SmarTours Vietnam Discovery
Jan 23rd, 2008, 09:37 AM
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SmarTours Vietnam Discovery
WOW what a trip – what value – what fun. The purpose of this posting is to critique the tour and the company, which few people do. We just returned January 11, 2008.
Other postings have recommended hotels and restaurants and please seek them out, but on an organized tour, you don’t have your choice of hotels or the people you travel with. You can eat elsewhere for food and you need not participate completely – you do have these options.
We are an active, healthy 50 plus year old couple who have generally traveled on our own with another couple and have never traveled on an organized tour before.
We are well-seasoned travelers. We decided partly because of age and partly because of where we were going to “give in” and take an organized tour. A friend of ours had gone on several organized Friendly Planet holidays. The two companies appear to be quite similar in their approach, cost and quality of tours.
We chose SmarTours Vietnam Discovery because of better dates and because we wanted to see Bangkok, although seeing Bangkok may have created too much pressure on us and the group at large.
In truth, I think the Vietnam Tour with SmarTours would have been better off without Bangkok, flying directly to Cambodia and starting there, as Friendly Planet now does, but then we might not have had our wonderful guide.
The two nights and one day in Bangkok was difficult. We arrived in Bangkok, around midnight, after more than 24 hours of traveling and by the time we got settled in our hotel (Holiday Inn), not great, it was almost 3:00 AM. We had several problems with our hotel accommodation; first being assigned a dirty room, then a room with someone in it. Finally, we got an upgraded room, but would only go in the room after the hotel staff checked it out.
It was almost 3:00 AM when we finally settled down in our room, with a wake-up call for 6:30. Jet lag, jet lag – lack of sleep made the first day arduous.
We saw the Temples, as set out in the itinerary, the Buddhas and although not on the itinerary – a must visit was to the Grand Palace. The only evening we had (Day 3), we went to the Night Market and Patpong to get an evening feel of Bangkok. We should have avoided the included dinner, as it was a less than a special buffet in the hotel because there are such great restaurants that could have been explored and we are sorry we didn’t venture out.
We stuck around because it was described as a Welcome Dinner and did not want to appear as not being part of the group. It really wasn’t a Welcome Dinner as everyone ate separately and at different times.
Breakfasts – all generally very good and filling – some better than others depending on the hotel.
Lunches – when included generally mediocre. I felt the time for the lunches could have been shortened or avoided in certain cases and allow an earlier return to hotel or more free time and/or get something to eat on your own, but I assume they are done to give some of the older people a chance to rest from the fast paced trip.
Dinners – the ones that are included dinners generally should be avoided and you should try and head out on your own, which we did most of the time. Check out restaurants before you go and get the concierge or your guide to make reservations for you, when you arrive or ask for recommendations.
We experienced a great massage from Wat Pho that our guide arranged in our hotel room in Bangkok and the next morning we took a Longtail Boat on the river. Don’t be afraid to go out on your own and explore. Fortunately our flight was not until the afternoon giving us this time.
Most of the time, we understand that the flight to Siem Reap leaves early in the morning and the boat ride, which was one of our highlights and gave us some great insight into the City and the people would have been missed. At least half the people on the trip had been to Bangkok, so the time spent there most felt could have been better used elsewhere. Leaving out Bangkok should be considered, as I understand SmarTours has a wonderful trip of Amazing Thailand, which we would definitely consider.
Our guide – Nee was the best. She is from Bangkok and was with us from when we landed until we departed several weeks later in Hanoi. Kudos to her.
We left - Day 4 to Siem Reap and got there too late to visit Angkor Wat, which we discovered the next day was exquisite. The Hotel Angkor Century was great – the people and staff – courteous – the Spa – where I experienced massage number three was upscale - a little more expensive than Bangkok. We did not eat with the group (most advised us we were smart). We ate at the FCC a highly recommended restaurant.
Day 5 – the full day excursion to Angkor was wonderful. It was a long day and included a sunset view after walking up many stairs that a few hearty souls took advantage of. Day 5 for us was New Years Eve and the hotel took great efforts to make it memorable. Even the dinner, which was included, was the best by far. The location of the hotel is an easy tuk-tuk (5 minutes) into town – a dollar or so.
Day 6 – I would not use the word “relaxing” when describing the boat trip as SmarTours says in their brochure. It was “life on the river” – leading to the Lake - dirty – poverty – dense – a misery. An insight of Cambodian life might be more appropriate. The poverty was in many cases worse than anything we had seen in India the previous year.
Then onto Saigon – western – western – explore on your own. We found our time very short in Saigon – would have preferred some additional time – busy - busy.
It you don’t want to waste time 60 – 90 minutes eating lunch, venture off and see something yourself and meet up back at the restaurant or don’t later on. Large breakfasts followed by large lunches make fat happy buddhas, which should be avoided.
