Guided Vietnam Tours

The whole tour was amazing. Angkor Wat was the highlight of our trip. The additional activity of Vespa ride through Saigon was the most enjoyable thing we did. Would highly recommend the additional days in Bangkok. We ventured through the floating market, a lot of fun. All hotels were very good, WiFi was excellent in all the hotels. Our guides in each country definitely helped us enjoy all the tours and their knowledge was great.

Collette’s Kingdoms of Southeast Asia is a wonderful trip with an ambitious itinerary that spends time (17 or 18 days, depending on how you count) in 4 Southeast Asian Countries: 1) Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. Vietnam is the focus, with stops in the north, middle, and south of the country. Vietnam is a very interesting, vibrant, and energetic country, with amazing food, and the tour benefits from the tour manager/leader being Vietnamese. Our trip leader was awesome, and I can’t say enough good things about him. Our Vietnamese trip leader stayed with us throughout the entirety of the trip, but excellent local guides joined the tour in the remaining three countries. Three days in Cambodia focused on the ancient cities of Siem Reap, such as the Angkor Wat ruins. The following 3 days in Laos focused on the Buddhist temples and culture as well as a beautiful excursion along the Mekong River. Visits to night markets were offered in all 3 countries. The trip concludes with one night in Bangkok, Thailand and it is easy to extend your stay with the extension offered by Collette of with a few days in your own. Bangkok is an amazing city and one night/one day won’t do. Our tour had 23 people and it moved as a group pretty well. We had a good group, everyone very friendly and helpful to each other. All the hotels were solid, comfortable accommodations - not 5 star, but mostly 4 star (I believe the Laos hotel, probably one of the best in Luang Prabang, would be considered a 3 star hotel by American standards). The tour included plenty of free time, but the organized group excursions were well considered in terms of taking you to see what most tourists want to see as well as introducing you to some genuinely local and personal experiences (like visiting the home of a Vietnamese fighter pilot who fought in the Vietnam War to get his personal perspective on the war). On occasion the daily itinerary was a little rushed, perhaps overly ambitious, but overall the tour was well balanced between planned activities and free time.

AMAZING TRIP…. Tour Manager John the absolutely the BEST. It was an experience of a lifetime. It is hard to put into words or explain the wonders of each country. Book this trip and you won’t be disappointed. It far exceeded my expectations. The smaller group size for travel was a bonus. The hotel accommodations were excellent. The way John (tour manager) explained and provided all the necessary information each day was so helpful. I would do this trip again in a heartbeat .

Excellent cultural immersion tour. My favorite experience was the meeting with the Vietnamese war veteran. He emotionally shared with us his heart rendering time as a fighter pilot, and his eventual friendship with an American fighter pilot.

Vespa food tour in Hanoi was great fun! Tour and tour guides were excellent. However we should have gone to an elephant sanctuary. We never saw one elephant.! Also tipping should be prepaid. It was a constant issue on the tour!!!! The first day of the Bangkok extension should have been scheduled with activities. We were all ready to go and nothing was really planned. It was very disappointing. We all had been together on the tour and there was no need for relaxation and free time. Everyone agreed with this assessment. Tho the tour manager was exceptional as were the individual guides in each country. I would highly recommend this tour.

We had a fantastic experience on our tour with Collette. We enjoyed traveling through 4 countries with ease, because of the great organization and helpful guide. I loved practicing tai Che as we cruised through the rocky peaks of Ha Long Bay. Cooking classes, boat tours, night markets, unique interactions with local residents made our experience truly life changing. John, our Vietnamese guide was truly phenomenal. We loved every day of our tour!

Riding Vespas through downtown Saigon. Learning about the trained rats finding land mines. The tunnels and various booby traps during the war. The many different boat rides especially the basket boats. The people and the culture and learning about Buddhism.

Nighttime Vespa ride in Saigon! Everyone—young and old-loved it.

Too many to decide, but the Vespa food tour in Saigon comes to mind as one I will never forget. Sunrise at Angkor Wat in Cambodia was amazing…another experience to never be forgotten.

