Asia Food Trips

The cooking classes were fantastic and really enjoyed going to the Japanese shrines. Very well rounded tour. Korea DMZ was up close and personal tour that I will never forget. loves the Korean markets and subway systems.

I’ve done over a dozen tours with Collette and this one was my favorite for many reasons: The hotels were super clean and modern; more included meals and right balance of free time. The tour manager was very informative and sent us helpful information two weeks prior to departure. Visits and stories from Hiroshima bomb survivor and North Korean defector will stay with forever. Finally, I feel Collette’s small group tour offers better experiences and value.

The only way to see India. We were afraid of what to expect from India but Luxury Gold made us feel safe and secure. They showed us things we would never have dreamed of and gave us confidence to try things we would not normally try. They treated us like family and nothing was too much trouble. In fact they were always asking what else they could do for us. Raj our driver deserves a special mention in how he looked after us.

Itinerary The trip was really great--I loved the diversity of going to smaller, traditional places as well as the modern cities. There were times when I thought we would have more free time than we did--Kyoto (tour activities ended at approx. 3:30), Kobe (arrived 1 hr before the gardens closed so didn't go), and Hiroshima (tour activities ended at approx 4 pm). I loved all of the places that we went too--in retrospect I would have added additional days in Kyoto (I arrived a day in advance) and benefitted greatly from my flight home being delayed giving me a full extra day in Toyko that I hadn't planned for. The tour is very fast pace and you do walk alot--so just bring a really good pair of running shoes with you! Hotels All were good--my favourite was Hotel Toyko in Takayama. I rented a private onsen for an hour which was very nice and enjoyed the unique art they had on each floor. I really appreciated the washer/dryer in the hotel room--while I had enough clothes it was nice to wash them and be able to go out for dinner at the same time and not feel in a rush to get back to the room (it was free and they did provide soap if you don't have any). The hotels in Kyoto and Tokyo were nice as well--the first modern and the last traditional. All of the hotels were really clean, provided great breakfasts, and had toiletries if you forget any (and if you wanted pjs to wear). Transportation The bullet trains were very cool as were all of the trains. They are very prompt! The subway system is easy to manoever--I used Google Maps to tell me what stop to get off and where to walk and never got lost (even in Toyko). The trains are very quiet and clean--getting onto and off public transit is done in lines so there never is a rush and in most cases the train/subway cars were empty. The bus system in Kyoto makes getting between places slow so factor that in. Also, the connection from Osaka to Kyoto was pretty easy to do but made harder with getting off a transatlantic flight. Doing this again, I would fly direct into Tokyo and then get to Kyoto the next day. Felt very safe and comfortable walking around by myself--even in the evening. The locals are very helpful if you want to confirm directions. Food I am normally a very fussy eater and I didn't have a problem finding things to eat. In fact, I wish I had more time in Kyoto in the traditional area to have some of the different food options the shops offered. I also didn't have time to get a hot drink from a dispensing machine! I found breakfast made me full and then we would go somewhere at dinner that would fill me up (I often had noodle dishes). I would have been ok finding my own dinner in Takayama instead of group meals--the different styles of eating were good to experience. While I liked going out to eat with the group, it was tough having to have the bill together--it would have been easier to be able to pay for my own food.

Thanks to this wonderful journey, I had the chance to try out many specialities in Vietnam also amazing bevarage. I also got the opportunity to experience activities that I'm sure will last for a life time. I want to express my gratitude for the tour guides and all the staff for making this dream of mine come true and even better than what I have expected. Definitely gonna recommend it to all my belovers and do it many more times in the near future.

We were lucky to have a virtually private tour with an excellent guide and brilliant driver plus beautiful accommodation. Very interesting tour experiences too with such a knowledgeable guide.