[Gordon]

Been watching it all unfold since the early hours of this morning!

Maybe cutting my trip short in December was a blessing in disguise, I would have been due to fly SGN-DOH-LGW on QR in 4 days! Hope all affected make a safe return home, with minimal financial impact.

[Gordon]

@LD27 – Talking of Manila, Security used to plant bullets into passengers luggage on arrival at MNL, and bribe them for financial gain, then Rodrigo Roa Duterte heard about it and said if anymore bullets are found, security would be made to eat them. Surprisingly there were no more bullets found!

I intend to visit several islands in the Philippines on a future trip, are you going to write a trip report at all.
Have a nice trip!

@Polly – Good luck with the seats, Safe flight!

@Dragonlady – I’ve been observing your posts, as I have a similar trip in Q4, are you also going to write a trip report.

[Gordon]

@davefl – That brings back memories, could you tell if it was Aladdin brand Paraffin (Pink) or Esso (Blue) I still use paraffin aka kerosene for my central heating fuel living out in the sticks, old habits die hard!

[Gordon]

@yorkshireRich – I spent seven nights at the Hyatt Regency Phuket in December, and a couple had a professional photographer taking pictures of them by, and in the pool, I was expecting a lot more of the kind of behavior you mentioned, considering the Regency has the biggest infinity pool in Phuket! But fortunately my days by the pool were quite civilized.

[Gordon]

Brighton Belle wrote:

whiskerxx wrote:

And a very good evening from:
25°43′53″ S 163°8′32″ W

whiskerxx wrote:

And a very good evening from:
25°43′53″ S 163°8′32″ W

Grok says that’s open sea in the Pacific. No bars there

Grok needs to think outside the box!
I doubt a cruise ship will be without a bar or two!

[Gordon]

BBbetter wrote:

davestat wrote:

An interesting concept I spotted in KUL for Breakfast was for the reception desk person to actually scan room keys to confirm the number of official guests booked into a room and comparing it to the number of guests in from of her. Simple and it certainly caught people out. Western tourists were ok and we weren’t scanned at all.

Have seen many hotels print sheets with rooms and number of guests that is verified before seating is offered.
Staycations are quite popular with locals in that part of the world but it looks like some try to get away with paying less.

Indeed, this is the case in most chain properties, on entering the restaurant, you are asked your room number, and are ticked off the sheet, I observed the paperwork on a recent trip, and it showed Room number/Name/Guest count.

[Gordon]

BA Flyer IHG Stayer wrote:

Gordon wrote:

@davefl – I’ve been saying this for many years, I never entertain them, when at Gatwick, I always use the secret door that takes you across the mezzanine floor to galleries, which is after security and before the escalator that goes down to supposedly duty free.
Hope you are enjoying your travels!

It’s a very strange secret when there is usually a huge sign pointing at it!

That’s news to me! Never used to be, I didn’t see one when I was there a few months back, can’t be that huge! you’d be surprised how many people do not see it then, and get drawn to the escalator!

Many people I’ve spoken to were not aware of its existence. So the secrets definitely out now then!

[Gordon]

@davefl – I’ve been saying this for many years, I never entertain them, when at Gatwick, I always use the secret door that takes you across the mezzanine floor to galleries, which is after security and before the escalator that goes down to supposedly duty free.
Hope you are enjoying your travels!

[Gordon]

Goonerdad wrote:

strickers wrote:

Just got home to find DPD had failed to deliver even though Mrs S was home and watching for them, they can’t have knocked very loud. The ironic thing is the delivery is a replacement doorbell!

DPD are possibly the worst delivery company around – they rarely turn up and also take a random picture of the ground to say they did. They forget people have video doorbells nowadays. 🙂

This has just opened old wounds!

I had massive issues with them last year, re deliveries not being carried out, on several occasions, I tracked the vehicle that was around 1 mile from me twice in the same week, and the updates were saying that we were next to be delivered to, but nothing,

I complained to my suppliers who use them, and they just got fobbed off by the DPD depot, my supplier compensated me in the end, my supplier must have some lucrative contract with DPD.

