Asia Travel Guide

The trip covered a lot of ground, with four cities in Thailand and Siem Reap in Cambodia. The details and the logistics of the trip were timely and well communicated by Zicasso's travel company. The guides were punctual, well-informed, and passionate about the countries' histories.

Our Zicasso travel agent did a wonderful job taking our requests and styling a complex, detailed itinerary. Everything worked perfectly. The guides all communicated with each other and the drivers were always at the expected locations. All accommodations were awesome and well-located. 

Beginning in Chiang Mai, Thailand, we visited Doi Inthanon National Park, the Doi Suthep mountain temple, and had an absolutely awesome time visiting with elephants at the elephant sanctuary, among other things. We even got to play with a two-week-old elephant. All our dining recommendations were awesome and we particularly enjoyed our time with the guides.

Next, we flew to Krabi for unforgettable views and relaxing beach time. Again, the resort was awesome. We even went mountain climbing on Railay Beach. My son got engaged at the New Year's gala at our hotel, which was spectacular; an unbelievable stay. We particularly enjoyed our time with the guide!

Next, we finished in Bangkok, where the highlight was riding in the tuk-tuks and doing a city food tour. Our guide was so awesome and knowledgeable.

Unfortunately, eight of the 10 of us then flew home, while my wife and I continued to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Our guide was such a good travel companion and we left Cambodia with a true knowledge of Cambodian life/history/temples. He was very forthcoming about his life growing up under the Khmer Rouge. Although a long day, the temple tour was unbelievable, culminating in Angkor Wat. Our hotel was awesome and blocks from the nightlife on Pub Street. It was such a great stay.

Next, we flew to Saigon. We were met by our guide, who noticed we were hungry and immediately stopped at a local street food vendor for our first foray into bun bo. It was so good. The mix of history, countryside visits, and city tours with our guide was awesome and she even left us with a customized pictorial of our visit. The other excursion that needs mention is the Vespa city and food tour. Our main guide was delightful, giving us a true taste of Saigon culture and food. The drivers were so great.  This tour finished with a surprise visit to a local bar/club, where we had front-row seats to an awesome Latin band for a nightcap. It was truly unforgettable. Also, we cannot forget our visit to the Cu Chi tunnels, where our guide did a great job educating and touring us through this unbelievable history.

Then, we flew to Hanoi to another awesome location. Highlights in Hanoi would be visiting the Hoa Lo prison, having dinner in a local family's home, and especially the Minsk backstreet tour. Our tour drivers were so awesome. This excursion really gave us a feel for the city/backstreets, as well as an idea of the frightening life of riding a motorbike through the city and back alleys of Hanoi. It was truly unforgettable. This tour finished with my knees about a foot away from the speeding train at Hanoi train station, another can't-miss site!

Next, we visited Ninh Binh for trekking, biking, and bamboo boating. The scenery was awesome and it was definitely a nice break from the busy city.

The trip finished with a two-night, three-day cruise on Hạ Long Bay. The scenery was unbelievable and the staff were excellent; so attentive and informative.

This trip truly was spectacular and we are so happy that Zicasso connected us with our agent to make all of this happen. We couldn't be happier with the entire trip!

This was my second Zicasso trip, the first being to Peru in 2024, so I had full confidence in their travel company and was delighted by the level of care and attention to detail throughout the trip. 

I essentially had three trips while in Turkey. I arrived a day early to attend a six-day cooking school that was independently arranged. The travel company smoothly organized my airport pickup and first-night hotel. After the cooking school, I was again booked in the original hotel (old town, close to major sites, clean, nice), and my daughter joined me for a week-long tour of Istanbul, Cappadocia, and Ephesus. 

The guides in each region were knowledgeable, though we could have made do with fewer facts (height in meters of the Blue Mosque, area in square meters of Hagia Sophia, number of sheep in the country) and had more free time to explore on our own. We loved the major Istanbul sites, the Bosphorus cruise, and lunch on the Asia side. We were delighted with our cave hotel in Cappadocia and the hot-air balloon ride on my daughter's birthday. We loved strolling through Ephesus. 

All the internal flights were arranged, booked, and checked in by the agent, so all we had to do was show up on time. The vans that transported us were clean and nice, with good drivers. After my daughter left, I was booked for three nights on a gulet, with stops on the Mediterranean. It was a nice way to slow down and finish the busy trip. 

The highlight of my travels was dinner at my agent's home with his lovely family. He even arranged for me to find some earrings like those of his mother, which I had admired, and then drove me to the airport. Above and beyond!

We traveled to Vietnam and Cambodia from May 8 to 22, 2025. This was my fifth trip through Zicasso. As expected, the itinerary was excellent and exactly what we were looking for. I did double my budget from what I initially sent to Zicasso.

All of the lodging selections were outstanding. Along with the tours of the Ho Chi Minh complex, Hue Imperial City, the Angkor Wat complex, and numerous other temples and pagodas, we experienced a cable car ride to a mountain summit, a walk through an ethnic village, a water puppet show, a Cambodian circus, a Vietnamese cooking class, an evening lantern boat ride in Hoi An, and dinner in one of the top 50 restaurants in Asia. The water puppets are an ancient Vietnamese art (11th century) and the show was extraordinary.  

The hotels were in great locations within the city to be able to walk and see all the sites. The drivers we had were very professional and courteous. I would have liked to have a better platform to track the trip and the destinations. I have used a trip plans app before and it’s easy to use. I felt like the communication with our travel guide was minimal, but our overall trip was beautiful and memorable, and we will definitely be traveling again soon.

It was a terrific trip to Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. It was well-organized by `Zicasso's travel company, with great guides, activities, and unique experiences.