Reviews
Jan 13, 2012
Andrew and Bruce
Hi Yoke,
Just want to let you know that so far, our trip has been amazing. We love
Thailand and wished that we have more time to spend here. Bangkok was a lot
of fun. Our tour guide there was fantastic!!!! Please let your tour operator
in Bangkok know how happy we were with Mr. Victor. He was knowledgeable,
accommodating and he made sure that everything went well. Our side trips
were a lot of fun as well. Enjoyed Ayuthaya, the floating market and the
river Kwai. Victor even arranged for us to see a cultural show and a ladyboy
show! Lol. He accompanied us to the airport on our last day in bangkok and
made sure we went through the security line before he finally left! He even
talked to the counter agent at Asia Air to let our overweight baggage
through without paying extra!
We are enjoying Phuket as well. Elephant ride was a lot of fun ( I even got
to ride on the elephant’s head and be the “driver”!). The “white water
rafting” that was on our itinerary wasn’t quite white water rafting—was
more of a slow bamboo rafting down the river. Bruce and I were laughing the
whole time that it’s the white water rafting equivalent for the AARP set
since you know that Bruce turned 50. The Novotel in Phuket even placed a
birthday cake in our room for Bruce! What a pleasant surprise.
Btw, the dinner cruise that you arranged for us at the chao phraya river was
fantastic and we really enjoyed it….thank you.
Heading home tomorrow. Gonna go enjoy more Thai food now….love the street
food.
-Andrew
P.s. bruce says he loves you!!!! We will both post on Facebook what
incredible vacations you plan out for us and to use you in any of their
travel needs to asia. Wish you also could arrange tours to non Asian
countries!
June 8 , 2011
Lauren and Nick
Dear Pannir:
Nick and I returned from our amazing Bali vacation last week
and we are still over the moon! What an incredible vacation you gave to us
both. I can’t say thank you enough for the hotel recommendations. Both the
Nusa Dua Beach Resort and the Kupu Kupu Barong were incredible and exactly
the look and feel that we were hoping for. The tours were a fantastic way to
see the island and on the last day, we even enjoyed a private tour. I
greatly appreciate your attention to detail and communication. This has been
the best vacation of our lives and I look forward to turning to you in the
future for our next Asia vacation.
I will highly recommend Sayang Holidays and yourself to anyone interested in
what we were lucky enough to enjoy!
Best wishes,
Lauren and Nick
May 4, 2011
Diego
Dear Yoke, Thanks for everything The whole trip has been impecable without any problemas at all. If we happen to travel to asia will not hesitate in contacting you. Hotels were great. Tours also and Singapore Airlines flights one of the best I ever had.
Only thing to remark is that Kuala Lumpur city tour was very poor. It was from ten in the morning until one pm and half of the tour we were taken to arts an craft center to buy things and chocolate factory to buy. Both no interest at all, We were looking for sightseeing.
Malacca tour was ok. I strongly recommend to stay one full day there becaus there is plenty to see.
Siem Reap tour guide was great, hotel Ankgor Century was very good. Ankgor Wat tour was amazing and Ton Le Sap Lake tour is very shocking for the common tourist. Is a very primitive place with a lot of poverty. We are use to it and we understand. But maybe americans are not used to it.
Hope the feedback is useful.
May 4, 2011
Walthalltravel.com
Just wanted to thank you for all you help. The trip was fantastic and was more than we could hope for. The services and guides provide by ICS were great and took us to more places than the itinerary called for. As we flew into each city there was our guide and driver waiting with there sign. The hotels were good quality hotels and the hotel employees were nice and helpful. The only exception was the Mandalay City Hotel which was a decent hotel, but thought they would provide A/C and hot water at their convience as they were not full and it cost money to run these items. After some arguing and threats they decide they could provide the services that had been paid for.The Singapore Stopover people and tours were great and a real value. I would highly recommend this trip and your services to anyone considering Myanmar.
