we have returned to Dubai and would like to thank you and your team for making this trip so unique. Vietnam is a breathtaking and beautiful country and we will certainly come back in the near future. We would also like to point out that we felt that your company and especially you have perfectly organised our stay and have dealt with this in a highly professional way. We will certainly recommend your company among our circle of friends and colleagues.

Kind regards and take care, Michael

Dear Managing Director,

I am writing to express my sincere appreciation of the professoinal and dedicated efforts displayed by Lai Thi Kieu Phuong who works at the Exotissimo travel desk at the Hilton in Hanoi, Viet Nam.

My wife and I were traveling in Hanoi in the middle of Feburary 2007 when we suddenly had to cut our trip short and head back to New Zealand. Given that it was in the middle of Tet, the internal flights were full to the point of overloading.

Lai Thi Kieu Phuong was extremley sympathetic to our situation and worked tirelessly to assist us in getting plane tickets.  What was most impressive was when we returned to seek her help after one particular option did not work out, she jumped on the case again and solved it herself.

We were extremely impressed and grateful of the proffessional help we received.  Whilst not Exotissimo clients at the time, we will certainly use your firm in thefuture soley due to Lai Thi Kieu Phuong\'s efforts.

Her dedication and commitment to helping resolve people\'s issues is admirable and she is a credit to your company.

Please email me to confirm that you have recieved this email and that it has been pasted on to the Hanoi Hilton Travel Desk.

Kind regards, Stacy Colyer

Sarah and I are now back in the UK and I wanted to write to thank you for all your help for our wonderful and very memorable trip. All the arrangements worked really well and we are very grateful to you. We found everybody to be friendly and helpful, our time in Vietnam was all too short and we wanted to see so much more. I am sure we will be back one day.   Once again, many thanks for your help. Kind regards Chris

I would like to drop you a note to inform you that my family and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves in Vietnam recenty.  I guess a lot of the credit should go to Exotissimo, and in particular you for making all the booking arrangements including accomodating the numerous changes along the way leading to our eventaul arrival and pickup at the Hanoi airport.

Our group especially like the Halong Jasmine cruise and appreciate the fact that this is a very new boat and one of the largest plying Halong Bay on the tourist route right now -- thank you for booking it for us.

The private dinner arranged on 23Dec at Mosquaice (think I got the spelling wrong!) was also very nice allowing the whole group the exclusive use of the whole restaurant and bar.

Finally, please give our thanks to the tour guides (Ha & Cham) and the drivers who accompanied us throughout, always accomodating to the group's requests and last minute changes in itinerary.

We will definitely recommend Exotissimo to our friends and family that may want to consider holidaying in Vietnam!

Rgds, - Leng

I wanted to say thank you for organising our terrific holiday in your wonderful country. My daughter and I loved the entire trip and will be recommending Vietnam and your services to all who will listen to us.Regards and thank you again. Vivienne

Now our Vietnam vacation is over. We are back home and work has just  began. But I don't want to forget to say Thank you for all your work  and effort to make our beautyful vacation happen.

Your country is as wonderful (and even better) then expected. Your 

choice of places was a good mixture for this short time. The guides  were competent and very friendly. Hotels were perfect...

So again, many thanks for your support.

And I wish a good "rest of the year" and an good and peaceful start into the new year.

Steffen & Family.

I'm already back at work in KL after a marvelous week in Vietnam, what anice country!

I wanted to thank you for everything and let you know that we're very happy with the services that exotissimo provided to us, it made the trip a lot easier and interesting. The guides were very nice and friendly, perfect French a with good knowledge of Vietnam's history. The drivers were also very good and friendly. We'll definitely recommend your services to our friends / family.

It was also a real pleasure to meet you, and again a BIG thanks for everything.

Hoping to travel with your agency again ! Katherin & Jean

Hello Da (Phnom Penh), Da (Siem Reap), Bot (Siem Reap), Tuan (Hanoi), Vy (Mai Chau), Su (Hue & Hoi An) and Thuyen (Saigon).  Greetings to you all from Canada!

