For me, it is not a good idea to organize the trip on our own, I tried it before and for this trip, we chose to buy this tour from this travel specialist and it was the best decision. the trip was fantastic. The activities were efficiently planned and we have a better local experience than we ever could find. For example, the Fishing in Hoi An experience was a good blending into the local cultural experience. It's not one of my strengths actually so I didn't catch any fish :) However, I had a ton of fun and it was a very memorable experience. I didn't feel like a tourist but rather a resident. There were amazing moments at other stops as well. Every aspect of living in Vietnam reflected the wonderful culture, and I make a promise to myself to return as soon as I can.
Our tour guide made a great holiday fabulous. Cosseted from start to finish. Vietnam was amazing but the trip was made even better by our fabulous tour guide, Anh Vuoung. Hanoi was mad and needs to be experienced to be believed. Ha Long bay lives up to expectations, and despite being warned about lots of steps, the cave was not arduous but was spectacular. The Da Nang Reunification museum was a different take on the ‘American war’ and the spirit of reconciliation was obvious. I’m glad that we did it. Hoi An was amazing too, and very different from other Vietnamese places, a mini Hong Kong with LED coloured lights everywhere. One of my favourite places. The Mekong boat trip was an eye opener, the Vietnamese people are so resourceful and friendly. We had feared that the trip might be a bit too cultural for us, but it was fine, and we enjoyed the visits, and very happy to be educated. We did an optional bike & boat ride, it was a great respite from this town based trip, touring open countryside with a guide, meeting locals and tasting the home made products. No complaints about accommodation at all, nice hotels and lovely home stay - even the overnight rail trip was fine -earplugs essential. I’d recommend this trip wholeheartedly, Exodus delivered for us yet again and their star, Anh was incredible. rn with breezes was a welcome respite from the heat.
Our trip was amazing, can't believe we did so much! Leaving the hotel by 8 each morning we seemed to do a week's worth of adventure in one day! Our guide was brilliant, he was informative, fun and had great English. The hotels were much better than I expected, the one in Hoi An was particularly good.