FareDiceHigher than usual for this time of year. Each flight's usual fare (on nearby days, or for its month or season where those had too few) adds up to €189–€244.
About €21 over what these flights usually cost At usual prices: €224.
- Hong Kong → Manila, 25 Dec: €147 (60%), typical for these dates
- Manila → Kota Kinabalu, 27 Dec: €98 (40%), higher than usual for November and December
€147 long flights (60%)€98 inside Southeast Asia (40%)
2 flights, 2 countries in Southeast Asia, 1 night, 25–27 Dec
Hong KongManila1nKota Kinabalu
Stay 1 night in Manila, ending in Kota Kinabalu with no flight back. Manila is a capital and has an old town. Typical December highs are 30–32°C everywhere. Kota Kinabalu is usually very wet in December, about 260 mm of rain over the month.
Stop by stop
Hong Kong
Hong Kong, Start, Fri 25 Dec
- HKG→MNL Fri 25 DecNon-stop, HK Express, about 2½ hours, check the airline's cabin bag rules€147seen 2 days ago Check price
Typical for these dates. Usually €114–€153, counting prices seen over the past two weeks.
- overnight: it lands on Sat 26 Dec, so your nights in Manila count from then
Manila
Philippines, 1 night, 26–27 Dec
The Philippine capital on Manila Bay, a huge city of contrasts with the Spanish walled town of Intramuros and San Agustin Church, malls, food markets and bay sunsets.
Typical December: highs of 30°C, wet- MNL→BKI Sun 27 DecPhilippines AirAsia, about 2 hours, cabin bag usually included€98seen 2 days ago Check price
Higher than usual for November and December. Usually €76–€91 in November and December; nearby days and the month alone had too few fares.
Kota Kinabalu
Malaysia, Last stop, Sun 27 Dec
Sabah's capital on the South China Sea coast of Borneo, with island hopping in Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, seafood night markets and Mount Kinabalu a couple of hours inland.
Typical December: highs of 32°C, very wet
Change a stop
Another city on the same days, the rest of the trip kept, cities close in price first. A swapped-in country may need a visa: check before you go.
- Manila No other city has fares in and out on these days.
- Kota Kinabalu At random Bangkok, Thailand +€35 · Da Nang, Vietnam +€47 · Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam +€53 · Singapore, Singapore +€110
Book and check
- Book in order, first flight first. If a price has gone up, you can rethink the trip before buying the rest. Prices are the cheapest seen lately, for one traveller, not quotes: "Check price" opens the live one. Separate tickets: if one flight is late or cancelled, the next airline won't wait.
- If a flight is late or cancelled. Each flight is its own ticket, so the next airline won't wait or rebook you for free if you miss it. Tightest on this trip: one night in Manila, so a flight in a day late misses the flight out. Where a connection is that tight, you can book the next flight once the one before has landed, though its price may have gone up. If a flight is cancelled, its airline normally offers another flight or your money back: take the one that still makes your next flight. A flight missed because the one before was late is usually lost, so look for travel insurance that covers missed connections.
- Entry rules. Check passport and visa rules for Philippines, Malaysia before you book.
- Seasons. Part of this trip falls at the edge of a storm or flood season: the worst months are past or still to come, but watch the forecast before you go.
Each stop's season
- Manila (26–27 Dec): edge of the typhoon season in Luzon and the Visayas, peak months Jul–Oct (PAGASA, the Philippines' weather service)
Long-run seasons, not forecasts: a storm can come out of season, and most weeks in season pass without one. Heat is from weather-station averages.
- Travel advisories. Neither Canada nor the US advises against travel to any country on this trip.
Each country's advisory level
- Philippines Canada: exercise a high degree of caution (stricter for some areas) · US: exercise increased caution (level 2 of 4; stricter for some areas)
- Malaysia Canada: take normal security precautions (stricter for some areas) · US: exercise normal precautions (level 1 of 4)
From the Government of Canada and the US State Department, as of 6 Oct. Advisories change, and once you're there your phone's emergency alerts cover the moment. Read the official page for each place before you go.