Day 1: Flying With AirAsia X From KL to Almaty, Kazakhstan

I have to say that majority of my 2024 trips manifested because of AirAsia. One of the trips that I won't forget for the rest of my life is travelling to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. When AirAsia launched the first new route to Central Asia which is Almaty (Kazakhstan) from Kuala Lumpur, I knew that I shouldn't miss this opportunity. Without thinking any longer, both of my husband and I immediately bought the tickets. Besides the two of us, my husband even tagged along his ex colleagues along the trip. Like they say, the more the merrier.  

#1: Flying with AirAsia X for their first new route to Central Asia which is Almaty 

#2: Most of AirAsia X planes seat configuration are 3-3-3 but we're a bit surprised to see 2-4-2 seat configuration. 

#3: I've said it before and I'll say it again. AirAsia's Santan meals and beverages are soooooooooo good man! Especially the prawn & chicken wonton noodle and must ordered their Pistachio latte drink.

#4: In order to get this incredible and majestic snow-capped mountain aerial views, I would advise you to book the seat of the right side of the plane. 

#5: After more than 7 hours of flight, finally landed at my first ever Central Asia country - Kazakhstan 

#6: Almaty International Airport, main international gateway into the nation.

#7: Our transport for the entire trip. 

#8: Our first night dinner at Almaty - Luckee Yu which is a modern Chinese bistro with a compact menu of dishes designed for sharing. I can say that it's pretty good and all of us were pretty satisfied with it. 

#9: Dropby random grocery store nearby our hotel to get some snacks and drinks for our long road trip 

#10: We stayed in Kazakhstan Hotel, Almaty. I have mixed feelings towards this hotel because their room were a bit dated with old looking facilities (few of my friends' room where the air-conditioning are not working well) but their breakfast was great with huge variety of food. 

Extra Info About Our Kazakhstan Trip:

• Malaysian passport holders do not need visa to travel to Kazakhstan for stays up to 30 days calendar days. 
• Kazakhstan time is 3 hours behind of Malaysia time. 
• The currency of Kazakhstan is Tenge. We didn't exchange any of these currencies back in Malaysia but instead, we withdrew from the ATM in Almaty by just using Wise. It's advisable to have some local currency on hand rather than just relying on your cards. 
• The main ride-hailing apps in Kazakhstan are Yandex Go and inDrive. Try to download these apps prior to your trip as we had some issues with the sign up process while doing so during our trip in Kazakhstan. 
• As for the tour guide info, we engaged Mr Mirlan which I found from Facebook Group. He seems fairly popular among the Malaysian travellers. You can contact Mr Mirlan at +77052079486 via WhatsApp. He might not lead the tour himself but he will assign different tour guide and driver based on your preference, request and travel date. 
  

P/S: By the way, did you notice my new watermark? 😜

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Goodbye Kaohsiung International Airport

 << Previous Post: Kaohsiung Trip 3.0 <<

Although I've been to Taiwan like a couple of times before (to be exact 5 times), I have to say this is my first time flying in to Kaohsiung International Airport. Being the gateway to the southern part of Taiwan, Kaohsiung International Airport is consider to be the second busiest airport in Taiwan, after Taipei Taoyuan International Airport. If not cause of AirAsia, I will never have the opportunity to land in this airport at all cause almost all airlines prefer to fly in to Taipei International Airport. Unfortunately AirAsia suspended this direct route between Kota Kinabalu and Kaohsiung.

I did blog and share regarding arriving at Kaohsiung International Airport (here). Now, let me share about departing from this airport. 

GETTING TO KAOHSIUNG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

You can opt for either Kaohsiung Metro, public bus or taxi. Of course the most convenient and fast option is by taking Kaohsiung Metro under the Red Line. The distance from the major stations especially from the Formosa Boulevard Station takes nearly 15 minutes. The train approximately every 10 minutes. 

#1: Easy accessible from the city centre to Kaohsiung International Airport via metro or public bus

INTERNATIONAL TERMINAL BUILDING

Now, let's take a look at Kaohsiung International Airport's international departure area. 

Maybe due to this airport is less busier and less crowded, hence the check-in process, security and immigration processes were swift and hassle-free. However as for the shopping and dining options, there were pretty limited and not many choices. Probably you might need to consider to fill up your hungry tummy in the city centre before heading to Kaohsiung International Airport. 

Anyhow, there is one thing I love about this airport is that it is meticulously designed and decorated with several unique and interesting public art installations, light and an overall design that reflects the local culture and maritime atmosphere with specific notable works located throughout its terminals. 