The Hotel was quite adequate – not quite 5 star (Equatorial) and a good spa – very reasonably priced.
Restaurants: (Hoi An, Temple Club etc.) Even had a great Pho at Pho 24.
Day 7 – Cu Chi Tunnels – as a Canadian, I can say as I said in the 60’s – the Americans should never have gone into the war and when you see the Tunnels and the Mekong Delta (great visit) and the topography of Vietnam you know there is no way the Americans could have won. Unfortunately some of the indiscriminate bombing destroyed a lot of the beautiful buildings in Vietnam.
Day 8 – Thank goodness it appears the hotel in Hoi An has changed. The hotel we stayed at (Hoi An Pacific) was very disappointing. We couldn’t even get pillows and had water leaking in our room all over our clothes. Finally at 1:00 AM we got transferred to a much better room. We shouldn’t have been put in this situation.
Day 9 - Hoi An is interesting – too many tailors – and most on our tour had problems with what they had made. Be careful if you want to experience. We had our clothes washed – pretty cheap – even negotiated for that. Never got a chance to visit the beach or ride some bicycles.
Had a wonderful foot massage – best in my life in Hoi An. Try a cooking class on your own.
Great restaurants – Mango Rooms, Cargo, Brothers.
Day 10 - Hue – the best day – wonderful buildings and things to see – and the best hotel and the best dinner we had included by far. Wonderful spa. It appears that the trip next year stays here for two nights – lucky you – that is what we would have wanted.
Day 11 – Wonderful buildings, artifacts, cruise in Hue.
Day 12 – We went to Hanoi which is a great city – great food – wonderful restaurants – ice cream - lakes, trees, French Architecture – lots to see – Hanoi Hilton, Puppets – SmarTours gets all the highlights. SmarTours next year will go to Halong Bay first and stay over. You lose a night in Hanoi but it makes your trip to the Bay more relaxing – Halong Bay and the caves are certainly worth seeing.
Day 13 – Book some great restaurants to eat at night – enjoy yourself. (Green Tangerine, Emperor, Seasons of Hanoi etc. etc.)
Again the final dinner was all right and many of the lunches were at best mediocre. They could have picked a better spot for a few dollars more but maybe the better restaurants won’t take a group of 35.
Take the Extension offered. They did not have it last year.
All in all – great value, generally good to great hotels, great guides – our tour director was wonderful as were most of the local guides. The only problem from a cost factor is that you feel you are tipping twice – once to the tour director (worth everything) as well as to the local guides, but not a big deal.
Nee could have guided us everywhere and done everything except apparently the law requires a local Cambodian Guide in Cambodia, a local Saigon guide in Saigon etc., Rely on your tour director- our tour director was fantastic and arranged extra things to do – suggested Cooking Classes, Massages, Shops, Things to do, etc. etc.
Food – a little too much as was said before – mediocre most of it. However there were a number of vegetarians and a number of people who would not eat pork or shellfish. They were accommodated quite easily and there was always something to eat.
Drinks were extra and the “drink menus” created for the tourists were ripping us off. We would go into a fancy restaurant on our own and order a beer for $2 and the “lunch place” was charging $3 for beer in a second rate lunch place. You could pay if on your own 50 cents for a beer at a local place. Many people ended up bringing water from the bus or hotel after a couple of days.
I feel the tour company should spend an extra few dollars per meal and eat at some better restaurants – again not all were bad to mediocre, but some. Also include a soft drink or water with each meal - in the price for less grumbling.
People: The people on the tour ranged from age 43 to 77 – all with an incredible spirit and want to travel. Most were aged 55 – 65. Many were repeat customers. Made some good friends we hope to keep in touch with.
There even was a couple who were 30 years old. I didn’t include them because we never saw them – they took the tour for the flights and hotels. They toured on their own. We only saw them going to and from the airport. They said they could not have flown over and stayed in the hotels and the internal travel for what they paid - so a bargain.
Take your vaccination shots; take your Purell, take your sense of adventure. SmarTours gives good value and runs a well-organized fast paced tour.
Other postings have recommended hotels and restaurants and please seek them out, but on an organized tour, you don’t have your choice of hotels or the people you travel with. You can eat elsewhere for food and you need not participate completely – you do have these options.
We are an active, healthy 50 plus year old couple who have generally traveled on our own with another couple and have never traveled on an organized tour before.
We are well-seasoned travelers. We decided partly because of age and partly because of where we were going to “give in” and take an organized tour. A friend of ours had gone on several organized Friendly Planet holidays. The two companies appear to be quite similar in their approach, cost and quality of tours.
We chose SmarTours Vietnam Discovery because of better dates and because we wanted to see Bangkok, although seeing Bangkok may have created too much pressure on us and the group at large.
