Eastravel Traveller Reviews

Once again we were delighted with our arrangements organised for us to Vietnam and the experiences of the sights, sounds, smells and of course the food. We started in Hanoi and our fantastic guide arranged a test for us, strange we thought on our first day in this country. He would not leave us until we had passed it.....yes you guessed it ....we had to cross the road without his help and then we were free to explore the rest of the city in the evening 😀 Thankfully he taught us well and we had an incredible time visiting the narrow lanes and traditional shop houses. Our visit to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum was quite thought provoking and an understanding of why he was so revered. Hoan Kiem Lake, Ngoc Son Temple and the Tortoise Pagoda, were just opposite our hotel, and in the evening had a completely different complexity to during the day. We even joined in with the Tai Chi exercises along the bank of the river. Our trip to Halong Bay and the islets was magical. At night all the boats anchored near to each other and all that could be seen was the twinkling lights from the boats, and the sounds of the bay lapping against the boat. The views were tremendous, the cruise boat was lovely and we were spoiled with the fabulous food on board. We then flew into Danang a vibrant city which seems to have embraced the western culture with great aplomb. We then travelled to Hoi An with it’s incredible night market and bustling village. Having only stayed 2 nights, however arriving late only allowing one day to see the sights, so we will definitely return as this was a hidden jewel on our trip, However in one day we took a cycle ride, found the beautiful coastline and beach, shopped in the day market, ate street food, went back at night for the brilliant night market which goes on forever, and again ate fabulous food and experienced Iced Spring Rolls . Yummy !! Upon arriving at Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) we were immediately faced with the hustle and bustle and so glad we had passed the test in Hanoi !! Our guide took us Dong Khoi Street, City Hall, the old Opera House, Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office. The French influences are evident everywhere and our guide explained the knacks they had had during their occupancy. Again thought provoking. Next was the History Museum, the Le Van Duyet General Tomb, and the Ba Chieu Market. Cholon (Chinatown) and the Chinese Medicine Street was a test of reactions dodging bikes, mopeds and cars. Crazy but exciting. Then more culture of the Thien Hau Pagoda to finish our tour of the day. The next day was our trip to the Cu Chi a Vietcong base during the American War. Stretching over 200 km, this incredible underground network. This was incredible and a fete of tenacity shown by the Vietcong . We even went into the tunnels, and were amazed at just how small the spaces actually were. Not recommended for the claustrophobic!!! However totally worth trying. Vietnam certainly made us think how history has made such an impression upon others and how this has had a massive impact socially and culturally and not always for the best!! Vietnam humbled us in many ways, made us think about how actions can do so much damage, BUT this country has a big beating heart that delights in showing how they have overcome oppression, still trying to deal with elements of it, especially in relation to the depravity, but has some of the most beautiful history to share with us all . A visit is a must 😀

Eastravel in Ipswich Suffolk, are the BEST !! Cannot fault the ladies and their exuberance and professionalism that they use, to ensure that holiday is perfect in every way they possibly can. Would recommend them in a heartbeat 💕

Where do I start... we had an idea about where we wanted to go but had lots of conflicting advice from travel agents. We found Dorothy at East Travel and she invited us down to have a chat - finally a travel agent that put us first and really understood our needs! We spent 18 wonderful days touring Sri Lanka. Being July we avoided the South Coast, instead incorporating a few days on the stunning unspoilt East Coast!! We even shared the beach with a cow one day!!! On top of this we spent time in Kandy (cannot tell you enough how wonderful Villa Rosa was, at one point we were the only guests and treated like royalty). We then travelled to the tea region and Ella via train!! That in itself was incredible . Stunning hotel again 98 acres. The view was breathtaking. We took in nearby waterfalls and a tea factory whilst there. Then onto the beach for a break! After the beach we moved onto the cultural triangle where we once again hit the jackpot with Aliya resort - wow just wow!! We shared the pool with the South African and Sri Lankan cricket teams!!! We toured the cultural triangle climbing sigirya rock which we could see from the pool!!! We also spent an amazing afternoon on safari taking in lots of elephants so close you could almost touch them!! From here we went to our final destination a night at Leopard Safari -this was so unique. At one with nature whilst sleeping in a double bed under canvas!! We all met around camp fire for a 7 course taster dinner inc all drinks!! To top it all we saw two young leopards playing for ages on our second safari - breathtaking. Finally we headed home following a day in the capital.. we never travelled more than 3/4 hours in any one day and spending 3 nights everywhere meant we were refreshed and relaxed when we moved resort. I would not have changed a thing!

Cannot praise Dorothy and red dot (Dorothy booked us our break using Red Dot as our in country agent) enough. I spoke to Dorothy on many many occasions in the weeks and months leading up to our break. She was always quick to reply . We changed things a few times and she always made sure it was a simple process . The pack we got in advance told us everything we needed to know and much more! Once we were in country she kept in touch! I know had we had a proble she would have sorted but luckily we had no issues at all! We used a driver/guide which I think is essential to get the best and safest experience! I would have no hesitation to recommend Eastravel, we will defiantly use again! Thank you for everything Dorothy I’ve missed chatting to you 😀

We have had the most amazing holiday in Sri Lanka and just wanted to thank you for arranging this for us. From arriving at the Mud House we have been thoroughly spoiled . We have some special memories to remember our anniversary by. At the Mud House we planted a tree for our anniversary. We have had cakes and our bed decorated several times. The whale watching was brilliant we actually saw two whales and so many dolphins. we have never seen so many Elephants in the natural; habitat The accommodation at the Mud House, Aliya, Trinco Blu & Jet Wing were all fabulous, however the Palm Garden left a lot to be desired and best forgotten memories. The food was awful, dirty table cloths and very uninterested staff. We told our driver and he had had the same feed back from previous clients and when his office called to check everything was ok we also told them as well. Our driver was really good and took us to a restaurant on the second night. We are only telling you this in case you have other people due to stay there as we really would want to avoid it. Our driver/guide Thilak was excellent and helped to make our time special, nothing was to much trouble.