#2: Always in awe of Christmas decoration

#3: One of the dining options we came across

#4: Anyone love to shopping at the airport before flying?

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#11: Goodbye Kaohsiung! 

#12: My must order meal and drink whenever I'm flying with AirAsia - Grilled Peri Chicken with Jollof Rice and Pistachio Latte 

And that's concludes my 6D5N trip in Kaohsiung. 

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To Kaohsiung Again! But This Time Flying With AirAsia from KK

Flight from Kota Kinabalu to Kaohsiung - this is considered to be a pretty new route by AirAsia cause all these while they only fly between Kota Kinabalu and Taipei. In case you are wondering, I've been to Kaohsiung before back in 2015 (old post here) but I was taking high-speed rail (HSR) from Taipei. Hence for this round, we'll be flying directly into the second busiest airport in Taiwan.
[Unfortunaly, AirAsia suspended this route between Kota Kinabalu and Kaohsiung effective 7 April 2025 😥] 

 

#2: AirAsia's in-flight meals are pretty good actually, especially their Pistachio Coconut Latte

#3: Arrived at Kaohsiung International Airport after nearly 3 hours of flight from Kota Kinabalu 

#4: Do take note of the quarantined items, especially pork and meat products.
A Malaysian traveller was fined NT$30,000 (RM4,000) for bringing two pieces of fried chicken into Taiwan in 2018 (here) 

#5: Remember to fill in all your details and submit online arrival card before arriving Taiwan 

Taiwan Arrival Card here

#6: Visitor Information Center at the airport

#7: Starbucks, Family Mart and money charger are among the shops available at the airport

#7: It's easily accessible to the city center via metro from Kaohsiung Airport 

From Kaohsiung International Airport, we'll be heading to Alishan, a popular mountain resort which is well-known for its stunning sea clouds, breathtaking sunrise and ancient forests that I will be sharing more in the next upcoming post.

[Credit To: AirAsia Newsroom, Borneo Post]

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Overnight Layover at Guangzhou Before Flying To Tokyo With China Southern Airlines

If you ask me what's my favourite country, the answer would definitely is Japan. However, my last trip to my favourite country was back in 2019. Even though I have confirmed ticket to Nagoya, Japan in 2023 but I wasn't fit to travel abroad due to my pregnancy. So this makes me missing Japan even more. 

I tried to manifest my trip to Japan in 2024 and I can't believe that my dreams come true when we spotted promo by China Southern Airlines where a round-trip between Kota Kinabalu - Tokyo costing roughly around RM1,600++ per pax. Considered quite affordable as it's a full-service airline which includes 23kg per passenger and in-flight meals, even though it requires to transit in Guangzhou. Well, we don't mind anywhere since China is visa-free currently and we can kill two birds with one stone - visiting 2 countries (both China and Japan) at the same time. 

        

It's our second time flying with China Southern Airlines (for both my husband and I) as we flew before to Los Angeles back in 2019. But it's baby Daniel's virgin experience. Each passenger is allowed to check-in one piece of baggage up to 23kg (for Economy class). 

Flight from Kota Kinabalu to Guangzhou

There are even quilt and small pillow provided for each passenger. 

In-flight meal for Kota Kinabalu - Guangzhou route

My husband said there's a slight improvement compare to our previous flight back in 2019 

Arrived Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Terminal 2 after 3 hours 25 minutes flight 

We arrived Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (Terminal 2) nearly 11pm after the 3 hours and 25 minutes flight from Kota Kinabalu. Because our next connecting flight to Tokyo Haneda is at 8am on the next morning, hence we decided to book a hotel nearby the airport for a quick recharge. I didn't manage to take any photos of the hotel we stayed for that night as I was pretty exhausted. But what I remember was there's a free pick-up and drop-off services from the hotel staff. 

This is the hotel we stayed nearby the airport. Free pick-up and drop-off services from/to airport 

Back at the airport again to catch our next connecting flight. What a beautiful sunrise! 

At Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, we're not required to go to the counter for another check-in process as all these procedures had been clearly done in Kota Kinabalu International Airport. On top of that, we're given boarding passes for both route earlier on. All we need to do is directly head over to the departure hall. However, it's wise to reach the airport at least 1.5 hours earlier for the security and immigration process and bear in mind, China is pretty quite strict on this. Hence, it might take longer than other airports.  

