In about a month or two (April-ish), H is going to deploy to SE Asia. We probably have the option to take a trip en route. We currently live in Hawaii and have lived in Japan and Korea recently.
I'm open to being lobbied either for something I've mentioned or else something entirely new. We'll have a week or two to spend. Today, in brainstorming, we thought of
Beijing. Pro: H used to live there, would love to go back, I've only been to the airport and would love to have H as my tour guide. Con: H has been there. We also just moved from Korea last year, so we've had a bit of NE Asian living recently. April is iffy on weather.
Australia: Pro, neither of us have been. Diving. I have a friend in Syndey who'd hook us up. Con: I honestly don't see much appeal besides diving. I loved NZ, but I don't have that same expectation about Australia. If it's just appealing for weather and beaches, well, see "we live in Hawaii."
Indonesia: I don't know much about it, but it sounds great (or am I just picturing an over water bungalow I may not afford?). Logistically, it might be a hassle for H, but if someone tells me it's that worth it, we'll make a push.
What else should we consider? We went to Thailand for a few weeks just a few years ago. A few countries, like Malaysia, may be hassles for H, but with enough notice could work.
One thing we can possibly consider is, weirdly enough, another trip to Vancouver or a trip to California. Stupidly, many flights from here to Asia route through the west coast of North America. Oh, FWP, that I'm struggling to decide where to go on short-ish notice ![]()

Re: where should we go?
I think Australia would be amazing.
How about like Fiji?
I know you are already in tropical paradise.
I was going to suggest Thailand but see you have already been there.
JealousE!
Is there somewhere else in China that your DH hasn't been? Then you could do 3 days in Beijing to see the highlights and then head somewhere else that's new to both of you! April is a bit early for someplace like Inner Mongolia, but Guilin/Yangshuo would be gorgeous! I'm guessing he's already been to Shanghai and the water towns? Or Sichuan (full disclosure: I have a strong desire to go just to hug a panda)?
I've only been to Western Australia, but I will say that it exceeded my expectations. I didn't really know what was there, but we ended up finding some incredible things to see/do while we were there! The downside was that it took some research to find them, because apparently (Western) Australia isn't much of a self-promoter when it comes to tourism!
My other choice would be Vietnam. So much to see/do and such great food! I'd love to go back.
Australia will still be a long trip, but we do have jetstar nonstop. What's the thing to see/do there besides diving?
Good call on hugging pandas! Would I be shortchanging Beijing by only spending a few days there?
Fiji or Tahiti is something we'll plan on at the end of the deployment. I think that will be perfect for reconnecting.
IMO? No. When I had OOT guests for a week, I usually only planned 3-4 days for them in Beijing and then arranged a trip to Xian or Shanghai.
With a busy schedule, I could fit the highlights into just a few days:
1 - Temple of Heaven, Tiananmen Square and Foridden City
2 - Drum & Bell Towers and Houhai Lake, Summer Palace
3 - Great Wall (Mutianyu or Simatai), foot massage
A fourth day adds slack and lets you add in other things like Yonghegong Lama Temple, the Birds Nest stadium, or whatever else sounds interesting.
I actually had more trouble squeezing in all the food I wanted people to try!
Beijing duck, homestyle food, dumplings, hot pot, Xinjiang cuisine, spicy Sichuan, amazing faux-meat vegetarian, etc...