In truth, I think the Vietnam Tour with SmarTours would have been better off without Bangkok, flying directly to Cambodia and starting there, as Friendly Planet now does, but then we might not have had our wonderful guide.
The two nights and one day in Bangkok was difficult. We arrived in Bangkok, around midnight, after more than 24 hours of traveling and by the time we got settled in our hotel (Holiday Inn), not great, it was almost 3:00 AM. We had several problems with our hotel accommodation; first being assigned a dirty room, then a room with someone in it. Finally, we got an upgraded room, but would only go in the room after the hotel staff checked it out.
It was almost 3:00 AM when we finally settled down in our room, with a wake-up call for 6:30. Jet lag, jet lag – lack of sleep made the first day arduous.
We saw the Temples, as set out in the itinerary, the Buddhas and although not on the itinerary – a must visit was to the Grand Palace. The only evening we had (Day 3), we went to the Night Market and Patpong to get an evening feel of Bangkok. We should have avoided the included dinner, as it was a less than a special buffet in the hotel because there are such great restaurants that could have been explored and we are sorry we didn’t venture out.
We stuck around because it was described as a Welcome Dinner and did not want to appear as not being part of the group. It really wasn’t a Welcome Dinner as everyone ate separately and at different times.
Breakfasts – all generally very good and filling – some better than others depending on the hotel.
Lunches – when included generally mediocre. I felt the time for the lunches could have been shortened or avoided in certain cases and allow an earlier return to hotel or more free time and/or get something to eat on your own, but I assume they are done to give some of the older people a chance to rest from the fast paced trip.
Dinners – the ones that are included dinners generally should be avoided and you should try and head out on your own, which we did most of the time. Check out restaurants before you go and get the concierge or your guide to make reservations for you, when you arrive or ask for recommendations.
We experienced a great massage from Wat Pho that our guide arranged in our hotel room in Bangkok and the next morning we took a Longtail Boat on the river. Don’t be afraid to go out on your own and explore. Fortunately our flight was not until the afternoon giving us this time.
Most of the time, we understand that the flight to Siem Reap leaves early in the morning and the boat ride, which was one of our highlights and gave us some great insight into the City and the people would have been missed. At least half the people on the trip had been to Bangkok, so the time spent there most felt could have been better used elsewhere. Leaving out Bangkok should be considered, as I understand SmarTours has a wonderful trip of Amazing Thailand, which we would definitely consider.
Our guide – Nee was the best. She is from Bangkok and was with us from when we landed until we departed several weeks later in Hanoi. Kudos to her.
We left - Day 4 to Siem Reap and got there too late to visit Angkor Wat, which we discovered the next day was exquisite. The Hotel Angkor Century was great – the people and staff – courteous – the Spa – where I experienced massage number three was upscale - a little more expensive than Bangkok. We did not eat with the group (most advised us we were smart). We ate at the FCC a highly recommended restaurant.
Day 5 – the full day excursion to Angkor was wonderful. It was a long day and included a sunset view after walking up many stairs that a few hearty souls took advantage of. Day 5 for us was New Years Eve and the hotel took great efforts to make it memorable. Even the dinner, which was included, was the best by far. The location of the hotel is an easy tuk-tuk (5 minutes) into town – a dollar or so.
Day 6 – I would not use the word “relaxing” when describing the boat trip as SmarTours says in their brochure. It was “life on the river” – leading to the Lake - dirty – poverty – dense – a misery. An insight of Cambodian life might be more appropriate. The poverty was in many cases worse than anything we had seen in India the previous year.
Then onto Saigon – western – western – explore on your own. We found our time very short in Saigon – would have preferred some additional time – busy - busy.
It you don’t want to waste time 60 – 90 minutes eating lunch, venture off and see something yourself and meet up back at the restaurant or don’t later on. Large breakfasts followed by large lunches make fat happy buddhas, which should be avoided.
The Hotel was quite adequate – not quite 5 star (Equatorial) and a good spa – very reasonably priced.
Restaurants: (Hoi An, Temple Club etc.) Even had a great Pho at Pho 24.
Day 7 – Cu Chi Tunnels – as a Canadian, I can say as I said in the 60’s – the Americans should never have gone into the war and when you see the Tunnels and the Mekong Delta (great visit) and the topography of Vietnam you know there is no way the Americans could have won. Unfortunately some of the indiscriminate bombing destroyed a lot of the beautiful buildings in Vietnam.
Day 8 – Thank goodness it appears the hotel in Hoi An has changed. The hotel we stayed at (Hoi An Pacific) was very disappointing. We couldn’t even get pillows and had water leaking in our room all over our clothes. Finally at 1:00 AM we got transferred to a much better room. We shouldn’t have been put in this situation.
