Japan expert: Queenie Yang

“We were very happy with our holiday in Vietnam and Cambodia organised through Rough Guides with Juliana from Odynovo. While arranging the itinerary we FaceTimed Juliana and sent messages to confirm preferences and ask questions. Juliana was quick to respond and action all requests. She made suggestions to give us the best experience within our budget. We started in Hanoi with Tuan as our guide - he was a fantastic guide with great insight and information about the history of northern Vietnam and how life has changed in his lifetime. Is food tour helped orientate us and inform us about traditional dishes. He also gave excellent suggestions where to eat in the evenings. He tailored our days to suit our interests and ensured we knew how to meet up with tours organised with other agencies. He was wonderful! After a luxurious overnight cruise in Halong Bay Tuan made sure we were able to catch the overnight train to Da Nang which was great fun. In Da Nang we were met by Qwac who was kind and helpful during our stay, we were able to get superb tailor made dresses and trousers on his recommendation at Blue clothing. Our driver Tuang greeted us with cold water and flannels as needed. We had booked homestay at Jackfruit and were initially disappointed to be staying next door as we had liked the look of Jackfruit. Very glad we stayed as the family were kind and we enjoyed lovely breakfasts and they helped us with laundry giving us an authentic homestay experience which is what we wanted. Kim made our stay in Saigon amazing- particularly during our day trip to the Mekong River Delta. She was fun, very knowledgeable and interesting about the history and current affairs. Kim gave good recommendations for activities in our down time, helped us negotiate tipping and was a godsend ensuring we were at the right gate for check in for our flight to Cambodia. In Cambodia we met our guide, Sun who has been incredibly attentive with our driver Mr Ya. He has not only recommended but also booked restaurants and transport in the evenings. He arranged late check out without being asked for our final day. He adapted the itinerary with our agreement to avoid being out at the hottest part of the day. Mr Ya is always ready with ice cold water and icy flannels on our return to the air-conditioned car after exploring temples. Overall we have been incredibly impressed with booking through Rough Guides - thank you so much, we are already thinking about our next trip and will certainly come back to Rough Guides.”

“Great Service. From the planning stage to the execution everything worked well. The planning stage is what I think is most important and with the help our Rough Guides expert (Sunny) we worked through 3 different itinerary's before settling on the final one. Our Vietnam experience was terrific thanks to our wonderful guides. Everything was as planned and easily adjusted when needed. I would highly recommend using Rough Guides.”

“We had a really good time and loved Vietnam. Our guides in Hanoi and Siagon were both excellent, knowledgeable and were obviously proud of their country. We enjoyed the rest and beach time in Phu Quoc and probably would have explored a bit more if Lynn had been better, but it didn't really change much. The food was really good. Having a guide with a driver in the hot conditions enabled us to cover more areas and see more. We only had two weeks and did; Hanoi, Halong Bay, Saigon, Mekong Delta and some beach time on Phu Quoc. All flights and transfers were on time, our contact responded quickly to any questions. Highlights; walking round Hanoi after dark Vespa bike tour in Saigon The food ! If you have more time then build in some time for just you to potter around and explore yourselves.”