(To whoever receives this at Exotissimo... The guides mentioned above are the wonderful people who did such a great job of introducing us to Cambodia (2-13 June) and Vietnam (22 June - 5 July) this summer.  We have some of their individual email addresses, others we either didn't get or seem to have lost along the way.  We'd really appreciate it if you could (a) make sure they all get this message and (b) send us their email addresses so that we can eventually send them some photos.)

Peter and I got back to our home in Montreal last week, after a long journey back from Southeast Asia including a stay with our daughter on the west coast of Canada.  We have so many wonderful memories of the time we spent with you, discovering your amazing countries, and can't thank you enough for all you did to make our visit and adventures with you so memorable.

I'm now in the process of trying to sort out and identify the 1700+ photos I came back with!  Eventually I'll send you some but it's likely to take quite a long time before I get them all organized.  In the meantime, I just wanted to send you this little message to say thank you again for a fantastic experience.

We won't forget you!

Judy & Peter Bird

We really appreciated all of your advice throughout the planning process and we had a wonderful time!!! 

If it is helpful, I am happy to give you more detailed feedback on which of the guides/hotels we especially liked… please let me know.

I will definitely come back to you and Exotissimo if I am planning another trip to SE Asia (which I very much hope to!)

Thanks againLisa (and Laura and Shelby)

I just want to thank you for all you did.  We are just back from our trip yesterday and had a wonderful time.  You recall you booked the Bhaya cruise on Halong Bay for us and it turned out to be a highlight of our trip.  The driver did indeed pick us up at the hotel as you said he would and in fact everything went as you said it would.  I would recommend the Bhaya to anyone. 

Although the Bhaya was the only part of the trip we booked with you, we booked other parts of the trip (flights, hotels and train tickets) with other Exotissimo offices and everywhere we went, people were familiar with Exotissimo.  The first part of the trip was hiking in Bhutan, a trip organized by REI Adventures, and we asked REI Adventures to book other parts of our independent travels through Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam and they did so through Exotissimo, so REI Adventures likes and uses Exotissimo and now we do too.  Again, thanks very much.

Wren H.

Memories of a Great Adventure to Asia.February 9 - March 16, 2004

The idea of a trip to Vietnam started after our excursion to Thailand and Cambodia. Our small group included Chris and me as well as Carol and Sanford (Chris' sister and her husband.) We contacted Vy with Exotissmo Travel in Saigon and created our itinerary for Laos and Vietnam. Vy handled reservations and arranged for a guide, car and driver at every location. Indeed, we were spoiled. (The Tokyo, Japan, portion was an independent itinerary.) The trip was a joy to plan, exciting to do and fun to recall and commit to paper. This small epic could be twice as long as everyday was unique, whether we were touring our bumming around town.

Tokyo, Japan. A bustling Asian city filled with Western influences. We stayed in the Shinjuku area, the heart of the business district and the skyscrapers. The Shinjuku subway station handles over one million people daily. It is a huge station with 60 entrances. The city is clean and orderly with a population numbering twelve million. When the crosswalk light was red, no one jaywalked. By the same token, when the light was green, everyone was on the move. There are temples throughout the city, tucked away in corners and sometimes-just steps off the very busy street. Life may be rushed, but the Japanese take time to pay their respects at the temples. We enjoyed walking the streets, overlooking the city from the 45th floor observation deck of the Tokyo Metropolitan government office and people watching over a cup of coffee at Starbucks or elsewhere.

Streets were rarely signed and the city wasn't laid out in any fashion. Finding something with an address was a challenge as we discovered upon our arrival. The airport bus dropped us at the Shinjuku Station. The weather was cold and windy. We hailed a cab; he had no idea as to the location of the hotel. The second cab made a try, but really had no clue. He left us at the landmark building noted in the hotel directions. We were left to do what the local cab drivers couldn't - find the hotel. Fortunately, we inquired at a nearby restaurant and were shocked when the waiter left the restaurant and walked half a block with us to show the way.

We ventured out to Asakusa on the Tokyo rapid rail line. As complex as it appeared, we managed well. Asakusa is a small area of shops and low-rise single-family houses. The complex of the Sensoji Temple, a five-storied pagoda, and the Asakusa Shrine were worth the visit. The next morning, using the rail line again, we visited the Meiji Jingu Shrine and Yoyogi Park, both peaceful and enjoyable.