I agree with @PeteM shoddy service is not country wide, thankfully I’ve had great service in majority of cases.

[Gordon]

tiberius wrote:

Pricing for Air Asia from Gatwick to Bahrain and KUL have been released. Looks like £75 each way in economy to Bahrain – I didnt realise Air Asia also did flatbed seats (although these are priced more like a premium carrier)!

Indeed, received the email at 2am!

[Gordon]

JDB wrote:

Gordon wrote:

NorthernLass wrote:

@john,Highways and local council are generally separate entities, in my area at least.

I believe this to be UK wide,
Council tax is a significant source of income for local authorities to cover highways services, road safety, and repairs, alongside other public services!

A number councils have increased their council tax by 5%, the maximum allowed!

Councils have been starved of cash by central government for some years and such resources as they have are being absorbed by the rapid increase in costs of social care, pensions and other statutory obligations. The leader of Hampshire council was on the radio recently saying he would need £600m to catch up with and fix what’s properly needed on his roads, but his annual budget is £60m so it’s make do and mend where essential but a continued overall decline in road conditions.

Indeed, this has been an issue for some years, it’s actually more cost effective for councils to pay Compensation to whoever can be bothered to jump through hoops required to claim for damage caused by defects on the highway, than to spend the money they don’t have to fix them!

[Gordon]

NorthernLass wrote:

@john,Highways and local council are generally separate entities, in my area at least.

I believe this to be UK wide,
Council tax is a significant source of income for local authorities to cover highways services, road safety, and repairs, alongside other public services!

A number councils have increased their council tax by 5%, the maximum allowed!

[Gordon]

john wrote:

Anyone tried a credit card chargeback for council tax due to the state of the roads and how many potholes there are?!

Unfortunately not, Council tax is a mandatory tax, not a service charge, although it’s tedious, I submit a claim to the local authority if I incur damage caused by lack of maintenance on the highway.

[Gordon]

NorthernLass wrote:

https://www.mirror.co.uk/money/holidaymakers-could-charged-more-major-36694120

Not sure if this is something to be concerned about or typical tabloid overreaction!

Talking about the mirror reporting, this is definitely something to be concerned about!

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/paedo-pilot-arrested-front-shocked-36695731

[Gordon]

CB Root wrote:

Hi,

Can I enquire whether any more folks on here have had their 10k Avios from JPM ?

Ours aren’t officially due until early March, but would be interested to hear more data points…

P.S. Fund back up to £502 today, yay !

They are pretty efficient, judging by posters on here, early in fact, 30k Avios landed in our household account after two weeks!

[Gordon]

Greenpen wrote:

My JP Morgan investment has plummeted to £496 but when I looked this morning my 10,000 are nestled in my account. I thought it was 55 days to qualify and I am about half way through that period. So time for that £496 to soar!

30k Avios landed in our household account today with minimal effort!

[Gordon]

StevenJohnTait wrote:

Got my JP Morgan Avios today. It’s only been 35 days or so since opening. The terms stated 55 days. As the points are in my account, they can’t be removed now if I close the ISA, right?

Yes Avios is safe once banked! Your funds could take up to 10 days to be credited to your preferred account.
If you are concerned, leaving it for another 20 days is not going to hurt, presuming you only invested the minimum amount.

[Gordon]

Dom wrote:

Data point on the JP Morgan avios offer last month, both my wife and I opened General Investment Accounts with £500 in the lowest risk portfolio, myself on 12th Jan and my wife on 14th Jan. The 10,000 Avios arrived for both of us today so they may simply be doing them all in one go rather than waiting for a specific period after account opening as otherwise my wife should have been a couple of days behind me.

Good news, Won’t be long then until the 30k Avios drop in the household account, for my OH and kids investments, I’m excluded, as applied for the previous investment offer, agree, not the most difficult way to earn Avios.

[Gordon]

LD27 wrote:

We stayed at Diani Beach too! But Bamburi Beach also rings a bell.

