Laos Tours in Spring

Apologies for this belated review. The Laos trip was led by the attentive, convivial and competent Quang. It's great to have someone else keep an eye on everything! The three key destinations gave us a bird's eye view of this diverse country. The optional tours were a great idea as it left scope for personal needs and interests. I loved the walks via villages; was moved by the visit to the landmine agency; sparked by the differences in the locations e.g. Luang Prabang sunset and (not all) older tourist hospitality (visited Ikon Bar); the age-old caves and Buddhist temples.

We spent 4 weeks travelling through Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, we thoroughly enjoyed this trip, all our guides were excellent, they were very friendly , helpful, organised and informative. The trip itinerary was quite full on with plenty of variety with a combination of busy cities, pretty quieter towns, rural locations, stunning lagoons, rivers and waterfalls, peaceful boat trips, an overnight sleeper train, optional cycling activities, plenty of stunning temples and palaces, fabulous food and warm and friendly locals. There were also quite a few interesting activities such as the Cu chi tunnels in Vietnam and also some thought provoking, more somber moments such as visits to the Remnant’s museum in Vietnam, the genocide museum and killing fields in Cambodia.

The experience we had was a once in a lifetime opportunity! From the knowledge and the amount you were able to do in a day. There was always something for everyone.

I booked this trip last minute and wasn't disappointed. Highlights of Laos is an unhurried, relaxed trip. Pavements, like in Vietnam and Cambodia, are uneven and could be tricky for those unsteady on their feet; however, unlike those countries, the traffic is very light and easy to negotiate. Taxis to/ from airports are cheap. The Buddha park was great and COPE museum thought provoking. The rail journeys are smooth and comfortable with lots to look at. Limestone cliffs are dramatic and the hot air ballooning worth it. The walks and steps are relatively easy. Early March was hot. Take easy slip on/off shoes for the many varied and interesting temples along with shoulder coverings and below the knee shorts. Our guide, Quang, was lovely but what really made this trip for me was the fabulous bunch of fellow travellers.

The trip, overall itinerary and organisation was very good. This trip covered 3 countries over 4 weeks, in each of which we had a separate tour leader. Although all were nice people and helpful there is room for improvement. Our TL in Cambodia was quite difficult to understand (accent) but more significantly he talked far too much making details difficult to sort out. If he had focussed just on key facts, events etc it would have been much better. Also, all 3 took us to very poor restaurants where it seems they get free meals as a minimum. This should be addressed or made clear to clients. Nevertheless overall had a fantastic time. One further item to consider the train from Hanoi to Hue was considered by nearly all the clients on our trip to be exhausting and poor. Perhaps consider upgrading the train compartments. Most hotels were fair to OK with a few good, which I liked.

Overall this was a great tour that I would certainly recommend taking! Although I certainly could’ve stayed at some of our stops longer, I never felt rushed and felt the tour did a great job of giving enough time to see most if not all of what I wanted to. This was a great introduction to Southeast Asia and this trip has certainly inspired me to come back for a longer visit. The guides and group were fantastic and always had me smiling and laughing.