Day 9 - Hoi An is interesting – too many tailors – and most on our tour had problems with what they had made. Be careful if you want to experience. We had our clothes washed – pretty cheap – even negotiated for that. Never got a chance to visit the beach or ride some bicycles.
Had a wonderful foot massage – best in my life in Hoi An. Try a cooking class on your own.
Great restaurants – Mango Rooms, Cargo, Brothers.
Day 10 - Hue – the best day – wonderful buildings and things to see – and the best hotel and the best dinner we had included by far. Wonderful spa. It appears that the trip next year stays here for two nights – lucky you – that is what we would have wanted.
Day 11 – Wonderful buildings, artifacts, cruise in Hue.
Day 12 – We went to Hanoi which is a great city – great food – wonderful restaurants – ice cream - lakes, trees, French Architecture – lots to see – Hanoi Hilton, Puppets – SmarTours gets all the highlights. SmarTours next year will go to Halong Bay first and stay over. You lose a night in Hanoi but it makes your trip to the Bay more relaxing – Halong Bay and the caves are certainly worth seeing.
Day 13 – Book some great restaurants to eat at night – enjoy yourself. (Green Tangerine, Emperor, Seasons of Hanoi etc. etc.)
Again the final dinner was all right and many of the lunches were at best mediocre. They could have picked a better spot for a few dollars more but maybe the better restaurants won’t take a group of 35.
Take the Extension offered. They did not have it last year.
All in all – great value, generally good to great hotels, great guides – our tour director was wonderful as were most of the local guides. The only problem from a cost factor is that you feel you are tipping twice – once to the tour director (worth everything) as well as to the local guides, but not a big deal.
Nee could have guided us everywhere and done everything except apparently the law requires a local Cambodian Guide in Cambodia, a local Saigon guide in Saigon etc., Rely on your tour director- our tour director was fantastic and arranged extra things to do – suggested Cooking Classes, Massages, Shops, Things to do, etc. etc.
Food – a little too much as was said before – mediocre most of it. However there were a number of vegetarians and a number of people who would not eat pork or shellfish. They were accommodated quite easily and there was always something to eat.
Drinks were extra and the “drink menus” created for the tourists were ripping us off. We would go into a fancy restaurant on our own and order a beer for $2 and the “lunch place” was charging $3 for beer in a second rate lunch place. You could pay if on your own 50 cents for a beer at a local place. Many people ended up bringing water from the bus or hotel after a couple of days.
I feel the tour company should spend an extra few dollars per meal and eat at some better restaurants – again not all were bad to mediocre, but some. Also include a soft drink or water with each meal - in the price for less grumbling.
People: The people on the tour ranged from age 43 to 77 – all with an incredible spirit and want to travel. Most were aged 55 – 65. Many were repeat customers. Made some good friends we hope to keep in touch with.
There even was a couple who were 30 years old. I didn’t include them because we never saw them – they took the tour for the flights and hotels. They toured on their own. We only saw them going to and from the airport. They said they could not have flown over and stayed in the hotels and the internal travel for what they paid - so a bargain.
Take your vaccination shots; take your Purell, take your sense of adventure. SmarTours gives good value and runs a well-organized fast paced tour.
Jan 23rd, 2008, 04:30 PM
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Thanks so much for your interesting trip report and critic. We went on the Amazing Thailand and Angkor Wat trip last Feb. and Nee was our guide in Thailand. She really is terrific, one of the best tour guides we have ever had. She made our trip so memorable. We were so impressed that we are going to India and Nepal with Smartours in a few weeks. If our guide is almost as good as Nee, I know it will be a wonderful trip. Again, thanks for your critic of the Vietnam trip.
Jan 30th, 2008, 07:07 AM
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I wrote last night asking about your trip. In checking this morning, I found your wonderful critique. I'll print it and am sure it will help us. Generally, it sounded like a great trip. I guess nothing is perfect - the Bangkok time sounds terrible and you must have been so tired - we're older than you are, but very active. I'll write when we return.
Feb 3rd, 2008, 07:24 AM
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what you have described here is precisely why so many of us prefer not to go on tours....
thailand is a place where one can especially benefit from doing it on their own....its so easy....the thais have really set themselves up to welcome the individual tourist...
i would have been very mad about the hotel experiences you had....that alone would have turned me negetive towards future tours...
more than ever the old addage holds up, "you get what you pay for.." strangely enough in many SEA places you can do things much cheaper on your own...
thailand is a place where one can especially benefit from doing it on their own....its so easy....the thais have really set themselves up to welcome the individual tourist...
i would have been very mad about the hotel experiences you had....that alone would have turned me negetive towards future tours...
more than ever the old addage holds up, "you get what you pay for.." strangely enough in many SEA places you can do things much cheaper on your own...
