Testimonials

In 2014 my wife and I planned our trip to Myanmar using Asia Pioneering. We really appreciated their efficiency, their superb knowledge of the sites to visit and the polite customer service of all the guides/drivers we had.

Earlier this year we decided to repeat the experience, visiting Cambodia and Vietnam with a group of 6 friends. Our trip planner was Mrs. Kata Tran who expertly assisted and advised us in all preparations.
Our journey has been a surprising combination of spiritual, traditional and cultural experiences.
In Cambodia, the monumental temple of Angkor Wat has been worth the trip.
The marvellous temples of Roluos, Ta Prohm, Angkor Thom and Bayonand, surrounded by silent paddy fields and sugar palm trees, will stay in our hearts forever. Among our best memories are the friendly Cambodian people, the romantic atmosphere the Asian nights and the simply delicious local cuisine.
In Vietnam, we fell in love with Hanoi – walking through the old city, the exciting masses of motorbikes, the street food, the French quartier and the spontaneous cheerfulness of the locals, from the elderly who survived the war to the new booming generation.
Spending the night on a confortable vessel at the Halong Bay, with its 1969 islands, has been magical. After an animated evening, we fell asleep surrounded by starts and woke up surrounded by boats of fishermen starting their day.
Unmissable is the city of Hoi An with its market stalls everywhere, followed by a cycling tour around the Traque village, a cooking lesson at Kumquat held by Ho Xuan Thonk (Mr. Victor), and a visit to a lantern handcraft site and local dances.
Then we went to Ho Chi Min, and we visited the tunnels of Cu Chi, which are the network of tunnels used during the Indochina war.
We also visited the old and new Saigon palaces, the Ho Thy Ky Flower market and the funeral home, and the Qui Top market, which is one of the largest in Asia. After this we went to see the War Remnant museum with the Reunification palace, the cathedral and the general post office.
To end our trip we went to Three Towers, “the rice bowl”, at the center of the delta of Mekong, on a motorboat to look at the rice and vegetable fields.
This journey would not have been as memorable without the expertise and kindness of our guides Keo, Sunny, Nam and Lee. Very much appreciated has been the well-organized support of the lovely Kata, whom we definitely recommend.

We are looking forward to the next adventure together!

We are now back in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia having greatly enjoyed 3 weeks in Indochina, primarily in Vietnam though with a short side trip into Cambodia. It’s fair to say that all arrangements made by Asia Pioneer including domestic flights, meet/greet at various airports, transfers to/from hotels, accommodations and staff, sightseeing tours, drivers and guides were without exception extremely good and in several cases exceeded our expectations. As fairly experienced travellers, we regard this as a great outcome and extend our sincere thanks for ensuring that our trip was a great success.

Our holidays with friends in Vietnam and Kambodscha were wonderful ! Beautiful places and very kind people ! All was very well organized from Kata Tran / Asia Pioneers !
We all can recommend her warmly !!!

My wife and I can’t say enough about what an excellent job Asia Pioneer did in planning our tour of Vietnam! Ruby and her team customized a trip from North to South, perfect to our taste and style of travel.
The hotels picked for each destination we stayed in were magnificent! Clean with helpful friendly staff. Each had a full breakfast buffet to give us a great start for each day of adventure.
The guides chosen for us were enthusiastic and knowledgeable, with good command of English. The drivers we had were excellent maneouvering the hectic traffic in the big cities, taking us safely to our destinations.Everything in the Itinerary went as planned without a problem.

We would highly recommend Asia Pioneer to anyone who wants to have a great experience in Vietnam or other parts of S.E. Asia they cover trips to.
Thank you for the great memories!

My husband and I just came back from a trip, with four friends, to Vietnam and Laos. We didn’t want to go with a large group so we went on line in search of a company who could help us plan our trip and provide guides to take us on our journey. We happened upon Asia Pioneer and the wonderful Kata. Here is my advise: do not go to Southeast Asia without letting Kata plan your trip. Every hotel, every restaurant, every activity that Kata recommended was just perfect. She is a gem. We had many ideas and changes, even adding an additional couple at the last minute, and Kata was always responsive, helpful and a joy to work with. We had the time of our life, really best trip ever, and know that this is due in large part to Kata’s help.
From biking in Mai Chau to hiking in Luang Prabang, from sailing on Halong Bay to eating snails on the street in Hanoi, Kata and our two wonderful guides Tan and Jack insured that this was a trip we would never forget. Do yourselves a favor and go to Vietnam and Laos, it is magical. But when you go, make sure that you work with Kata. You will thank me for the recommendation.

The trip was planned at quite short notice, and having had some recent overseas trips which had required a lot of planning, I was ‘planning weary’! So, for the first time, we chose to book the entire two weeks in Vietnam through Asia Pioneer. What I loved about it: It took all the pressure off me, I didn’t have to think about anything. We were able to see more, because the driver took us straight to our destination and was waiting outside, air conditioner running, to pick us up and take us to the next place. We got a little taste of the north, centre and south of Vietnam and excellent food everyday! We also got to learn a bit more about the culture than we would have normally. I thought everything was just perfect – except the rain (but I don’t suppose I can hold them responsible for that!)