We enjoyed our short stay and appreciated the warmth of the Japanese. Before departing, we stopped for a typical Japanese lunch, noodle soup. We opted for a small establishment where we dined earlier. The shop was off the beaten path with no English menus, but we conveyed our desire to have vegetarian noodle soup with the owner on our first visit. I suppose our height and complexion left an impression, because for our departing lunch, he knew exactly what we wanted.

Luang Prabang, Laos. Laos was quite a change from Japan, but still not as poor as Cambodia and actually more advanced than expected. To my surprise, many people spoke some English. We stayed at one of the best of hotels, The Luang Prabang Grand, situated on the Mekong River with magnificent views, lush gardens and a former summer palace awaiting restoration. Breakfast is a grand affair with breads, French toast, crepes, meats, Asian noodles and soups, and fresh fruit, Chris had no fear of starving at the break of day. We exchanged money at the front desk and $40 provided us with a 1-1/2 inch stack of local Kip!

Our first day in Luang Prabang was at leisure and the morning walk introduced us to a number of locals, all seemed eager to talk with no inclination to sell goods or services - most unusual. The children used caution around us, most were friendly, and almost all waved. We headed upriver by boat to town. We found town to be quite prosperous with paved streets, many shops and food everywhere. In fact, the four of us dined for lunch at a sit-down restaurant with beer for $12. World Heritage spent the last 2-3 years updating this town. It is no longer a backwater place.

We bargained at $2 for the 4 km ride back to the hotel via a "tuk tuk," a 3-wheel motor bike, which was barely able to climb slight rises with four passengers. Evening brought us to the night market. So much of the same merchandise with plenty of silk scarves and various handspun items. Dinner was at a very marginal place (actually it appeared to be the public area of the family's home, dirt floor and all) for a tab of $7.00 for four. The food was great and the ambiance was - unusual.

Our official tour began with the guide at the royal palace, now a royal museum filled with furniture, art objects and kingly possessions. Across the street was the 300-stair climb to a temple, the temple was not the attraction, but the view was. Luang Prabang is in a river valley, from this hill you can see just about all there is to see and worth the hike. The hike was followed by another great meal for $6.50 including beer. The afternoon tour included local temples ending with a sunset view over the river. We dined overlooking the Mekong for $7.00. Really, the food in Laos was fantastic with definite Thai influences. More serious shopping at the night market and a "tuk tuk" back to the hotel, where we were met by strange stares every time we arrived in this fashion.

A trip to the waterfalls was a pleasant change from temples plus we visited two villages and stopped at a public school. The village people were selling their wares, but less in your face than the Thai villages. We watched the children. Girls (probably 4-6 years of age) carried infants on their backs - obviously the older sister was totally in charge of the younger sibling. The village houses have electricity and satellite dishes for the TV's. The children appeared to be well fed and healthy. The villages were clean, except for the ever-present plastic T-shirt bags littering the roadsides and the open sewers. These things will likely change as incomes increase.

The school was interesting. The teacher/pupil ratio of 1:40 was common. The English schoolteacher talked with us and his English was pretty spotty - seems his education was in literature, but they needed an English teacher, so he was it.

The falls were spectacular and well worth the trip. We passed a large (30+) group on bicycles. They looked too old and out of shape for that type trip - perhaps 10-15 km, but on up/down dirt roads. The minivan was far nicer!

Another day on our own. We traveled by river to a weaving/paper-making village. The Mekong River was filled with activity from planting crops right to the water's edge, dredging for sand, collecting lumber, kids playing and mothers washing clothes and dishes.

Vientiane, Laos. This capital city was marginally charming with a number of temples, plenty of traffic, and a nice bunch of restaurants along the Mekong River. There was new construction, but plenty of tacky, small shops and dirty alleys. We toured the city and discovered our guide is vegetarian. She is much more selective about restaurants. She steered us toward tourist-type restaurants, whereas we headed straight for the river area with the make shift restaurants on the banks and enjoyed the food and the sunset.