Feb 3rd, 2008, 09:23 AM
#6
Bad hotel experiences, mediocre food, rushing around, a large group - I can't see how even a great guide could turn that into a good trip. Don't know what SmarTours charges, but as rhkkmk says, you don't have to spend a lot of money to get comfortable hotels and great food in SEA.
Feb 3rd, 2008, 12:50 PM
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I think there are basically 2 reasons why people choose tours-either the price is much less than doing it on your own, or the price is the same as doing it on your own, but the itinerary and hotels are what you would choose if you were planning the trip yourself, but you want the tour company to make all of the arrangements and be responsible for making all of the road and air connections. After doing a tour of Thailand and Angkor Wat last year, I can honestly say that the tour was just about perfect for me, and probably would not have been as good if I had planned it myself as I would not have driven from Bangkok to Chang Rai, which turned out to be 3 of the most interesting days on the tour. And no one has to be with the tour group 100% of the time. In Bangkok and Chang Mai I hired private drivers to take me where I wanted to go. As for hotels, one can have a bad hotel experience whether the tour company chooses the hotel or you do. If one checks the hotels used on a tour on tripadvisor, then you can eliminate any tour company that uses inferior hotels. In reading the original post, Jefadjo wrote that the hotels on his tour were generally good to excellent.
Feb 3rd, 2008, 01:07 PM
#8
shelley: I was a little surprised that the OP said that the hotels were great since:
Bangkok: "We had several problems with our hotel accommodation; first being assigned a dirty room, then a room with someone in it. Finally, we got an upgraded room, but would only go in the room after the hotel staff checked it out."
Hoi An: "The hotel we stayed at (Hoi An Pacific) was very disappointing. We couldn’t even get pillows and had water leaking in our room all over our clothes. Finally at 1:00 AM we got transferred to a much better room. We shouldn’t have been put in this situation."
Don't get me wrong, I've used tours on occasion, and am in fact booked on one for part of my next trip, I just don't think I want to travel with this outfit.
Bangkok: "We had several problems with our hotel accommodation; first being assigned a dirty room, then a room with someone in it. Finally, we got an upgraded room, but would only go in the room after the hotel staff checked it out."
Hoi An: "The hotel we stayed at (Hoi An Pacific) was very disappointing. We couldn’t even get pillows and had water leaking in our room all over our clothes. Finally at 1:00 AM we got transferred to a much better room. We shouldn’t have been put in this situation."
Don't get me wrong, I've used tours on occasion, and am in fact booked on one for part of my next trip, I just don't think I want to travel with this outfit.
Feb 3rd, 2008, 01:58 PM
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Thanks for taking the time to report on your experiences. It was of particualr interest to me since I just returned from VN (and LP and BKK) myself a couple of days ago..
Koreanair is a good airline; perhaps not as fine as some other Asian carriers but good just the same.
I am interested in the asssertion that the 30-something couple was saving money by taking the tour and not going on their own..
Can this really be the case, that they (or any of us) would have paid more to stay in the same hotels and eat in the same places if they had gone independently? I am curious about where the profit rests for the tour company..it has got to be someplace so one might imagine that if you go alone and cut this out, you could do it for the same price or less... I am no meaning to be contentious here, just want to learn..
Koreanair is a good airline; perhaps not as fine as some other Asian carriers but good just the same.
I am interested in the asssertion that the 30-something couple was saving money by taking the tour and not going on their own..
Can this really be the case, that they (or any of us) would have paid more to stay in the same hotels and eat in the same places if they had gone independently? I am curious about where the profit rests for the tour company..it has got to be someplace so one might imagine that if you go alone and cut this out, you could do it for the same price or less... I am no meaning to be contentious here, just want to learn..
Feb 3rd, 2008, 02:07 PM
#10
eks - I believe that the tour company would have got a group discount from the hotels. We recently had a discussion about this on the Solo board, but I believe it is common practice, certainly in Europe. It's why tour groups often wind up in chain hotels, or larger hotels.
Feb 3rd, 2008, 03:16 PM
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I'm not convinced that the tours save anyone money over doing it on your own. Yes, the tour companies get a discount on airfares (though you can likely get the same discount from a consolidator or by watching airfares) and they may get a discount on hotels, but you can get hotels that are better in terms of quality and location for the same price. As an independent traveler, you can choose where you eat, so you get better food and you'll pay less for many things (drinks, for instance) as a solo traveler than you do as part of a tour group as the OP mentions. And as an independent traveler, you are not paying for the tour director and various guides who may or may not be helpful not to mention the company's profit.
To the OP's credit, they were flexible and didn't let the various glitches throw them, so had a good trip in spite of the problems.