Be sure and tell any clients who might be going that the cashiers at the hotels and restaurants want perfect dollar bills. They don’t want any folds are creases in any money. Most of their money looks like it has been thru a trashing machine but American money must be perfect.
December 23, 2010
Marilyn & George.
Pannir,
Everything that you arranged for us was great! We really enjoyed our visit to Laos. The country is beautiful and the people are very friendly and helpful. The accommodations were very nice, especially 3 Nagas Hotel in Luan Prabang. It is well located and the room and staff were excellent. Thanks for your help in planning our trip.
November 3, 2010
Jane H.
Hello friends, Just a note to let you know we are back safely from our trip to beautiful Sri Lanka. We had a wonderful time and were well taken care of by Butterflies. Our guide, Pria, was excellent and considerate at all times. The agency (Dashon) called frequently while we were traveling about the country just to check on us and see that all was going well. Our accomodations were excellent and the scenery spectacular. We can’t praise our guide who was also our driver, well enough for the excellent care he gave us. Thank you for a wonderful trip.
October 24, 2010
Sandy
Good afternoon! I wanted to let you know that our trip to Singapore and Nepal was fabulous! My husband and I consider this one of the best trips we have ever been on. We added Bardia Park to our trip and although it took
8 hours to get there it was worth it! Everything went without a hitch and I would recommed Pannier and Sayang Holidays to everyone! I look forward to travelling with you again.
September 18, 2010
Margaret
I wanted to take a moment to let you know that our trip to
Singapore and Vietnam was wonderful. We were so well taken care of by Sayang Holidays, Singapore Air, and ICS. The guides (we LOVED Tuyen and Tien), the hotels, the food, the sights, and even the weather (though hot – as expected) were perfect. Everything went smoothly,all connections made, all promises kept and we couldn’t have enjoyed it more. We were able to meet our daughters birth family as planned and, as you can imagine, that was a momentous occasion. Your attention to detail, prompt replies, and professionalism helped us have a trip of a lifetime and we thank you so much.
September 3, 2010
Patricia
Zeeky – we arrived home last night from our wonderful trip to Southeast Asia! I thought you would like some feedback:
1. our accomodations in all locations were great – we had a ground floor room, overlooking the ocean at the Mirage in Bali – heavenly
2. the transfers went smoothly with the exception of our departure from KL – the driver dropped us at the wrong terminal and we had to take the bus from the international terminal to the LCCT – we had built in enough time and the fare was reasonable.
3. Indochina services in Bali was exceptional – our guide, Lanang and his driver Badung were friendly, courteous and took us to wonderful places.
4. Singapore Air was the best – efficient and professional – we will use Singapore Air in all future trips to the Far East and Southeast Asia. Air Asia was good as well.
Thank you for your help in making this a trip of a lifetime!
August 29, 2010
Veronica
GOOD MORNING ZEEKY,
FUNNY YOU READ MY MIND. I WAS ABOUT TO E-MAIL YOU THIS WEEK-END ABOUT OUR TRIP.
