Oakwood Cameron Highlands by Ascott staycation

 Hey fellas,

First quarter of 2026 has officially ended. We brought Gabby for a short spontaneous cooling trip to Cameron Highlands during Raya. I wanted to stay elsewhere like Copthorne but happened to to see a newly opened hotel. Oakwood is situated in an excellent location away from the hustle and bustle of the town but only 5 minutes away. Best of all is the golf course view. Modern and clean interior with good buffet breakfast. Cook your own noodles at the noodle station. Each room is equipped with the usuals like drinking water, fridge, tv, hairdryer, bathrobe, bidet and toiletries like shampoo, shaving kit, dental kit, shower cap. Most hotels we stayed don't provide dental kit. Some room like ours comes with pantry and coffee machine. 

Dubai & Abu Dhabi, UAE: Itinerary and Budget

Gong xi fa cai, readers!

We just completed our 2nd trip with baby Gabby to my dream country the UAE. It has always been my dream to visit Dubai since I read the commencement of Burj Khalifa in the newspaper when I was a little girl. On the other hand I made a promise to visit places that I've had transit before and one of them was Abu Dhabi which was a transit on the way to Amsterdam in 2014. 

Hubby chose to go on Chinese New Year as he hwas having a long holiday and the weather at Dubai was pleasant in January.

Our initial budget was about 10k for the entire family.  As Gabby is still under 2 everything is free including flight. No more privilege next time. However after shopping at one of the most luxurious cities in the world our damage totalled up to a whooping 30k. Food is twice expensive here compared to our homeland 

Phú Quốc, Vietnam: Itinerary and Budget (travel with baby)

We meet again, readers!

In a blink of an eye 2024 is coming to an end! Lots of changes happened to us since the arrival of our baby boy last Boxing Day. I'm still adjusting to my mom life. Having a child wasn't part of the plan but after 10 years of marriage and honeymoon phase we decided to have one. Little Gabriel is such a blessing.

Our little adventure this time around is so different. Many things have to consider for the sake of the baby such as food, diapers, nap time etc. So our travel plan is no plan in other words it has to be flexible. Wake up then only decide where to go and visit one place per day. Be prepared to return to hotel anytime when the baby gets tired and agitated.

Phu Quoc is not really well known among Malaysians although the entire island is very tourist eccentric. But it is well known amongst Koreans. Everywhere you turn will surely hear Koreans. Can't escape them. You can also see for yourself that the attractions are "trying too hard". No offense but this is just based on my experience. If you are looking for authentic Vietnamese culture Phu Quoc might not be for you. 

It's a really fun place for kids though. There's a safari, Disney-like themepark, waterpark which included when you ride the longest cable car in the world, gondola rides at Venice replica town, Positano replica town which is truly gorgeous, kissing bridge, teddy bear museum, starfish beach and even a casino.

Maldives: Itinerary and Budget

Hey folks!

How's your 2023? I'm sure it's better than 2020 for most people. Yeah I know it's been awhile. Hubby and I have been to several local places like Genting, Cameron, Bukit Tinggi and Perlis since the beginning of the year but I prefer to blog about oversea travels. 

Maldives has always been in my bucket list. We first booked Thulhagiri in 2019 even before our last minute Bangkok trip on Jan 2020. However the resort requested us to cancel when there was worldwide lockdown. We made a promise to ourselves to be there after the pandemic. 

Then we booked the same resort again on 2022 right after we came back from Bhutan because if not now then when? Why we chose Thulhagiri again? It's due to the affordable price for water chalet. Most water chalet within short distance from Malè cost a bomb! We also took the risk to book on a monsoon season which was June2023. 

At first it was just the old water bungalow. Then I saw that superior water bungalow has nicer upgraded interior but more expensive. We cancelled the old one instead and booked the most expensive type of room for July 2023. 

Bhutan: Itinerary and Budget

Hello there, fellow wanderlusters! Long time no see!

After more than 2 years of not flying internationally since January 2020 we finally made it! Actually we were supposed to visit Dubai on New Year's Eve to countdown 2023. We already booked one of the tallest hotel in the world. It was expensive as prices skyrocketed on that season but had to cancel due to the lack of flights and super expensive tickets. I was sad for a moment then hubby found a tour while scrolling Facebook. He said why not Bhutan.... I answered YES in a heartbeat! It's been known for being an exotic country and limited tourists. You can't just explore there by yourself, you are required to take a tour package. Hence it became our birthday trip for us December babies.

After an hour of pony ride and lots of hiking of about 2 hours we made it halfway to viewpoint of Paro Taktsang also commonly known as Tiger's Nest.

Pulau Perhentian: Itinerary and Budget

It's been a while fellow travelers!

Lockdown after lockdown has restrained us not only from traveling but daily chores as well. Frontliners, small businesses, parents, students and more are suffering this never ending battle. Just as the entire world is vaccinated along with booster, comes another concerning variant. Malaysia had another lockdown from June till about September this year. Freedom privileges are given to those who completed their vaccination so my reckless travel bug gotto take the chance while still can. I predict we might have another lockdown in 2022 but we'll see how. Usually my predictions come true. 

The Banjaran Hotspring Retreat Staycation

Hello fellow explorers!

As you all know by now there's a Covid-19 pandemic happening worldwide. We were under lockdown for about 3 months plus. I have gotten so tired of cooking daily. At times I feel depressed and questioned our existence. Don't we all? Finally grace upon God's blessing Malaysia have overcome the pandemic. Not to say 100% but we are in a safe zone for now. You can't imagine how happy we were when our borders reopened and we could dine and shop like before. You still gotto mask on, register before entering any business premise and sanitize frequently. That's our new norm.