A drive outside the city included a stop at the "salt mine." This was a location that had a natural brine well. They boiled the water and removed a salt slurry from the pots (perhaps 50+ 6 ft. by 1.5 ft. by 1 ft. pots), drained off excess water and then dried a bit more. The disconcerting thing about the visit was that a nine-year-old boy was working the salt pots. No child labor laws here. Whether he worked only weekends was not clear.

Patuxay, the victory monument, constructed in 1968, honors those who fought for independence from the French. Strangely, the monument closely resembles the Parisian Arc de Triumphe with Lao details. A climb to the top provided good city views.

Xieng Khouang, Laos. This is a mountainous area with its main attraction being the Plain of Jars, an archaeological mystery. The area was littered with large, stone jars. dating back perhaps a thousand years. . The jars are quite a sight. While not concentrated in one place, there are thousands of them in thirty or more locations extending into Mynamar and Malaysia. The jars are well aged and weathered, so the detail of the jars is unknown. Some are crudely shaped while others are more decorative. Some just have flat tops (for a lid) while others have carved lips. The larger jars are perhaps five feet high and three feet in diameter.

Several theories exist as to their original purpose. One theory is ceremonial, perhaps in connection with honoring the dead. Area people hope the Jars will become a big tourist spot, but personally I don't think the Jars have that type of draw. The views of surrounding countryside nearly steal the show.

Flying over this area, a prominent feature is an array of circular depressions. Some are filled with water. As we were walking to the first "jar" site, the guide mentioned the bomb crater we past. Ah, another relic of the Vietnam war! We perhaps forget that it was an Indochina war with Laos and Cambodia also.

The Maly Guesthouse is quaint, but lacking in some ways. Our bed wass very board like. The food, however, was great. We shared six or more entrees along with two soups and two fruit plate desserts - the bill with three large beers was an outstanding $17.00.

Saigon, Vietnam. Officially known as Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), everyone in the country calls it Saigon. A busy city accented with wonderful French style buildings, wide avenues and motorcycles everywhere. Crossing the street was a challenge, literally weaving in and out of the motorcycle traffic. I can't believe we did it

I just wanted to thank you for all the work you did in organising our trip - the itinerary was great as were the staff - drivers and tour guides.  You have a beautifull country and we hope to return one day soon.RegardsLindy Mace

My partner, Robert Thurston, and I were thinking recently about the wonderful tour you arranged for us in Vietnam and Cambodia in January.We both love your country and the people of Vietnam and we wanted to thank you once again for arranging an unforgettable experience.

As I worked in Hanoi for four weeks, we have a partular fondness for the city.  We even have a favourite hotel (the Sunway) and a favourite restaurant (Au Lac). Should we have the privilege of visiting Hanoi again, perhaps we will do business again.

Robert Hudson

Deborah has passed on to me her email message to you and I want to repeat the praise she has offered.  Your staff in Northern Vietnam were exceptional and you should be very proud of them.  I would particularly like to offer my encouragement to the delightful young man who guided us during our time at Sa Pa.  He is a charming and intelligent fellow and very good at his job.

I anticipate that some of our friends will soon travel to Vietnam and we will be pleased to recommend Exotissimo.

Dr Paul C. - Grape and Wine Team

I am so sorry I missed you while we were in Saigon – as you can imagine we were constantly on the go.  We had such an amazing trip and both my dad and I wanted to thank you again so much for all of your help in putting together a PERFECT trip for us.  Saigon was definitely a highlight for us both -- no doubt due in large part to our guide Tung, who was just amazing!

The hotels, tours, guides, transportation, etc. all met the highest standards.  Thank you again and I look forward to working with you on another trip in the near future.

All the Best and sincere thanks, Dana Archer

Dear Exotissimo Team,

We were in Vietnam from 29th of October onwards for three weeks. We booked the tour via Germany but at least you were responsible for the organization.

To make it very short:  IT  WAS  GREAT !!!  Therefore thank you very much for all your efforts, it was very good organized and we always had the feeling, that there is someone who is looking for us/take care of us. At the end it was hard for us to say, what was the highlight, because it was so good as a package and we've learnt a lot about Vietnam and their nice and polite people.

But one of the highlights (or the ..) was the tour on the Mekong. We were so surprised and the team was fantastic.

