Published on November 29, 2017
Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, Thailand. Image courtesy of Alex Holiday Co. Ltd.
What You'll Get
A 10-day, 9-night exploration of Thailand, Viet Nam and Cambodia's highlights – starting at Thailand's Grand Palace and ending at Cambodia's Angkor Wat – costing US$ 2,000 for a party of two.
Highlights
This wide-ranging tour begins in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand and home to its revered King. The monarch's official residence – the Grand Palace – kicks off our visit to the Kingdom of Smiles. Visitors will visit the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Pra Kaew), home to the world's most precious Buddha image, and nearby structures like Borom Phiman Mansion and Dusit Maha Prasat Hall.
A day-trip to the beach town of Pattaya allows a glance at the bucolic lifestyle along Thailand's coasts. Boat-hopping to the nearby islands of Koh Lan, Ko Sak and Ko Khrok provide access to the area's amazing undersea coral landscape.
A second day-trip from Bangkok takes you to Ratchaburi, site of the popular Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, where a traditional canal-side lifestyle lives on; and the Royal Thai Handicraft Center, where you'll learn about the Thai carving arts hands-on.
Crossing over to Viet Nam, the itinerary switches to Ho Chi Minh City and its highlights – Notre Dame Cathedral, General Post office, City Hall, Opera house, China Town and Thien Hau temple. The second leg through “Sai Gon” takes you to the Cu Chi Tunnel network outside the city, then back to the city center to visit the War Remnants Museum and the Reunification Palace, at whose gates the last war came to a close.
From Ho Chi Minh City, a day trip to the Mekong region takes us to the mighty Mekong River delta, where Vietnamese traditional life goes on around the canals and nearby Thai Son Island.
Siem Reap, Cambodia represents the last leg of this three-nation tour: formerly home to a mighty Angkor empire, the city today is a jumping-off point to the Tonle Sap lake and its waterborne communities, and the Angkor Temple complex that still awes visitors today.
You'll spend the last full day of the trip wandering through the latter: watching sunrise at Angkor Wat, then touring Banteay Srei, Bayon, Baphuon, Ta Prohm and other satellite temples in the area.
Angkor Wat, Cambodia. Image courtesy of Alex Holiday Co. Ltd.
