Southeast Asia Lotus Trails

On arrival at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport, an airport representative welcomes you before your private transfer to your accommodation in the city centre. The pickup is set for 12 pm, the driver waits for up to 60 minutes, and there’s no guide on the transfer.

The Thai capital is one of Asia’s most cosmopolitan cities and one of the world’s top destinations to see at least once. It’s hot and crowded but fairly clean, noisy and sprawling yet peaceful and delicate, with good shopping, plenty of culture, impressive temples, great food and a decent art scene. Use the rest of the day to settle in, perhaps with a walk to a nearby market or your first taste of the local street food.

Today is free for exploring Bangkok on your own. Most of the city’s sights are on the island of Rattanakosin, known as the Old City, and the Grand Palace is the one sight not to miss. The palace complex also holds Wat Phra Kaew, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand, while Wat Pho and Wat Arun are two more of the city’s famous temples.

There are shops, shopping centres and markets everywhere you look. After dark, the nightlife is as varied as the city itself, from beer bars and exclusive clubs to night markets, discos and hippie parties.

The day starts early, with your private transfer picking you up from your accommodation at 5:55 am for the drive to Suvarnabhumi International Airport. Your direct flight leaves at 9:55 am in economy class and lands at Luang Prabang International Airport at 12:05 pm, after about two hours and ten minutes.

An airport representative meets you on arrival and a private transfer takes you into the city centre, where you stay for three nights. The driver waits for up to 10 minutes from the 12:05 pm pickup, and there’s no guide on the transfer.

Luang Prabang, meaning “Royal Buddha Image”, is the capital of Luang Prabang Province in north central Laos, north of Vientiane. The centre is made up of four main roads on a peninsula where the Nam Khan and Mekong rivers meet, and the city is known for its many Buddhist temples and monasteries. Spend the afternoon getting your bearings with a walk along the riverbanks.

Today is yours to explore Luang Prabang. The Haw Kham Royal Palace Museum and Wat Xieng Thong temple are the city’s best-known historical sites. Another major landmark is the large, steep hill crowned by Wat Chom Si.

Phou Si, in the centre of town, gives broad views over the town and its rivers and is a popular place to watch the sun set over the Mekong.

You have another day to spend as you like, and the natural sights around Luang Prabang are well worth seeking out. Kuang Si Falls, Tat Sae Waterfalls and the Pak Ou Caves are the best known. Mountain biking is a popular way to get about, whether you’re cycling around town or out to the waterfalls for the day.

This morning, your private transfer collects you from your accommodation at 6 am for the drive to Luang Prabang International Airport, with the driver waiting for up to 10 minutes. Your direct flight departs at 8:30 am in economy class and lands at Siem Reap Angkor International Airport at 11:50 am, about three hours and 20 minutes later.

On arrival, an airport representative greets you and a private transfer takes you to your accommodation, where you stay for three nights. The pickup is at 11:50 am, the driver waits for up to 60 minutes, and there’s no guide on the transfer.

Siem Reap is the capital of Siem Reap Province in north-western Cambodia, a popular resort town and the gateway to the Angkor region. The Angkor temples nearby are Cambodia’s most popular attraction, and they’re the reason the town now has so many places to stay, restaurants and tourism businesses.

Please note: This flight includes a 40-minute technical stop at Pakse.

You have the day free to explore Siem Reap and the surrounding area. The temples of Angkor are close by and are what draws most visitors here. Back in town, the Old French Quarter and the streets around the Old Market are lined with colonial and Chinese-style architecture.

Another free day gives you time to see more of the area. In town, there are museums, traditional Apsara dance performances, a Cambodian cultural village, and plenty of souvenir and handicraft shops. Further out, you’ll find silk farms, rice paddies, fishing villages and a bird sanctuary near Tonle Sap Lake.

In the morning, your private transfer picks you up from your accommodation at 6:30 am and takes you to Siem Reap Angkor International Airport. Your direct flight leaves at 9:30 am in economy class and arrives at Sihanoukville International Airport at 10:35 am, just over an hour later.

A shared transfer then takes you from the airport to Ream Lounge on the mainland. The pickup is at 10:35 am, with the driver waiting for up to 60 minutes. From here, you board a shared speedboat across to Bamboo Island, where you stay for four nights.

Known locally as Koh Russei, Bamboo Island lies off the Cambodian coast in Sihanoukville province and offers a quiet escape from the busier mainland. It’s still fairly undeveloped, with soft sandy beaches, lush greenery and clear water, and the beach is the obvious place to spend what’s left of the day.

Please note: Shared speedboats leave Ream Welcome Center at 1:30 pm and 2:30 pm.

Your days on Bamboo Island are free to spend however you like. The soft sand along the coastline is perfect for sunbathing and swimming. The coral reefs around the island are rich in marine life, and snorkellers may come across tropical fish and sea turtles, so it’s worth bringing your own snorkelling gear.

Away from the beaches, a network of trails leads into the island’s lush interior. A trek through the dense jungle shows off a range of plants and wildlife and leads to viewpoints over the ocean.

Spend your last full day on the island as you wish, whether that means another swim, one more snorkel or simply relaxing on the sand. As evening comes, the sunset over the Gulf of Thailand is worth waiting for, turning the sky orange and pink.

This morning, you leave the island on a shared speedboat from your accommodation to Ream Lounge on the mainland, with departures at 10 am and 11:30 am. From here, a private car takes you to Phnom Penh’s city centre and your accommodation for the night. The journey takes around four hours in total, arriving at about 2 pm.

Phnom Penh sits where the Mekong and Tonle Sap rivers meet and is Cambodia’s capital and largest city. French influence was once so strong here that the city was called the Paris of the East. The French built the canal system, ports, roads and buildings, and although most of that French character has gone, a few fine colonial buildings remain. Today, it’s one of the fastest-growing cities in Southeast Asia, with upmarket restaurants, a very good arts scene, a huge range of markets, and a handy base for seeing the rest of the country.

The rest of the afternoon is free. The Riverside district, with its river walk lined with restaurants and bars overlooking the water, is an easy place to start. It’s also handy for the main sights: the Royal Palace, the Silver Pagoda, the National Museum, Wat Phnom temple, the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum and the Killing Fields.

After your final breakfast, your private transfer takes you from your accommodation to Phnom Penh International Airport, where the tour ends.