Guangzhou has 2 terminals and for our flight to Tokyo Haneda with China Southern Airlines, it departs from Terminal 2. It might be small, but I glad I found my favourite convenience store there which is Family Mart. There are even Burger King and Starbucks within the departure hall.  

Waiting for our next flight to Tokyo Haneda 

Flying with Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner from Guangzhou to Tokyo Haneda 

However, they didn't provide quilt and small pillow for the passenger. 

We need to request from the cabin crew ourselves. 

In-flight meal for Guangzhou - Tokyo Haneda route.

It's pretty good especially the sweet potatoes and soba.

By the way, this is non halal meal.

If you want to request for halal meal, you can do so by applying 24 hours before departure.

After almost 5 hours, we have arrived at Tokyo Haneda Airport

It's Baby Daniel's 4th country - Japan 

The flight with China Southern Airlines might indeed one-long journey, especially with 10-hours overnight layover in Guangzhou but with the price we paid, we have nothing to complain about. Decent in-flight meals, various in-flight entertainment services and friendly cabin-crew services. Most importantly, all of our luggages made it safe and sound to Tokyo Haneda. 

By the way, if any of you are planning to visit Japan, don't forget to complete a customs and immigration form directly on Japan web. All you have to do is as the following:

1. Create an account.
2. Fill in your details, as well as for accompanying children.
3. Fill in the actual date of entering Japan.
4. Complete the entry procedure that includes Immigration Disembarkation Card and Customs Declarations.
5. Upon completion, there will be a QR code generated for both the Immigration and Customs procedures.

These are the documents you need to get ready for the registration:

• A valid passport
• Flight details
• Address of your accommodation 

Most importantly, don't forget to save the QR code so that this can save your time for Immigration and Customs process.  

With that, Konichiwa Tokyo after 5 years! 

>> Next Post: Rent Nissan Car From Tokyo Haneda & Our Stay in Fujikawaguchiko >>

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Central Europe [Part 4]: Half Day Trip to Ingolstadt from Munich

 << Previous Post: Neuschwanstein Castle, Real-Life Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle <<

Since my husband accompanied me to the place I wanna go in Munich which is Neuschwanstein Castle (due to my love towards Disneyland) on our second day in Munich, therefore on our third day, we went to the place that my husband is interested with. My husband is fond of automotive industry and electric mobility and Germany is one of the best places to discover and explore all these. 

And because we have done our visit to BMW Museum & BMW Welt on our first day, therefore on the third day we proceed to Ingolstadt, a city in Bavaria which is well-known for Audi Forum and its museum classic cars.   

#1: One of our favourite shops to grab breakfast before kicking off our day 

JOURNEY FROM MUNICH TO INGOLSTADT 

The journey from Munich to Ingolstadt takes less than an hour by train. And because we have Eurail Pass, hence this particular train rice is covered under this pass. As usual, we like to depart our journey earlier. 

Once we arrived in Ingolstadt Hbf, we boarded bus 11 heading to Audi Forum. A single bus trip costs €2.90 whereas a-day ticket costs €5.80 for Zone 1. The bus ride from Ingolstadt Hbf to Audi Forum takes less than 25 minutes and you will spot Audi Forum on your right side of the bus. 

#2: Travelling all the way to Ingolstadt from Munich just for Audi Forum 

It seems like both of us were too early for the visit as Audi Forum hasn't opened yet for operation. So we took few photos outside while waiting for them to open. And because I wasn't keen to enter, I just wait for my husband at the cafe and ordered a cup of latte. Surprisingly the latte was pretty cheap - a cup for €2.80 only. 

#3

The entrance fee for Audi Forum is €5 for adult. Because I didn't enter and visit the Audi museum mobile, so I just shared couple of photos took by my husband. He spent roughly two hours or less inside this fascinating museum which showcases over 100 cars, motorcycles and multimedia exhibitions.  

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Before making our way back to Munich, we decided to make a short visit wandering this small little city of Bavaria. Probably due to Ingolstadt is less popular compare to the rest, we hardly spot any foreign tourists apart from us. Or perhaps, we're too early. 

#7: Some random but unique buildings in Ingolstadt 

#8: Yes, I found you - Primark, one of my fav shopping places in UK & Europe 

#9

#10

#11: We dropby at Vietnamese-Thai fusion restaurant for our lunch 

Our trip to Ingolstadt was indeed pretty short and brief as our main intention is to visit Audi Forum. After that, we headed back to Munich in order to continue with our final and last day of exploring the city before bidding goodbye on the following day. 

>> Next Post: My Second Visit to Hallstatt, Austria >>

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