|
|
|
Explore Indochina Tour
|
Code: |
IDCN34 |
|
Routes: |
Tachileik - Mae Sai -
Chiang Khong - Houy Xai - Luang Prabang
- Vientiane - Siem Reap - Phnom Penh |
|
Duration: |
08 Days |
Itinerary in brief
Day 01: Tachileik - Chiang Khong - Luang Prabang
by boat
Day 02: City Tour & Pak Ou Caves
Day 03: Luang Prabang - Vientiane
Day 04: Vientiane - Siem Reap - Angkor Temples
Day 05: Rolous - Angkor Wat
Day 06: Siem Reap - Phnom Penh
Day 07: Phnom Penh
Day 08: Phnom Penh - Departure
Detail Itinerary
Places
Covered: Royal Palace
Museum, Wat Sene, Wat Mai, Wat Visoun, Wat Xieng
Thong, Pak Ou Caves, Traditional Rice Wine
Distillation Village of Sang Hai, Main Street
Thanon Sisavangvong, Mount Phousi, Nam Khan
River, Hill Tribe Night Market, Haw Pha Kaew,
That Luang Stupa, Patuxai, Si Saket Temple,
Angkor Temple Complex, Angkor Thom, Bayon,
Phimeanakas, Terrace of The Leper King, The
Elephant Terrace, the unfinished Baphuon, Ta
Prohm, Banteay Srei, Kbal Spean ("River of a
Thousand Lingas"), Rolous Group of Temples
(Lolei, Preah Ko, Bakong), Angkor Wat, Bakheng
hill, Bakheng Temple, Tonle Sap, Floating
Villages, Royal Palace of the present King,
Silver Pagoda, National Museum, Wat Phnom, Tuol
Sleng Prison-Museum, the "Killing Fields" of
Choeng Ek.
Day 01:
Tachileik - Chiang Khong - Luang Prabang by boat
(Dinner)
Pick up anywhere in Tachileik at 9am and cross
the Myanmar-Thai border into Mae Sai (Thailand)
for the transfer to Chiang Khong on the Thai-Lao
border to cross into Houy Xai (Laos) by boat.
Board a fast-boat at Houy Xai to speed down the
Mekong River to Luang Prabang, arriving at about
6pm. Transfer to hotel. Dinner of good Lao
cuisine at Pakhuay Mixai restaurant.
Overnight at hotel, Luang Prabang.
Day 02: City Tour & Pak Ou Caves (Breakfast/
Lunch/ Dinner)
Breakfast at the hotel. Full-day sightseeing of
Luang Prabang to include the former Royal Palace
now a museum, Wat Sene, Wat Mai, Wat Visoun and
the best of them all Wat Xieng Thong. Lunch at
Visoun Restaurant.
Take a cruise by boat to the Pak Ou caves
crammed with hundreds if not thousands of Buddha
images of all sizes. See rice-wine distillation
by traditional means in Sang Hai village before
returning to Luang Prabang. Walking tour of
Thanon Sisavangvong lined with coffee cafes,
boutiques and small stores. Go up the 329 steps
of Mount Phousi to watch the sun set over the
city and Nam Khan River. Upon our descent the
hill tribe night market at the foot of this hill
will be in full swing.
Dinner of French set menu at Elephant Blanc
Restaurant.
Overnight at hotel, Luang Prabang.
Day 03: Luang Prabang - Vientiane (Breakfast/
Dinner)
Breakfast at the hotel. At 9.30am transfer to
the airport for the flight to Vientiane by
QV102, dep.1140/arr.1220 (Mon / Tues / Thurs /
Sat). On the way drop in at the central market
for an insight into the daily purchase of the
local people. A vast range of goods and fresh
produce are on sale in this market.
Upon arrival at Wattay airport, meet and
transfer to your hotel.
Sightseeing of the city follows to include Haw
Pha Kaew which used to house the much-travelled
Emerald Buddha image, the That Luang Stupa which
is most revered by Laotians, Patuxai which is
Laos's very own Arc de Triomphe, and the fine Si
Saket temple built in 1818 by Chao Anou who was
educated in the Siamese court and which the Thai
invaders did not destroy.
Dinner at Kua Lao Restaurant of authentic Lao
cuisine.
Overnight at hotel, Vientiane.
Day 04: Vientiane - Siem Reap - Angkor
Temples (Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner)
Breakfast at the hotel. Early morning transfer
to Vientiane’s airport to board the flight to
Siem Reap by QV512, dep.0630/arr.0900
(Wed/Fri/Sun). Upon arrival at Siem Reap
airport, meet and go on a full-day tour of the
Angkor temple complex, visiting Angkor Thom (the
Bayon, Phimeanakas, Terrace of the Leper King,
the Elephant Terrace, the unfinished Baphuon)
and mystical Ta Prohm still in the embrace of
the jungle – all built by the great King
Jayavarman VII (reigned1181-1218).
Lunch at Angkor Reach Restaurant.
