Kandy Lake Comfort

From Sigiriya, we travelled the short distance to Dambulla by tuk-tuk. We were in two minds whether or not to visit the Dambulla Cave Temple. The deciding factors were time and the weather. It was still raining, and we didn't want to delay our bus trip to Kandy. We were heading for the Kandy lake

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Lion Rock Sigiriya

After spending our first wet night in Sigiriya, it was still raining the next morning. However, our plan was to climb to the top of the famous Lion Rock buddhist monument, and a wet day wasn't going to stop us doing that.

Before that, we had a look around the grounds of our guesthouse - The

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Sandbank Affaire

The Sandbank Affaire Makunudu Maldives is a special experience devised by the Management of the Makunudu Island Resort. This is a private evening excursion to a distant mini-island (the Sandbank). You are accompanied by just your waiter and a chef, and are treated to a Lobster BBQ with a bottle of

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sandbank-affaire-makunudu-maldives/

Kuala Lumpur Chinatown - the delicious aroma of food...

Jalan Petaling, otherwise known as the Kuala Lumpur Chinatown, is as good a reason as any to visit this cosmopolitan city. After just 3 nights in Sepilok, we packed up our bags again and made our way to the airport at Sandakan.

We had pre-booked flights back from Sandakan to Kuala Lumpur via

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/kuala-lumpur-chinatown/

Borneo Rainforest Discovery Centre

Located within the Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve, the Borneo Rainforest Discovery Centre is one of Sabah's most popular and most accessible environmental education centres. It is open daily from 8.00 am to 5.00 pm.

We made a special trip to the Discovery Center, since it was within easy walking

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/borneo-rainforest-discovery-centre/

Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center

Our first day in Sepilok, and we were keen to get a closeup view of the orangutans. The Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center is the reason most visitors come to Sepilok, and you can enjoy a very pleasant and informative day out ‘with the apes’.



The reserve is just 5 minutes down the road

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Sepilok Borneo - Where to Stay & Eat

After 4 days in Kuala Penyu, we organized a taxi to take us to the airport at Kota Kinabalu. Our next destination was Sepilok Borneo, not far from Sandakan.

We had a late morning flight booked with Malaysia Airlines (RM99 per person, 1-way Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan). This is a short 40-minute

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sepilok-borneo/

Borneo Wavehunters

White Water Rafting is a "must do" activity if you are staying a few days in the vicinity of Kota Kinabalu. As a result, the Borneo Wavehunters had been on our agenda from the very beginning of the trip, and we were lucky enough to experience it.

I say “lucky” because these excursions are very d

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Kuala Penyu Tempurung Seaside Lodge

Before leaving Kota Kinabalu, we telephoned ahead to our next lodging - the Kuala Penyu Tempurung Seaside Lodge - to arrange a pickup once we arrived in Kuala Penyu. We needed to do this, since there are few transport options in the area around Kuala Penyu- even taxis are difficult to find.

We

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Kota Kinabalu, Borneo

From Kuantan, we would have to take 2 flights to reach Kota Kinabalu, with a change in Kuala Lumpur.

After the disappearance 6 days earlier of Malaysian Airlines flight 370 out of KL, we were a little apprehensive about our forthcoming flight with the same airline, also travelling into and out o

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Kuantan by Taxi 🚖 from Mersing

After 4 nights in Tioman, we planned to take an early ferry back to Mersing, and then travel on by bus to Kuantan, where we had already booked a hotel.

We needed to reach Kuantan on the same day we left Tioman, since we had an early flight booked from there the following morning.



After c

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Into the Tioman Rainforest

One of the nicest beaches on Pulau Tioman is Juara beach on the northern coast. There are rivers at both ends of Juara beach. On the northernmost river you can hire a kayak and navigate your way a short distance upriver into the Tioman rainforest.

Just before the river at the southern end of

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Juara Beach - Tioman Island, Malaysia

1511, Coconut Grove on Juara beach is a relatively new place. It comprises 8 to 10 compact but comfortable raised wooden beach chalets. The management and staff are very welcoming, and helped us with advice on the local areas of interest, and to fine-tune our onward journey. We paid €37 per night f

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/juara-beach/

In-transit through Rome Airports? Try Best Western Fiumicino

Our trip to the Philippines was planned with a return flight to Fiumicino, near Rome. The flights back to Italy from the Philippines hit us a lot harder than the flights there. The Best Western Hotel Riviera Fiumicino (€51, breakfast included) was a good choice for a one night stop-gap.

We would

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/best-western-hotel-riviera-fiumicino/

Girona transfers from airport and onward to Barcelona

Located within sight of the Pyrenees in the northeast of Catalonia, Girona is a great place from which to start a journey to some really exotic locations. This is due to Girona's proximity to Barcelona - a main Spanish hub from where many flights depart in the direction of South America, Latin Ame

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/girona-transfers-from-airport/

The Venice of "Don't Look Now"

If like us you’re a bit of a movie fan, then this section is for you. The Venice of Don't Look Now is encapsulated in a 1973 British-Italian thriller directed by Nicolas Roeg, adapted from a short story by Daphne du Maurier.

