Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

My favourite part of the trip was the homestays. To experience local /rural life with friendly people is such a contrast to the chaotic, bustling cities

Thoughts on Group Leader

Cong was great and his English is excellent. He managed to keep a group of 15 all together and heading to the right places and excursions on time. The itinerary was very busy but ran smoothly thanks to Cong.

Advice for Potential Travellers

As the trip notes suggest these items are very useful: refillable water bottle, day pack (for shorter day trips), overnight bag (for 2 or 3 nights away from your main suitcase), sleeping bag liner (for the sleeper train & homestays), insect repellent, sun cream, small hand sanitiser. Personally I wouldn't pack (but this is up to each individual): cycle helmet (this is provided), walking boots (I was fine with walking trainers), sleeping bag (unless colder months).

Most Inspirational Moment

Halong Bay has got to be up there as an all time highlight, the kayaking was brilliant too! Along with the guest-house in the Mekong delta and the cycling tours through the countryside Hanoi on a Saturday night for tired, jet-lagged brits who had only been in the country a few hours was a bit overwhelming but Saigon was a dream!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Unfortunately this is where the trip fell short of 5 stars. Having travelled with exodus before and only experienced amazing, intelligent, organised and inspiring guides full of knowledge and humour, perhaps I was a little spoilt. Linh was both disorganised and overly-regimented in his planning. He constantly failed to tell us vital information regarding the days structure ahead which meant that an already packed trip was full of confusion. He was indecisive but at the same time failed to take on suggestions from the group about what they wanted to do. We were given very little freedom or flexibility with regards for activities and he had a very odd idea of time eg City tour in Hoi An was supposed to take 1 hour, ended up taking 3 hours then straight to dinner then another tour after dinner = very tired tourists. He also showed no interest in conversing with any of the group and preferred to lecture us in the coach (very interesting if a little egotistical at times) yet was not open to any two-sided discussion over dinner. In my experience, exodus guides have been quite the opposite and this is just a one off (for anyone reading who has now been put off!). I was also under the impression that Linh did not often take the 'trails' group and usually did the cycling tour - perhaps that is his real forte!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Yes lots! When going to the home-stays with the village tribes, pack lots of clothes and socks (you will need them) and also all the young girls in the villages were desperate to have their nails painted! So bring a pot, it won't take up much space and will really brighten their day! (Wish I had had this advice before going) There won't be many opportunities for buying souvenirs etc so make sure you take time in Hoi An to do that. If you're at all travel sick then stock up on pills - the coach journeys have wonderful scenery but that comes at a cost! You don't need to bring many clothes either, laundry services are cheap and quick and so are the clothes if you need an extra t-shirt or something. The food has a reputation for being dirt cheap, however the places we were taken to were cheap compared to British standards but don't go expecting dinner to cost £5 If you go in August it is constantly hot and sticky, lots of sun cream, lots of DEET, expect to be a sweaty mess most of the time!

Most Inspirational Moment

It is hard for me to choose one, but I am inspired by how welcoming and friendly the people are and their resilience.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our guide, Tung, had an amazing knowledge of the region and always ensured everyone was in their happy place 😊. Vote Tung for guide of the year!!!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Stay an extra day or two after the tour ends, to rest. Although the tour is well paced it is still tiring if you are not used to the busy city travel.

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling in the countryside around Hue visiting the local market seeing people tending their fields, water buffalo taking a bath and herding ducks across the road. Staying at the mountain homestay sharing a house with the local family

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our leader Tan Nguyen was outstanding and ensured that everything occurred like clockwork in the complicated itinerary. He went out of his way to include everyone and ensure that everyone was enjoying their holiday and did everything with a smile on his face and great sense of humour.

Advice for Potential Travellers

This was a very active holiday with many new experiences every day. Requires moderately strenuous physical fitness and activity. Padded cycle shorts recommended. Climate very varied, from surprisingly cold in the northern mountains to sweltering heat in the Mekong delta.

Most Inspirational Moment

Seeing the sunset from a boat in Halong Bay.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Bao, was always smiling, and competently managed the logistics of this complicated trip. The next mode of transport was always there waiting for us!