The tour manager in Thailand made no attempt to reach out to my husband and I. We did not purchase the extended 3 days in Thailand so I felt we didn't belong to him. We took a plane back home the next morning and he made no attempt to contact us to coordinate our transportation to the airport. Thank goodness our first tour manager was there and got up the next morning to make sure we had a box breakfast and transportation in the morning. Also, the tipping was frustrating to give out in 4 different currency's. Love the trip and it was the best vacation I have had in my life. Love the tour manage "Tam". She went up and beyond her role to make this trip easy for us. We had 4 people get sick and she coordinated the doctor visit and visited another group member who was in the hospital for 3 days. She went everyday to visit her and help with the members care. My husband had a sore throats and she made sure we knew how to get to the pharmacy. Tam is one of your top notch tour managers who's very Organized to the max and very personable. She treated us as family.

Fantastic tour!

Such an important historical view of a time that needs to be studied and shared. Our tour manager, John, was the best of any tour I've attended!

Boat accommodation was not very good. Good thing it was only 1 night. No real shower stall. Poor lighting in bathroom.

Great experience overall. Highlights might be embroidery plant/store. Riding on back of vesper. Visiting temples. Being blessed by monks. Feeding monks in the morning. Seeing how the Vietnamese live. Eating their food (some of it). Andy was fabulous

Collette scored again with this tour! Our tour guide, An, was the ultimate professional. He was extremely knowledgeable and caring. We were apprehensive about visiting this part of the world but An made it a fantastic experience. This tour is chock full of experiences and really speaks to getting immersed in local culture. Be sure to include the Vespar tour in your planning!

Most favorable is our tour director, Huy. He made this trip. I would highly recommend this tour and I would also say anyone who gets Huy as the tour manager is promised a GREAT trip. He is the BEST Tour manager I have ever experienced. I learned so much from him about Vietnam...he was extremely organized, knowledgeable and funny. He cared about each and every one of us on the tour and added such a personal touch to our experience. We were all very sad when he left us in Bangkok to return to his home and family. Because of Huy, I will travel with Collette again soon. Thank you for hiring the BEST. As far as hotels, all were nice. I do think The Muse (Bangkok) was too dark. I need a brighter more contemporary environment. It was difficult to see in the lobby and rooms. The amount of cash required for tipping was way too much. It would be more pleasant if it was all included with an option of giving more if we felt the service was exceptional. (i.e. Huy was exceptional, Chan in Cambodia was also exceptional) The Vespa tour was great fun and a highlight of this trip. I always thought Vietnam was a one and done destination but because of Huy, I hope to travel there again and with Collette someday! I took 1000 photos and met the most wonderful people in our tour. Thank you...

First, I have to say that our tour guide John Phem was amazing. He always went above and beyond during the entire trip. We had several road trips and flights and all went smoothly. We were well fed and hydrated the entire time and were greeted daily with hand towels and bottles of water. I cannot say enough good things about John. Also, the local tour guides in Cambodia, Laos and Thailand were very good. Chen in Cambodia and Pat in Laos were very informative and thoughtful, and A in Thailand also went above and beyond. She helped us shop carefully in the local markets. My only critique is that we were a little over-programmed. I would have liked a little more free time at the hotels. We stayed in beautiful places but felt we could not enjoy the amenities because we were always on the go. I do like that Collette builds in impactful excursions and visits to local homes, however. They provide for an enriching experience. If there were a way to provide those and allow for a little more free time that would be perfect. Thank you for a special trip. I highly recommend it and Collette to family and friends.

Tour manager and variety of experiences made the trip wonderful.

Too many favorite experiences to mention - John Phram, our tour manager, and "A" our tour manager in Bangkok, were both incredible. Great hotels, wonderful adventures, fantastic food!

The tour was comparable to South Africa and John was the nicest and most caring tour guide I’ve had. His personality and wit helped mold the group into a family and he was especially attentive when I could use an extra hand. I loved seeing the natural wonders of Vietnam and Laos. All the airport transports were a pain and rook so much extra time. We needed the whispers in Bangkok to hear everything that was being said.