It was filmed at a variety of locations throughout Venice, showing a se

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Maldives Planning a Break

Maldives Planning a Break: The luxury of some of the smaller islands in the Maldives comes at a price. However - if included as a short addition to a longer trip through other countries in the region - this unforgettable experience can be enjoyed without drastically over-doing the budget.

The

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Malay Peninsula West Coast - Open-Jaw Trip

If you're planning a multi-destination road trip, then booking an open-jaw flight can be a godsend. Our Malay peninsula west coast journey would actually start in Phuket, Thailand - just north of the Thai-Malaysian border.

The trip would end in Kuala Lumpur, after visiting a sequence of

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malay-peninsula-west-coast-open-jaw-trip/

Malay Peninsula West Coast - Open-Jaw Trip

If you're planning a multi-destination road trip, then booking an open-jaw flight can be a godsend. Our Malay peninsula west coast journey would actually start in Phuket, Thailand - just north of the Thai-Malaysian border.

The trip would end in Kuala Lumpur, after visiting a sequence of

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malay-peninsula-west-coast-open-jaw-trip/

Getting Around Panama by Shuttle Bus 🚌

Without any real train infrastructure, buses are the primary way that most Panamanians — and many travelers — get around. The buses run frequently and are cheap enough, but if you have a few more dollars to spend you may want to make your travel a little easier. The Hello Travel bus shuttle com

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/getting-around-panama/

South Goa Beaches - Agonda

When we arrived in Goa, fresh off the night train from Kochi, we hadn't yet decided which south Goa beaches we would visit - Agonda beach or Palolem beach. We had nothing booked, so left it to chance. As it turned out, our first experiences would be on Palolem beach.

After an hours march from

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/south-goa-beaches-agonda/

SandSpice Travel Essentials - The Things We Carried

When you're traveling from country to country...
...with a maximum rucksack load of 7 kgs, we tend to be fairly selective about what we carry and what gets left at home. It all depends on the climate of the countries we're visiting and the type of accommodation (if any) we plan to use.

Most of

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Tioman Island Ferry

One of the highlights of our trip around Malaysia and Borneo would be our visit to Tioman island on the east coast of the Malay peninsula. To get there, we needed to reach the port town of Mersing from where we could take a ferry across. Although we arrived at the terminal building in the morning,

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/tioman-island-ferry/

Inexpensive Rome Restaurants

Rome is like one giant restaurant. Every street seems to host a series of eateries tempting visitors with their delicious Italian kitchen aromas. In our experience, it's pretty difficult to get a bad meal in Rome, but if you're looking for inspiration, here are our current favourite and

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/rome-restaurants/

Ceylonica Beach Hotel Negombo

For many visitors to Sri Lanka, Negombo will be your first port of call. This actually makes a lot of sense if you are planning to head east to the central areas. For us also, this was the logical choice since our flight arrived in Sri Lanka in the early evening, and Bandaranaike International

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/ceylonica-beach-hotel-negombo/

Istanbul Eateries and Accommodation

We would only have 2 nights and days in Istanbul. To optimize our time in the city, and to find the best Istanbul eateries, we did as much planning as we could before leaving home.

After sorting out our transfers, our next priorities were accommodation and food. Following a good deal of online r

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/istanbul-eateries-accommodation/

Doha Airport Layover

Our Qatar Airways flight from Rome to Jakarta included a lengthy 10-hour Doha airport layover. There was really no way of avoiding this when we booked the flight.

If we had arrived early in the day, we could have enjoyed one of Qatar Airways complimentary 3-hour tours of the city. However, we wo

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Budget Accommodation Highlights

Traditional & cost-effective budget accommodation: The hotels and guesthouses you book will have a dramatic effect on your overall travel experience. Check out our recommendations for some of the best, most cost-effective budget accommodation we've discovered in our recent travels.
Our Bu

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/budget-accommodation-highlights/

Vaporetti Essentials: Get a Day Pass

One of the reasons we all go to Venice is to travel on their unique vaporetti water transport system. And unless you are particularly flush with cash, you’ll want to do this in the easiest and most economical way possible. For a short weekend, a Vaporetti Day Pass is the answer.
Vaporetti Day P

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/vaporetti-day-pass/

Makunudu Island Paradise, Maldives

Travelling with Emirates from Europe to Makunudu Island, we had an initial stop in Cyprus. We then had another stop in Dubai for our connecting flight to Male - The Maldives capital.
We had a couple of hours to kill in Dubai, so spent most of it queuing up to spend a penny in a toilet not big

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/makunudu-island/