As an independent traveler you do have to do your research and find where you want to go and what you want to do, locate hotels you like, arrange transfers, etc. But if you do your research, you'll be unlikely to end up in an out of the way hotel (like the poor women whose tour company put her up in the Rama Gardens out by the old Bangkok airport).
Hotels usually give tour companies "run of the house" rooms, which typically means that guests on tours get the worst rooms. The accounts by the OP of the awful rooms at the Holiday Inn in Bangkok and the Hoi An Pacific are exceptional examples of bad rooms in hotels.
A number of times various Fodorites have done back of the envelope calculations on tour vs. independent travel and I've never seen a time when there was a substantial savings in a tour. One time when people can get good savings are the air/hotel packages offered by airlines (like Singapore or Thai). But these are not tours (though they often throw in a "city and temples" tour) so do not have the tours overhead costs.
To the OP's credit, they were flexible and didn't let the various glitches throw them, so had a good trip in spite of the problems.
As an independent traveler you do have to do your research and find where you want to go and what you want to do, locate hotels you like, arrange transfers, etc. But if you do your research, you'll be unlikely to end up in an out of the way hotel (like the poor women whose tour company put her up in the Rama Gardens out by the old Bangkok airport).
Hotels usually give tour companies "run of the house" rooms, which typically means that guests on tours get the worst rooms. The accounts by the OP of the awful rooms at the Holiday Inn in Bangkok and the Hoi An Pacific are exceptional examples of bad rooms in hotels.
A number of times various Fodorites have done back of the envelope calculations on tour vs. independent travel and I've never seen a time when there was a substantial savings in a tour. One time when people can get good savings are the air/hotel packages offered by airlines (like Singapore or Thai). But these are not tours (though they often throw in a "city and temples" tour) so do not have the tours overhead costs.
Feb 3rd, 2008, 07:50 PM
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Kathie-Just as you need to do research before travelling independently, you have to do some research before booking a tour. Does the itinerary cover what you want to cover? Are the hotels the type of hotels you would choose if travelling independently? Most tours that I have gone on only include breakfasts, so you are free to do other meals on your own. And I still believe that you can have a bad hotel experience, regardless of who books your room. I have travelled on several tours as well as independently, and I have had generally positive experiences on the tours I have gone on. But again, I have researched them pretty thoroughly before signing on.
Feb 6th, 2008, 12:00 PM
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Weighing in again.
The hotel in Bangkok - the Holiday Inn had problems for my wife and myself. None of the others on the Tour suffered a similar fate.
The hotel made it up to us by giving us a large beautiful suite.
Maybe we are destined to have problems and then end up in beautiful suites - as happened in Hoi An as well. But that hotel eevryone had problems.
As I had indicated we have always been independent travellers - doing things on our own since my first back pack trip to Europe 40 years ago while still a tennager.
For the money around $2700 for the tour - we received return airfare - Korean AirLines from LAX to Bangkok with a stop in Seoul. The Airline was first class - wider than usual seats, leg room - individual TV's etc. and both Asian and American Food to choose from.
The downside was the inability to book seats in advance.
We overcame this obstacle on the departure leg by going to the Korean Counter at LAX two days before departure, since we were there anyway.
We ended up with seats at the front of the plane and the couple we were travelling with "checker boarded" and had no one between them.
Coming back we just kept checking and ended up with seats with no one beside us.
All internal flights. (Bangkok to Siem Reap, Siem Reap to Saigon, Saigon to Hue and Danag to Hanoi).
Hotel rooms - all breakfasts and 50% of lunches and dinners, all entrance fees, guides etc. etc.
The value I think is the very cheap airfare and obviously group booking/guaranteeing the sale of a number of rooms.
We did our own trip to India last year and spent a lot more than we could have taking a tour.
In India - we were with another couple. Here we were with 24 other people - mostly from Blue States - although there were a number from FLA. Interesting people from teachers, to doctors to businessmen and businesswomen, to actors. Our tour had great chemistry - we all bonded quickly and felt a sense of loss when it ended and we continue to email each other and share pictutes. Our tour almost felt like "going to camp" when we were young. The ability to feel like psychiatrists to many people - who confided in others information that I am sure they never shared with others was interesting.
It was nice to have your bags picked up from your rooms and delivered to your room. Nice not having to worry about getting to the airport for internal flights on time and having someone assist you in checking in and making it easier getting on the flight - getting your Visas in Cambodia etc. Maybe a sign of an advancing boomer.
It was nice not to have to think - other than dinners and when to leave the tour, if you wanted.
As we indicated we broke off for dinners - a highlight for us. We ate in great restaurants and had a wonderful time.
Yes it was a little rushed - but you could slow it down.
As we age, we look for other things than just independence.
