Realistic Asia

This company says what they will do and does what they say
5 star

This group accomplished the absolute impossible. I signed up for a marathon - unwisely - that was 4 hours - 4 hours! - outside of Ho Chi Minh, along the Mekond Delta.

I spoke with Hien and she was able to find a driver from the airport to the hotel as well as a great hotel. The next day I drove with a driver - Phouk (sp?) and a guide (Phi) out to the Mekong Delta (Hau Gyang district) and they helped me get registered and pick up my race packet for the race. I would have been helpless without them.

The race itself, however, furthermore was at 3 AM the next day! 3 AM! Not to worry, the guide and the driver insisted on getting up with me that morning and driving me to the race. Extraordinary. And I was able to run and finish the race!

That afternoon, we went back to Ho Chi Minh and Phi generously put me on his motorbike and showed me the nightlife the next day - and treated me to some fabulous street food. Phi's English by the way was excellent, large vocabulary and great local knowledge. Hien's English was also very good, enabling seamless communication.

I cannot say enough good things about how well it all went and how bad it would have gone without them - - how well Hien planned the whole trip based on my specific needs, how actively she stayed in touch during the trip, and how quickly she was able to adjust if we decided to do something different. You cannot dream of better.

My heartfelt praise and gratitude to all three of them!

Hien stayed connected to us while we traveled and helped us when a few things went differently than expected. We stayed at nice places and had great guides and drivers the whole way. We loved Thailand and I feel like we saw the best of what there was at the places we chose to visit. Great experience!

Hotel Reviews

The Legendha Sukhothai Resort

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

De Prime Rang Nam, Your Tailor Made Hotel

This was the only hotel I didn't like on our trip. The lobby was nice but the rooms need renovating.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lampang River Lodge

Lampang

Lampang is not a place to stop that is worth stopping. Neither is this lodge a place that is worth staying. It was dingy and musty and not a place I would recommend to anyone. But it's probably the best that Lampang has to offer.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Na Nirand Romantic Boutique Resort

Gorgeous, amazing place and staff. Excellent location. Just great.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Reverie Siam Resort

Beautiful hotel. Wish it was closer to town. Food is mediocre.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bo Phut Resort and Spa

Glorious hotel with amazingly responsive staff and good food.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Amaranth Suvarnabhumi Hotel

Bangkok

Clean and basic. Close to the airport.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Half day combined Grand Palace Temples city tour

Bangkok

This would have been completely amazing if we hadn't felt rushed. We were only there for 1 1/2 hours and it's a HUGE and BEAUTIFUL place.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Pai – Pai Canyon – Bamboo Rafting Into Tham Lodge Cave

Pai

We were unable to go on the rafts due to it being rainy season. The caves reek of bat poop and you have to walk through dying birds on the rickety walkways to get inside the caves. I would have never gone if I had known what it really would be like. Don't trust the photos.

Koh Phangan Tour Full Day

Ko Samui

This was a very long day on a boat to see some mediocre places. There was no snorkeling as the water was not clear due to the rainy season, which we were not told in advance. And they kept us out fishing even as a storm came in, so the ride back in was terrible. And the staff smoked the entire trip, which made finding anywhere to lounge really challenging. I did not enjoy this day on the boat so we canceled our boat tour the next day because none of us could face being stuck back on the water all day again.

Maeklong Railway Market and Damnoen Saduak floating market - Half-day

Bangkok

This was fun to see. It's a long drive, which I didn't expect.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mostly they got us there, told us a few things, and left us to explore on our own.

Transport

The van was comfortable.

Leisure Day in Hot Springs

Pai

This was sweet time as a family to soak and hang out. There is nothing particularly fabulous about this place but it was nice downtime that was much needed by this point in our trip.

Bangkok evening street food tour

Bangkok

This provided us with a bunch of food, but we were so exhausted from our international flight that it was hard to enjoy. We had also just had lunch and our guide suggested that we do this tour in the afternoon instead of the evening. I'm not sure why we said yes when none of us were hungry.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sukhothai sightseeing – Lampang

Sukhothai

Sukhothai is gorgeous. We only saw a tiny fraction of what is there. It was fun to be on bikes but it was also very HOT.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Elephant Jungle Sanctuary (Join in) – Doi Suthep Hill (B/L)

Chiang Mai

Beautiful experience at an actual sanctuary that cares for the elephants.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lampang Visiting - Travel to Chiang Mai

Lampang

There is absolutely no reason to visit Lampang.

Chiang Mai - Mok Fah Waterfall - Chinese Village - Pai

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cooking Lesson in Asia Scenic Thai Cooking School (afternoon visit)

Chiang Mai

We loved this activity. We were all tired from a long drive and really didn't want to go, and we all still LOVED it. The food was amazing and getting the recipes was an extra bonus.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hien was fantastic to work with. We had four or five iterations of our planned trip and she happily chopped and changed according to our budget and preferred itinerary.

We were in Pu Luong for three nights and our local guide was wonderful. She was from the area and so naturally had great local knowledge.

All our connections were organised which meant for a stress-free holiday. The drivers were all lovely and helpful and on time! It all helped make our holiday truly magical and memorable. Thanks.

