A beautiful scenery or five-star accommodations are only part of the transport equation in Asia. It’s the food and beer that adds to the travel feel. Asian travel companies from country to country also typically offer connections of their own through these unique trips. For example, Fast Fun Travel’s Nam Nal tour combines underground trains, elephants, horse-drawn carriages, Taoist temples, beaches, tea plantation and hawkers with charming cities like Sichuan.
Here are six amazing train journeys for food, scenery and culture from Asia.
Ferries
Japan
Japan is sometimes considered to be too cold and byzantine for the adventurous traveler, and most of the islands, including Okinawa, have a long tradition of nautical sailing. Fujisawa Islands, the Watashima Islands, Miyako and the Isle of Kyushu are known for their small ferries that take tourists and travelers to the main islands via the rugged coastlines. At the same time, these regions aren’t encumbered by the subway, with some ferry service ending up in major hubs like Okinawa, Tokyo and Kyoto.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is more than a city, with hundreds of islands and atolls in its name. People can still set foot on many — such as Saipan, Tai Shan and Tsim Sha Tsui — and many more also have ferries, both to mainland Macau, China, and Hong Kong itself. (Most ferry services leave from a number of ports around Hong Kong Island.)
South Korea
Until now, most of South Korea’s most popular history trip itineraries have included the Jeju Range or Jeju Island and nearby islands. While little is known about Jado or the island of Yonsan, quite a bit has been learned about the spots with long-standing ties to Japan, however, with many packed with traditional Japanese architecture, temples and shrines.
Bus Depots
Most Asian cities and roads have dozens or more bus depots. They can offer a range of transportation options, including car rides and bike rentals, between distant locations. Or you can take buses to the suburban sprawl that often is some of the most interesting city life in Asia.
Japan
Travelers in Japan rarely find themselves on the same track as the front of a train, but everywhere you go there is a bus terminal; in most cases, the only limitation is the time you are allowed to wait in line. Examples include Takanishi station in Osaka and Akita Station in Nagoya, two busy stations that have large parking lots and offer transit around both cities.
Okinawa: A double-decker train serves part of Okinawa, but the railway systems in Japan are so huge, to be in a single location requires booking days in advance or, on Okinawa, overnight stays. Bus depots on the other hand are almost always bus-adjacent.
Sichuan
India and Nepal are often considered Asia’s most underrated destinations, and with good reason: Goa, Kerala, Mumbai and even many cities in the eastern plains are home to a very different landscape than the damp jungles of Ladakh or the cavernous vistas of the Himalayas. But if you’re looking for something less formal and more reminiscent of the mythical Western tourist destinations, one oft overlooked region is China’s “Far East,” consisting of the provinces of Sichuan, Tibet and Henan.
The Straits of Malacca
Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand all have fairly effective ferry services to Singapore, although Vietnam has a somewhat different view on the use of ferries. Vietnam’s most popular route to Singapore is the South Straits, which only comes in to town on the weekends, taking travelers by ship to Australia and New Zealand from provincial ports.
Explore Asia is composed of The Beijing News and Hong Kong-based travel magazine Asia Times Travel, founded in 1987. Follow its content on Facebook and Twitter. Read all The Beijing News and Asia Times Travel stories.
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Correction, Dec. 31, 2019: The original date for this piece was incorrect.