Advice for Potential Travellers

The trip notes say walking boots, but not really necessary, stout shoes would be fine and then you don't have to carry heavy boots around. There are several times when we had to take overnight bags, once even for 2 nights, so plan for this. Cycle helmets are available, so again, not really necessary to bring your own. Book yourselves on the all the optional trips, they are all worthwhile. The exchange rate is around 29,800 dong to the GBP, we found it very useful to have a print out of some key amounts to get our heads round the prices! This is a busy trip, but not too physically challenging, the hiking and cycling are at a moderate level. It is very hot in Saigon, so be prepared.

Most Inspirational Moment

Driving towards Nirvana: It takes a while to get used to the nature of driving in Vietnam. We had four different drivers and we remain in awe of the challenge that they faced and the way it was met. The infrastructure was wrecked after the American war and many other priorities existed before roadbuilding could begin. It is a very long thin mountainous country much of it above 1000m so roadbuilding is a challenge even if you can afford the machinery. Roads are still being upgraded, from tracks to single lane and that means long sections of road works. Rainfall is high and washouts frequent. There are 45 million motorbikes in a country of 97 million people. In cities they drift across lanes, driving illegally and in the countryside wobble about carrying astonishing loads or families of four. So driving requires that you learn horn-speak: one means 'be aware'; two means 'I am coming through'; three means 'wake up, or we'll both be in trouble!' Yet it is all done with tolerance, patience and a complete lack of aggression. Only possible where the overriding ethos is Buddhist. European attitudes would wreck the system. Bad parking is tolerated, water buffaloes, dogs, chickens, even babies patiently driven around. We did not see an accident and the cars are not dented. Low speed limits are adhered to and are part of the safety solution. Progress in both senses of the word is slow but you get there and may even learn something about achieving Nirvana.

Thoughts on Group Leader

This was a private tour and we had three different guides all of whom were good, knowledgeable and well-organised. All timings were adhered to and we appreciated the high level of service.

Advice for Potential Travellers

A Sunday market in Bac Ha was a highlight; there are not many places in the world where you will see 1000 water buffalo for sale together with the stunning mix of ethnic costumes from the surrounding villages. Ideally we would recommend travelling up on Saturday night from Hanoi on the overnight sleeper train and then being driven direct to the market from there. If you only have limited time and want some experience of ethnic tribes the journey out from Hanoi to Mai Chau is only a few hours yet enables you to see village life, craft skills and a vast range of agriculture. The Muong people are charming, welcoming and do not push their sales pitch to hard!

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling in Hue

Thoughts on Group Leader

Superb, never stopped smiling. Patience of a saint.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Read the trip notes

Most Inspirational Moment

I think the friendliness of the Vietnamese people and their welcoming smiles and humour.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Bon - our group leader was fantastic. Professional, super-organised, informative and fun. Very kind - and sensitive to everyone’s needs. He was an absolute star.

Most Inspirational Moment

Food! The Marble Mountain Halong Bay Hoi An Delta river (the small boat the guide add the last minute) War museum

Thoughts on Group Leader

The best! Great guy and amazing service! Very attentive to details. SUPER organized!! Caring and approachable. Honestly I was super happy with him (and I always had small problems with guides, but never with him!!!) Never had such a punctual and exact coordination with transports, busses timings, boats connections etc. Never waited a second, all very smooth. Maybe to be more concise when speaking about the most relevant things of a monument or a site. But all was interesting and adding great information

Advice for Potential Travellers

Bring an extra small bag for short nights out in the homestays (and leave the big luggage at the main hotel). Bring a good repellent with deet.

Most Inspirational Moment

The two highlights had to be cruising and kaiaking on Halong Bay and seeing Angkor Wat at sunrise, however learning about the history of both Vietnam and Cambodia was also fascinating. Travelling south by road meant that we crossed the DMZ and could visit the museum there. We also went to the War Remnants museum in Ho Chi Minh. We did a cooking class in Hoy An which was another must do. Our guide helped us out with finding an excellent class which we thoroughly enjoyed.

Thoughts on Group Leader

We had four guides during our trip and all were excellent. Helpful, informative and passionate about their country and its treasures. It really added to the enjoyment of the trip that they were able to answer our questions and guide us through the process of getting to know the culture and lifestyle of this fascinating area.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Vietnam and Cambodia are great places to visit. They feel very safe and there is so much to see and do. The tailor made trip worked very well for us as we had our two daughters with us who are 21 and 23. They enjoyed the freedom of being able to choose places to eat in the evenings but were also keen to do all the activities