18 months ago, we stayed at the AI Voyager beach resort, on the border of Nyali and Mombasa beaches, as a break In between safaris.

We did look at Diana beach as our first choice, but did not fancy to the journey time from MBA to get to a hotel, even though the new Likoni bridge was opened, as we had traveled enough in Kenya between the parks.

[Gordon]

@Annie – Below is a trip report on my time in Colombia last year, hope it helps.

https://hfp2026mar.kinsta.cloud/forums/topic/colombia-trip-report/

[Gordon]

Hbommie wrote:

If you get time the Botanical Gardens are very nice, the national orchid garden a highlight.

+1 for the Botanical Gardens and the national orchid garden, with a loverly lake to walk around, there are a surprising amount of open green spaces in Singapore.

[Gordon]

Cheers Dave, sure will, thanks again.

[Gordon]

@davefl – I’ve not started planning yet, this will be a 2027 trip! Im looking at around 2 weeks, a lot of time will be committed to the shooting ground, but obviously it would be a shame not to visit some of the sights while there.

I am looking at hiring a car, I’m open to anything really, but, the same as yourself, bars with live music would be a must, not looked at flights yet, may be worth touching base once I have a better idea of an itinerary really, thanks.

[Gordon]

@AFKAE – I had a 3 week safari in Kenya, Uganda, and Mombasa 16 months ago, passed through Rwanda for our return flight KGL-NBO.
We had a few days chimpanzee and Mountain Gorilla trekking, in Uganda, one of the highlights was the Gorilla trekking in the Bwindi impenetrable rain forest, we will 100% return.
I have a trip report in destination advice, that may help, if you have not already seen it.

My trips this year are a little thin, due to work commitments, hence having to return from an extended trip in Asia a week ago (I managed 39 days though, which is a record for me).

Have a few BUV’s to use, so booking a few European destinations, not yet confirmed, but one to Cyprus, to a friends shooting ground to brush up on my DTL skills, for a competition later this year (once I have jumped through the various hoops that will allow me to transport my firearms outside the uk).

Nuremberg in November, for our regular visits to Christmas markets, and a redemption booking, BA in J with a CV for a 3 week trip in October to Mumbai, Delhi and Goa to visit friends.

Looking ahead,
Another CV about to drop, that will be put to good use for a trip to Japan, also a trip with fellow shooting companions, to the World Shooting and Recreational Complex in southern Illinois, I’m hoping @Davefl can help with tips on the latter state?

[Gordon]

I have posted a short trip report on my time in Siem Reap, in Destination advice, under the Siem Reap thread. i was not going post a trip report, but a few have asked, so I will add a few paragraphs as I go along, there would be a lot to include, so I will keep the updates short,

I’ve adjusted my initial itinerary, i just gave myself too much to do in the timeframe allowed, bad planning on my part, I take full responsibility, as my OH is here to blame!

24/11/25 Sunny, 25c.
Arrived in Phnom Penh on the Giant Ibis coach from Siem Reap, 6 hour journey, $19, pre packed cake, and a bottle of water included, 2 stops, for F&B also the regulatory toilet break, seats can be reclined, but everyone decided not to, after all it was a daytime schedule, first time I’ve used this mode of transport, after reading all the positive reviews, I thought I would give it a go, and glad I did, excellent service, WiFi was good, and Air conditioning was probably too cold, but the guide onboard adjusted the temp, you can shut the vents off above your head anyway, Arrived in Phnom Penh slightly ahead of schedule.

Check in at the Hyatt regency was smooth, shown to my club Suite (Room 722) thanks to a GOH, 65M2, 8 removable hangers, Iron and ironing board, two toilets, one upon entering the room, and one in the bathroom, very large tv’s in the lounge and bedroom,
Stand alone bath, also rain shower cubicle, Nespresso coffee machine, as expected, plenty of storage.

The yellow painted building at the front is original,it is a 100 year old mansion that was once the residence of A Cambodia princess, the modern main L structure added to the rear was opened in 2021,
I was told by the manager, that there was a soft Opening months earlier.

