South East Asia Loop

3 Reviews

Excellent

67%

Good

0%

Average

0%

Rather Poor

33%

Bad

0%

• 

  kate
  Written on June 6, 2017

  4.5 - Excellent

  The Great Indochina Loop actually consists of three smaller tours. The Thailand Laos tour, The Southbound Vietnam, and the Cambodia tour. If I had to rate the trip as a whole I would say it was a great trip! I had excellent tour leaders, and the travelers on my tours were great as well. Ages ranged from about 23-60 yrs old. But the median age was 30s which was great. The accommodations in Laos weren't the best, but it really got better in Vietnam and (surprisingly) Cambodia. None of the places were gross or unfit for sleeping though! The cities we visited were all very interesting and I had a lot of fun in each one. Even in the stopover town Pak Beng in Laos. However, they were all in very touristy places. Which is good and bad I suppose. Good in that the locals were able to accommodate us better and knew some English, but bad because it felt like an outsider's perspective at best. I think if I really wanted to get an authentic feel, I would have to travel without a tour group and spend more time in each city. Although, that is not to say it was inauthentic, it was just...not as authentic as it could have been. Looking back, I am glad I did a tour group instead of travelling alone through Mainland SE Asia. I just think that the tour guide really adds a lot of background information to the cities and the included activities. It was like having insider information that you would not get going by yourself or with a small group. We went during the Thai and Laos New year which was amazing. We learned a lot about how they celebrate during this time from our tour leaders Arjan and Tui. The tour leaders also take care of you if something happens and they speak the local language which can be super helpful if something happens or even at restaurants. Additionally, I think on an Intrepid tour it is easier to book smaller activities that you may not find out about otherwise. Yes they make a commision, but some of the optional activities were great value for your money. LIke cooking classes in Chiang Mai, bike tours, the bowl boat experience in Vietnam etc. The pace at the beginning of the Vietnam tour was very rushed feeling. A lot of people were just starting the Vietnam tour, but me and a few others were continuing on from Laos. Once we flew into Hanoi, it felt like non stop moving. I thought it was a bit stressful. I preferred the pace in Thailand/Laos and Cambodia. I think maybe an extra night in Hanoi for the people continuing on from Laos would have been ideal, even if it meant a night without a tour leader. I had a not so great experience in Central America on an Intrepid tour, and was hesitant to do another long tour like this one. However, The Great Indochina Loop was completely different. I loved having local tour leaders! They really made the difference. Arjan Boonyoung (Thailand), Tui (Laos), Hoàng Trung (Vietnam), and Sam Pich (Cambodia) were the best tour leaders ever! They all worked VERY hard to ensure we all had a great time and were well taken care of! They all were so patient and listened to each of us and took care of our concerns and questions. I felt very lucky I was travelling with such a cool bunch of fellow travelers as well. Some of my favorite memories were Songkran in Chiang Mai, the white temple in Chiang Rai, the slow boat tour in Thailand and Laos, Luang Prabang markets and local culture, kayaking in Vang Vieng, nightlife in Hanoi, the beauty of Halong Bay, the cyclo tour and culture tours in Hue, the markets and food in Hoi An, the coffee and hustle and bustle of Saigon, and the ANGKOR WAT tour was absolutely amazing. I made many more memories thanks to great tour leaders and friends I met on the way, but these are the ones that stand out the most.

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• 

  Nathan
  Written on December 14, 2015

  4.5 - Excellent

  This tour was an excellent way to see Indochina with great guides and their knowledge, activities, accommodation what more could you ask for.

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• E

  Emily
  Written on August 26, 2014

  2.0 - Rather poor

  I did a Intrepid Indochina Loop 5 years ago and recently took my wife on this trip.......shocking how things have gone down hill to say the least since they became a corporate conglomerate with their $300 million merger with Tui Travel. 1) Intrepid now takes commision on every optional activity you do. From kayaking, to cooking class, balloon rides, Tonle Sap boat rides, intrepid takes a cut. That $300 carpet you bought In turkey.....Intrepid takes more than 20% of what you spend. That $200 Cappadocia ballon ride.....Intrepid takes a cut. Even the recommended tailor shops in Vietnam Intrepid takes a cut of. 2) tour leader is not allowed to book ANY activities Intrepid has not approved. We literally showed up in some places and the leader was not allowed to book or recommend a single activity. 3) intrepid is now a monopoly with their new company PEAK adventure Travel and they own 22 companies. Intrepid now operates trips for Geckos, Peregrine, Exodus, Dragoman. It is no longer the grassroots company it once claimed to be. Their tour leaders now run trips for all their companies, they just switch shirts and they're suddenly a leader for one of their other companies. 4) they've gotten rid of all foreign tour guides and pay local leaders a third of what they paid the westerners. This makes the tour guide desperate for money and constantly taking us to horrible restaurants because they get a commision. In short, don't book the trip expecting a company out to serve its customers, today it is out to serve its shareholders as it is a huge corporate monopoly which is trying to own the entire Adventure Travel industry.

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