The Banjaran Hotspring Retreat is one of the super exclusive resort in Malaysia. Phenomenal experience here! Bear in mind this is an all adult resort. Children below 12 not allowed, not even at the restaurant. Peaceful indeed =)

Bangkok: Itinerary and Budget

Hey beloved wanderlusters,

Never have I thought to be able to countdown 2020 in another country. It's so last minute. All bookings were done at such a peak season so it's not the best price but we had to do it on a tight budget as we aren't supposed to go for any more trips after Turkey. This is because our new home is completing real soon. The rapid progress is way ahead of time.

This is hubby's first time to Bangkok but certainly not my first so I strive to be a good tour guide for him. This entire trip is supposedly free and easy so the itinerary below is only a guideline.

Top 10 Haunted Hotels I Have Stayed

Happy Halloween!

Muahaha I'm so excited when it comes to paranormal topic. As I was busy finding hotel for my next trip, I did some background check as well then thought how come I never share my haunted hotel list. As my travel experience grew, I always try my best to never book hotels that have some unwanted stories behind. Most haunted hotels were booked in my early days where I don't care as long as there's a place to stay.

Turkey: Itinerary and Budget

Dear readers,

It's been a year since I last touched this blog. A sad tragedy has fallen upon our family last year. My father passed away on May 5th 2018 and I secluded myself from the world. Losing a loved one has made a deep impact in our lives. The scar will never heal but we must go on living. There's not a day pass without thinking about dad. There isn't something I do or somewhere I land my feet on without reminiscing the past. Time did not do justice.

Anyway I am here to share with you about my anniversary trip to Turkey with my husband. We have recently celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary and 15 years since our first date.

Hong Kong: Itinerary and Budget

Hey wanderlusts!

We finally meet again after a long hiatus. There has been a turmoil in my life recently and I felt like giving up. Nope I haven't reached to the point of suicide. At least not yet. Good news is we unexpectedly purchased another home but that also means we had to cut our spending to the max. Anyway to start fresh in 2018 hubby and I decided to go on a budget trip to Hong Kong for our 5th wedding anniversary as well as experiencing Lunar New Year at the happening city. We were supposed to countdown for New Year in Hong Kong but most hotels were fully booked or doubled the price so it wasn't worth it. 

Bear in mind this isn't exactly a backpacker's trip but if you really want to spend below RM2k it is possible with budget airlines and hostels.

Iceland: Day 12 & 13 (Back home)

Good morning!

It's time to go back home. It was a relaxing experience at the Blue Lagoon yesterday. If you are interested to know itinerary and budget for this trip click HERE.

 Blessed to have Northern Lights sending us home.

Iceland: Day 11 (Blue Lagoon)

Morning peeps!

Finally the day has come. We are heading to Blue Lagoon! For a recap, we toured around half of Snæfellsnes yesterday. If you are interested to know itinerary and budget for this trip click HERE.

Iceland: Day 10 (Snæfellsnes Peninsula)

Hey there peeps,

It's the third last day of our Icelandic adventure. We were so glad to finally step foot on Walter Mitty's little town yesterday. I purposely allocate some time and detoured to that shooting location. If you are interested to know itinerary and budget for this trip click HERE.

Iceland: Day 9 (Stykkishólmur and Kirkjufell)

Rise and shine peeps!

Our legs are still tired of the 8km walk in total to and fro DC3 plane wreck yesterday. If you are interested to know itinerary and budget for this trip click HERE.

Iceland: Day 8 (DC3 plane wreck and Reykjavik city walk)

Good morning again!

Gosh it's already Day 8 of our Icelandic adventure. What a fun time we had at ice beach and crystal ice cave yesterday though it was crowded as hell. If you are interested to know itinerary and budget for this trip click HERE.

Waited for the rainbow to appear but it was damn crowded!

Iceland: Day 7 (Jökulsárlón and crystal ice cave)

Rise and shine dearies!

Today we will be visiting the infamous ice beach lagoon. We visited Skaftafell National Park yesterday and it was an exhausting climb to get to the waterfall. You can find itinerary and budget for this trip HERE.

Iceland: Day 6 (Skaftafell)

A very lovely and windy morning today!

Just for recap yesterday was a disaster! We were stuck for almost 6 hours in the middle of a tiny town unable to turn to anywhere coz all roads were blocked even the one towards Reykjavik. The wind was quite strong but luckily we were able to drive today. Blue skies can be seen clearly as the horrible clouds blown away. You can find itinerary and budget for this trip HERE.

"Hiked" an hour for this but the breathtaking waterfall was worth it.

Iceland: Day 5 (Journey to Vik)

Good morning!

Today we will head on down to Vik. Yesterday we had so much fun around the Golden Circle. This morning we got up around 7am with happy vibes and excited to start our waterfall journey cos we thought we will visit lotsa waterfalls today but turned out didn't go according to SCHEDULE. We'll talk about it later.

Cold and wet and moody at Seljalandsfoss.

Iceland: Day 4 (Golden Circle)

Rise and shine my dear nomads!

Today we will be heading yo Golden Circle! Are you excited? I know I am! Yesterday was Day 1 of our Iceland adventure where we just collect car and check into Reykjavik City Hostel so nothing much. If you are interested to know itinerary and budget for this trip click HERE.

Just like a postcard this instaworthy background at Þingvellir National Park is so enchanting!