2 independent reviews for Vietnam tailor made holiday, North to South
Reviews for Vietnam tailor made holiday, North to South
Tracey Warren review 4 Jan 2014
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
Experiencing the culture and customs of the Vietnamese people. We both thoroughly enjoyed the cooking class as this gave us the opportunity to walk around a farm, market and cook Vietnamese food under the expert eye of a local chef who explained the rationale behind food etc.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
You don't need to take many clothes as laundry services are cheap and easily accessible, making luggage lighter. There is good wifi available ensuring you keep in touch.good pair of walking shoes, a lightweight rain coat would be helpful in the north. If traveling north and south, think about the types of clothes needed for the different weather conditions.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
We feel that using local guides ensured that local people benefitted from our visit. Unfortunately, we did not realise that an elephant ride was involved (yes, we know that we should have read the itinerary more thoroughly and we did after the second day) as we felt uncomfortable with the metal cage that was used to carry us.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
8 out of 10. The government run hotel at Buon Ma Thuot, Cao Nguyen Hotel was poorly kept, unclean when there were other options available in the town. The first train trip from Hue to Hanoi we were unprepared for the unclean sheets, although it was identified as an 'experience.' We learnt from this and bought sleeping bag liners for the next journeys although the trains from / to Hanoi / Sapa were much better (clean etc). Following our visit to the war museum we were taken to shops that had items made by those affected by agent orange etc, and were felt pressured into buying items. Although the above comments are negative our overall experience was amazing! We loved the people and the variety of Vietnamese countryside. We feel that this trip was a quick tour of the country and would love to return to visit areas we did not have time to visit (e.g. the national parks) and revisit areas for longer (e.g. a home stay and trek in Sapa).Read the operator's response here:
We are always deeply saddened and disappointed to hear of any situation where an animal maybe in discomfort or distress for the sake of tourism or exploitation. We no longer offer this tour in our programme for the North to South Itinerary in Vietnam and all of our itineraries are being reviewed or changed in the case of where animals are being used for the entertainment or transportation of clients.
Richard Mcleish review 4 Feb 2013
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
Trip to Halong bay2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
When arriving collect your Visa BEFORE going to the passport control.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
I think it benefited local people as it brought employment and foreign currency to the country.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
Exceptional in some places, hotels in the city could be better.Holiday Reviews
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