Again, thank you very much and our decision at the end was: we're coming back.

Kind regards - Dirk

The Martinez Family had a WONDERFUL time in Vietnam, Cambodia & Thailand. A big round of applause for tour guides John, Bros and Jerry.Best Regards,Tina Liadis, DirectorSoutheast Asia, Korea and Group Tours to China

I want to thank you for organizing our wonderful tour of Vietnam.  Every aspect of the tour was amazing.  Our guides, Ms Hong, Tommy, Mr. Loc and Mr. Cham, were knowledgeable and very well informed about the culture and history of the sites we visited.  We learned so much and experienced a wide variety of cultural activities.  Of course, the visit that stands out the most was our visit to Soc Trang, our daughter's home for the first eight months of her life.  Thank you so very much for arranging that visit and particular thanks to Ms Hong for interpreting during our visit.  We would not hesitate to recommend your company to anyone contemplating a tour to Vietnam.  There was not any aspect of our tour that was not pleasurable and informative.  The only experience that we would have changed would have been to have spent more time at the Hoi An Victoria Resort.  It would have been the icing on the cake to have been able to spend t he day on their fabulous beach.

Again, thank you for arranging a most enjoyable visit.  We would love to be able to visit Vietnam again, and if we do, we will certainly contact your company to arrange it.

Most sincerely,

Linda, John, Kirby and Jordan

Back to the daily life ... missing Vietnam already!!I had a wonderful time thanks to your perfect organization. Everything worked out well and I really enjoyed all the pagodas, temples and museum I saw, the people I met and of course the food!!Next trip will be Myarmar hope mid February 2008!!In the meantime take great care of you and keep in touch ... do not forget that whenever you want I can be your "guide" in Singapore!Kind regards,

Elisabetta

A Journey into ChildhoodDear Messrs. Merlin, Colonna, and Colomes:I apologize for not sending you a thank you note sooner for your wonderful tour we took in Vietnam. It has been almost a month since our family returned to Miami Beach. It took us a while to get over our jetlag but the trip was worth it.It has been 30 years since I left Saigon. I have been wanting to return to my homeland for many years but was skeptical and insecure in traveling to Vietnam. However, this year marks the 30th wedding anniversary for us (especially we got married in Saigon in November 1974). This reason really pushed me into getting all available information in traveling to Vietnam. Even though I was born in Ha Dong and moved to Saigon in 1954, I know nothing about my country. While living in Saigon, my husband and I and even my family only traveled to Nha Trang, Da Lat and Vung Tau.My sister who lives in Houston found your website and forwarded your information for me to research since I was a travel agent about 17 years ago, have been traveling extensively, and have more knowledge of the travel industry. We were so glad to find Mr. Truong from your HCMC office. Mr. Truong has customized a tour for us to visit from Sapa to Saigon. Let me tell you that Mr. Truong was wonderful and extremely helpful in accommodating our needs and requests. Exotissimo made our visit a wonderful experience and I have been bragging about this tour to my colleagues, friends and families since I got back to Miami Beach. Everywhere we went, from the moment we stepped off the airport, Exotissimo tour guide and driver (Messrs. Hoa and Hung in Sapa, Anh Tuan and Thai in Hanoi, Khai and Dung in Da Nang, and Chi and Sa in Nha Trang down to Saigon) were right there, helping us with our luggage, explaining to us the various historical sites, recommending to us where to eat when the meal plan was not included in the tour, and being very courteous and professional.The one thing that impressed us most was that we were in constant communication with Exotissimo since all your guides and drivers have cell phones. We were contemplating in renting a cell phone once in Vietnam in case of emergency but it turned out that we really did not need it. We felt safe, secured and very happy because Exotissimo took all the worries out of us. We enjoyed visiting all of the cities, shopping, and eating, cruising on the Emeraude in Ha Long Bay, and staying at the various hotels recommended by Mr. Truong. We even stopped at your HCMC office to personally thank Mr. Truong.You can count on us in recommending Exotissimo to anyone who wants to travel to Vietnam. We are planning on getting a group of family members and friends to travel to Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Burma in summer 2006 and you can be sure that Exotissimo is the only one that we will use.Thank you again for your wonderful service. GO EXOTISSIMO!!!!!Jo Jo RussoMiami, Florida

