Spring trip planning -- Thailand? Elsewhere?

[scottm]

We're trying to plan a dive trip for this spring and are having trouble deciding on logistics... I have to travel to Beijing for work this spring, and my wife has a two week window she can take vacation during (week of March 12 or March 19).

We've never traveled further then Cozumel for diving, but figured we might have a good opportunity to dive in Asia or the western Pacific for a week, combining my trip to China with a week diving. We've looked at Thailand (reasonable-ish airfares from Beijing and r/t from New York) and thought about Truk/Micronesia or even Hawaii.

Of course one possibility is I take a week between china and the vacation and we go somewhere closer (likely Bonaire or Cozumel). We do want to keep this to a reasonable budget, though we don't have a hard & fast number (diving and airfare will be our main expenses either way, we're not big on fancy hotels or restauraunts).

Any recommendations for destinations? Logistics?

Any good resources for planning such a trip?

 

[mjh]

Depending on where you are departing from in China it could still be a fairly long flight to Thailand but what a great place. The best diving (IMHO) is from a live-aboard in the Similan Islands. But there are decent shore operations from Phuket or you can dive the other side Ko Samui.

There is trip report, gallery and slide show for Thailand at my website: http://www.aquabluedreams.com
The navagation at the site is all screwed up, I am a web idiot but the links to the Thai stuff is ok.

 

[limbo]

Thailand is good indeed, especially the window you're talking about, a live aboard on the Similans sounds like a good idea in that time frame or alternatively Koh Samui or Koh Tao. Have a look at this site http://www.planet-scuba.net for the latter two destinations.

 

[Ringo]

If you decide on Thailand I tend to agree with Mjh - a Liveaboard to The Similans is the way to go. March is also a great time to go there.

BTW Mjh - some excellent photos onyour website!