- Tim Bennett - China explored, Laterally - Indochina explored, laterally Because I’ve always wanted to... Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel 3 Nagas Amantaka La Residence Hue Anantara Hoi An Amansara Phum Baitang Raffles Hotel le Roy- MGallery Hotel des Arts Song Saa Private Is- land Knai Bang Chatt In a Nutshell... Day 1 – Arrive in Luang Prabang, 3 Nagas Day 2 – Luang Prabang, half day cycling, 3 Nagas Day 3 – Luang Prabang, Kuangsi Waterfalls, Amantaka Day 4 – Luang Prabang, at leisure, Amantaka Day 5 – Fly to Hanoi, bamboo experience. Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel Day 6 – Hanoi, Vespa tour. Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel Day 7 – Hanoi, cooking class, Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel Day 8 – Transfer to Hue, La Residence Hue Hotel & Spa Day 9 – Hue, cyclo tour, La Residence Hue Hotel & Spa Day 10 – Transfer to Hoi An, Anantara Hoi An Day 11 – Hoi An, at leisure, Anantara Hoi An Day 12 – Transfer to Ho Chi Minh, at leisure, MGallery Hotel Des Arts Day 13 – Ho Chi Minh, highlights of Saigon, Vespa tour. MGallery Hotel Des Arts Day 14 – Transfer to Sihanoukville, Song Saa Private Island Day 15 - At leisure, Song Saa Private Island Day 16 - At leisure, Song Saa Private Island Day 17 - At leisure, Song Saa Private Island Day 18 – Transfer to Kep, Knai Bang Chatt Resort Day 19 – Transfer to Siem Reap, at leisure, Amansara Day 20 – Siem Reap, Angkor Thom, Angkor Wat, Amansara Day 21 – Siem Reap, , half day biking, Phum Baitang Day 22 – Siem Reap tour, Phare Circus, Phum Baitang Day 23 – Transfer to Phnom Penh, day room at Raffles Hotel Le Royal Day 24 – Arrive back in London Flights… Date Airline & Flight From Departs To Arrives Class Number TBC Emirates LGW (N) TBC Dubai TBC TBC EK012 TBC Emirates Dubai TBC Bangkok TBC TBC EK374 TBC Bangkok Airways Bangkok TBC Luang Prabang TBC TBC EK4572 TBC Lao Airlines Luang Pra- TBC Hanoi TBC TBC QV313 bang TBC Vietnam Airlines Hanoi TBC Hue TBC TBC VN1547 TBC Vietnam Airlines Da Nang TBC Saigon TBC TBC VN117 TBC Cambodia Angkor Saigon TBC Sihanoukville TBC TBC Air TBC Cambodia Angkor Sihanoukville TBC Siem Reap TBC TBC Air TBC Bassaka Air Siem Reap TBC Phnom Penh TBC TBC 5B 902 TBC Emirates Phnom Penh TBC Dubai TBC TBC EK389 TBC Emirates Dubai TBC LHR (T3) TBC TBC EK001 Your Suggested Itinerary... Day 1 - Fly from the UK to Luang Prabang via Dubai and Bangkok Accommodation: Overnight flights Meals: In flight meals Day 2, 26 Mar—Arrive in Luang Prabang You will be met upon arrival at Luang Prabang airport by your laterallife representative for the transfer to your hotel with your English speaking guide. Check in at the hotel. Remainder of day at leisure. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage City in 1995, Luang Prabang mixes both traditional Laotian and colonial architecture with charming results that make exploring and touring the city an absolute delight. The crown jewel of Laos, Luang Prabang is perhaps the best-preserved tra- ditional city in South East Asia. Magical and charming, it has preserved its long-standing reputation as a stronghold of Lao culture with its splendid natural scenery and sense of timelessness. Accommodation: 3 Nagas in Deluxe Room Meals: None Day 3 - Luang Prabang, cycling tour After breakfast at your hotel, depart at 8:00am to meet with your English speaking guide at 8.20am at the Tiger Trail office. Start with a visit by bicy- cle to the morning market to explore a distinctly Laos selection of goods. Next take a ride around the city centre and peninsula stopping to view where the Nam Khan and Mekong Rivers meet and visit the famous Wat Xieng Thong Temple. From there wind your way through the backroads of Luang Prabang to see a special selection of city highlights and rarely visited cultural and craft-making sites for an intimate view of Laos life. Sites include a sample of Luang Prabang’s oldest and most beautiful temples, Laos tradi- tional craft homes, traditional music centres, spirit house craftsmen, funeral pyres, and the UXO Museum. Top off the tour with a well-earned meal at a choice local noodle shop for lunch. Finally, make your way back to the city centre and the Tiger Trail bike shop. You can expect to be back around 1:00 p.m. (times vary depending on biking speed). The route is about 13 km on paved roads mostly flat with some low-grade hills. Rest of the afternoon free at leisure. Accommodation: 3 Nagas in Deluxe Room Meals: Breakfast, Lunch at local restaurant Day 4 - Luang Prabang, Kuangsi Waterfalls, Butterfly Park After your breakfast, your private guide and driver will meet you in the lobby of your hotel at 9:00am. Then you will drive about 30 kilometres to start your day of discovery around Kuang Si Waterfalls. On the way, enjoy a stop at Ban Na Ouan, the