Large Gym and loverly outside pool area, very large deck area, with additional wooden pergolas sitting on circulating water, with lilies, that runs over the edge of the structures, a nice place to relax,

Breakfast choices were plentiful, western and Asian options, the club lounge is in the original mansion at the front, and was pleasant. Check out took a few minutes, and was smooth. I was quite impressed with this property, and of course, as always in Asia, the wonderful staff.

As mentioned, I am traveling solo, but I did meet a loverly woman from China, in the HR, who works for Coca Cola, she travels most of the year on business,

She was staying the same length of time, we met up for breakfast and in the club lounge, in the evening, and also had drinks on the rooftop bar, but sadly we have to say goodbye, as a parting gift I treated her to dinner on the last night, I had a $100 credit from the privé booking so that was put to good use, We will keep in contact,by email, because of the social media ban in China, I hope to meet fellow travelers that are just as nice on my journey.

I visited the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum S21, it was very sobering, but worth a visit, I used Tuk Tuks while in Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, they are plentiful, I used the Grab app which worked well, also visited the Grand palace, make sure your knees are covered to enter.

I know that there have been discussions re mobile sims/eSIM on hfp,
I have been putting off obtaining an eSIM, as could not make my mind up, in the end I downloaded an eSIM from Airalo, they are not expensive at all, around 10 GIG of data £9 for 30 days, I did look at obtaining an Airalo Asialink eSIM, that covers all the countries I am visiting, but the reviews were not good for Laos coverage using this eSIM, so decided on a individual regional eSIM for each country instead.

I was so impressed with Giant Ibis, I booked them again for my journey from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, (a few minutes Tuk Tuk ride to the bus pick up point from the HR)to catch my speed ferry to Koh Rong Sanloem, $17 for a 3 hour journey, the guy onboard was really helpful, going from passenger asking what stop they are alighting, and giving them instruction for their onward journey, in my case, what ferry to catch to the islands, a $25 open jaw from Sihanoukville to Koh Rong Sanloem, and Koh Rong to Sihanoukville,

Yes you can also have an open jaw journey, on the sea, as well as in the air! I had to time it right as I had a Air Asia flight to catch at 17:15 from KTI-BKK on the return date of 7/12/25, so booked the 9am speed ferry back to Sihanoukville from Koh Rong, to take in to account any delays that might occur, I will be using Giant Ibis for future travels where possible, i cannot praise this company enough.

unfortunately on part of the bus journey, I was cursed with the dreaded passenger that is not aware that there are clever devices that you insert into your ears to prevent other passengers from hearing you music! Luckly they were sitting further back on the coach, a little comfort I guess.

On arrival at Sihanoukville we had the opportunity to purchase speed ferry tickets before leaving the coach, which saved a lot of hassle on the port, another ticket in the box for Giant Ibis, return ticket is $25, there are a couple of companies that operate services to Koh Rong Sanloem, and Koh Rong, Buva sea and GTVC, there are numbered bays along the quay, that correspond with your booking, each has sheltered seating, journey time from Sihanoukville to Koh Rong Sanloem, Saracen beach, was around 45 minutes, the boat journey was surprisingly pleasant, but with four Suzuki 250HP outboard engines strapped to the rear, it did not hang about, I would not recommend this to anyone that could succumb to sea sickness, as when it hits a wave from another boat, it does jump.

A Spanish guy I was talking to who was sitting opposite me before we left said it can get rough, (you can’t talk once you leave the port, as the 4 large outboard motors are too noisy) I will say I really enjoyed the experience, this would have been one of those times that my OH would not have fared well, but she declined this trip, knowing the pitfalls that awaited her,
I have promised her a nice holiday somewhere exotic in 2026 to make up for it.

27/11/25 Sun, 25c
On arrival at the Soon Noeng Pier, I was met by one of the staff, he said there will be a 20 minute wait until we left, as they had to load fresh linen and towels onto the vehicle from the boat, as these are passenger and supply boats, this is surprisingly done on a daily basis.

