The Gal Travels

It has been a while since I last visited Phuket, Thailand. There was a period of time when I would go there often since its less than a 2 hour flight from Singapore. Since my gym trainer was organising a sports retreat for his clients with a group of more than 10 persons, I decided to experience what it was like to travel with so many people and also stay in a luxurious villa.  We booked our Phuket villa on HomeAway Singapore, my first time doing so! After deciding between 5 luxurious villa properties we settled for a villa at Layang Beach with 7 bedrooms, 3 pools, with multiple lounge areas. The pictures on HomeAway looked as luxurious as how it was when we checked in. We must have taken a good half hour to explore the area and every room. In addition, the villa manager arranged for airport transfer, in-villa massage, as well as a in-villa chef to cook for us, which was super useful since we had such a big group. The experience of having home cooked Thai food in a huge vi...

Time permitted for a week in Taipei to explore at length and at leisure. Although I could have done a round Taiwan tour, this time I did not want to rush through things, and wanted to go in depth in Taipei enjoying the weather, the night markets, Taipei cafes, and just wandering around on foot. As I was going to be in Taipei for 8 nights, finding a hotel for all 8 nights was a challenge, hence I split it up to 4 nights each, at Beauty Hotel Hotel Bfun - North Linsen and Wish Hotel. The hotels were a MRT station apart, so it was easy to walk to the next hotel, and experience a different area altogether.  The first hotel I stayed in for 4 nights:  Taipei Hotel Bfun  At the last moment I was quite hesitant about this hotel, as I found out that North Linsen is kinda like a red-light district. But proved to be unfounded, as the area I stayed was perfectly safe. It is just opposite Shin Shin Mall which houses a cinema and a supermarket. The nearest MRT is Zhongshan,...

My past two vacations were  staycations in Singapore . I have begun too appreciate an instant vacation. One needs to simply check into a hotel and your holiday immediately begins. No need to pack a bag or spend additional hours in the airport. During the hazy period in Singapore, this proves to be a bonus, to get out of the haze, and into the air-conditioned comfort of a hotel room. With instant confirmation of online hotel booking sites like Booking.com and Expedia.com.sg, this makes checking into a hotel on a discounted rate so much easier. In my recent staycation in Singapore, I chose the Amara Singapore hotel as it was going on a 40 percent discount. No discerning Singaporean will miss out on such a hotel deal right? So I am back to Tanjong Pagar area, which I have been a tourist for several times now, exploring one of Singapore's famed historic districts. The greatest benefit staying in Amara Singapore is that it is attached a small mall called 100AM. Over in the mall y...

Deciding between Krabi and Phuket was a tough one for me. Given that I have been to Phuket quite a few times and wanted the familiarity of a holiday destination, it was for the sake of a new blog entry that I decided on a Krabi holiday trip. I went to Krabi in the tail end of the monsoon period. This meant cheaper flights and less crowds. Unlike the usual leave on Thursday and come back on Sunday, I did a leave on Saturday and come back on Tuesday. This proved more relaxing as most tourists would have headed home on a Sunday, leaving the resort relatively quiet. I found that if one desires a quieter laid back and less commercial feel, heading to Krabi is definitely a better option that Phuket. However, food, massage, and shopping wise, Phuket still has more to offer.

Since this would be my second trip to Taipei, I thought I would do something different, perhaps go on a cafe trail in Taipei as well as do day trips out of Taipei. With all the quaint cafes sprouting up, it makes a trip to Taipei quite so exciting. The only issue is, how many coffees could I possibly actually drink in a day? One of the best ways to prepare for a holiday in Taipei is to mark out what to see at each station. And here is what I have marked out as a travel plan.

The best beach and park in Singapore is probably East Coast Park located in the eastern part of Singapore. Relatively inaccessible, your only option from town is a bus 16, 36 or a bus 134 if you are intending to stop over at a Paya Lebar MRT. Alternatively, just grab a cab from CityHall which takes about 10 min ride, non-peak hour. The park carries different moods during the day. Expect early mornings during the week to be scattered with avid joggers and citizens doing tai chi. The afternoons during the week is the quietest with few people walking in the noon day heat. Come evening time, nearby residents will be out again for their pre or post dinner walks. Over the weekends, East Coast Park becomes a hub of bustling activity with people from all walks of life and different nationalities either walking, blading, running, having a BBQ, or just lazing around having a picnic, all enjoying the fresh air, and beautiful beach scenery - away from the hub of city life. What's great...

Looking for a hotel in Sydney , Australia can be pretty challenging, due to the multitude of hotel accommodation available, budget and location usually becomes the deciding factor. Because of an existing offer at Meriton Serviced Apartments and how it ranked on Tripadvisor, it became an obvious choice of accommodation for me. One could stay in a hotel, but I have become to appreciate staying in serviced apartments because of the additional space that allowed you to prepare meals and as well as do your laundry. I was pleasantly surprised and thrilled when I opened my apartment at Meriton Serviced Apartments . Luxurious, clean, tidy, and cozy it is indeed what I would classify as perfect accommodation for my week in Sydney. It is an apartment that is very well maintained and received my top marks of approval. Definitely this would be my accommodation of choice should I return again to Sydney. Located at Campbell Street, we were surrounded with Thai restaurants, and with a couple of...