the total fare including taxes, fees, baggage and meals of nasi lemak for each one of us came to about RM620. This means a saving of some RM500 if I were to travel on the earlier dates of 26th Feb and return on 29th February 2012. This saving could easily offset the 10 sen return fare to Kota Bharu for the 1st of March 2012. At the basic fare of 10 sen per pax the total came up to just over RM50 when the airport tax, convenience fees and baggage was factored in.
For accommodation in Siem Reap, we chose the Soria Moria Hotel in the Wat Bo area as opposed to the earlier choice of Ta Prohm hotel in the Old Market area. Though the Soria Moria Hotel would cost us some RM200 more at USD50 per night, the close proximity to a halal restaurant known as D'Wau Malaysian Halal Restaurant was too tempting for us. Moreover, Faizal the Malaysian owner could connect us to a Cambodian free lance guide by the name of Yusof Palal. Yusof once studied at a Madrasah in Kelantan.
Should I get Yusoff's services in Siem Reap, I don't expect myself to be fleeced much of my USD and having a guide speaking in your own dialect is of course a bonus.
Before connecting with Faizal or Yusof in Cambodia, I need to connect with Cikgu Zmah who mentioned about them in her blog Ceritaku Untukmu when she visited Siem Reap with her husband sometime ago.
As long as AirAsia could provide us with cheap fares, we will be able to continue flying all over the destinations covered by Airasia. I guess it is fair that they continue getting tax exemption as long as they can provide such low fares. Don't forget foreigners are enjoying this benefit too but as long as they keep coming to Malaysia in droves, there should be an advantage to the tourism industry.
Thank you AirAsia, now everyone can fly including pensioners like me.