Jewels of South East Asia
Savour this wonderful cultural journey, as you take in the best of Cambodia and Thailand, then spend three lazy days by the beach, on the Gulf of Thailand.
You’ll start in captivating Cambodia, where fascinating capital Phnom Penh and the magnificent temples of Angkor await. Cross the border into Thailand, where you’ll stay in exemplary capital Bangkok, before paying a sobering visit to Kanchanaburi, site of the infamous Death Railway. Three nights at popular beach resort Hua Hin complete a wonderful break.
Highlights
- Get to know fascinating Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on an included tour, with included sundowner on the Mekong River
- Make a fascinating stop at the villages of Koh Chen and Skun, the latter renowned for a distinctive delicacy
- Pay a sobering visit to the infamous Tuol Sleng and Killing Fields
- Explore the awe-inspiring temples of Angkor from your base in Siem Reap, including Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom and Ta Prohm
- Visits to Tonlé Sap Lake, South East Asia’s biggest lake, and a Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) museum
- Discover French colonial Battambang
- Enjoy a two-night stay in glittering Thai capital Bangkok, with an included tour of its stupendous palaces and temples, plus an included dinner at the famous 78th-floor Bangkok Sky Restaurant
- Experience the extraordinary Maeklong Railway Market
- Spend two nights in Kanchanaburi, with entry to the Thailand–Burma Railway Centre included
- Visit beautiful Erawan National Park and poignant Hellfire Pass
- Pay a fascinating visit to the Tham Rong community, where they have been cultivating toddy palm for centuries
- Relax for three days at idyllic Hua Hin, on the Gulf of Thailand
- Explore coastal Hua Hin and the award-winning Monsoon Valley vineyards, with included wine tasting
- Choose from optional tours including a countryside cycling and cooking experience and a trip to Sam Roi Yod National Park
Inclusions
- 13 nights’ carefully chosen bed and breakfast accommodation, plus two nights on the aircraft
- 20 meals, including 13 breakfasts, three lunches and one dinner
- Comfortable air-conditioned coach transfers throughout
- Fully escorted by a friendly, knowledgeable tour manager
Day 1
Overnight flight via Singapore.
Day 2
Meet you tour guide and transfer to your hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure, perhaps spent exploring Phnom Penh, a wonderful French colonial treasure-chest.
Day 3
Start you tour of Phnom Penh with a visit to Phsar Thmey, an Art Deco landmark in the city centre that is home to a lively market. Here, you’ll learn more about everyday life in Cambodia as you wander through the labyrinth of stalls.
Continue to the sobering Tuol Sleng Museum, which chronicles the brutal Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge years, to learn more about Cambodia’s troubled – but nonetheless, important – past.
This afternoon, the tour continues to the stupendous Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda – the latter named for the 5,000 silver tiles that cover its floor – followed by a visit to the National Museum. A visit to the infamous Choeng Ek, better known as the Killing Fields, completes a fascinating, and at times, difficult, tour.
This evening, as the sun sets, sit back, relax and enjoy a cruise on the Mekong, as you take in the city’s sights from the water, perhaps with a cold beer in hand.
Day 4
Check out this morning and make the scenic transfer to Siem Reap. En route, you’ll make a quick stop at the villages of Koh Chen and Skun, the latter renowned for a unique local delicacy: deep-fried tarantulas!
Upon arrival in Siem Reap, check in and enjoy the rest of the day at leisure.
Day 5
Today an undoubted highlight of the tour awaits. Spend an unforgettable day in the company of a knowledgeable guide, as you discover the astounding lost city of Angkor, the great Khmer citadel that once ruled half of South East Asia. Great ruins litter a vast area, the most awe-inspiring of which is Angkor Wat, with its five great towers and huge bas relief. You’ll also visit the richly decorated temple at Bayon, and the wonderfully atmospheric Ta Prohm, where trees grow from the ruins beneath – shooting location for the Tomb Raider film!
Day 6
Today, you’ll be driven to the Kok Sangke community to visit the home of a local family who’ll make you several traditional Khmer desserts. You’ll then learn about the village’s sustainable farming techniques, visit a community centre, which teaches local farmers about eco-friendly farming methods, see some nearby farms, and have lunch before travelling to Wat Luang Proleung, an ancient pagoda and the village of Kampong Khleang.