We left for the resort on a trailer pulled by a small tractor, not your normal transfer method, but I was on a remote island in Cambodia!
We traveled on one of the many dirt track roads that weaved in and out the middle of the island, 30 minutes later we arrived, as these tractor had to go slowly due to the state of some of the roads.

Checked into the Island center point resort for 5 nights, around 13:30, which took 10 mins, after the journey a cold towel, coconut cake and a fruit drink was welcome, apparently I was lucky, as I’ve been told by several people that there have been high winds on the islands over the last few days, the views from the beach out onto the bay were beautiful, crystal clear waters, with small fish swimming in the shallows, and warm to step into, the sand was fine and white, better than many of the Caribbean beaches I have visited.

Through perseverance I managed to get a 50% discount on a sea view beach front room, after a few emails back and forth, (I had to book the room at full price and they discounted the price afterwards, I guess they did not want to advertise) the resort is carrying out some maintenance work on the rooms further back into the wooded area, so I was to expect some noise, I took that chance and I am pleased to say it paid off, as there was hardly any noise intrusion.
So $80 PN, total cost, for a sea view beach front room, in a loverly resort, was a steal.

I actually saw a local, walking around in the water, wearing a head torch, fishing after dark by splashing the water, he had a basket in hand, I’ve only seen this type of fishing once before, but can’t remember where.

I was shown to my room which was a sea view beach front room, with balcony, table and chairs, one of only 6, you can step from your balcony onto the beach, the sand is fine and white, the rest of the properties on this resort were further back, and additional properties were set into the wooded area, there was a vehicle to assist people, as the location was quite elevated.

Nice room, solid walls, no noise intrusion, mini fridge, one wardrobe with a drawer set, 6 removable hangers, kettle, coffee, no tv, but no need for one here, I never use a tv while on a trip, WiFi was good, managed to take some video calls, the bathroom was a nice outside affair, rain shower, and a nice stand alone offset bath, set on stones with free standing taps, a sea view to wake up to each morning was welcome, there is no big problems with Sargassum on these Cambodia beaches.

The sand is raked constantly, the staff even rake slightly into the sea, and also use large sieves to pick up the small pieces of Sargassum that do wash up, but they are very small pieces, nothing like the clumps you see like in the Caribbean.

Plenty of very large cabanas on the beach to use, never had an issue finding one at any time of the day.

Breakfast was included, cooked options, various egg choices, including egg Benedict. Fruit, juices and coffee, iced coffee, tea etc, I particularly liked the porridge (Not as we know it traditionally) this was a bowl of soup, either chicken or pork, with rice, bean sprouts, spring onions and roasted garlic.

The only downside was the bar/Restaurant service, it was slow, on observation, it seemed like the 4 members of staff were under pressure or confused, there were only around 15 to 20 guests in the restaurant.

The islands resorts are run on generators, they are hidden far deep into the forest areas out of sight, there is an issue with mosquitos here, the rooms are supplied with a large aerosol can of repellent.

There is a big construction site for a large hotel near driftwood beach, so it looks like the island is going to get busier, which is a shame.

2/12/25 Sunny, 28c
Transferred by speed ferry from Koh Rong Sanloem to Long set pier, Koh Rong $14, for a further 5 nights, I’ve just booked the Buva sea speed ferry with reception, to Koh Rong, it leaves from Eden Pier, which is basically outside this resort, so I don’t have to endure another 30 minute ride on a tractor and trailer to Soon Noeng Pier, the pier I arrived at 5 days ago, further down the beach.

Stayed in a Similar property, as on Koh Rong Sanloem, there’s not much in the way luxury properties on these islands, all the creature comforts were taken care of, on the crossing I did see some large developments, as we approached Koh Rong.

The island is much busier and developed than its smaller sister Koh Rong Sanloem,
Much more suited to young back packers,
There are lots of bars, restaurants.
Drinks were reasonable, small can of Cambodian beer $1, G&T $3, a standard fish or meat dinner was around $5.