IT WAS A VERY HECTIC TRIP BUT WAS VERY HAPPY TO SEE MY FOLKS ESPECIALLY MY MOM. SHE LOOKS GOOD FOR A NINETY YEAR OLD LADY. STILL VERY ACTIVE AND GOES TO CHURCH EVERYDAY WITHOUT FAIL. I REALLY ENJOYED BEING WITH HER ESPECIALLY. SINGAPORE WAS VERY CLEAN AND PEOPLE ARE SO DICIPLINED,A LITTLE TOO EXPENSIVE. BALI IS A DIFFERENT STORY. WE HAD A PROBLEM COMING THROUGH THE AIRPORT ON ARRIVAL. AFTER PAYING FOR THE VOA, WE HAD TO WAIT FOR 2 HOURS IN LINE TO GET THROUGH. FINALLY, WHEN IT WAS OUR TURN,WE WERE ASKED FOR MONEY OTHERWISE THEY WON’T STAMP OUR PASSPORT FOR CARLOS HAD ONLY ONE WHOLE PAGE EMPTY. THE LAST PAGE AND THEY CLAIMED THAT THAT WAS NOT ENOUGH EVEN THOUGH IT IS STILL UNDER THE LEGAL REQUIREMENTS AND WAS CONFIRMED BY THE SINGAPORE AIRLINE SUPERVISOR IN THE AIRPORT IN SINGAPORE. I HAD TO GIVE THEM CASH US DOLLARS AND THEY ASKED FOR MORE. IT WAS IN FRONT OF HUNDREDS OF PASSENGERS AND THEY WERE NOT ASHAMED AND VERY BLATANT. I WAS SO DISGUSTED WITH THEIR CORRUPTIONS. I WAS THEN WORRIED ON TOURING BALI THAT WE HIRED A PRIVATE CAR FROM THE HOTEL FOR 12 HOURS TO SEE BALI. IT MADE ME FEEL SAFER KNOWING THEY WERE FROM THE HOTEL. FROM ARRIVAL, I DID NOT TRUST ANYONE AFTER. IT LEFT ME SUCH BAD TASTE OF THE COUNTRY. I DID ENJOY SEEING THE COUNTRYSIDE OF BALI AND CARLOS EVEN WENT SCUBA DIVING. I DID TAKE THE ODISSEY SUBMARINE DOWN SINCE IT WAS ONE OF ONLY TWO IN THE WORLD. THERE IS ONE IN HAWAII WHICH I DID NOT HAVE A CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE WHEN I WAS THERE.
SO LONG AND THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE. PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO LET ME KNOW OF UPCOMING PROMOTIONS FROM SINGAPORE AIRLINES. I AM BACK TO WORK AND TRYING TO MAKE THE MIGHTY DOLLAR AGAIN. TAKE CARE…..VERONICA PS..I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOUR COMPANY..GREAT WORK,ZEEKY..AGAIN THANKS !!!!!
May 5, 2010
Kathy
I thought you might like to see what we look like. From left to right-Gretchen,Nancy, Kathy, Mollie and Barbara. This was taken in Nha Trang. It’s usually beer in out hands, not ice cream. I am emailing with three different Vietnamese, two young women who are about to be English teachers and our guide from Nha Trang. We found most young people very eager to speak American English. When they learn it in school it is often incorrect. Their language doesn’t have tenses or plurals. I could never speak their language because I can’t hear the tones. One guide showed us a chart he had made for “TAM”.
With the tone marks it had ten different meanings. I could distinguish maybe three sounds. All of our guides were excellent, but the younger ones were much easier to understand. Thank you for another wonderful trip.
Kathy
March 25, 2010
Candy and Patricia
Pannir, the trip was fantastic. Everything went perfectly without problems, and we loved Borneo. It’s a great place to visit! We were incredibly lucky and saw a huge male orangutan in the wild, as well as a mother and baby! Plus lots of orangutans at the rehabilitation center, and tons of other animals. They put us in a different lodge at the river, the Myre Resort and it was fantastic. We highly recommend it for future clients. It has just re-opened with new management and their location is top notch, and the lodge is gorgeous.
Thank you for once again planning a perfect trip for us.
March 23, 2010
Owen & Martine
Hi Yoke,
Just a little note to let you know that our trip went very well and we had a great time revisiting all those places we called home many years ago. The flights were fine, we even got upgraded to business class on the trip from Bali to Hong Kong.The hotels we would highly recommend are the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong, still perfect, the Jimbaran Puri Bali, a small but very lovely hotel on a nice beach and the Langham Yantze hotel in Shanghai, a very good hotel that had been renovated in the 30′s style ( when it was built ) extremely well located for tourists ( walking distance to a lot of places of interest ) and a very good deal at US$160 with breakfast ! The Goodwood Park Hotel in Singapore however had been refurbished very cheaply and was barely clean, it has lost all of its charm and we would not recommend it. The nearby Shrangri-la is much nicer. Hope all is well for you and thanks again for your help.
Martine and Owen
March 15, 2010
Susan B.
