just got back home after a few months bouncing around asia and i still feel like my brain hasn’t caught up 😅 i’m 23 and this was my first time that far from home, especially alone being a girl, so everything hit a little harder. here are my short impressions on the 3 countries that i spent 95% of my time in:
japan honestly set the bar too high. i spent most of my time in tokyo + kyoto and it was one of those places that just… works. trains always on time, people incredibly polite without feeling fake, and i never once felt unsafe even walking alone late at night. i lived off convenience store food (7-eleven egg sandwiches deserve their own passport stamp) and had some random moments that still stick with me, like a local old lady helping me figure out a bus route even though neither of us spoke the same language. japanese men are very polite and a lot of them wear suits which i found very attractive. 10/10, would go back tomorrow.
vietnam was the toughest for me, which surprised me because i had super high expectations. parts of it were beautiful, especially nature-wise, but day-to-day travel felt exhausting. i dealt with a lot of aggressive selling, a couple scams, and just constant noise/chaos that wore me down. maybe i just hit it at the wrong time or didn’t plan well enough, but it wasn’t the magical experience i imagined. still glad i went, just… not my favorite. it's very cheap which is a massive plus. 6.5/10
china completely blew my mind in the opposite direction. the scale of everything is hard to explain. cities feel massive and futuristic, but then you turn a corner and there’s something ancient right there. i was amazed by how modern some areas were and how quickly things move. it felt intense but fascinating, like i was always slightly behind the rhythm of the place. goes without saying that the hardest part is traveling alone sinc e no one speaks english. it's incredibly safe though, very clean, cheap (not as cheap as vietnam), truly fascinating, you'd need a hundred lives to see everything there is to see from all the small shops selling all sorts of wild stuff to all the nature and all the historical monuments. food is so crazy good, these guys just have it in their genes just like the italians, no one can rival them when it comes to food. and the chinese girls were so beautiful with some of the cleanest skin i've seen, i genuinely don't recall seeing anyone with a pimple in my whole time there. i found a group of Swiss students in Shanghai... but they only spoke German lol. The other tourists I stumbled upon were mostly couples so unfortunately I couldn't find new friends but China still gets a 10/10
overall, most of asia fascinated me. there's some kind of charm and peace even in the less developed parts around. it's so safe and people are so kind. food is great, it's so cheap and there's so much history... i'm definitely going back once I save up some money. curious if anyone else had similar reactions to these countries or if vietnam just caught me on a bad week.
Been to Japan and Vietnam 3 times each but never China. I'm glad you enjoyed it! I am dying to make the trip there.
Out of the 3, China is my favorite. Going there again for the 3rd time this April.
I’ve only been for a layover, where do you recommend?
I felt similar about VN. Japan made me want to visit China so this was interesting to read. Thanks for sharing your experience 😊
Honestly same. Vietnam is so hyped and there's a lot of amazing things to see but I didn't 'enjoy' my experience there that much. Don't know if it was because it was the tail end of a longer trip, but I didn't feel particularly encouraged to return.
I love all 3. Been a few times to each one.
Next time if I were you I’d do Vietnam and then Japan. Opposite order. That’s what I did out of chance and it worked really well. VN after Japan would certainly be a jarring transition. VN before Japan made me love and appreciate both for different reasons. Now I usually go to both countries at least for a couple days when I do an Asia trip.
Nobody here is talking about Thailand so a bit off topic, but your comment on order of experience being important reminded me of how the first time I visited Bangkok I found it noisy, smelly and generally overstimulating (not to say I didn't like it). When I returned at the end of the same trip after six weeks, spent mostly in Vietnam, I couldn't believe how quiet and orderly it had become in such a short time!
Interesting observations! I went to china and Vietnam as well. And mostly agree with both of your analyses. China amazed me in all aspects, and I even made great friends and interactions there so 10/10. I wanna go back asap to explore more of the country. I stayed in Desti Hostels in most cities I went to by the way, big recommendation for socializing with Chinese and international people.
Vietnam also couldn't get me that feeling of amazement. The noise and chaos got me a bit overstimulated, often places were too touristy so it was difficult to feel like having an authentic experience, but still enjoyed it. Food was great, prices amazing, but I did not fall in love. 7/10.
