2014 trip

How much time on buses does the trip entail? Is the trip on the speed boat shorter this year?
Is the resort necessary for this trip in Nha Trang. Why don t they go to Hue or spend more quality time in Hanoi?
Is the hotel in Laos still the Le Palais Juliana?

Thks

Comments

  • We are booked on this trip in January. I too would like to have the option to visit Hue.

    Cheers
  • The last hotel has been changed and the speed boat trip has been shortened. We leave from a different city.
  • We are in Chau Doc. I must say that for every hour of sightseeing, you endure four hours or more of travel time. We drove four hours Hanoi to Ha Long Bay which is beautiful. Boat company requires an overnight. The boat needs a good steam cleaning. Next morning we see same thing, karst mountains, floating village, four hours on bus to Hanoi. We had very little time in Saigon, and spent 10 hours yesterday on bus and boat getting to Chau Doc with a break for lumch and seeing an interesting candy making operation. And today we saw another market, floating village, like the last three we saw and the afternoon is free, except there is nothing at all to do in Chau Doc. Yes, you can have another massage, but I would have chosen a resort vacation if that was my main interest. Tomorrow is, once again, more time traveling than anything else. Would I recommend this trip to anyone? Honestly, no. So far we are disappointed. And the bulk of the people feel this way. Our Tauck director is fantastic, enthusiastic, knowledgeable. The local guides are terrific. But the first part of this trip has been too much time on a bus or boat. A waste.
  • Very disappointing to read all the complaints before I've even left the states. I will be traveling on the jan 5th trip to indochina. Hopefully someone thinks the trip was worth the expense and long travel times. Any positive remarks? I know tauck has changed some things for the better
  • SusiQ34683 wrote:
    We are in Chau Doc. I must say that for every hour of sightseeing, you endure four hours or more of travel time. We drove four hours Hanoi to Ha Long Bay which is beautiful. Boat company requires an overnight. The boat needs a good steam cleaning. Next morning we see same thing, karst mountains, floating village, four hours on bus to Hanoi. We had very little time in Saigon, and spent 10 hours yesterday on bus and boat getting to Chau Doc with a break for lumch and seeing an interesting candy making operation. And today we saw another market, floating village, like the last three we saw and the afternoon is free, except there is nothing at all to do in Chau Doc. Yes, you can have another massage, but I would have chosen a resort vacation if that was my main interest. Tomorrow is, once again, more time traveling than anything else. Would I recommend this trip to anyone? Honestly, no. So far we are disappointed. And the bulk of the people feel this way. Our Tauck director is fantastic, enthusiastic, knowledgeable. The local guides are terrific. But the first part of this trip has been too much time on a bus or boat. A waste.


    Hello SusiQ34683,

    First of all on behalf of us here at Tauck and the Tauck Family we want to wish you a very happy birthday!

    We are sorry to hear that the first part of the trip did not meet your expectations. We thank you for your feedback, in light of your comments the Product Managers and Tour Director will re-evaluate this itinerary. We have made quite a few logistical changes to this tour within the past year to address guests' feedback. We found that this year, guests were overwhelming satisfied with the new updates.

    We will be very interested in hearing about the second half of your trip. Please feel free to reach out guestrelations@tauck.com if you have any additional feedback.

    Thank you,
    Emily
  • From Cambodia on, it's been outstanding. I know changes were made to the 2013 trip, but I believe more changes would benefit the first week in Vietnam. In Cambodia we had sight seeing filled days that were wonderful. We hope the very short time in Laos will prove to be the same. The hotels everywhere were outstanding. Food, delicious. Guides were fabulous, great English skills, very interesting stories about their lives during The American War and Khmer Rouge. Tips: you need plenty of hand sanitizers because not only is there a lack of toilet papers in the W.C., but often there is no soap or hand towel. Bring plenty of memory cards and batteries for your camera. Also, a small flashlight in parts of Angkor Wat and other temples was helpful. Bring a good book, or two, for the long days on bus and boat. DEET and sunscreen. And if you like to shop, stow an extra bag somewhere. We are packed to the max. No need to change money. Small bills better than large ones. "Xin Chao"
  • Happy to hear the trip improved susieq. I will be arriving a day early in Hanoi and am traveling solo. Will I be comfortable out and about by myself to sightsee? Would be interested to know if any others on the jan 5 departure will also arrive on jan 4th. Any advice on inoculations and malaria meds for this time of year?
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