The bars on long set beach,put on shows for the guests, including fire juggling and limbo under fire, guests were invited to try, and on completion they were given a shot! It did get messy towards the end of the night, but this is an island full of backpackers so this is the theme, it was an experience, I will point out that there are quieter sides to the island, as on any island.

I preferred Koh Rong Sanloem, for its laid back approach, not sure how long that will be the case though.
There is an airport in development, due for completion in 2028, so it’s only going to get busier.
There appears to be a lot of Chinese tourists on Koh Rong, and also investment from china in Cambodia, they appear to be ramping up tourism revenue, the below was from an article I was reading while here.

Cambodia will pilot a visa-free policy for Chinese citizens from June 15 to Oct 15, 2026, according to an official government document issued on Dec 2.
The announcement sparked an immediate rise in travel interest, with flight searches to Cambodia climbing across major Chinese travel platforms.

This is the end of my first leg, I have enjoyed my time in Cambodia, it appears to have run smoothly, the only one thing I would have done differently, was to spend less time on the Koh islands, this might sound strange, as these islands are beautiful and scenic, but I like to be motivated, and I just can’t sit on a beach or around a pool for too long.

7/12/25,
Thailand bound,
45 minute return by speed ferry from Koh Rong to Sihanoukville, from the port, a minivan transfer to KTI, for my Air Asia flight to DMK, I booked a later flight and I’ve left myself plenty of time between transfers, in the event I encounter delays.

Talking of delays, I must of had a premonition, we left the port 30 mins late, and we have been told that the 3 of us on board going to the airport need to change over to another minivan at a junction somewhere on the way? I could have paid another $70 over the $20 minivan cost, but that would have not been any fun!

Swapped minibuses 30 mins from KTI and
Made it 2 hours before departure, I must say I’m impressed with the new airport, I flew into here 2 weeks ago, but it was dark and arrivals is on the lower lever, when I arrived today it was late afternoon, and the airport was basically deserted, it was strange, not one queue at any check in desks, it reminded me of when we flew to PUJ, during the pandemic in September 2020.

The departures are on the upper floor, the main departures area has loverly woven timber like sweeping ceiling design, in a dark gold effect, this carries on into and through to the departure gates, it’s something that would not look out of place in Dubai.

There is also a giant gold Buddha in the centre, which was busy with passengers taking selfies and praying, I guess because it’s a new airport.

One strange thing though, on the departures Concourse, they have travelators that are 20 metres in length and are 40 metres apart, I know this because I paced them in meters, something I had to do (while getting strange stares from fellow passengers) as they just looked out of place.

Also the bing bong ,before any announcement is identical to the one on the Hi-De-Hi shows, I was expecting Ruth Madoc to announce something.

I was traveling with a couple of guys from Italy, that had been staying on Koh Rong also, they were actually staying a few hundred metres from my hotel, the Hyatt Regency Sukhumvit (what’s the odds on that) so we shared a bolt cab from DMK, 300THB for a 45 min journey. It was a 12 hour, sea and land journey door to door, so after check in, I didn’t venture out, it was an early night for me.

On another note,
I looked at various trip tracking apps, someone mentioned Polar Steps, and I found it very useful, so I’m using that on my trip.

Kulen NP,
https://share.icloud.com/photos/03aZriOx5x5YqTx1hiuoi9CFQ

https://share.icloud.com/photos/0c77g5hVKY_LKoo0-FhOrcZpg

Sunrise over Angkor Wat,
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0a4Ouf2FjyxPkJHnU_TglOTkQ

Angkor Wat,
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0b8R4psVYzkgjkamdLLmR8H4A

https://share.icloud.com/photos/0c1-bK10pBhcYsqnLEmeHxkmg

https://share.icloud.com/photos/042F3SPlR4RO1srV4z4DHbc4A

Tree from the tomb raider film,
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0e3iIXTNT3bKST1WPqqNBcU3A

One of the trips on a speed ferry to the Koh Islands.
https://share.icloud.com/photos/04ebejfSgGwElZKzBRVvgt8tw

Sunrise on Koh Rong Sanloem.
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0c8iqsLMxHCLWFpSg3pt-1cLA