I’m from Vietnam and i would like to say sorry for your experience, many people fascinated with Vietnam due to the history of the War and now that its open up the the world more, the sheer amount of people travelling risen so fast which can causse unbalanced . The country is basically playing catching up game to other country in the region, which lead to poor planning /infrastructure.
i love your country and your people with all of my heart. you don’t need to apologise for anything
And too many scams.
I solo traveled in Nanjing and visited Japan the same year. China is very underrated (looks to be changing). Ignoring the political news, China is a very safe to visit and the people there are kind (minus one somewhat negative encounter but I assume it is just language barrier).
Japan, as someone else in the comment mentions, is if a nation can be a mall. This isn't a negative point for Japan.
Loved visiting both countries.
I look at Japan as if a nation could be a restaurant. I just eat nonstop whenever I’m there. Never paid any attention to the shopping tbh. But I also stayed in some less frequented Tokyo areas like Asagaya and Kita. Very different vibe compared to the main areas.
I agree, my next trip I plan to visit less tourist area plus shopping lol. Visit some cultural cities like Ise.
There's a lot more to Japan than shopping, you just have to get outside to make shopping areas. As an example, on my last trip there I spent one day biking across Islands connected by bridges, another day in an island full of contemporary art museums.
Yeah, I know. But as someone else mentioned, commercialization is more in your face versus somewhere like Nanjing where it feels more lived in.
Granted, I’m speaking mostly of the big three cities. There are plenty of culture in these big three too. I’ve done Kabuki theater in Kyoto, all the major museums in Tokyo to name a few. But the capitalism is more in your face in these three cities than versus Beijing and Nanjing.
But I am looking to travel off the beaten path a bit this year. Visiting places like Ise or Nikko for more cultural experience.
Where did you go biking? I'm going to go later this year and looking for ideas, that sounds lovely.
For reference if you don’t mind, what country are you from?
Malaysia
Thanks for sharing your impressions and experiences, OP.
I did the same last year - but I did Taiwan, Vietnam and Thailand. I have done the same in Japan a few years ago now though too (pre-covid). Yet to do China or Hong Kong or South Korea though, all are high on my list along with Laos and Indonesia. I plan to go back to Vietnam this year.
I felt exactly the same about Japan. It’s like nowhere else and I wonder if Vietnam coming after that just had so much to live up to? If you did them in that order? Nagasaki was my favourite and I loved how distinct yet unified all the cities were. So safe and polite, peaceful yet endlessly interesting and stimulating. I’d dreamt of going my whole life and it didn’t disappoint. I’d go back in a heartbeat but it is expensive (though slightly cheaper currently). It has everything and more and you do get as a tourist to see that idealised idea of Japan. It’s the stuff of dreams. Great people, great landscapes, great food. Returning home to the UK gave me the blues afterwards. I managed to see the cherry blossom season that would be impossible without crowds now though so I know people who have gone but not enjoyed it due to the crowding now.
With Vietnam (I wonder if because it wasn’t the same trip as Japan) I loved it and felt like it’s the only country I’ve loved as much as Japan, that really captured my heart (maybe aside from Italy). It doesn’t have the structure, safety or reliability of Japan but I felt the people were so warm and scenery stunning, and that I could live/travel well there. The food was great, the beaches were beautiful, the history and culture interesting. It felt like an adventure. But I knew I might struggle with the traffic, crowds and pollution (and did at times) so I opted for smaller places on my first trip rather than Hanoi and HCMC. I went to Hoi An but stayed far from the centre to avoid crowds, stayed in the regular part of Danang away from the tourist hub and also went up to Hue and Da Lat. The only place I didn’t love as much was Nha Trang but it was very cheap. Not sure where you went but my impression was that Vietnam experiences might differ quite a lot based on location, weather, region, time etc. When I go back I plan to see Hanoi, Ha Giang and Ninh Binh, the busier places, I may end up feeling differently and similarly to you.
If you enjoyed China and Japan then you might really like Taiwan. Has its own distinct culture but influences and history from/with both. Had a little of the hustle and bustle and crazy traffic of SEA but infrastructure similar to Japan in most parts. Food and scenery was great, very easy to travel and it falls somewhere in the middle price-wise.