To the Exotissimo team Thank you for organising our trip on the Emeraude. The drive down and back was extremely pleasant in the comfortable car provided and we all had a very good time on the boat. Of course the scenery was superb. We were very relieved that the tour went ahead despite the threatening weather on the day of the 26th September but felt we were in very good hands with your professional team. We are all back at work and have very very fond memories of our time in Vietnam. It was the best holiday we have ever had. Thank you

We've now been back from our holiday for a couple of weeks and just had to write to thank you again for the tour you organized for us in Vietnam.   Everything went smoothly - the 3 guides who took care of us along the way were excellent (friendly, knowledgeable and helpful).  We had some wet weather (but we knew that was likely) and it didn't stop us from doing anything or going anywhere we wanted to go.  We are now getting all our photographs together to show friends and encourage them to visit your beautiful country.  Of course we will recommend that Exotissimo is the only company to book through!!

We will certainly be  keen to do more travelling through your company.  Can you confirm the areas that you cover.  Is it only Vietnam, Thailand and surrounding Asian countries or are there other non-Asian countries??   What areas can you book airline tickets to and from??   Would love to continue our relationship and look forward to hearing from you when you have time.

Kind Regards,

Dianne & Doug

I just want to say Many Many thanks for all your help, all your staff, from guides to drivers were wonderful and everything went really really well.

I can't speak highly enough of your company and staff, both Jane and I would not hesitate in recommending your services.

We had such a great time we have started to save for our next trip back to Vietnam in 2009, and hope to use you again.

If you email me your bosses address I would like to write to him and reiterate how awesome everyone was and how smooth it went for us.

I can't thank you enough. Chris Holliday and Jane Waddell

A quick email just to let you know that our trip was excellent!

Our guide was a very very nice and friendly person, open to suggestions and always smiling. Her French and the knowledge of the places and country's history is fantastic. Our driver was also very good and friendly.

The hotel is very well located and the service is very good.

As usual, exotissimo services were better than expected.

Thanks for everything!!!! Katherin

I wanted to write and thank you so much from our side for the excellent arrangements that you made for us for our tour to Vietnam a week ago.  We were very happy with all that you planned.   Both guides were excellent and we so much enjoyed the company of Mr. Vi Phong Thuy.  He has a great personality and was really flexible with us in all ways.  We had a great time together.

We thought that the biking on the Ho Chi MInh trail was an exceptional experience.  Just for future knowledge, it is rather challenging, with all of the hills to climb and possibly a bit dangerous at night with the bandits in the woods, but very beautiful. I did not feel insecure at all.  It was really important to have the support vehicle with us, though, at all times, and the driver was also excellent.  We preferred to stay closer than the Laotian border because of the distances, and we thank you for your willingness to change the schedule when requested.  Biking on the coastal road was really beautiful, and being able to visit the DMZ and the cemetery and the river meant a lot to us because of the war history.  Lastly, Ha Long Bay was so mystic and beautiful in the fog.  We enjoyed the kayaking and the junk was very luxurious.  It was amazing to have the boat all to ourselves for two days!!!

I will be happy to recommend your travel agency to my friends here in the U.S. who wish to travel to Vietnam.

With best regards, and again, many thanks,Sherry, Matthew and Corinne Stephenson

Sherry StephensonDirectorDepartment of Trade, Tourism and CompetitivenessOrganization of American States (OAS)Executive Secretariat for Integral Development / SEDI

I am writing to say thank you so much for a truly amazing experience in Vietnam. Everything ran so smoothly from start to finish. The guides were excellent with a wealth of interesting information and very good English. Nguyen van Thuyen in particular was outstanding for his knowledge, command of English and his really caring attitude towards our children. The drivers and standard of transport were also excellent and it made such a difference not having to wait around for buses/trains but just to get going!

