Having lurked here for a number of months, I have planned our family's first trip to SE Asia this Dec/Jan. There are some questions that despite many searches, I can't seem to pin down an exact answer. So if you are a frequent visitor to this part of the world and can take a moment and offer any advice to any of the below questions, I would greatly appreciate it.

Basics of the trip:
Bangkok - 3 nights
Phnom Penh - 4 nights - visting family
Siem Reap - 3 nights
Hanoi - 4 nights
Bangkok - 2 nights

Bangkok Questions:

1. I've contact Tong but she is booked, so offered Tom. I'm trusting her suggestion based on all your good reviews. So do you tip the guide in addition to what ever the daily rate is? Does it make a difference if you have them for a couple days?

2. SJ International - Kathie has mentioned about visiting Lily here and I'm all for it. Do I just call them from the hotel once we are ready to go and they send a car? Do I need to give them any advance notice? Any idea how long it will take to get there from the Hilton?

3. Tailors - have seen postings of where to go, but didn't know how acceptable it was to ask the guide to go with us on our way to or from another site. Any input or advice. My husband is excited about this but don't want it to dominate our time in Bangkok.

Phnom Penh - No questions here, but if you are in the city, go to Rubies and visit Chad & Kerry, my sister and brother-in-law.

Hanoi - We've booked rooms at the Hilton. We will be there over New Year's. I've tried contacting the hotel via 2 email addresses but without response.

1. Does anyone know what goes on in Hanoi over New Year's? Should I obsess over dinner reservations somewhere? I say obsess because we had originally planned to be in Luang Prabang over New Year's but most everything was sold out. Don't want to run into problems in Hanoi.

2. Also, we want to do a day trip to Halong Bay (I know... it should be an overnight). I've also tried to ask the Hilton this, but wondering if anyone has had good luck with a tour company there for just a day trip. We are looking for a private tour for our group. Again, with this being high season, don't want to arrive and find everything already full.

3. The ceramic village - would love to visit here but probably won't have time. Is there a store in Hanoi that carries the same quality ceramics as you find at the village?

And a special thanks to Kathie, Bob and GPanda for all their posts over the years. It has made for some informative and sometimes entertaining reading!

It sounds like a wonderful trip!

I can answer a few questions.

As for SJ International, call them and they will send a car. They open at 10:00 am, so I often call about 9:30 so I get there not long after they open. Since the Hilton is on the "wrong" side of the river, they may want to pick you up at River City where the Hilton has a reception area. Ask them where they would like to pick you up. The Hilton has a boat to River City. At that hour of the day, it will take about twenty minutes from River City to the store. (Note: they may just prefer to pick you up at the hotel, in which case it will take a bit longer to get to the store.)

A guide is in your employ, so if you want them to go with you to the tailor's, they will. However, you have a very short time in Bangkok, so I'm not sure it's realistic to get suits done with just two days. You also don't want to spend too much of your time with your guide having clothing fitted! Fittings can take time.

The one thing you may want to check in Hanoi is whether your hotel has a mandatory New Year's eve dinner. In my experience, those are more common at resorts and less common in the cities, but do ask. If you have somewhere special you'd like for dinner that night, you could ask the concierge to make advance reservations for you. By the way, I've had variable success with emailing hotels directly. I think that websites often don't have up-to-date email addresses. Call the Hilton 800 number and ask for an email address for the concierge. The Hilton 800 number should also know whether you are being charged for a mandatory NYE gala.

For crafts in gerneral, I recommend Craftlink (across the street from the Temple of Literature). They had some nice ceramics when I was there.

You may want to decide when you get there whether to go to Halong Bay for a day. It's really a long day, and if the weather is cloudy and misty you may wish you had stayed in Hanoi, as there is plenty to do and see there. Good weather makes the trip to Halong Bay much nicer.

Kathie: Thanks for the quick info. So does Lily work at SJ most days? Should I make sure she is there before I go? And thanks for all the purchases over the years that paves the way for the rest of us...

Oops... forgot... we have 3 full days at the beginning and 2 full days at the end. Is it possible to do a fitting the 1st and 3rd days and then one during the return? Do these fittings take over the day? Or are they 1 hour undertakings?

Oh, that will work out great then. Yes, plan to do two fittings at the beginning, and one on your second stay in Bangkok. Depending on your time and the tailor's time, the tailor may want two fitting on the same day ay the beginning. You have enough time to make it all work out. Most of the time a fitting would be an hour or less. Sometimes it's quite short, maybe 15 minutes, just to fine-tune something. If you have something really complicated, the fittings will take longer.

Your time spent with a tailor will depend on where you are coming from - travel around Bangkok is not fast and even if you spend only 1/2 hour for a fitting, you may spend 45 minutes each way getting to and from the tailor. My experience has been that it is unlikely that you can do 2 fittings in one day so don't count on it. It is realistic to do fittings on days one and three and to finish up when you return. It all depends on what else you plan to accomplish.

Kathie: Can you please note the follow up question regarding Lily? Thanks.

Oh, thanks for pointing out the follow-up question, I had missed it. Lily does work most days. However, if she is not there, emphasize that you were sent by Kathie from Seattle who recommended Lily. Whoever helps you will then know to give you "wholesale" prices.

Craig, is of course, right about how long it can take to get to and from the tailor. I've had several times when the tailor was nearby (say 5 minutes away) and they have then preferred to do two fittings in a day.

If you go to a tailor with your guide, it is very likely that the guide will get a commission. However, Bob recommends JS Thai in River City for women's clothes. This is a very easy cross-river ferry from the Hilton and would be simple to arrange your fittings. For men's clothes, he suggests Jack at the Marriott. You could take the hilton boat to Taksin pier and the marriott boat to the marriott or a simple taxi ride down the street (much faster).

Gpanda: Thanks for the info. Do you know the name of the tailor near the Marriott or have an address? Not really interested in women's clothing... going to spend my efforts and pennies at SJ Intl...

the tailors name is jack and his shop is monet il sarto on the 2nd level of the mini mall overlooking the parking lot out front....tell him bob and karen sent you...

at js thai silk in river city we see ms yai....again tell her we sent you...fabulous stuff...mostly all silk...they can work very quickly...allow 2 fittings...know what you want in advance..