Thailand I didn’t see enough of, just Bangkok and a national park. I enjoyed both but it was very humid and very busy.
Where did you visit in China? Which part did you enjoy the most? I am curious to go.
During a time of open-ended travel I loved Taiwan so much I ended up there for months! I meant to hop over to Japan but didn't feel like I was missing much in Taiwan due to the heavy influence there, though of course culturally it would be quite different. I just met so many awesome Taiwanese people which helped a lot. I wasnt sure if i could necessarily do the same in Japan, plus I was a bit afraid of it being more expensive - as Taiwan already wasn't always cheap. That was probably unfounded... I'll have to get over there sometime.
I had a fellow Canadian buddy travelling in China at the same time come over to visit me in Taiwan for a couple weeks, and he said it was quite a bit more expensive than China but he loved it as well. We travelled way down the west coast which was great. I separately went down the east coast and stayed in the south a while too, having spent lots of time in the north prior. All in all I covered basically the whole country and it's a pretty unique place!
Ah I only got as far as Kaohsiung so yet to do the other side of the island. I hope to return to do it one day. Looks beautiful. It seemed like a really liveable place too.
Interesting that China is cheaper, good to know as Taiwan did hit my pocket. Japan was more expensive when I visited but might not be now. It’s definitely very different so hope you get to check it out. I get you though, once you find a country you click with it’s hard to leave.
Been to Japan a few times.
They’re way too good at being polite insincerely. It is Japanese culture to be polite AND fake to maintain harmony and avoid conflict. Literally the concept of 建前 . But I digress.
Japan feels foreign but oddly familiar.
China was 100% foreign to me.
Different language. Different culture. Different norms. Different apps.
I blend in with the crowd sometimes because i am Asian, but when they find out I’m not a local, they start talking with me in RUSSIAN. It was so unreal. The only time I met locals who spoke English were from Tier 1 cities.
Lol, this is probably because there are a ton of tourists from Russia and many of them have asian roots and look Asian (Buryats, Kalmyks, Yakuts, Altai people, etc). Also many people from Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, etc) speak Russian bc of the past USSR heritage and many live in Russia today.
The person who was speaking to you in Russian probably thought you belong to one of those ethnic groups.
Apologies to OP for derailing the thread, but I'm a little baffled at the two comments reducing Japan to just a big open mall... I'm assuming this must be in part due to the deflation of the yen & most travel being done exclusively in Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto, and in part because there seems to be a lot of traction in terms of Japan-specific 'what to buy & where to buy it' content all over social media. I don't disagree that you can do a lot of shopping there, but the same could be said for China - it's just that there's less noise and videos being produced about the stuff you can buy there.
If you get the chance to visit Japan again, see if you can take a train (or two, three) to the less-visited cities/towns. The Izu peninsula isn't far from Tokyo and has some lovely walking trails, sights, food, very friendly locals. Same story in Hokkaido or Fukuoka. You don't NEED to buy a million things at a department store, even if this is the impression you'd get from walking around the capital.
People judging Japan based on Shibuya and Shinjuku 🤦🏻
Sad
Seriously. That's such a bizarre sentiment, especially if someone left Tokyo. Like, did you go to Kyoto and never leave Kyoto Station!? Outside of that and Teramachi, I'm not sure where else in Kyoto could be considered even remotely "mall-like."
But I will also die on the hill of "Tokyo isn't Japan" and if you've only been to Tokyo, you haven't been to Japan at all.
Yawn. I hate that statement. Every country makes it about their major urban cities as if the GTA isn't 1/3rd of Japan's population. Sure, Tokyo isn't the only way Japan is, but also... that's true about every country. the UK isn't just London, France isn't just Paris. It's like everyone thinks their country is the only one that has range.
And the thing is, that statement becomes quite boring once you insert one of the thousands of places that aren't terribly interesting in your country into the picture. "NYC isn't the real US, you need to visit San Jose, California." "Paris isn't the real France, you need to visit "Servon-sur-Vilaine" to see how the real French live!
The other thing is, local worship is overrated. Sure maybe locals live differently. Have you seen locals in America? Lemme take you to the secret recs: "Olive Garden" and "Red Lobster".