Yes I would have loved to stay at the Peninsula or the Oriental in Bangkok as opposed to where we stayed, but that is compromise and that we must do all through life.
The place we stayed in Hue - Pilgrimmage Village was certainly a six star. The hotel in Siem Reap - Angkor Century was as good or better than any of the others on the strip.
FOOD:
Let me be clear - the breakfasts were good and wonderful - some slightly better - it depended on the hotel. Our dinners because we ate on our own were fantastic. The lunches, were mediocre and as I said could have been easily avoided. Three big meals a day make for a BIG BUDDHA which is not my idea of what I see myself as.
I only posted a report as I did not see many reports about SmarTours. Yes check them out - check Tripadvisor or Fodors about the quality of the hotels - check out your own prices - maybe you can do better - maybe you can't.
My comments were about the Vietnam Tour - Not the Thailand Tour, although I see SmarTours offer a 14 day tour to Thailand for about $1300 - including hotels, meals and airfare from LAX - sounds good value to me. Maybe the other poster can do better - better airfare - better hotels etc. - if they can please let me know - would be interested.
I have for the record nothing to do with SmarTours other than have taken their tour.
For me it was great value.
The hotel in Bangkok - the Holiday Inn had problems for my wife and myself. None of the others on the Tour suffered a similar fate.
The hotel made it up to us by giving us a large beautiful suite.
Maybe we are destined to have problems and then end up in beautiful suites - as happened in Hoi An as well. But that hotel eevryone had problems.
As I had indicated we have always been independent travellers - doing things on our own since my first back pack trip to Europe 40 years ago while still a tennager.
For the money around $2700 for the tour - we received return airfare - Korean AirLines from LAX to Bangkok with a stop in Seoul. The Airline was first class - wider than usual seats, leg room - individual TV's etc. and both Asian and American Food to choose from.
The downside was the inability to book seats in advance.
We overcame this obstacle on the departure leg by going to the Korean Counter at LAX two days before departure, since we were there anyway.
We ended up with seats at the front of the plane and the couple we were travelling with "checker boarded" and had no one between them.
Coming back we just kept checking and ended up with seats with no one beside us.
All internal flights. (Bangkok to Siem Reap, Siem Reap to Saigon, Saigon to Hue and Danag to Hanoi).
Hotel rooms - all breakfasts and 50% of lunches and dinners, all entrance fees, guides etc. etc.
The value I think is the very cheap airfare and obviously group booking/guaranteeing the sale of a number of rooms.
We did our own trip to India last year and spent a lot more than we could have taking a tour.
In India - we were with another couple. Here we were with 24 other people - mostly from Blue States - although there were a number from FLA. Interesting people from teachers, to doctors to businessmen and businesswomen, to actors. Our tour had great chemistry - we all bonded quickly and felt a sense of loss when it ended and we continue to email each other and share pictutes. Our tour almost felt like "going to camp" when we were young. The ability to feel like psychiatrists to many people - who confided in others information that I am sure they never shared with others was interesting.
It was nice to have your bags picked up from your rooms and delivered to your room. Nice not having to worry about getting to the airport for internal flights on time and having someone assist you in checking in and making it easier getting on the flight - getting your Visas in Cambodia etc. Maybe a sign of an advancing boomer.
It was nice not to have to think - other than dinners and when to leave the tour, if you wanted.
As we indicated we broke off for dinners - a highlight for us. We ate in great restaurants and had a wonderful time.
Yes it was a little rushed - but you could slow it down.
As we age, we look for other things than just independence.
Yes I would have loved to stay at the Peninsula or the Oriental in Bangkok as opposed to where we stayed, but that is compromise and that we must do all through life.
The place we stayed in Hue - Pilgrimmage Village was certainly a six star. The hotel in Siem Reap - Angkor Century was as good or better than any of the others on the strip.
FOOD:
Let me be clear - the breakfasts were good and wonderful - some slightly better - it depended on the hotel. Our dinners because we ate on our own were fantastic. The lunches, were mediocre and as I said could have been easily avoided. Three big meals a day make for a BIG BUDDHA which is not my idea of what I see myself as.
I only posted a report as I did not see many reports about SmarTours. Yes check them out - check Tripadvisor or Fodors about the quality of the hotels - check out your own prices - maybe you can do better - maybe you can't.
My comments were about the Vietnam Tour - Not the Thailand Tour, although I see SmarTours offer a 14 day tour to Thailand for about $1300 - including hotels, meals and airfare from LAX - sounds good value to me. Maybe the other poster can do better - better airfare - better hotels etc. - if they can please let me know - would be interested.
I have for the record nothing to do with SmarTours other than have taken their tour.
For me it was great value.