Day 7
This morning you can chose to join the optional countryside cycling and cookery tour, where you’ll enjoy a guided, gentle bike ride into the surrounding countryside, stopping off at a cookery class.
Check out of your hotel this afternoon and transfer to Battambang, near the border with Thailand. The rest of the day is at leisure.
Day 8
Enjoy a morning at leisure, before you transfer to Poi Pet, on the border with Thailand.
Bid farewell to Cambodia and your Cambodian guide as you enter Thailand and transfer to Bangkok, where the rest of the day is at leisure.
Day 9
Enjoy a full-day’s sightseeing today as you discover Bangkok’s stupendous palaces. In the morning, you’ll see the Royal Island, where the Grand Palace adjoins the Wat Phra Kaew temple with its Emerald Buddha, as well as the less formal Wat Pho temple, home to the gigantic Reclining Buddha,
Lunch will be served at a local restaurant, before a gentle walking tour of Chinatown, considered the busiest area in the city and one of its culinary hotspots, home of the famous Wat Traimit, better known as the Golden Buddha.
Board a longtail boat to explore Bangkok’s klongs, the maze of waterways and canals that connect the city, from where you’ll get a glimpse into traditional Thai life. Visit Wat Arun, the Temples of Dawn, before returning to your hotel.
This evening, you’ll head to the 78th-floor Bangkok Sky Restaurant for an included dinner. Sit back and enjoy a wonderful meal as you admire the sweeping views of the stupendous Thai capital in all its glory.
Day 10
Rise and shine early this morning to visit the colourful Maeklong Railway Market, famed for its position – tightly hunched around train tracks!
The tour continues to Kanchanaburi, where more than 12,000 Allied prisoners perished in World War II building the Death Railway. After lunch, you’ll visit the poignant Allied Cemetery and the Thailand–Burma Railway Centre to learn more about this infamous event.
Afterwards, transfer to your hotel in Kanchanaburi. The rest of the day is at leisure.
Day 11
Explore the beautiful Erawan National Park this morning, as you enjoy a gentled walk to a stunning seven-tiered waterfall. Lunch is included at a local restaurant, before the tour continues to Hellfire Pass, a pass cut out of solid rock by Allied prisoners during World War II.
Return to your hotel to enjoy an afternoon at leisure.
Day 12
Check out this morning and transfer to your idyllic resort in Hua Hin, on the Gulf of Thailand, for a three-night stay. En route, you’ll stop in Phetchaburi to visit the Tham Rong community and toddy plantation. Tham Rong is a community that has been cultivating toddy palm for centuries, passing recipes from generation to generation, including toddy palm soup and toddy palm cake.
Continue to Hua Hin, where the rest of the day is at leisure.
Day 13
After breakfast, set out on a sightseeing tour of Hua Hin, which includes a short climb up Monkey Mountain to see the Big Buddha and enjoy the sweeping views. Continue to Rajabhakti Park, dedicated to past kings of the country, and then to Wat Huay Mongkol, to see the statue of Luang Phor Thuate, Thailand’s most famous monk.
This afternoon you’ll visit the award-winning Monsoon Valley Vineyards, where you’ll have the chance to enjoy a glass of local wine and a tour of the facilities. The Monsoon Valley Vineyards are at the forefront of Thailand’s burgeoning wine industry and are built on a site where wild elephants were once domesticated. The elephants left behind fertile sandy, loam soil, which has proved perfect for cultivating grapes, which have been imported from France and Australia.
Day 14
Today you can choose between enjoying some time at leisure or joining the optional tour to Sam Roi Yod National Park.
Home to numerous species of rare birds, limestone mountains, idyllic coves, beaches and marshy wetlands, the park is a wonderful and easy place to explore. You’ll visit a pineapple plantation and traditional fishing village, then take a boat out to a stalagmite-filled cave, before lunch and the chance to take a swim in the warm, clear water before returning to the hotel.
Please note: The optional tour to Sam Roi Yod National Park involves trekking on uneven ground and over uneven steps - it's not suitable for passengers with walking difficulties or those who can't climb steps.
Day 15
Transfer to Bangkok airport for your return flight, via Singapore.