Half of all Japanese people live in the Osaka or Tokyo metro. At what point does the large Japanese-style cityscape become representative of the actual Japanese lived experience? The non-touristy versions of places like Hakone are all dying out because there are no job opportunities, nothing to do, and nobody wants to live there.
I did live in Japan. For years. Tokyo is not Japan.
Maybe because I was traveling with a large budget and was staying in five star hotels and hired private drivers, I had an amazing time in Vietnam and would definitely return. I did run into a scammer the one time I ordered food delivery through grab. The driver held my food hostage and wouldn’t deliver it until I paid extra. Thankfully that didn’t really affect my trip much since it was just the one time, but it does suck when it happens
Ooh I get that. If Vietnam would have been part of my first trip and right after Japan I would've been stressed. Big difference between these two. I went to Vietnam after more solo travels and experience and I absolutely LOVED it (except Hanoi). Maybe you should just give it a chance later in life!
Oh man for me it was kind of opposite, I enjoyed Vietnam a lot more than Japan
Shows how different preferences can be
I'm just finishing up 6 weeks wandering around Japan, heading to Korea, Singapore then Vietnam. I'm so keen to spend some time in Vietnam so glad to read your comment!
Wow I’ve experienced the opposite lol
Only spent 3 days in Japan and got scammed, but spent 3 months in Vietnam and met the most amazing local friends
I had a tough time in Hanoi. Great in so many ways but bad air, so crowded, loud, boiling hot (April/may). Japan was one of my favorite trips of all time. And it’s my dream to go to China!! Did you visit chongqing? I can’t decide on my route yet
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Agreed. Vietnam is so good that I no longer feel a strong need to travel to all the other places I planned on traveling to.
Which were your favourite parts of Vietnam?
Much greater standard of living than I can find in America; much friendlier people; much less racism; much less political pressure/propaganda; a natural affinity for HCMC; pollution not nearly as bad as I was expecting; not nearly as chaotic as I was led to believe; way better street/local food than Thailand; incredible walkability; amazing laundromats; no weed shops; not nearly as loud as I was led to believe.
It's been way better than my expectations in every way possible.
Well, having lived in HCM for quite some time, I have to disagree on 2 points: walkability is mostly nonexistent due to the mass of motorcycles everywhere, using the sidewalk sometimes, if one exists and especially the smaller alleyways are dangerous due to the same. This city is made for motorbikes except for some Tourist areas in the center.
Also, pollution: it's not Hanoi bad but people there wear masks on motorbikes for a reason, and it's not only to protect from the sun. Check your feet or mask after a half hour drive during busy times and you'll see it's very sooty.
And propaganda.. well, especially around independence day, I have never been exposed this much to comically cliche Communism commercials everywhere
No place is paradise. Every place has tradeoffs. The only question for me is how effectively I can counter the tradeoffs.
Masks and, if needed, a purifier, ameliorate the air pollution problem for me. shrugs. Like I said, every place on Earth has trade-offs.
As far as walkability: it's not mostly nonexistent. Maybe you're too scared to walk around? I don't know. I can get almost everything I need within a 0.3km distance. Barbershops, food, convenience stores, laundromat. What am I missing? I walk around everyday and get what I need. I see others walking around too. The density of businesses within walking distance is impossible to find in America; you can only roughly approximate it in New York and parts of Miami/San Francisco. And you pay an arm and a leg for that. Not a trade-off worth it to me. Maybe it's worth it to you.
In general, in America, you have to drive everywhere. It sucks. It's expensive.
Yeah, okay, I have to be more careful walking around here than in America. That's a trade-off I'm happy to take. Not a big deal for me.
And I can easily and affordably Grab something to me, too. UberEats or the equivalent in America is literally 5x or more than it is here. Pretty crazy.
Propaganda is relative. I'm not saying there isn't any. It's just way less than America. Nobody is defining me by my race and political stance (or lack thereof) here like they do in America. Nobody is trying to talk to me about Trump, or telling me how sad what happened in Minnesota is, or whatever whatever. It's very easy for me to be left alone. And that's how I prefer to live my life.
