rjbriskin

My husband and I, in our early 50's , are just getting started to plan a 10-12 day trip to Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand in early October with another couple.
We like to stay in upscale hotels and go to upscale restaurants and love to see all the sites. We would love guidance for our itnerary, order of places to go to, hotels to stay in and restaurants to go to as well as MUST things to do. Any advice and help will be greatly appreciated.

Kathie

You are planning to see three countries in 10-12 days. If you have 12 days on the ground, that could get you one place in each country, or you could concentrate on one country.

First, how much time do you really have on the ground in SE Asia? Remember that if you are flying from the US, you'll lose a day or two. Also, October tends to be pretty rainy in this area. Is there another time you could go? November would be better.

Frankly, I wouldn't advise three countries in your limited time. For a first trip, I'd suggest flying into Bangkok, spending some time there, then flying to Siem Reap, Cambodia to visit the temples at Angkor. Get a copy of Dawn Rooney's book, Angkor: A Guide to Cambodia's Wondrous Temples to prepare. From there you could opt for another Thai location. I'd recommend flying to Chiang Rai (you'll have to fly via Bangkok) and going to the Anantara at the Golden Triangle. This will give you a chance to see a more rural part of Thailand than you'd see from Chiang Mai, and the hotel is really lovely.

There are many, many fabulous hotels in Bangkok. I always advise to stay along the river. Perhaps the Pen or the Oriental would suit you. In Siem Reap Hotel de la Paix is lovely.

Save VN for a trip by itself. Two weeks would get you three or four locations in VN.

rhkkmk

i agree... take bkk and one other place in that short of time

yestravel

I would choose either VN or Thailand for that amount of time. U could spend 4 days in BKK, 3 days in Siem Reap and 4 days in Hanoi but it might be rushing it a bit. Important to factor in jet lag depending upon where u are coming from and also the weather. The heat can make for slow going.

Suggest u do a search and look at some of the TR's that have been posted to get an idea of what there is to do and places to stay & eat. As I recall there is a post on restaurant recs in Siem Reap and Hanoi. I've got an ongoing TR that covers all three destinations and there are lots others to look at.

Craig

For a first-timers trip, I suggest Bangkok, Siem Reap and either a beach or rural destination such as northern Thailand. As others have suggested, do stay on the river in Bangkok - my preferred hotel is the Peninsula but there are other fine hotels on the river that might also appeal to you. You cannot go wrong with the Hotel de la Paix in Siem Reap but it has changed ownership since I stayed there. Others will chime in on the rest. If you have more time, consider Hanoi and the Sophitel Metropol.

Craig

That's Sofitel Metropole...

yestravel

I was told Hotel de la Paix in SR is closing either this month or June.

sf7307

I thought it was being rebadged, not closing. Is it closing for remodeling in connection with the brand change?

We had wanted to stay at the HDLP, but they couldn't accommodate us one night, so we stayed at La Residence d'Angkor instead, and it is very very lovely. We spent a lot of time at the very beautiful pool!

We didn't stay there, but walked through the Sofitel Metropole in Hanoi and it's gorgeous.

yestravel

Correct, sf. closing for renovations and opening as a Hyatt
http://www.examiner.com/article/top-...yatt-siem-reap