Hmong minority village, walking around to discover the daily lifestyle of this minority. The next stopover is Butterfly Park where you have the opportunity to spend some time in these beauti- ful gardens. Here you will be surrounded by many species of butterflies in a relaxing setting where you are rocked by the sound of the waterfalls. You can also enjoy the natural fish spa whilst you attract a butterfly that will land on your hand. Visiting this park ensures you have made a sus- tainable impact in the education of local children about biology and how to take care of this incredible planet we live in. Afterwards, continue to the restaurant Carpe Diem which is situated 150 meters before Kuang Si Waterfalls to indulge in a culinary delight in the heart of a magical atmos- phere. You can taste excellent dishes, western or Lao, prepared by a young French chef. After your lunch, you can enjoy the natural pool or relax with a massage in an idyllic setting at the base of the Kuang Si wa- terfalls. Next spend part of the afternoon discovering the Kuang Si water- falls. Firstly, stop at the “Bear Lao” Bear Sanctuary on the path up to the pools of the waterfall and see the bears, which are rescued from bear bile farms and illegal private zoos, in their rehabilitation enclosures. After- wards, stroll around Kuang Si Waterfalls where you can admire the clear blue water gathered in basins. Let yourself be carried away by the beauty of the landscape and bring your swimsuit for a little dip or for the bravest, climb up to the top of the falls by a path on the left. For your return jour- ney to Luang Prabang we propose a picturesque cruise by boat on the Mekong river. Accommodation: Amantaka Meals: Breakfast, Lunch Day 5 - At leisure at Amantaka Full day at leisure. Dinner at leisure. Accommodation: Amantaka Meals: Breakfast, Lunch Day 6 - Bamboo experience After breakfast, drive to the unique and authentic workshop Bamboo Ex- perience which helps local villagers to strengthen their own traditional art & handicraft, and the secret of Lao cuisine. You will discover Lao cul- ture through bamboo products, activities & foods where it’s located in a local village Ban Naxang – countryside setting and surrounding by rice fields and beautiful landscapes. Programmes: - On arrival "Sabaidee" a greeting by our guide and get offer a welcome drink - Presentation of Bamboo plant and its varied handicraft products - Crossbow shooting practice - Bamboo stilts walking practice - Sticky rice pounding in traditional wooden pestle & mortar - Traditional bamboo weaving lesson with local craftsman - Traditional Lao cooking class "Using bamboo shoot as main ingredient" - Lunch in a traditional bamboo tray - Hmong khen performance "Traditional bamboo instrument" - Kamu bamboo dancing "Skipping poles" Return to Luang Prabang by car. At 15:00pm, transfer to Luang Prabang airport with your English speaking guide for flight to Hanoi with: LPQ/HAN QV 313 17:10/18:10. Arrive in Hanoi at 18:10pm where you will be met from the airport and transferred to your hotel for check in. Accommodation: Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel, Old Wing Room Meals: Breakfast Day 7 - Insider’s Hanoi In the morning, take a guided tour on the backseat of a vintage Vespa scooter for an insider’s view of greater Hanoi unlike anything you would see from a car window, and much more of the city than you could possi- bly see on your own. The tour highlights include sampling the local Café culture followed by a ride through the city’s iconic narrow streets. You will see how the locals live and work, just centimetres from the train tracks in tall narrow houses, then drive to Ngoc Ha village where you will visit a 400-year-old temple, walk through a local market and see the wreckage of a B52 bomber, which was shot down during the 1972 Christmas air raids. Your tour will then continue with a ride out of the city centre over the Long Bien Bridge, a magnificent structure built over a hundred years ago, to Long Bien district. Here it takes you along the riverside past the an- cient dyke to a Kumquat Farm, located in a peaceful green agricultural oasis in the city. These little trees are traditional gifts at Tet, the Vietnam- ese Lunar New Year, and adorn every family home, symbolising luck, health, wealth, fertility and peace. You will then jump on the bike and head to the final spot, a little snack stop. Arrive back at the hotel at around 13:00 hrs and have some time at lei- sure. Late in the afternoon, take a tour of Hanoi’s famous street food scene with a walk through the labyrinth of the old quarter, which is the core of the legendary “Hanoi of 36 guild streets” where goods and crafts were traded in specialised streets formed by traders and artisans from clans and villages all over the country.