16 days Indochina Exploration - Vietnam & Laos & Cambodia

Route : Ho Chi Minh City – Long Tan Nui Dat - Ho Chi Minh City – Mekong Delta - Hoi An - Cooking at Tra Que Village – My Son - Hoi An – Hue - DMZ - Hue – Hanoi – Halong Bay - Hanoi – Luang Prabang - Pakou Cave - Luang Pra Bang – Siem Reap - Phnom Penh – Ho Chi Mi
Nationality : (Australia & Japan)
Travel Consultant : Eric
Travel Date : 2009/12/24-2010/01/08

Hello Eric,
 
we are finally back in Sydney after the beautiful trip made possible by your company. Thank you very much Indochina Odyessy Tours. And thank you Eric for making our dream come true all the way from China.
 
I will try to answer your questions now.
 

1. Guide Service:
Yoko and I thought that your guide service was pretty much excellent overall. They were where they were supposed to be and always punctual and ready to help us no matter where we were. They really took care of all our needs and if we had questions they were willing to answer them. Some of the guides even went out of their way for us, that was really special. The guides gave Yoko and myself time to be free and relax and understood our needs. We thought that was the extra touch that the guides felt and obliged themselves depending on the situation at the time. Thank you very much for your choice of guides at our disposal.
 
The guides that impressed us most were Vinh in Hoian and Hue, Lim from Pnom Penh and Touly in Luang Prabang. These guides made the service not just a service but pleasure, and it was these guides who were the best listeners and the people that I felt had the best people skills. Vinh was very knowledegable, he knew his history, he made everything clear and had a great sense of humour. Great guide. Lim was a great listener, knew his history and was able to mix his professional career with his personal life giving him a very human outlook on life and he made us feel what he felt. Great people skills and a friend as well. Touly was the combination of the above too. She expressed herself very clearly and it was easy to notice how much she loved her country and the sites she was showing us. We felt her passion. These three guides were very passionate about their job and as tourists we were connected to them which made the trip an altogether a different outlook on the trip making it more a memorable occasion. Thank you very much.  * all these guides had water available for us as soon as we stepped in the car.
 
The guides that impressed us the least were Viet in Saigon, Hieu in Hanoi but Sovan in Siem Reap was pretty good. Viet and Hieu were younger than the other guides so they did not talk about the history of their country and at times they didn't seem to be interested in their country - the passion was missing, everything seemed like a routine and sometimes we felt like robots. I think these guides didn't plan our itinerary as much as the other guides did. It felt as though sometimes they were improvising. We were not impressed but we understood because of their age and their link with postmodernism in their country and their roots of their history. I guess they will get better as they get older. But apart from that they took care of us and made sure we had to get to where we were going. We were not unhappy, on the contrary we were very happy because they did their job and if we asked questions they helped us out. But there was less connection as compared to the top 3 guides. Sovan from Siem Reap was different, he was the perfect guide who wouldn't over indulge us or under indulge us. He was fun and very personable and really went out of his way. Out of the guides in Indochina Sovan was the guide that helped us to take some great photos of Angor Wat, so he was special like that. We did have a connection with Sovan but he just out of the same class as the top 3 guides as I have mentioned above.
 
A special mention to our short day guide Peter in the Long Tan area. He was excellent value, he really knew the history of the place and set up the scenario very well. He seemed very passionate about his work and from his tour group we got a cap and t-shirt as a memory of our time together. Long Tan was one of our favourite days on the tour because it was a solemn time made possible by Peter and his tour company with a rose supplied and a moment to reflect on the people that died in this area. That the time with Peter, we will never forget it.
 

2. Driver Service:
The driver service was just great but of course some drivers were friendlier than others, and some knew  a little English. However they were all pretty much safe. The drivers who knew a little English were more friendlier. In order our best drivers were in order: 
                                       1. Hoian - Huay
                                       2. Siem Reap
                                       3. Pnom Penh
                                       4. Saigon
                                       5. Luang Prabang
                                       6. Hanoi
 
3. Hotels & Breakfasts:
The hotels were a highlight of our trip and thanks Eric for your great choice of Hotel in Siem Reap - Hotel De La Paix. The Legend Hotel had the best breakfast by far. By and large all the hotels were great but some hotels were in another class although they had the same amount of stars. The Sofitel Plaza in Hanoi was the best - the best service - and we must say thank you Eric again for setting up on the VIP level. That was unbelievable - we felt great and thanked Eric for his help. Location could be a problem for some tourists maybe. The view was sensational. The least impressive was Palm Garden Resort. Even though it is a 5 star it doesn't compare to the class of a typical 5 star hotel. The Saigon Morin in Hue was very elegant and beautiful. This is a 4 star hotel but should be a 5 star hotel. You cannot but just remember forever the beautiful memories made in this luxuorius government building turned hotel. The Ramayana boutique hotel in Luang Prabang was lacking with a reception desk that is outdated and rather small. It seems more like a tour desk. However the location of this hotel is excellent, everything is at your doorstep. The breakfast selection is at a minimum but it didn't stop us from eating. It did the job but it doesn’t compare to the Legend Hotel for breakfast - they are two worlds apart. The Amanjaya hotel in Pnom Penh had a great view from the balcony and we were in the perfect room but it is not in the same class as the other hotels above. But the view is worth it. The Del La Paix was majestic and luxury combined in a great location, very close to the night markets. Beautiful hotel in a great location. The Elegance 3 in Hanoi was great for service and having the internet in the room and we were upgraded, just like we were in the De La Paix - VIP treatment - thank you again Eric. The location of the Elegance was great, pretty much central and the hotel was clean and plush in its own sense and for a 3 star hotel it is certainly recommended.
 
                                                  1. Sofitel Plaza Hotel (Hanoi)
                                                  2. De La Paix (Siem Reap)
                                                  3. Saigon Morin ( Hue)
                                                  4. Legend Hotel (Saigon)
                                                  5. Amanjaya Hotel (Pnom Penh)
                                                  6. Elegance 3 (Hanoi)
                                                  7. Ramayana Boutique Hotel (Luang Prabang)
                                                  8. Palm Garden Resort (Hoian) 
 
4. Lunches and Dinners:
The meal that was the most memorable was in Saigon on the second day where we had lunch and it was not a set menu so we could choose what we wanted. We don't know the name of that restaurant. At first Yoko and I were uncomfortable with set menu's but by the end of the trip we didn’t feel obliged to eat everything and just picked and ate what we could. So in the end we enjoyed the set menus.
 
5. Pictures:
We don't mind at all and would love to share our photos with you. 
 
6. Reference(s):
Yes. We would love to be your reference, without a doubt. Thank you Indochina Odyssey Tours for giving us the trip of our lifetime.
 
Thanks Eric,
 
Glen and Yoko
 

Jan. 13, 2010