Southeast Asia in Style

(21 Days - Departs Daily on a Private Basis)
Hong Kong, Hanoi, Hoi An, Saigon, Siem Reap, Chiang Mai, Golden Triangle, Bangkok

This luxury tour is designed for travelers wanting the most comprehensive and luxurious tour of Southeast Asia.

Begin in Hong Kong, one of Asia’s most attractive and exciting cities, with a spectacular skyline, beautiful harbors and beaches, superb restaurants, bustling markets and much more. Stay in a select room at The Peninsula and enjoy unbeatable views across Victoria Harbor. With your expert private guide and driver, learn about the historic buildings and modern skyscrapers in Central. Tour interesting residential neighborhoods in the hills. Take a scenic drive along the beautiful coastline. Dine on dim sum at teahouses, and enjoy reservations at one of Hong Kong’s most exclusive restaurants—a showcase of fine Cantonese food, art and design. Learn about traditional Chinese medicine at local spice and herb markets. Perhaps watch a horse race at Happy Valley Racetrack, enjoy private appointments at leading antique shops or with noted designers, or get fitted for custom clothing at our favorite tailors.

Next, fly to Hanoi, Vietnam’s fascinating capital and intellectual center. During private touring with your expert local guide and private driver, visit the city’s most important historical attractions, such as the Temple of Literature, One Pillar Pagoda, House on Stilts and Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. Take an in-depth tour of Hanoi’s incredible Old Quarter, where each street was historically dedicated to a specific trade or material, such as bamboo, silk and lacquer. While touring the narrow streets, learn about the history of the Old Quarter and its traditional architecture, and see how it has transformed into a fashionable district with cafes, art galleries and boutiques featuring the finest Vietnamese design and style. Also tour around Hoan Kiem Lake and leafy backstreets where beautiful French colonial-era buildings have been transformed into upscale restaurants. Other options include visiting museums such as the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology or the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum. One night, see Hanoi’s renowned water puppet show, or attend a performance at the landmark Hanoi Opera House. Additional special interest touring can be arranged upon request, such as cyclo rides, cooking classes, in-depth street food tours and other culinary tours, meetings with prominent artists and art gallery owners, biking through the nearby countryside, a visit to a local village filled with beautiful historic architecture, meetings with prominent historians, private meditation sessions in an ancient temple, and more.

Continue to Hoi An, an atmospheric port town and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Stay at a luxury beachfront resort, and experience the best of this centuries-old town during private touring. Visit the vibrant morning market, where stalls are piled high with fresh fish and produce. Explore the colorful backstreets, and tour well-preserved historic homes, temples, the Japanese Covered Bridge and other interesting attractions. Perhaps visit a local tailor for custom-made silk clothing, a Hoi An specialty. Also visit the nearby Museum of Cham Sculpture, as well as the Marble Mountains, which contain Buddhist cave temples. Upon request, we can arrange additional activities in and near Hoi An, such as a visit to a village that specializes in making Hoi An’s colorful lanterns; a visit to a local farm to learn about Vietnamese food and ingredients; a cooking class focused on local specialties such as fresh spring rolls or cao lau noodles; an excursion to My Son, the ancient ruins of the once-powerful Cham civilization; biking through the countryside; and taking a sunset boat ride on the river. There will also be time to relax and enjoy your resort’s beautiful architecture, spa and beach.

Spend two nights in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam’s most dynamic city. With an expert private guide and driver, learn about the city’s history while touring French colonial-era landmarks, as well as the Reunification Palace and War Remnants Museum. Experience the best of Cholon, Saigon’s Chinatown, including a local market and busy temples. Sample local culinary specialties and see daily life in vibrant markets overflowing with spices, flowers, clothing, housewares and more. Perhaps stop for a refreshing Vietnamese iced coffee, or dine on a typical Vietnamese banh mi (baguette sandwich). Another option is browsing the boutiques of Vietnamese designers and renowned art galleries and museums. One day, take an excursion into the countryside to tour the Cu Chi Tunnels and observe a colorful religious ceremony at the Cao Dai Temple. Upon request, we can also arrange activities such as meeting with historians, visits to private homes, private musical performances, cyclo tours through backstreets, a private excursion to the Mekong Delta, and private cooking classes or culinary tours.

Next, fly to Siem Reap, Cambodia to explore incredible Angkor, the ruins of the ancient Khmer empire. With your private guide, tour the most interesting parts of this UNESCO World Heritage Site, including Angkor Wat, an enormous temple city built as a model of the Hindu universe in stone; Angkor Thom, an ancient capital filled with iconic sites such as the Bayon, Terrace of the Elephants and Terrace of the Leper King; Ta Prohm, a temple being devoured by the jungle; and serene Preah Khan, a former monastery and school. Also visit Banteay Srei, a petite temple with elaborate carvings in pink sandstone, and other lesser-known temples. If desired, enjoy special activities customized to your interests, such as riding bikes to temples and local villages, a cruise on Tonle Sap Lake to visit floating villages, a private Khmer cooking class, visiting children's centers, touring local villages, photography excursions, visiting traditional Cambodian art centers, specialized shopping, private yoga, a helicopter ride to remote jungle temples, or attending traditional Khmer dance performances.

Spend several days in rural Chiang Mai in northern Thailand at one of Asia’s most luxurious and atmospheric resorts, surrounded by mountains and lush fields of terraced rice paddies. Browse craft districts specializing in celadon ceramics, silver, teak furniture, paper umbrellas, and beautiful silk weavings. Visit revered mountaintop temples, the royal family’s Winter Palace, an elephant camp, and local hill tribe villages. A day will be at leisure to enjoy the resort's spa, cooking school, golf, or pool. Additional cultural excursions are also available.

Visit hill tribe villages during the drive to the Golden Triangle for several nights at an exclusive safari-style tented camp. While there, tour the villages, mountains, markets and waterways where Laos, Thailand and Myanmar (Burma) meet along the Mekong River. Spend time with a professional mahout (elephant handler) at an elephant camp and learn to ride and work with these fascinating animals. Take your pick from other activities included in the tour such as picnic lunch while cruising past villages on the Mekong, massages, fishing, bird watching, cultural activities with local experts, shopping at markets, sunset cocktails in scenic spots, relaxing by the jungle pool, yoga, fine dining, and more.

This spectacular tour concludes in Bangkok, with several nights at the legendary Mandarin Oriental Bangkok. Travel by private longtail boat through Bangkok's residential canals, learn about Buddhist art and beliefs at the glittering temple Wat Phra Keow and Wat Po, indulge your senses at Bangkok’s markets, and view traditional Thai art and architecture at the Jim Thompson Museum and the Prasart Museum. Also enjoy Bangkok's wonderful cuisine and spas.