Anyway, please don't take this response as an invitation to keep arguing your point. I've noticed 99% of people on Reddit want to argue nonstop. I don't really get it. My experience is my experience. Your experience is your experience. shrugs
The density thing is mostly the same in many major cities that are not car centric, it's not exclusive to Vietnam. For walkability I actually find it's not very convenient since the streets are small and dirty, you often have to walk on the streets itself and cross the roads through the endless waves of bikes (yes in HCMC mostly). Huế and Hanoi were better for walking. But yeah grab and xanh are very cheap. And surprised that you think people are bothering you in the US... But I think mostly everywhere people leave you alone without a reason.
I agree with your take
Depends on where you go in Japan. Over 99% of the country is rural. Sounds like you chose the wrong destinations. My last Japan trip was 90 days. After landing in Narita, I was on the first train to the mountains. Got a ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) where I slept on a futon on the tatami (straw) mat floor. Bathed in the communal bath. Ate in a room that was temple like. It was all sacred, slow, ancient, and deeply touching.
Anthony Bourdain’s field notes from Tokyo
No substance they say lol
You did not the wrong time in Vietnam. I felt exactly the same and left early. It’s not for everyone.
Haven't been to Japan or China. Planned on going to China. In Vietnam now. Love it so much I no longer want to live in China. I'll visit it, eventually, but nah, Vietnam is the shit. Best country I've ever been to, by far. Not too interested in going to Japan anytime soon because I hear it's expensive compared to Thailand and Vietnam and those are two of my favorite countries, largely because of how affordable everything is.
I've experienced 0 aggressive selling. Vietnamese are, in general, extremely kind and polite. Not always but in general. Much more expressive than other Asian cultures in my experience as well, which is a cool mix.
I don't like the word "cheap" because it implies poor quality. I use the word inexpensive. Vietnam is the best bang for the buck I could ask for and I don't think it'll get any better on the planet.
japan is also very good bang for buck, everything is better and a bit more expensive and in some ways cheaper.
Tranport is one of them.
It costs me less than a $1 per one-way trip, on average, to get around in HCMC. You're telling me Japan is less expensive than that?
Is that on a motorbike or train or what?
The JR trains in tokyo start at under $1. And you can get anywhere in the city using the train network fast, cheap and reliable.
Yup, motorbike. I love motorbike transport because it comes to me. Trains are cool, but I still have to get to the train station!
But what about the pollution? I felt sick all the time in HCMC because of it. You're never far from a train station in Japan so you don't need to drive. I disagree about the political stuff being more relaxed too -- at least temples in Japan don't have those weird signs telling you badmouthing the government etc is bad karma. Or loudspeakers everywhere.
I'm extremely health conscious and wear a good 3M mask every time I'm outside. I have two: one for more casual use (Aura Particulate N95 Respirator 9205+) and one for heavy duty use (Reusable Respirator Half Facepiece 7501). I did my research and those were recommended and they've been great.
I say this as someone who used masks in Thailand (Bangkok area, from Nov to March) and got sick multiple times. If I went out for even ten minutes without a mask I would have a sore throat and potential sickness the next morning. It was a huge learning curve. Suffice to say it didn't take me long to learn to take pollution very seriously. I had to get a good purifier in Thailand, but fortunately I haven't needed one yet here in HCMC.
I kept hearing about how loud HCMC is, but I've experienced almost none of that. Normal sound levels for the most part. So I don't know where people are staying where they're complaining about loud karaoke and sound speakers all the time. I am currently in Binh Thanh and before that was in D1. I hate loud noises/unwanted sound in general so that was a big concern for me, but so far it's been completely overblown. Where I was in D1 was upscale touristy. Where I am now is not very touristy (I see maybe one tourist a day) and is 20-25 minutes from the city center by motorbike. I stayed outside of Bangkok in Thailand (Samut Prakan if you know the area -- it's a dump, don't worry if you don't) and it was way louder there than it is here in HCMC.
Idk if you're from America but the political propaganda and general sense of tension and unease is ubiquitous there. You're basically defined by your race and political standing there. America is one big stereotype. I hate that country. Always have. I just didn't know how much better it was elsewhere until I finally left.
