Vietnam Express Southbound 10 days

We had never joined a group tour before and felt some trepidation about what to expect. We need not have worried at all! Our tour leader, Hà, took us adeptly in hand, helped the group to bond and ensured that we had a wonderful time every day. He offered to take us out each eveni g for a group meal, which was one less thing to worry about. Most meals were banquet style doing it this way, so there was always something good to eat. It was a real luxury to be guided through this amazing country - visiting awe inspiring places and finding out about the people and the culture. All of the included hotels were fine, we chose the essentials tour so knew that we weren't getting fancy hotels - we were delighted with the location, staff and amenities at each of them. The tour is really well planned. The optional extra activities are all excellent - I recommend that you do them all, as they really add that extra something special to the trip. There is free water to fill up your refillable bottles on all the bus journeys, which is a life saver, it was really hot when we visited. The currency you need is Dong, in the south they advertise dual prices with US$, but Dong are best. There are ATM's everywhere to get out local currency. We also bought a local SIM card for our phones, with 4gb data a day and free local calls, we paid VND280, 000 each for these and they worked really well, with data coverage even in the middle of nowhere. Some of our group continued on to Cambodia after the Vietnam tour - we had an extra night in Ho Chi Minh City and thdn flew home with so many fantastic memories. The country, the tour and Intrepid Travel - all highly recommended!

We really enjoyed our 10 day tour. The group we had were all great fun. Everyone got along. Ages were from late teens to mid 50’s. Jolie (Ngang Nguyen) our guide was fantastic. She spoke great English, was extremely patient and nothing was a problem. Our only suggestion would be (if you’re fussy) is to take a sheet and pillow case as the overnight train is very basic and the sheets are shaken and put straight back on the beds. We also found the last nights accom in Saigon to be not quite up to standard. We forfeited and booked at the Prague Hotel which is in a better area and has a pool. Otherwise, couldn’t fault it.

A good way to visit several cities in just 10 days. Our guide Nam Nguyen was very efficient, helpful and had good English our group size was 16 people from UK and Australia age range 20's to retired couples. All interacted very well. Transport varied from boat, overnight sleeper train and coach. Travel light and leave room in your suitcase for the stop in HoiAn. Suits, dresses and shoes can be custom made overnight.