Highlights of Southeast Asia
Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand - 13 Days
Small Group Journeys
Highlights
Tour Details
Itinerary
Welcome to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon. Your airport representative will meet and greet you. Transfer to your hotel and enjoy some free time.
Today you will visit Cu Chi Tunnels. Discover the network of underground tunnels while learning about their role in the Vietnam War. Later, enjoy a guided walking tour of Saigon where you will see Dong Khoi Street, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Reunification Palace, and Ben Thanh Market.
Venture to the Mekong Delta and spend the day exploring the many palm-fringed canals, local temples and markets. Enjoy a delicious lunch made from locally-harvested produce. Drive to Can Tho.
Make an early morning start to visit the floating markets of Cai Rang. Take a small boat and explore the waterways, packed with local people selling fruits and vegetables. In Chau Giang District see a tiny mosque serves the local Cham, originally Hindu, but now Muslim as a result of contact with Arab seafarers and merchants in the Middle Ages. Visit a beautiful Khmer temple, and the floating houses that double as catfish farms.
Board a speedboat to the Cambodian border and cruise along the Mekong River to Phnom Penh. Enjoy a river cruise along the Tonle Sap River and the mythical Mekong with scenic landscapes including floating fishermen villages, and a spectacular sunset over the Phnom Penh skyline.
Explore Phnom Penh by cyclo (a bicycle rickshaw). See Wat Phnom and the Royal Palace, the residence of King Norodom Sihamoni, the Silver Pagoda, and the National Museum. Visit the Central Market, a labyrinth of stalls selling everything from CDs and DVDs to silks, crafts, jewelry and more. Visit Tuol Sleng Museum, formerly a high school which became the interrogation and torture facility for the Khmer Rouge regime.
Along the way to Siem Reap, stop to visit the infamous Spider Market in Skun and Naga Bridge in Kampong Thom.
Start early to witness the breathtaking sunrise over Angkor Wat temple, followed by breakfast at a local restaurant. Reach the southern gate of Angkor Thom, the ‘Great City’ and marvel at the imposing 23m (75-foot) high stone faces, featured in the Tomb Raider movie. At the centre lies the 12th-century state temple of Bayon, with hundreds of gigantic stone faces. Witness a monk blessing at a pagoda nearby the temple, a truly wonderful and memorable ‘real life’. Ta Prohm is unforgettable due to the massive trees with thick roots that entangle the walls.
Leave to Kampong Kleang floating village and take a boat trip through the fishing villages across Tonle Sap, the biggest lake in Southeast Asia. In the afternoon enjoy an excursion to Banteay Srei, consecrated in 967 A.D. built in red sandstone with elaborate decorative wall carvings which are still observable in fine details today. On the way back we will see Banteay Samre temple.
Drive to Poipet and across the Thailand border. Your guide will meet you and transfer you to your hotel in Bangkok.
Visit the Grand Palace or Wat Phra Kaew, known as the temple of the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred Buddha image in Thailand. Then visit Wat Pho, one of Bangkok’s oldest and largest temples which houses the gigantic gold-plated Reclining Buddha. Explore Rattanakosin Island, the original area of Bangkok when it was first established as the capital over 200 years ago. Take a longtail boat on a canal (klong) tour along the Chao Phraya River with a stop at the dazzling Temple of Dawn (Wat Arun).
Enjoy a free day at your leisure. Time enough for a last minute shopping spree in one the many shopping malls throughout Bangkok or just relax and take a break at the hotels swimming pool companied with a spa treatment.
It’s time to say goodbye, but just think of all the wonderful stories you will take home. A transfer will take you to the airport for your onward travels.
What´s included
- 12 nights in described Hotel or similar
- Daily Breakfast and 4 Lunches for 2 Persons
- Transport in air-conditioned vehicles (except Tuk Tuk touring)
- Small group touring
- All Entrance fees
- English speaking tour leader
- All Tipping
- Arrival and departure transfers
Excluded
- Any Personal Expenses
- Visa fees
- Porters
- Insurance and personal expenses such as laundry, mini-bar, telephone and drinks