Where to bring my 2 teens?

[sparks]

Planning for CNY holidays Feb next year.

I would like to check with well-travelled moms&dads here, where your teens will enjoy.

Shortlisted:
- Club Med Phuket (good time - no monsoon?)
- Bali (any fun for teens?)
- Hongkong Disneyland (actually mummy wants to go lah )
- any others

We have limited time 5D4N so cannot travel too far. Flight <4 hrs.

[starlight1968sg]

I have a teen.
I would prefer HK though many shops may be closed during CNY.

[sparks]

I have a teen.
I would prefer HK though many shops may be closed during CNY.

Yah, but not really keen on shopping there except to makan dim sum. Just want to R&R. Weather shld be nice & cool plus can play fire crackers there right?

[starlight1968sg]

I have a teen.
I would prefer HK though many shops may be closed during CNY.

Yah, but not really keen on shopping there except to makan dim sum. Just want to R&R. Weather shld be nice & cool plus can play fire crackers there right?

Many years ago, my family went our CNY there. Yes, there was firework (dont think can play fire crackers) at the Victoria Harbour.
Some eateries may be closed due to CNY. Others would imposed a surcharge.
If you are spending much time at Disneyland, then I dont think this would be a big concern.

[slmkhoo]

Depends on your teens. My 2 girls don't like shopping or eating much, so we avoid places like HK. I don't like beaches, so we avoid seaside resorts. As a family, we like places with history and a different culture, so some of the places we've enjoyed are some parts of China, Europe, UK, and also US for the theme parks and outdoors. Nearer home, Chiangmai was interesting, and we are planning on Vietnam or Cambodia this year-end. We'd like to see Myanmar too at some point, and Egypt and Israel. That should keep us busy for the next 5 yrs or so!

For CNY, mainland SEA countries will probably not be as 'closed' so more things will be open. The weather will be nicer too - cool but not too cold. China and HK will probably not be good choices as it will crowded and cold, and a lot of stuff may be closed.

[12mum]

No firecrackers in hk unless you are at places like the new terrorities 新界. Not keen on hk Disneyland. Most shops might be closed.

Seoul would be nice. Lotteworld might be a hit with your teens.

[sparks]

Seoul would be nice. Lotteworld might be a hit with your teens.

dd has been wanting to go Korea! She likes cities. Dh & I not so keen on Korea. But this is a trip for my kiddos, so I'll check it out. Tks!

simkhoo, can you pls share what you find interesting abt Chiangmai. I've considered Chiangmai.

[ScaredyMum]

5D4N for Korea is abit short, probably can only cover Seoul. But if your DD likes cities, can consider. Flight is 7 hours though.

Phuket will be fun - can go cave canoeing, snorkeling, shopping, eating, relaxing (DC enjoyed the leg massages though they were still quite young when we were last there). Bali offers almost similar things but at higher price. Or you can just R&R in this safari resort one of the mums mentioned in the Bali thread.

HK disneyland is very very small and the rides are quite kiddy, may be abit childish for the teens unless your teens dun mind.

How about Taipei, Mt Kinabalu, Langkawi?

My teens are quite versatile and likes anything (beach, sea, theme parks, mountains, farms, sight-seeing) except shopping!

So actually my 'headache' is always where to go in SG on weekends or PH. Any suggestions?

[slmkhoo]

So actually my 'headache' is always where to go in SG on weekends or PH. Any suggestions?

We stay home and play games and watch videos! Occasionally my husband will get us to go for a walk in a park or park connector. Sometimes we invite friends over to hang out, but that's rare as everyone is so busy all the time.

[slmkhoo]

simkhoo, can you pls share what you find interesting abt Chiangmai. I've considered Chiangmai.

The most interesting things (to me) are the handcraft workshops - silk weaving, umbrellas and other stuff like that. There are also cultural performances, temples, elephant parks, and there is trekking and biking for the more adventurous. There are half or full-day tours for these things which you can book easily. You can also get tours to explore further north right up to the Golden triangle area. There's a lot of food, and you can sign up for cooking classes too. And massages are fairly cheap. There are the night and day markets for handcrafts, souvenirs etc. When my kids were small, they found driving around the moat very fun (it's just a big canal) and climbing on what's left of the old city wall.

We went to CM quite a few times over the years for meetings, and there are other things we enjoyed which probably won't appeal to your family as you are coming from Singapore (we were living in China then) - 2nd hand bookstores which sell English books, western food, sushi, Boots, Central and Carrefour!