Vietnam is a beautiful, charming and welcoming country. We saw so many varied things - we all particularly enjoyed our time around the Mekong. Relaxing on the water and travelling around on the boats was wonderful. The temple of literature and Ho Chi Minh memorial and home in Hanoi were beautiful and amazing sights to involve us in and teach us about Vietnamese culture straight away.The boat cruise on the Emeraude was amazing - luxurious, indulgent and truly magical in the morning as the mist shrouded the rocks in Ha Long bay. We all stood (including the children!) in silence, spell-bound by the peace and beauty of the place. The Cham temple at Mai Son was also a wonderful experience - walking around such ancient remains in such a beautiful setting with multi-coloured butterflies everywhere will stay in our minds for a long time. But then so many things were great!!

The only down side was - and this was our fault - with young children we possibly did too much early on. In future we would timetable more 'days off' or visit fewer things in the time. Having said this though, our guides took account of this and when the children were flagging they suggested an early finish. In central Vietnam on a couple of days there really was too much on the schedule and there was a bit of pressure to see it all. We had to really push NOT to go to places twice and to emphasise that we didn't mind missing a sight! My only 2 suggestions would be that if families with young children book in future that they are made aware of the time it takes to travel between places in Vietnam (for example, we didn't realise that it would take so long to get to the Cao Dai temple and we would probably have just gone to the Cu Chi tunnels and then spent the afternoon in Saigon if we had known.) since even in KL distances are covered much quicker! Also, to be more realistic than we were about how much you can realistically see in the time; again in Hue, a temple, 3 mausoleums and the Imperial city was really too much to try to cover in 1 day and you end up not enjoying what you see because the children become tired, bored or unhappy.

However, we really got a good feel for Vietnam through seeing all the varied things and there was a great mix between modern and ancient culture. The Imperial city was an eye opener, none of us having known there was such a thing in Vietnam and it was a wonderful place to wander around. In contrast the 20th century presidential palace in Saigon was fascinating because of the part it played in modern history - in events that we recollect.

The restaurants we ate in, particularly those recommended by the guides, were excellent with mouth watering food - we could have spent the holiday simply eating we loved the Vietnamese cuisine so much!!

The hotels too were excellent. They were clean, comfortable, welcoming (and often totally luxurious!) I can honestly say that I have NEVER stayed in such wonderful hotels as those in Vietnam. The rooms were spacious - we never felt cramped even with the extra beds- and the pools, restaurants etc were all excellent. Every time we stopped at a new hotel we wandered around going 'Wow!' at the rooms and facilities!! The Residence in Hue was outstanding - I cannot rate our room highly enough. Also in Hoi An and Cantho the luxury resort feel of the places really helped us to unwind and relax together. As you know the only complaint we had was about the Star in Saigon but you very quickly sorted this out for us. Having been a 'backpacker' for many years I would say that the Star has an excellent location but the rooms were over priced for the accomodation - I have stayed in many places of the same standard (but much cleaner) for a much better rate. The breakfast was awful and the rooms and towels smelt horrible! My husband was also asked if he wanted ' a woman for the night' outside the hotel and IN the hotel lift!!

So, in summary - THANK YOU! for a really great holiday. I cannot recommend Exotissimo highly enough. ( I had to photocopy your card to give to so many people and I have already given those away too!) I can honestly say to people that if they book with you they will have a great holiday - with eveything running efficiently and smoothly from start to finish.

I look forward to future holidays with Exotissimo.

Best wishes,Louise van Steveninck

Just thought I would drop you a line to thank you for organising what turned out to be a really good trip to Vietnam for my family and myself.  Everybody who went (all 18 of us) enjoyed the trip thoroughly.  The hotels were good (especially the Furama Resort) and the junk trip in Halong Bay was a highlight for everyone.  Considering how many people there were, with many different arrangements for arrival and departure, the transfers and transportation arrangements worked pretty smoothly, despite one or two slight delays.  We also found the guides who took us around Hanoi and Hoi An to be very pleasant, courteous and knowledgeable, and to be very fluent in English.

For myself, I certainly hope to visit Vietnam again, and to see some other parts of the country.  I look forward to meeting you if and when we make it to HCMC.

Some other friends of mine have recently mentioned that they are thinking of making a trip to Vietnam this year, and I have recommended that they contact you to make arrangements for them.  I will give your contact details to them, so hopefully you will hear from them later this year.

