Ashley Nguyen

This trip had almost 100% success. Locations of hotels, great guides, timely transportation, tour destinations and overall quality for the money were right on. Considering the part of the world and the number of flights due to the destinations that we wanted to see, Ashley did a great job of advising and arranging suitable flights and appropriate timeframes, all of which were met with the scheduled transport services.

This was a great trip to Vietnam and Cambodia. 2 weeks was exactly the right amount of time to see everything we wanted to see. It struck the proper balance between activities every day, a variety of excursions, with the right amount of rest time in between. Transportation around town was excellent. Pickups and drop-offs at the airport were smooth, enough of the people in Indo-China spoke English to get by. The education about history was very informing. Bike rides, although challenging at my age of 73, was good exercise and allowed us to see the local people and how they lived. We saw some cultural events, some flavor of the local food. There were 3 cooking classes. We saw a variety of places in Vietnam and understand the role that Vietnam and Cambodia play in the modern world. The only negative is that we probably did not ask questions of Ashley often enough. She eventually answered them. Ashley did a great job of planning our trip. We would do it again, except Vietnam is on the other side of the world and the plane rides were exceedingly long.
Ron Goings

My favorite part of the trip was time I spent in Hanoi. I loved my Walking Food tour with Cherry. She was so informative and has a wonderful personality to make the tour so enjoyable. She was knowledgeable and fun. The Chaos of Hanoi was delightful. My jeep tour with Robin was also very good. Loved the train street and the Pagoda. Robin spent time teaching me about the experiences and seemed especially knowledgeable about the Pagoda. Halong bay was such a wonderful retreat from the city. The overnight cruise was lovely. Accommodation on the boat was very comfortable. The floating market was a marvel. The guide was terrific with bits of information about the markets and how they are diminishing. I totally enjoyed cruising the market and even getting some soup from a floating vendor. Ho Chi Min was a very different flavor than Hanoi. A bit more sophisticated. Rooftop bars and entertainment were aplenty. The war museum and tunnels were sobering. All along the trip accommodations were above my expectations and I was completely impressed with the service and punctuality of the guides. A rather pleasant surprise was all of the decorations for Luna New Year. I was unaware of the start of the celebration but was lucky enough to be there before the actual New Year. Flower markets were bursting with Orchids, Kumquat Trees and Cherry blossoms. It was very special to see.

Ashley was on top of all the details from start to finish, both before the trip and while Buthaina and I were in Vietnam. Even with some flight delays (to be expected), we were met by our drivers and guides without missing a beat. Great professional, courteous service. Accommodations were uniformly good (we especially enjoyed the Cozy an Boutique Hotel in Hoi An) and guides were very knowledgeable and friendly (especially Mr. Chung in Hanoi and Anna on the Mekong delta trip). Happy to give our highest rating.

Great trip to Northern Vietnam arranged by Ashley. The KimKim system which allowed a lot of back and forth during the planning phase worked very well. We were even able to make changes to our itinerary while there in Vietnam - almost in real time. Ashley was very quick and responsive throughout the whole trip.

Everything went like clockwork, from the first pick-up at our hotel to the final drop off at the airport. We managed to cram in a whole host of things that would not have been possible had we simply been on our own. Contrary to my expectation, the car we had was really nice and spacious - perfect as we had a lot of luggage. The guide we had, Mr. Dung, was great. His English was good and he had a fount of local knowledge about the history of Vietnam, its culture and everything about daily life. The driver, "Mike", was very careful sticking to the rules and never made me nervous despite the crazy driving scene.

Highly recommended.

EGB, Washington DC

Hotel Review

Halong Aquamarine Cruise

Ha Long

Great cruising boat. Very spacious cabin with everything one needs. Excellent food. Helpful crew.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Easy to get to the port

Staff

Tom, the trip manager was very helpful and informative.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bathroom was big and spotless.

Activity Review

Cycling At Tho Ha Village & Visiting Galaxy Grotto ( S)

Vietnam

Nice to visit areas off the beaten path in Vietnam and experience some local culture and participate in activities such as planting rice.

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Attn: Ashley
Hi Ashley: We just got back a few days ago from our continued trip from Thailand. Our visit to Bangkok and Phukett were wonderful. Our guide Chai was a very nice man along with his driver. We have a few suggestions to make but overall it was a good trip.
1. Chai was very kind and informative but we have had other tour guides on previous trips that were a little more informed, maybe more in depth. Also his english was a bit limited so at times hard to understand.
2. Due to the traffic in Bangkok it does take a long time to arrive at tour sights. I feel this should be taken more into consideration when planning tours. For example we went to the temple (Friday ) and then came back to our hotel only to find out we had to go back in the same direction later that day to experience Chinatown. It took us 2 hours to get to Chinatown and then 1 hour there and 1 1/2 hours back. Also our "foodie tour" of Chinatown was nothing. Chai just walked with us and didn't seem to have a plan. Plus we paid for all our food which was to be included in the tour price. It was a frustrating day and tour.

Our expenses that we thought were included were Chinatown at $30.00 for food and the taxi we took from Phuket to our hotel was $30.00

The other issue I'm having is that The NaNirand Romantic Hotel has charged my credit card for $700.00 for a no show reservation. I had made my own reservation #BB24060316213178 for the hotel but cancelled by email on August 14th, 2024 when we decided to use your services. I think they are confused with your reservation for us which I hope you cancelled when we had to make the change to Phuket. Please take care of this situation as soon as possible.

Thank you again for your assistance.
Kim Kurzeka

Thoroughly enjoyed the trip. Everything went very smoothly and without a hitch. All of our Drivers and Guides were responsive to requests, and very knowledgeable and informative. Hotels were lovely. Overall, the ability to customize the trip to our interests made it a fabulous experience.

Hotel Review

Bespoke Trendy Hotel Hanoi

Rooms were clean, staff was wonderfully friendly and informative. Great location and they have an incredible breakfast. We have done a lot of traveling, and this was the best breakfast we have ever seen.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

They have a great introduction to the city on arrival. Helped with maps, breaking large currency bills, general advice on what to see and wear. Overall an excellent staff, every person we interacted with was great.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Phare Ponleu Selpak Circus Show

Siem Reap

Thoroughly enjoyed this show. It was a nice break from visiting temples. A great performance and a great cause.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport