Trip Reports

Trip reports of cities I visit in Southeast Asia, featuring construction updates, transit reviews, and observations on urban development.

ThailandDong HoiVietnamAviationKuala LumpurDa NangSingaporeBangkokBatamMedanNewsPhitsanulokHueHoi AnTrip ReportsHaiphongPattayaUrban PlanningLangkawiRailwaysPhan ThietNews ExtraQuang NamMalaysiaQuy NhonPenangSubscriber NewsJakartaIndonesiaBaliSite NewsUrban Rail TransitHo Chi Minh CityChiang Mai
VietnamVietnam
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Hoi An/Quang Nam province construction report (2024)

Hoi An/Quang Nam province construction report (2024)

Visiting the new urban areas, abandoned resorts, ghost towns, and haunted castles of the Hoi An-Danang resort coast.

James Clark
James Clark
Dong HoiDong Hoi
+2+2
Dong Hoi construction update – 2024 edition

Dong Hoi construction update – 2024 edition

Dong Hoi is the capital of Quang Binh Province in the North Central Coast region of Vietnam. The city aspires to be a major tourism destination, but many high-profile construction projects remain unfinished. This construction report is from my visit in August 2024.

James Clark
James Clark
VietnamVietnam
+2+2
Ho Chi Minh City construction update – 2023 edition

Ho Chi Minh City construction update – 2023 edition

This is the 5th annual Ho Chi Minh City construction update at Future Southeast Asia. Corruptions scandals plague One Central HCM and IFC One Saigon, Ben Thanh Station, Grand Manhattan Novaland, Thu Thiem New Urban Area.

James Clark
James Clark
Trip ReportsTrip Reports
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Trip Report: Jakarta construction update
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Trip Report: Jakarta construction update

Part 1: A summary of the big construction projects in the city that, contrary to media reports, is not being abandoned

James Clark
James Clark
MedanMedan
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Trip Report: Medan
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Trip Report: Medan

An airport train. the massive main square redevelopment, Jakarta-style Superblocks arrive, and the rejuvenation of the old city area that could put Medan on the tourist map.

James Clark
James Clark
Kuala LumpurKuala Lumpur
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Kuala Lumpur trip report: 2023
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Kuala Lumpur trip report: 2023

The KL city skyline continues to bulk up. Merdeka 118 (2nd tallest building in the world), the second-tallest building in KL, and more 300m+ buildings that look small in comparison.

James Clark
James Clark
ThailandThailand
+2+2
Phitsanulok trip report
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Phitsanulok trip report

The provincial city with a preposterous plan for a 5-line mass transit system, and how the proposed high-speed rail to Chiang Mai could transform its fortunes.

James Clark
James Clark
VietnamVietnam
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Trip Report: Hoi An 2023 construction update
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Trip Report: Hoi An 2023 construction update

The Da Nang-Hoi An resort coast, more new urban areas, the fragile beaches of Hoi An, and the hidden casino resort from Macau.

James Clark
James Clark
VietnamVietnam
+2+2
Novaworld Phan Thiet review

Novaworld Phan Thiet review

The new coastal resort town on the South Central coast of Vietnam.

James Clark
James Clark
VietnamVietnam
+2+2
Binh Thuan trip report (2023 edition)
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Binh Thuan trip report (2023 edition)

Construction update on the Southeast coast of Vietnam. The weird building in a land corruption scandal, a mega-hotel on top of a sand dune, empty new urban developments, and the lost beach of Mui Ne

James Clark
James Clark
Trip ReportsTrip Reports
+2+2
Penang construction update (2023 edition)
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Penang construction update (2023 edition)

Trip report for my visit to Penang in March 2023. New hotels questionably close to the old town, an endangered historic cinema, and land reclamation mania.

James Clark
James Clark
Trip ReportsTrip Reports
+2+2
Langkawi trip report
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Langkawi trip report

A big tower comes to Cenang Beach, an inappropriate Dubai-like development, and yet another mediocre urban development that Malaysia does so well

James Clark
James Clark