Feb 6th, 2008, 04:21 PM
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We are leaving for your tour on the 18th. I sent your posting to Smartours hoping it might help future groups. They don't seem to be changing any hotels until next year, so we'll just have to deal with it and complain if we have to. We've been on a few other tours - the best being to New Zealand with Vantage.
How did you handle the money situation? Also, I've been looking at the weather and it sounds like the temp. is much cooler in the second half of the trip.
I agree with you that it's a good value, as I compared it to other cos.
Will let everyone know our experience upon returning.
(I was able to get seats by calling Korean Air)
How did you handle the money situation? Also, I've been looking at the weather and it sounds like the temp. is much cooler in the second half of the trip.
I agree with you that it's a good value, as I compared it to other cos.
Will let everyone know our experience upon returning.
(I was able to get seats by calling Korean Air)
Feb 20th, 2008, 06:33 PM
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Hi Jefadjo--I really enjoyed reading your report. We're leaving for Cambodia and Vietnam in about 2 weeks and before we planned the trip, I came across the itinerary of Friendly Planet Tours , which I guess is very similar to Smartours. Anyway, it seemed incredibly reasonable to me and I was seriously considering booking it, but we've always travelled independently, so I did some quick (well, not so quick)research and checking and figured we could do a similar trip for about the same am't of money. I have to admit I followed some of their itinerary, but decided we wanted an extra day at Angkor Wat, didn't want to go to HCMC City, wanted an extra day in Hoi An, etc. I've been working with someone at Vietnamstay who booked some of our hotels and airfare but I did other hotels and air myself. So at this point the cost is somewhat higher but we've also booked a few more days than the tour offered. Also, from your description of the included meals it sounds like you would have been better off eating on your own most of the time. Obviously no guarantees on good food at any particular place but I'd rather blame a bad experience on my own choice than feeling a bit hustled or given an inferior choice because we're on a tour.
I know the trip you described is different from the one we're doing but I kind of feel vindicated that I didn't book a whole tour. Someday we probably will (we're 67 and 74 and still hopefully pretty fit and healthy) but we still like the idea of going where we want when we want and not being herded in any sense.
There's obviously something to be said for others taking care of all the particulars, and definitely for having someone else shlep your bags, but while we can still do it I guess we will.
So all I can say at this point is I will try to let the forum know how our journey went when we return. I've read so many great accounts of trips and so many great tips that I doubt I can add much, but if I think I have anything worthwhile I will try to share it.
I know the trip you described is different from the one we're doing but I kind of feel vindicated that I didn't book a whole tour. Someday we probably will (we're 67 and 74 and still hopefully pretty fit and healthy) but we still like the idea of going where we want when we want and not being herded in any sense.
There's obviously something to be said for others taking care of all the particulars, and definitely for having someone else shlep your bags, but while we can still do it I guess we will.
So all I can say at this point is I will try to let the forum know how our journey went when we return. I've read so many great accounts of trips and so many great tips that I doubt I can add much, but if I think I have anything worthwhile I will try to share it.
Feb 22nd, 2008, 06:28 PM
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Please let us know when you return. Would be most interested.
We are looking at South America now and debating between completely independent travel and a tour or a combination which may be the best.
We are looking at South America now and debating between completely independent travel and a tour or a combination which may be the best.
Oct 7th, 2008, 07:46 PM
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Jefadjo: I just happened on your tour report from earlier this year. A friend and I will be taking the SmarTour Amazing Thailand and add-on to Seim Reap, next Feb. I was interested in your comment about getting your seat assignments a few days before. We will be flying in to LAX the day prior to the departure and were hoping this would be possible. Was there any problem with getting seats at the Korean Air counter--and did I understand that you booked both coming/going at the same time?
We (my husband and I) took a SmarTour in Croatia in 2007 and found the hotels to be very satisfactory. On that tour, there were at least six couples who had taken "Amazing Thailand" two or more times. Once there, they do, as others have mentioned, their own thing, using the flights and bus for transportation and explore other venues on their own, at the various location.
My husband and I just returned from a Globus tour (14 da) to Turkey. Some hotels were quite deluxe and others run-of-the mill, but we had no complaints. All breakfasts and all, except 2 dinners, were included and these were usually buffet.
Hope you log on occasionally and are able to answer my query. Ciao! mhm
We (my husband and I) took a SmarTour in Croatia in 2007 and found the hotels to be very satisfactory. On that tour, there were at least six couples who had taken "Amazing Thailand" two or more times. Once there, they do, as others have mentioned, their own thing, using the flights and bus for transportation and explore other venues on their own, at the various location.
My husband and I just returned from a Globus tour (14 da) to Turkey. Some hotels were quite deluxe and others run-of-the mill, but we had no complaints. All breakfasts and all, except 2 dinners, were included and these were usually buffet.
Hope you log on occasionally and are able to answer my query. Ciao! mhm
