Your calls always answered within 5 rings.
Usual high standard of communication, with prompt answers to any questions or concerns. And a great choice of hotels. Everything was perfect, thank you Patrick
Even when we had issues these were handled quickly and well.
When booking a trip with multiple stops it would be good to be offered a choice of hotels so we could choose our preferred option
Overall I would say solid. Good booking of hotels and transfers. Not very helpful in arranging tours or guides. The app worked well except a couple of times doing the check-ins for Vietnam Airlines
Thanks Jamie Theodorou.
We didn't like the Elios Hotel in HCM.
Everything went as planned.
Will definitely use you again and have recommended you to so many people.
Fantastic service, thank you so much for making a nervous traveller's journey so stress free.
Competitive price and first class service.
We were happy with tour although it was very busy and tiring. We have given feedback to company about slotting in some rest time.
As usual, everything worked out a dream. Consistently excellent customer service from Glen. Thank you so much as always!
Sometimes callbacks were slow but overall very pleasant to deal with and my flights were all confidently booked.
All worked out - you delivered!
Amazing itinerary that was sorted by Des. Only issue I had is that on two of our stays a double room was not booked and they had twin rooms
Great trip all round
Noah and his team are amazing, updating me on changes and phoning me just before I leave to check everything's OK
Staff go above and beyond with their support. We always book through DialAFlight for this reason. Steven Merrells and his team helped us on numerous occasions for our most recent trip, looking at date changes, getting an extra person on our flight and with seat bookings. Excellent service throughout.
Our trip was amazing on every level. Everything went to plan. The accommodation was perfect in both locations. We had excellent guides from Exo travel. Huge thanks to Kylie for organising a trip of a lifetime (we loved it so much we want to go back!)
Fantastic service
Went swimmingly. Thanks to Seymour for arranging the booking
Your staff really try to find the best possible flights
Everything went so smooth and always happy with your service. Had a fab time. Definitely use you again for next year - who knows where we will go?
Manny was very helpful and efficient. Cost competitive too. Will definitely use the company again.
Really appreciated the personal touch from Colin Barlow and all the team in Manchester office. Easy to work with them to build a personal itinerary that went smoothly throughout the trip. With multiple flights, boat trips, hotels and road transfers over 3 weeks, the whole trip was flawless and all the local agents were excellent.
All the flights worked well however there were a few that we couldn’t check in to using the app. Luckily this was resolved in time to check in for our flight home
Lucas and his team were very helpful and professional taking the time to explain everything
Leo is a fantastic adviser. He got us some great deals and really added value by suggesting some great add-ons to our trip. We’ll definitely use him again.
Warren organised a wonderful holiday for us in Vietnam.
We had a great time but would avoid Tet if we were to go again.
This was not the golden age of travel. Our soft-sleeper carriage had basic bedding and no shower – just a shared sink and one Western-style WC. On a table between the bunks was 'breakfast': cheesy crackers, crisps, a yoghurt drink and a tin of mixed kidney-type beans.
But what our train lacked in luxury was more than made up for by the raw experience of seeing Vietnam up close and personal, as the single-track line weaved through city centres and so close to houses and motorists that you could almost reach out and shake hands.
There were 40 of us on our rail tour from Hanoi to Saigon via iconic Halong Bay, then by speedboat up the Mekong Delta into Cambodia. We met as strangers – seven singles, one tour manager and the rest married couples – but friendships were quickly made.
On the way to Hanoi, Vietnam's capital, we passed lush rice fields, the 'hedges' a network of irrigation channels. Water buffalo still plough the land.
Our hotel was minutes from Hoa Lo Prison – the famed 'Hanoi Hilton' (now a museum) that held American prisoners of war in the Seventies, including 2008 presidential candidate John McCain.
A coach tour took in Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum, modelled on Lenin's tomb in Moscow, and the humble stilt house where 'Uncle Ho' lived.
Travelling in traditional tuk-tuks gave us a close-up view of the narrow old city streets, where locals eat, drink and chat on little plastic stools, or have streetside pedicures in plastic washing-up bowls. Then there's the scooters. Vietnam (a little larger than Italy) is home to 88million people and 35million mopeds and scooters.
Crossing the road is not for the faint-hearted. Our guide joked that traffic lights were merely 'a suggestion'. The trick, he said, is to look confident and walk on: the traffic will weave around you.
From Hanoi we took a two-day cruise of Halong Bay, with islets of limestone karst pillars rising dramatically from a mist-shrouded sea.
Legend has it the bay was formed when the gods sent dragons to protect Vietnam from invaders. The dragons breathed out jewels, which formed into thousands of islands. Today, it's home to floating fishing villages, rare wildlife and cruise ships.
We visited a floating village, on a sampan rowed by a local girl. Then we boarded the Reunification Railway. You can travel the 1,070 miles from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) in 33 hours, but Great Rail Journeys broke it into four days.
We spent one night in a privately run sleeping car aimed at tourists, a notch or two above the regular 'softsleepers'.
Tip: make sure you secure your door. A Vietnamese woman, seeking a free bed, frightened us in the dead of night when she tried to climb into our vacant top bunk.
But mostly we stayed in hotels along the way, all comfortable with great food. Vietnamese cuisine is one of the healthiest in the world, relying on fresh ingredients and simple flavourings. In the town of Hoi An, my friend Ruth and I went shopping. Ruth had four perfect copies of a favourite dress made in different fabrics, and a young shoe shop girl insisted I hop on the back of her moped – 'Don't worry, I'm a very safe driver' – so I could get another pair of shoes from my hotel while they copied the ones I was wearing.
Our last leg took us into Cambodia along the Mekong river in a speed boat, where we witnessed the harshness of rural life, with stilt shanty houses lacking both running water and electricity.
Elsewhere was evidence of a coming modernity, with the cities leading the way. Even on our train, we got a sense of what might soon be.
My advice is to catch that Reunification Train while you can – before the country changes beyond all recognition. It's charming now, just as it is.
First published in the Daily Mail - August 2016
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