Yoke,
My friends and I highly recommend the Bali Spirit Resort and Spa. It is about a ten minute shuttle ride out of the town of Ubud (shuttle provided by the hotel). The hotel is traditional Indonesian style– very open, and built along the side of a hill so it terraces down to the different levels. It is not very large, but beautiful with a river running along next to it. I would go back to it in a heartbeat. You might want to check it out yourself.
On our trip to Borobodur we had lunch at the Aman Resort in Central Java. Talk about plush– you might want to check that one out too.
Anyway, thanks so much for your help. We had a great time!!
Best,
Susan
December 29, 2009
Jeffrey
Long, long way back — 21 hours or so. Trip of a lifetime though, capped off by doing scuba for a week with my
two sons off the Gili Islands in the South China Sea.
Just wanted to let you know that all the arrangements you and Pannir set up for us worked flawlessly. In Phuket, Bali, Lombock and Singapore the transits were always reliable, always on time and always user friendly. All the ferry tickets were in hand just when they needed to be. Perfect!
I want to thank you and Pannir for making this happen so smoothly. It definitely made this adventure run with far less stress than might otherwise have been the case. please forward this to Pannir if you would. I know he did alot of the leg work here and I would like him to know how appreciative lily and I are for his efforts.
December 24, 2009
Judith
Dear Pannir,
My sister Meg and I enjoyed a wonderful visit to Cambodia. Thank you for arranging another great trip.If anyone should ever ask for a recommendation, please don’t hesitate to have the potential traveler contact me. We tell everyone who asks that if
they want a well-organized adventure, they should contact Sayang Holidays. We were particularly impressed with our guide Tuni, during the first part of our trip, and our stay at Knai Ban Chatt Resort in Kep.
December 2, 2009
Meg
Judith and I have just returned from our trip to Cambodia and I wanted to let you know that we enjoyed every minute of it. The itinerary was with many interesting sites; we had a wonderful time. Everything went so smoothly for such a complicated itinerary, we were amazed. We shouldn’t have been having been on another trip planned by you a couple years ago. The hotels were fantastic. We did change a couple of things to accommodate our aging bones but were happy that the people in Cambodia were willing to meet out needs. They were delightful to work with.
Thank you for arranging such a memorable trip for us. Your efforts are well appreciated.
July 10, 2009
Nancy
Hi,
David and I are back from our wonderful trip to Singapore, Cambodia, and Malaysia. Everything went so smoothly! Connections were made, flights on time, hotels ready, and wonderful wonderful guides throughout. Thank so much for making this happen!
We will be sure to recommend Sayang Holdiays to anyone considering a trip to Asia. We also want to specifically recognize Sothy, the guide in Cambodia, who made the area come alive and was so informative and serene. The staff at Lotus and Kuching Hilton were wonderful, too.
Thank you again for your work and patience, and we hope to contact you for another trip.
Next stop, India????
December 2, 2009
Candy & Patricia
The trip, as always with Sayang Holidays, was flawless! We had a wonderful time, everything went perfectly, and we loved Myanmar! We also really loved our upgraded hotel rooms! What fun that was. Thank you so much!
We can’t wait to see where you take us next!
November 27, 2009
Tom
My wife and I have been using Sayang for years and couldn’t be happier with the service they provide. We come up with all kinds of special requests for Yoke (our agent there) and she always comes through. Their packages are great values. They have an extensive knowledge of Asia. And will customize any trip.
The transfers at the airport as well as they tours they provide (through Indochina Services) are alway private coaches with very personable guides. Their primary airline is Singapore (which can’t be beat).
May 5, 2009
Samantha
I can not say enough good things about Sayang Holidays. I’ve used them four times – all for crazy adventures in Bali, Indonesia. They’re the travel company for those who want to get to where they’re going, but not be forced to engage in the big group tour thing. Exactly what I want in a travel operator. For a flat price you get airfare, transfers, a driver to take you from this place to that, small one on one tours with a guide, and the best hotels the island (or wherever you’re visiting) has to offer.
Easy to use and friendly staff. I’ll use them again and again and highly recommend for your next SE Asia adventure.
