Southeast Asia Travel News

Presenting our South China tour – ‘World Heritage Sites of Yunnan’. Without doubt, Yunnan is China’s most diverse and fascinating region, both culturally and scenically. Bordering Burma, (Myanmar), Vietnam and  Laos, this remote, border province has everything from tropical jungles and wild elephants in its far southern reaches to yaks and snow-capped mountains on the Tibetan Plateau in the north….

Sunbathing in the tropics – to do or not to do? Sure, a dose of vitamin D is good for you, even essential, but this whole sunbathing thing – lying in the sun on a beach or pool-side reclining chair for hours covered in oil – we thought was a late 20th-century phenomenon. Apart from the obvious risks of skin…

Our popular Northern Laos tour, Luang Prabang and the Plain of Jars, is an 8-day exploration of some of the fabulous historical, cultural and scenic highlights of this little-known country. The itinerary includes a scenic ride on the brand new Lao-China express train from Vientiane to Luang Prabang and an exploration of the ancient capital and UNESCO World Heritage-listed town…

This 17-day Laos and Cambodia tour – an extended version of our classic cl Indochina Adventure – leads you through the heart of Southeast Asia from the remote mountains of northern Laos to the steamy jungles and enigmatic, creeper-covered, ruined temples of Angkor. Beginning in the laidback, modern-day capital Vientiane we’ll travel through the mountains on the scenic new Lao-China…

Our highly varied 15-day Vietnam and Cambodia Overland tour, Saigon to Phnom Penh, takes in the region’s famous, iconic sites as well as some of its more off-the-beaten-track, rarely visited, ones. Beginning in Vietnam’s bustling Ho Chi Minh City, (still Saigon to most of its residents) this exciting river and land adventure will lead you through the heart of Indochina….

Mountains and Hill-tribes – a fascinating and varied 2-week Northern Laos and Vietnam tour. This superb voyage through some of Southeast Asia’s most remote, least-known but spectacular regions begins in the laidback contemporary capital Vientiane from where we’ll travel on the Lao-China railway through the mountains to the ancient royal city and UNESCO World Heritage Site of Luang Prabang. Discover…

Having inexplicably suffered a detached retina whilst watching Barbie VDO’s with an 8-year-old, (no the doctor didn’t believe us either), we’ve not taken any new photos in while. A trawl through some catalogued images seemed to turn up an inordinate amount of bridges of Southeast Asia photos so for no reason whatsoever other than a plea for un-inspiration to be…

Portraits of Burma is a short selection of photographs by Wi, taken on her recent Discover Burma tour, “…quite unlike any land you know about”. (Quote from Kipling of course!) So, in no particular order and without further ado… The ubiquitous pink-clad Buddhist nuns are a sight that you won’t see elsewhere in Southeast Asia despite Burma sharing its predominant…

Prasart Ta Prom, at UNESCO World Heritage-listed Angkor. Cambodia’s famous, so-called, ‘Tomb Raider Temple’ with its giant trees and sprawling roots is certainly one of the vast Angkor complex’s most famous and photogenic sites and so consequently, it does see a lot of visitors and in the high season particularly can get rather busy. A regular, classic itinerary would have…

Our Vietnam photography tour – ‘Images of Vietnam, the Mekong Delta’ – takes in some of the famous sites, as well as the everyday street-life and colourful local markets of vibrant Ho Chi Minh City (still Saigon to most of its residents) before exploring the serene landscapes, rural and river scenes of the picturesque Mekong Delta. Accompanied by one of…

That’s Preah Vihear Temple to the Khmers or Khao Preah Viharn for the Thais. The recently promoted UNESCO World Heritage site is situated smack bang on the border and yes….you may well have noticed in the news that there have been a few border ‘issues’ between the two countries in recent times. Note the disagreement has never been over ownership…

A selection of photographs of our recent trek through the picturesque but remote Pha Taem National Park in Ubon Ratchathani Province of far northeastern Thailand. We have already blogged about Pha Taem in some detail so what follows is mostly a collection of photos from our last Emerald Triangle tour. We joined up with a bunch of monks from Uttaradit…

For a relatively small ethnic group, the Padaung certainly have plenty of names. Padaung is apparently the Shan term for the Kayah Lahwi– a subgroup of the Kayah ethnic family who are in turn a subgroup of the Karenni or Red Karen who are themselves a part of the wider Karen family. Vulgar terms for them are ‘Long Necks’, ‘Long…

One of our very favourite spots in Vietnam, the picturesque town of Sapa lies amongst the high ranges of the ‘Tonkinese Alps’ in the far northwest of the country, close to the border with China. This small, mountain-top settlement became popular during the French era as a cool retreat for colonists from the rigours of the Hanoi climate.   Now…

Hiking in the Shan Hills; a few photos and brief description. Firstly many thanks to our awesome local guide Moe Zaw for designing and testing what proved to be an excellent hiking trail close to the small town of Kalaw on the Shan Plateau. Despite terrain seen below, (i.e. picturesque but hilly!), he managed to find us a predominantly flat…

Thanks to Dan and Becky for some excellent photos of Laos they sent recently taken on last year’s Northern Laos and the Golden Triangle tour. Glad you guys enjoyed the trip and thanks for the pix!         Thanks again for the pix. Details and full itinerary of our Northern Laos and the Golden Triangle tour can be…

Phu Asa, or Asa Mountain, is a sandstone outcrop lying close to the village of Kietngong in South Lao’s Champassak Province. The forested hill – part of Xe Pian National Biodiversity Zone – is topped by a flat, bare rock outcrop with a gentle access slope to the northeast and steep drop-offs on the other sides. The mountain’s flat top…

Lying just a kilometre away from Wat Phu, the small Angkor period temple of Nang Sida, Laos, does tend to get overshadowed by it’s prestigious UNESCO World Heritage neighbour. After hiking up and down the steep steps at Wat Phu few visitors are going to be bothered to head off into the dusty surrounding scrub-land to visit a ‘lesser’ temple…

Great boat trip down this picturesque and as yet unspoilt river, (the Burmese president having recently suspended the controversial Myitsone Dam project), and well worth the early start for the superb dawn views as we headed down the Irrawaddy from Mandalay. According to the Burmese powers that be Aerawaddy is a closer transliteration to the Burmese, (or Myanmar), pronunciation so…

A selection of photos from our Cambodia Overland tour or at least the Cambodia section of various tours since Dan and Sara, having signed up for the Indochina Adventure, had already travelled through Northern Thailand and Laos for a couple of weeks and Yvette was doing Cambodia as part of a Saigon to Phnom Penh Overland tour. First pic then…