How was your Explore Tour Leader?

Hoan (pronounced won) was a very fine guide and looked after us very well. He supplied some great hints and tips along the way. He made sure I always got vegi food no prompting was needed. The restaurants were great too. He also added greatly to the fun. Big thank you and Mot; Hi; Bar; Yoo!

What tips would you give to someone else booking this tour?

Don't go with Vietnam airlines, The service is great but the planes are tired and need attention. The screen backs did not work. The lights in the plane had a randomness so some peoples over night was with full lights on. The toilets were not all working 100% and worse of all the seats are hard and worn. I upgraded but it was a waste of  money as I could not tell any difference. Pub Street is great but be aware of the Tut Tut pimps who hang around, just go and find a tut tut who is parked up nice and quiet. The best food does not always come from the best restaurants. Hue is pronounced Way.

Do you have anything else to add?

"In Hoi An use the laundry across the road from the hotel, its better and much cheaper and very friendly. The food in the market in Ho Chi Minh is excellent and was great fun.  When crossing the road be bold. Its hard to keep up with the washing due to the heat, so any chance you have wash or laundry. 1$ does not always mean 1$ but 'you buy'. The kids are cute but should be in school not selling you post cards, the more you buy the less chance they have.
 Be adventurous and have fun it really is safe and the people are friendly. And last do go to the water theatre."

How was your Explore Tour Leader?

"We started the trip with Thong, who went off sick after 2 days. He wasn't very good and kept telling us how ill he was, which was patently untrue.
Our second guide was Long, who was fun, knowledgeable mostly very helpful. "

What tips would you give to someone else booking this tour?

I think it is an excellent trip for reasonable price.

Do you have anything else to add?

I would definitely recommend this trip.

How was your Explore Tour Leader?

"How to make a good tour great? Take one enthusiastic leader who met us in Hanoi following the sickness of departing leader, Mr.Tung. Quickly taking control of the situation, Mr.Long displayed firm organisational skills, a wealth of knowledge and  understanding of how to help Explore visitors really appreciate his native country.
The group fully appreciated his professionalism, timekeeping, sense of humour and advice-even on the smallest of matters. Mr.Long also made sure that those who were less fit were able to climb up or down steep temple steps safely (by supporting them with his strong arm).
I am sure the tour would not have been as exciting with a different leader. I trust that Mr. Long will be enthusing Explore customers for many years to come"

What tips would you give to someone else booking this tour?

1/ Buy your full Vietnam Visa before you go.
2/ Exchange USDollars for Vietnamese Dong on entry (hotel rates not that bad), this makes paying less confusing and you get your change in V.Dong anyway.
3/ Eat at the street stalls in Vietnam- they are great fun and give the true character of the country.
4/ Try as many local fruits and dishes as you can! They are very healthy (but don't forget your hand gel and be wary of ice in drinks).
5/ Chui Ci tunnels...now they were rather challenging as they got smaller and lower but am glad I went down with the rest of our party.

Do you have anything else to add?

We wished we had more time in Hoi An but then we were there to discover lots more of this fascinating country! Loved the bike ride and local hospitality and highlight cruise in Ha Long Bay.In fact it was difficult to choose a highlight of this trip as it was great from start to finish. Each day it got better and better! The Vietnamese New Year was a real bonus in terms of colour and warm vitality of the people.

How was your Explore Tour Leader?

Our tour leader was very efficient, knowledgeable and helpful.

What tips would you give to someone else booking this tour?

Study temperature charts for Vietnam and Cambodia and be aware that humidity is high as well so take lots of loose, light and light coloured clothing. We went in November.

Do you have anything else to add?

The whole trip was spectacularly enjoyable. Definitely a holiday of a lifetime.  There was a good balance of activities and all the hotels were extremely good.

 

Fantastic Holiday - the group were all great and Bin the tour leader was just fantastic - so patient, funny and full of facts. I think we were on the first tour, so the timing didn't always work - the only time to do the walking tour of Saigon was at 6 in the morning - only 3 of us did it. So many highlights - Hoi Ann was a real treat. My made to measure winter coat has been much admired - it was a bit of a chore trying that on in the heat! Angkor Wat was just mind blowing, the town was such good fun - almost too many temples to fit into the couple days we had there. You almost wanted to do the trip in reverse starting at Angkor and ending at Halong Bay. Only place that I personally didn't like was Hue.  Accomodation was good - trails in Hoi Ann and the one in Cambodia were great. There was a long stop over in KL on the way back - 8 + hours but Explore were great I asked if we could stop over for a night in KL and then they arranged (at no extra cost on holiday) for us to fly back the next night at midnight - so we got an afternoon, evening and whole day in KL as well. This was our first Explore holiday - not to be our last! (DVNC - 10th January 2010)

The people in both Vietnam and Cambodia were a delight and our tour guide Binh was great with so much local knowledge. We were surprised by what was included in the tour, excellent value. May be a good idea to have a little extra free time, but it would be wrong to miss out any part of the tour including all the remarkable Temples in Cambodia. Thank You. (DVNC - 16th November 2010)

Early warning of flight details and stop-over times in Kuala Lumpur might have made us make alternative travel arrangements. Local people were nice. Tour leader was great with a sense of humour and lots of patience. Holiday was pretty much what it said on the tin. Recommended. (DVNC - 19th October 2010)