Hotel Reviews

Gateway Inn Pu Luong

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hanoi Allure Hotel

Great location. Friendly staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lalita Boutique Hotel & Spa Ninh Binh

Authenticity & Character

Location

A bit out of town. But a nice view from the top floor with the pool

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Doris Cruise

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Pu Luong - Caving | Scenic Rice Fields

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Enchanting 19km Off-Road Trekking

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Village Life | Water Wheels | Rafting ( Day3)

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Onboarding - Lan Ha Bay – Ba Trai Dao/ Tra Bau (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lan Ha Bay – Dark & Bright Cave – Disembark Cruise (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

STRONG CUSTOMER SERVICE/ EXCELLENT COMMUNICATION

Hien helped us plan our Vietnam/Thailand trip from June 1 to 13. We packed a lot into this 2 week trip which Hien kept tweaking to our preference and satisfaction. Unbelievably organized compared to the last travel agent we used.
Throughout the whole trip, she kept checking on us and reminded us of driver/pick-up times (always punctual) and who our guide will be, etc.

When things didn't go according to original plan, she already had a quick back-up. For instance...Ha Long Bay Paradise Peak Cruise's air condition malfunctioned at last minute so she booked us on sister ship, Paradise Elegance. Although the room was smaller than our room on P.Peak's, she made it right by making sure our room had a large wrap around balcony and my husband got a free 60 minute massage. Additionally, we were supposed to have dinner cruise the following week on Manohra Cruise in Bangkok, but boat caught on fire. Hien was able to get us a refund pretty quickly since back-up dinner cruise ship could not accommodate us at a specific time.

Choice of guides were also great! KC (Kim Cuong), our Hanoi guide, took us on street food tour which included (per our request) a hunt for reasonably priced Kopi Luwak coffee beans (from movie "The Bucket List") and a perfect seat to watch the train's approach on Hanoi's famous Old Train Street.
Tim (Tipparat), our Bangkok guide, also went the extra mile. She picked us up at BKK airport. During our 1 hour drive to our hotel, she helped us make reservation at Michelin Star restaurant, R-Haan. She also got us seating at the famous Jay Fai " street food" restaurant prior to our actual street food tour. Not sure how she did it because Jay Fai does not take reservations. There is usually a long queue.

We went on many excursions, such as a hike in SaPa's rice fields, a trip to Ninh Binh (Mua Cave, Tam Coc), and my favorite, Chai Lai Orchid Elephant Sanctuary. All perfectly planned.

Hotels--Hien will work with your budget. We chose to stay at mid-luxury hotels.

Hanoi: Peridot Boutique Hotel is located in Old Quarter. Great location...we were able to walk to Hoa Lo Prison, the Water Puppet Theatre, Chinatown area, and Train Street. Great breakfast buffet.

Sa Pa: Topas Ecolodge-- we just stayed in a Premium Executive Bungalow and it had a great view. Food at Topas...breakfast buffet and dinner surprised us...actually quite good.

Sa Pa: Hotel de la Coupole -M Gallery --beautiful hotel. Absinthe Bar (Afternoon Tea) offers sweet and savory treats paired with tea and coffee. Chic Restaurant had great breakfast buffet but limited choices for dinner.

Chiang Mai: Tamarind Village-- great location in Old City. The Sunday night market is pretty much right in front of hotel. You can walk to the temples. Breakfast buffet was great.

Bangkok: Anantara Riverside --we had a great room with river view. Restaurants are very mediocre --Trader Vic's, Brio, Benihana--all these restaurants are in the US. Drinks at the bar (alcoholic and non) are very expensive even by US standards. Breakfast and dinner buffet also mediocre. Expected more from a luxury ( or mid-luxury?) resort. At least just about a 10minute Grab (Uber in SE Asia) ride to Iconsiam where you can find "air conditioned street food stalls" at bottom level.

The booking experience on Kim Kim was overall easy, and made a big international trip like this for a foreigner very stress free. After going through different sample trips we were linked with Realistic Asia in Vietnam and Hien our main point of contact. After telling Hien what we were thinking she gave us a sample trip and made some recommendations which were great. We wanted to make some changes to day trips and hotels, which she was extremely responsive and attentive to which we appreciated. Throughout the trip Hien was never far from her phone which made the experience that much more comfortable. Everywhere we went we had a driver and english speaking guide, which made navigating every step in our itinerary very easy. The entire experience with Realistic Asia was turnkey

I want to give a shout out to some excellent guides we had throughout the trip: Huấn in Hoi Ann, Thiện in Hue, and Cuong in Hanoi.All went above and beyond during the tours and giving us tips along the way and we highly recommend using them.

Hotel Reviews

Moire Hoi An, Vignette Collection

This hotel is directly across from old town, and a very easy walk away from all major attractions. The pool is overlooking the river and a great spot to spend during the hottest parts off the day. The room was nice and great staff.

Authenticity & Character

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Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Silk Path Grand Hue

Everything about this hotel is great but it is a dated look and feel. I think the rooms need to be renovated at some point to keep up with other five star accommodations.

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Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Grand Pioneers Cruise (Formerly Essence Grand Cruise)

This ship has great food service, and rooms. It is a practically brand new luxury yacht which is beautiful and comfortable. When the ship goes to its overnight docking location its not very far from land, and its in a cove with many other boats. I think we would have enjoyed more movement so we were able to see more of Ha Long Bay. The excursion we did ( kayaking) was boring and every boat in the area seemed like they were doing the same thing.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Overnight Anchoring Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi

Hanoi

Amazing Historical Hotel with great staff. We enjoyed our stay here. The vibe is definitely professional business and wealthy tourists but we still had a nice time.

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Staff

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Activity Review

VIP Fast Track Service

Vietnam

A must do for coming into Saigon, made the trip so much easier.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hien planned a wonderful trip for us. She was a good communicator and understood our needs and wants. The guides and drivers were the best-courteous and friendly. I recommend KimKim and Hien without any reservation.
When we had some trouble with the visa process she immediately offered her help.