Reviews

We spent 20 days in Vietnam working our way from north to south. In May, the weather can be variable but we had good outcomes 90% of the time. We didn’t find out until a few days into the tour that Wendy Wu uses a company related to Flight Centre for detailed bookings and arrangements in country. It would have been helpful to have been given local contact information rather than have to speak with our Wendy Wu contact in Australia.

All of the guides we had were four star performers or better and generally we couldn’t fault the drivers chosen for daily tours.

Time frames spent in each area were decided by us and in that context, the personalised nature of the tour worked well. In retrospect, we should have chosen to spend an extra night in Hanoi en route to HaLong Bay after visiting Sapa.

We asked for four star accommodation as a basis the trip and in the main that’s what we got. However, the garden room view allocated to us at was unfortunately not up to scratch as the view was of a bedraggled part of the garden through which we had a clear view of the back end of a factory or storage shed. After speaking with the hotel, we were moved to another garden view room which lived up to its name. We were probably fortunate it was not high season.

Our itinerary was broadly Hanoi3N - Sapa2N - Hanoi 1N - Halong Bay 3 day cruise - Hoi An3N - Danang3N - Ho Chi Minh5N.

The custom for most day tour arrangements seemed to be for the guide to not stay with us on some occasions; for example, we would be put on a short funicular or train trip only to have the guide not accompany us but meet us at the other end. This appears to be a policy of the in country tour arranger (Discova). Other small groups seemed to have their guides with them full time. The one time this made sense to us was during our visit to Nui Dat, Long Tan and Vung Tau, where our main guide, exchanged places with a local who came very well prepared and well versed on the issues we were interested in.

In all areas we visited, there was a good focus on providing experiences that interacted with local people and their businesses. That added a great dimension to the tour.

On the negative side there were a couple of instances where the experience was not four star.We took a “limousine” bus from Hanoi to Sapa, as did many others except the company used by Discova seemed to have a vehicle that had seen better days and a driver with an attitude to match it. One got the feeling that Discova might have been cutting their costs without regard for quality.
The only other issue was the Ha Long Bay cruise with Orchid cruises. While the quality of the cruise was OK to Good, the boat we were on looked a bit tired. Food was fine and the staff really made an effort to please. Probably worth checking a few more options than we did before accepting the tour organisers recommendation.

An excellent tour that covered a lot of ground in such a short timescale. Very well organised too.

Our guide Qui was brilliant as well as professional and very funny, which brightened up the journey. Nothing was too much trouble, and he went the extra mile.

Hotels were nice and comfortable and I thoroughly enjoyed trying the food and different flavours.

I can definitely recommend the tour.

A bit of a hiccup on day one of the first Ecuador trip created, which I feel sure was rectified on later tours, but otherwise perfect on each and every tour that I have done; China; Japan x 2; Ecuador + Galapagos; Vietnam [though here, too much regarding the war and not enough beautiful scenery for my liking, but fabulous boat trip down the Mekong and in Halong Bay]; and most recently Uzbekistan. I have also booked next year in Kyrgyzstan with Wendy Wu. and have wishes for future trips that Wendy Wu do. They look after you throughout the day from Breakfast through Evening Meal and as I get older, I feel the need for the reassurance and trust they give me.

A very intensive trip that was packed with varied activities. It was mostly active and full on put there were plenty of points to relax and take things in your own time. The guides were amazing, friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. The range of hotels were all of a good standard.
I cannot believe how much was included in this trip, Wendy Wu made sure to book so many things to do that went over and above my expectations

A great opportunity to see Vietnam from top to bottom, as well as the Angkor Wat area of Siem Reap, Cambodia. Well organised and guided. Hectic schedule at times. Really enjoyed the out and about aspects, ie mountain walks with home stay lunches, locals fishing at Hoi An, traditional crafts on the Mekong Delta and the village on stilts in the lake near Siem Reap, 3 local bike rides with a chance to see different aspects of the local countryside, plus the scooter ride one evening in Saigon. Guides knowledgeable and good at problem solving.

All great, including tour guides. Only problem was a very poor boat on Halong Bay. We had water on the floor of our toilet - lots! General quality of boat was terrible.

Both people I spoke to (for the initial enquiry and to book) were helpful, professional and friendly

I don’t know where to start other than with the word ‘exceptional’ my expectations were high from the pre tour support and interactions with Wendy Wu operational support however nothing could have prepared me for the care, professionalism and value that met me on tour! SOKHOEUN in Cambodia and HOI in Vietnam were amazing tour guides their vulnerability, insight and care was outstanding and gave such a warmth to the tour and depth of knowledge, alongside first hand experiences of their lives, families and history of the places. The write up wets your appetite, however every single day there was so much more, food, fun, stories, personal interactions - so hard to capture in a review however even the toughest of critics would struggle to find fault with the content! Catering for the needs of the group from food to mobility was always top of mind and carried out to the letter. The events / extras were such fun! Shows, boats, tuk tuks, craft demos, rooftop cocktails all executed with precision and so many laughs - for 16 days “we were family” and thank you all @ wendywu for a job well done! I will be back and 5 stars is not enough!

Excellent tour of Vietnam but sometimes too much travelling on the coach and not enough quality time in some of the fabulous destinations
The meals also could be a little repetitive
Our tour leader Qui (Tom) was most excellent and a fantastic ambassador for his country 🇻🇳

I loved my holiday in Vietnam very much

This was my third Wendy Wu tour and each time the experience has been wonderful.
This time we had an exceptional tour guide who was very informative, answered lots of questions and looked after everyone in our group so well. The itinerary was well paced and, despite being one of the oldest members on the trip, I managed to do as much and sometimes more than the younger ones. Accommodation was good and food was great, highlighting the country's cuisine. We managed to see the sights and do so many diverse activities in any given day and also had some time to do a bit of wandering around by ourselves.
I definitely recommend this company to other travellers.

This was a Go Beyond small group tour of 14 people.
Our local guide Lap was a mind of knowledge about his country. He kept us well organised and on time. He helped foster a fun atmosphere in the group.
Tour tour was well put together seeing the best of Vietnam & Cambodia.
I enjoyed hiking in the rice terraces in Northern Vietnam. Cycling around the rice fields in Hoi An. So much to see and do. I liked the hustle and bustle of Hanoi & Saigon. This trip combined being in nature and also the city. We had plenty of opportunity to meet local people.
Highly recommended.

The whole experience from first booking the tour to returing home after the tour was easy and stress free. As a solo traveler they made it so easy, The tour itself was exceptional and the tour guide Thung made it a very enjoyable holiday .Thung knowledge is wonderful and could relay his experience going through the Vietnam War (they call it the American War) as a child was very enlightening. He is certainly the guide to have if doing a trip through Vietnam. If you are considering visiting this very busy city than don't think twice just BOOK IT you will not be sorry

A great holiday, packed with interesting places to see and visit. Everything was well planned and it was good that all meals were included. We had a wonderful guide in Lap, he was very knowledgeable, helpful and went out of his way to make sure we all had a good holiday. A wonderful ambassador for his country and Wendy Wu holidays

An amazing tour of this wonderful country. Extremely well organised with the most amazing guide in Qui. Would definitely recommend.