I don't care about a sign here or there, I obey the rules and have no fear of anything here. In America I could hardly go out for groceries without seeing cops. Here I have seen one cop in two weeks. It's been awesome for me. YMMV
Another thing I'll note is how porous the customer service is in the U.S. Everyone hates their jobs and their lives there. Rarely anyone smiles, rarely is anyone happy to serve you. Not so here. It's not like everybody is smiling or anything like that, but there's just a much higher level of manners, civility, and respect. I've received 0 ill treatment from being a foreigner. I go to the local restaurant for pho every morning just like everyone else. I'm promptly served, in order, and anyone working there or eating there is happy to help me if and when I need it. There's just no sense of heaviness or judgment that's pervasive in the U.S. For context I'm a Black man who's from L.A. and has also spent years in Tampa/St. Pete.
TL;DR my quality of life is so much better here that it's not even a contest.
Ahh OK you meant in comparison to the US. I'm not from the US and I foolishly did not wear a mask in Vietnam. Glad it's worked out for you!
All good until there's a few people, it's raining, pollution, it's a long distance, it's hot, traffic and more dangerous . Then eventually it can become more expensive too.
I'm sure the motorbike is great but it's not a serious transportation solution for big cities
If you say so! I've used it in plenty of rainy big cities, so my experience disagrees! Don't care about arguing with you though, have a good day! 🫡
Where exactly were you in Vietnam to judge the whole country like that? If you were only in Hanoi to HCM, then yeah it’ll be noisy, touristy and scammy. The best parts of Vietnam is the countryside
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How long did you spend in each place? Looking to do a similar trip but not sure how to allocate time
lol I bought a notebook in Vietnam once. Dude shortchanged me like I wouldn’t notice. Had to remind the guy basic math for the right change. So I get that.
Still lots of fun and mostly just made me laugh, but the Vietnamese are no joke to negotiate with. It’s a nice contrast though to Japan at times, where I felt everyone was in a museum, and no one wanted to be the person to speak up and look bad.
Which part of China did you go to?
Asian 7-11 is SUPERIOR
What cities in China did you go to that would be good to visit?
Explore China furhter West. It jsut keeps impressing. Your assement is pretty spot on. Went to Vietnam over 15 years ago when they first opened up and didn't like it and never returned. The people were as you say aggressive compared to Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia. or Indonesia. Didn't vibe it.
Just curious if you could elaborate more on scams and what to look out for in Vietnam? I will be doing solo trip there soon.
would love your pointers/guide on these places! Same age and I solo travel at least 2 or 3 times a year, but felt intimidated going to Asia for the longest.
"and the chinese girls were so beautiful with some of the cleanest skin i've seen" - one of the creepiest comments i've seen in a while 😂
vn is quite different compared to china, and definitely compared to japan, which is a 1st world country. not trying to invalidate you, but what were the 'scams' you experienced? personally, idm paying extra as a tourist, u gotta realise that 20k dong ($1 usd) is what min wage workers earn an hr. ppl need to realise if its an extra (reasonable) amount, its not smth to cry over, and rly far-fetched and malicious to call the ppl scammers -- would u cry over a $2 surcharge in the US to some big conglomerate?
the avg salary in vn is $400 usd per month, lower than china and much lower than japan. people work from 8am - 10pm, so the atmosphere of SEA generally is not as picture-perfect because ppl are struggling really hard to make ends meet lol. sorry for ur experience, but it rly bugs me when tourists come to vn and complain abt being charged extra than locals who make $10 usd a day give or take.
of course -- if it was smth rly egregious beyond a few dollars than its a different matter
!!!^
I just got back from Vietnam and the only scams are the airport taxi which is basically any country and places like Ben Thanh hiking up prices. I’m not sure what aggressive scamming and selling OP encountered outside the tourist spot
I hate to break it to you, but you haven't been to most of Asia. It covers a 3rd of the world's land mass, almost 44 million sq/km. Time to plan your next trip.
I agree with the china difficult for solo travel, maybe if you're in the big cities there maybe some people in hostels but generally speaking a bit of a challenge unless you're happy to be by yourself.
Great post.
Who would've thought different countries would have different vibes
Lisbon surprised me with how slow mornings can be. I started planning less and just letting the day unfold—cafés, tiled streets, long walks. I found a guide recently that focuses more on how the city feels than rushing through attractions, and that really changed my trip
🤖