In the afternoon visit Banteay Srei the only
pink sandstone temple with the most exquisite
carvings of apsaras found in Angkor. Proceed to
Kbal Spean in the Kulen mountains to see the
fantastic ''River of a Thousand Lingas'' choked
with stone phallic carvings in the river bed
with clear waters flowing over them. Its
significance for the Khmer civilization is
all-consuming. There are over 20 temple ruins
and huge images of Hindu gods in this area that
is strewn with unexploded American bombs and so
we will not visit any of them due to the
potential danger.
Dinner at Sampheap Restaurant.
Overnight at hotel, Siem Reap.
Day 05: Rolous - Angkor Wat
(Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning visit to the
Rolous group of temples (Lolei, Preah Ko and
Bakong) built in the early era before Angkor Wat
to see what pre-classical Angkor temple
architecture is like.
Lunch at Angkor Cafe restaurant.
Afternoon tour of the grandest of Angkor’s
monuments, Angkor Wat, which was built earlier
than Angkor Thom. Along the walls of its
galleries the glories of the Angkor civilization
are carved in bas-relief. We will fully explore
this largest Hindu-Buddhist temple in the world,
the highlight of any tour to Angkor. As the sun
sinks to the horizon, climb the steep incline up
Bakheng Hill to the ruins of Bakheng Temple to
see the magical play of the fading light on
Angkor Wat and the Tonle Sap in the distance.
Dinner with cultural show at the Tonle Sap
Restaurant.
Overnight at hotel, Siem Reap.
Day 06: Siem Reap - Phnom Penh
(Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning excursion to the
Great Lake for a boat cruise to see village life
on the Tonle Sap. There are floating villages of
fishermen who harvest fish in the lake, which is
a natural wonder as the tide reverses during the
wet season to bring silt to refertilize the land
for cultivation. Visit a typical Cambodian
village to compare it with the Laotian villages
you have seen in Luang Prabang. Return to Siem
Reap at about noon.
Lunch at New Bayon restaurant.
Transfer to the airport for the flight to Phnom
Penh.
At Pochentong airport meet and transfer to
hotel.
Dinner at President restaurant.
Overnight at hotel, Phnom Penh.
Day 07: Phnom Penh (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)
Breakfast at the hotel. Morning city sightseeing
to include the Royal Palace of the present King,
the Silver Pagoda tiled with 5,000 silver plates
each weighing one kg, the National Museum
housing a large amount of artefacts of the
Angkor civilization, Wat Phnom on a man-made
hill worshipped at by the people, and other city
sights.
Lunch at Chung Hsing restaurant.
Afternoon tour to Tuol Sleng Prison-Museum and
the ''Killing Fields'' at Choeng Ek made
infamous by the mindless Khmer Rouge who killed
a million Cambodians during their 4-year rule.
Dinner at Peace Restaurant.
Overnight at hotel, Phnom Penh.
Day 08: Phnom Penh - Departure (Breakfast)
Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to airport for
departure flight.
End of Tour & Services
Trip Requirements
Visa:
At the Thai immigration upon
arrival, be sure to check your passport
immediately after stamping. Overworked officials
sometimes make mistakes. Point out any errors
before you leave the immigration area at your
port of entry. Mistakes will be rectified. If
you don't notice the mistake made at the port of
entry, go to the Immigration Office near Chiang
Mai airport and plead your case. For Laos
visa-on-arrival with fee of US$30 is available
and for Cambodia visa-on-arrival fee is US$20.
Once a visa is issued, it must be used to enter
Thailand within 90 days. The Royal Thai Embassy
in Washington DC, maintains one of the best
Internet sites for information about visas for
Thailand : www.thaiembdc.org/visa/visa.htm
Other visas validity varies from one to two
months.
Transit/Tourist Visa: For Thailand, no
visa is required for people of 57 different
nationalities to enter the country for 30 days
at no charge. People of 78 other nationalities,
such as those from smaller European countries
like Andorra or Liechtenstein or from West
Africa, South Asia or Latin America, can obtain
a 15-day Transit Visa on arrival upon payment of
a 300 Baht fee. A few nationalities (e.g.
Hungarians) must obtain a visa in advance of
arrival or they will be turned back. It is
always prudent to check with an embassy or
consulate in advance about the requirement
pertaining to you. Without proof of an onward
ticket and sufficient funds for the period of
stay, any visitor can be denied entry; but in
practice your ticket and funds are rarely
checked if you are dressed neatly for the
immigration check. Next in length of validity is
the Tourist visa, which is good for 60 days and
costs US$15. Two passport photos must accompany
the application form. Usually it takes only one
or two days to get your visa, but check this.
Things to bring: Light clothings
preferably of cotton material for good sweat
absorption. Add a jacket for the cool season of
Nov.-Feb. especially for northern Thailand and
the mountains in Yunnan. A pair of slippers,
sun-glasses, a hat, sunscreen lotion - all these
you can buy in the cities anyway. Your special
medication. And plenty of money?
Health Precaution: No vaccination
certificate is required unless you come from
Latin American countries and tropical Africa.
Drink plenty of bottled or boiled water instead
of alcohol when in the country. Avoid roadside
stalls food unless it is hot - and we are not
talking of chillies. Try not to smoke.
Insurance: Travel insurance is advisable
although in many of the "dangerous" activities
you would be covered already.
Direction to meeting point: At airports
look out for a signage of your name or group's
name after having cleared Customs |
|
|
|
|