Thanks once again,

Aarif

I just wanted to thank you.  We absolutely loved Vietnam and you put together a really terrific itinerary.  I'm referring a couple of my friends to you, as I would highly recommend your services.  You live in a remarkable country.  We will be back.My best wishes Camilla

I cannot recommend anyone more highly than Exotissimo.  It is a highly reputable organization, mostly French owned and absolutely the best for Southeast Asia (The French do have a long history in SE Asia!).

In Myanmar credit cards and travellers checks are not accepted so payment must be in cash.  We paid 30% in advance and were to have paid the balance on arrival (most companies usually want all before arrival).  Not wanting to carry too much cash, I paid all in advance.  No problem.  If you go to Myanmar, make sure you carry brand new (not good condition, but brand new) $100 bills to change them (we were also advised not to change at the airport where the rate was 40% of what our guide was able to get in town).  

We rarely do prearranged, guided trips but it is a good idea in Myanmar.  Everything was excellent; the guides were great and spent more time than was scheduled.  The vehicles were roomy and airconditioned … intended for more than the 4 of us and guide and driver … and relatively comfortable – not brand new and a little worn by the rough roads in Myanmar but quite suitable. 

We were 4; when we began planning the trip we were in Paris, where the other couple live, and we went to the agency Voyageurs du Monde.  The price seemed quite high and we checked on the internet.  We had used Exotissimo once before in Vientiane to hire a car and driver to go to the north of Laos. Exotissimo turned out to be less than half the price for the same or better facilities.

For Vietnam we just had Exotissimo book hotels, internal air travel and some ground transport.  We have been to Vietnam quite a few times and had no guides, but Ms Thuy arranged everything as we requested.   She even met us in Saigon and took us to dinner!  Be sure and ask for Phi Thu if you are going to Vietnam. 

We used the Bangkok office only to book flights between BKK, Yangon and Vietnam (we always fly into Bangkok and move from there); we had booked directly on Thai Air but there was some problem picking up the paper tickets to we asked the Bangkok office to help us out.  'Wim” rebooked the flights and then told us that the wire that I sent was several hundred dollars too much, as she had rebooked at a lower fare than Thai had originally quoted. I would never have known.  We chose to have the refund in Baht and when we arrived in Bangkok, the tickets and money were waiting at the hotel.

If Myanmar is in your thoughts, do not hesitate.  Getting in and out of Myanmar is less a hassel than clearing US immigration.  It is a very safe country for tourists and there are very comfortable hotels.  If you are troubled about spending money that goes to a corrupt regime, just remember that much of your money can be spent in the local markets and that it gives jobs to local people.  I believe 'outsiders” should travel there to 'look and listen.”

I hope this is helpful to you.  If you tell me where you are planning to go, I might be able to give more specific advice.  We have also been in Cambodia (Angkor, only) and Malaysia but are most experienced with Vietnam and Thailand.   If you are thinking Myanmar, I am e-mailing you the itinerary for the 15 day trip we did.   We live in Chicago; I assume you are in D.C.?

Regards - Elliot

This email is to thank you for the arrangements that Extisimo provided for our recent visit to Vietnam.

The level of service provided was of the highest level and met all expectations.

In particular

The prompt and efficient front office dealings through the internet were completed in a timely and informative manner with no problems developing throughout the itinerary (very professional). Entry Visa's (Hanoi) provided without any problems and no delays on arrival. Hotels were all of the expected standard. Hanoi Metropole a charming facility. All guides were exceptional, being fluent in English, knowledgeable and willing to share this knowledge. We found Bau (Hanoi), Quan (Hue and Hoi An), and Huong (Saigon) all to be pleasant, friendly, humorous and a delight to travel with throughout the two weeks. The drivers and the vehicles used were of a high standard with good respect for passenger safety. Flights arranged with Vietnam Airlines were on time for departure, new aircraft and in-flight service better than many western airlines. Da Nang airport the only facility that falls behind expectations.

Once again thanks for all your effort in planning this itinerary for us, We have no hesitation recommending Extissimo to any prospective traveller to SE Asia. 

Regards - Lance and Louise