Eastravel are excellent. the knowledge that the hold is amazing, nothing is too much trouble. Everything runs smoothly and as it should. The go to place for a first class holiday

Northern Sri Lanka was an interesting experience particularly seeing this part of the country 10 years after the end of the civil war. This is a genuine off the tourist trail trip with many interesting sights and stories to discover. The roads are much improved but be prepared for some long journeys. Our holiday also included a Singapore extension also arranged by the operator.

We got very swift responses right from our initial enquiries to the departure day. Nothing was too much trouble and we even got answers to questions which we sent out of normal office hours.

Travelled to Hanoi, Mai Chau, Cuc Phuong National Park, Ninh Binh, Hue and Hoi An. It was a wonderful experience full of delightful people, great food and many different things to do and see.

Our guide Huan Nguyen Duc was very knowledgeable, pleasant and professional. I would have no hesitation in recommending him and would request him if we were to return. Our transfer guide from Hoi An to Danang Airport was very good, as we left some luggage behind in the car and we went and checked in. We then realised we had something missing. We were sure we would never see it again, but within half an hour he had returned to the airport and got our missing luggage back to us. We are extremely grateful to him and were really impressed with this level of service.

Our holiday to Thailand was great from the word go!!! As soon as we arrived at Heathrow our holiday began. The whole family was excited, although Thailand is a long flight its well worth it, the planes are a different league to Thailand from your average package holiday company (Thomas Cook). Our hotel in Bangkok “The Majestic Grand” was bang in the heart of all the night life, restaurants bars shopping centres - you name it we had it. Our next place we stayed at was “The Royal Lanta” in Kho Lanta for three nights, meaning we had to take an internal flight, we stayed in a luxurious beach hut & the beach was unbelievable - I really recommend this place to anyone that wants to get away from it all. We then caught a ferry to Phi Phi stay at “The Cabbana” for three nights, The View from our room just blew you away with sea on both sides of the hotel, in my opinion this is the best hotel in Phi Phi (the location, the food, the scenery, the hotel staff) again we were only a few minutes walk from all the restaurants bars clubs. We then caught another ferry to Phuket staying at the “Novotel Patong” for six nights - again this was an outstanding hotel recommend by Eastravel with views to die for, now the staff at this hotel really made our holiday special, always smiling & very helpful, the only let down was the hotel was a little too far from anything although the hotel ran a free shuttle bus into town every hour it only held twelve people so you had no chance of getting on but we enjoy a walk anyway so this wasn’t really a problem. All in all this has to be one of our best ever holidays with really great memories & experiences, I could write so much more about our adventures, none of us wanted to come home & we’ all looking forward to returning again very soon.

Nothing is too much for the guys at Eastravel - that’s why we booked another amazing holiday with an amazing experience. Everything went to plan just as we were told, ever our itinerary was spot on, this company really does fill you with confidence. The hotels & suggested places that Eastravel recommended for us to visit really had the “WOW” factor. Thailand is an amazing place in every aspect & we as a family thought Thailand would be a once in a lifetime holiday but Eastravel has changed this for us!!!!! Because Eastravel made it so simple & affordable it’s now become our favourite holiday destination, we’ve been twice in the last year & cant wait to go back next year.

Very beautiful place fantastic hotel

Very helpful and nothing was too much trouble

Dorothy and her team provided a thorough knowledge of Sri Lanka and gave us a good overview of the island. Only two small alterations I would make: spend only two nights in Kandy and an extra night at the tea plantation 98acres; secondly I would chose a better hotel on was to Yala as the hotel used was a bit run down

he tour operator on ground was knowledgeable and attentive to detail. The tour operator in UK gave us what we asked for - pretty faultless.

From the time we arrived in Hanoi until the time we had to return home the holiday was amazing. The quality of the hotels was first class and all the staff treated us like royalty.We were celebrating my husbands 50th birthday while we were away and a birthday cake was arranged for him in both Vietnam & Thailand which was a lovely gesture. I can't rate the tour guides highly enough and we didn't realise that we would have our own private transport and guide for all of our sightseeing during the holiday. it was fab and I even felt a little emotional when we had to say goodbye to Mi in Vietnam as we had spent the longest time with her. Having private guides allowed us to avoid the crowds and gave us a really good understanding of the history and the culture from the people that lived there. Our 3 week holiday certainly exceeded our expectations and we will definitely be returning to visit other countries in Asia.

Everything organised by the tour operator was spot on, from the time we booked until returning home. We did and saw everything we wanted to and everything was in fact better than we expected. I usually organise my own trips away myself but it was so nice to have everything done for us without the worry of things perhaps not quite going according to plan.

Just what we hoped for

Very helpful and knowledgeable