September 2, 2008
AB
This is an excellent place… Pannir is excellent and very knowledgeable and is extremely nice and helpful… as well as the other people in the office..
they specialize in trips to SE ASIA… Indian, Malay, Singapore, Indonesia, and Cambodia, Laos… o ya and how can i forget Thailand and Vietnam…
we went on a two week trip to Malaysia and Singapore.. and the whole package they specially made for us was wonderful..
I highly recommend them for your next trip….and also…they are in partnership with Singapore Airlines.. so you can get wonderful rates, with the top airlines in the world.
June 27, 2007
Cathline
I just wanted to thank Yoke for helping us plan a great trip to Bali. The hotels were great. We especially liked the Grand Mirage in Nusa Dua and Sahadewa in Ubud. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and were able to have a problem free trip. Thank you for all of your hard work.
December 21,2009
Anup
A fabulous tour operator for South-East Asia. We chose them (via the website of Singapore Airlines) and were very pleased with the entire process and journey.They have a lot of pre-made tour packages to countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, India, etc.
The office staff was courteous and professional and we were able to book a rather complex tour package without any problems. The prices are very competitive. We went to Taiwan, India, Malaysia, and Indonesia in the space of a month with their booking.
The local tour operators arranged by Sayang Holidays in Malaysia and Indonesia were very professional and helpful. I would definitely use them again for any travel to this part of the world.
March 17, 2009
David Olson
We had a fantastic time. Hotels and tour guides were great! OK, so now that we are home, I am thinking about Mongolia 
January 25,2009
Shari O’Brien
Hi Yoke,
Just wanted to drop you a note to say thank you for arranging the fantastic trip to Malaysia and Singapore for Rodney and me. Everything went off without a hitch and we were very pleased with all the arrangements. Special thanks for getting us the seats we wanted on Singapore Air. Thanks again, and I’ll be in touch next year for our next Asia holiday.
November 21, 2008
Elaine Jacobs
Dear Yoke,
My sister Kathy and I had such a wonderful in Bali. Thank you for your help and especially for your patience. Our Bali contact, “Jack”, was so helpful, patient, and kind. We love his personality. He made us feel safe and comfortable on all of our excursions. The seafood dinner in Jimbaran was so plentiful and delicious! Everyday in Bali we had a fun, interesting experience. We even me Ketut Liyer, the medicine man in the book, Eat Pray Love. Our hotel rooms were wonderful too, especially the place in Ubud, Santi Madala. We both wanted to spend more time in Bali. I guess you will be hearing from us again at some point in the future so we can explore more of Bali. I already shared my experience with some of my friends. They want to go!
October 8, 2011
Pat Vinroot
Dear Pannir,
Our trip was perfect! From the airplane, to the hotels , to the guides. Everything went like clockwork. Not one glitch. The guides were wonderful(all four of them) and the hotels, especially the Inle Princess were wonderful. While at the Inle Princess we met the manager (who is married to the daughter of the owner) his two St. Bernards, two of the sweetest Burmese cats,belonging to the resort and a monkey that lives on the property.
Burma is very beautiful, all of the people were lovely and the sights-unbelievable. I never felt unsafe and I hope more Americans will travel there. I hope to be able to return to see some of the minority areas. We were there when a major festival took place on Inle lake and got to be part of that which was most exciting. I learned a lot about Buddism and saw at least 4000 temples and and more Buddas. One day we told our guide in Bagan that we couldn’t handle any more pagodas and wanted to be with more of the people and he took us to a small village(where we had to cross a large c reek on Bamboo sticks and went to a village where a lot of people lived. They were so happy to see us and we talked to them, saw their homes, children followed us around and it was one of the highlights of the trip. There is a lot of poverty there but the people are extremely happy people.
Feel free to recommend this trip to people wanting a real cultural experience. I would be happy to talk to anyone who is thinking about this trip but might have some hesitation. I do not think that the internet truly gives the picture there. People told us not to go that the government there benefited from the trip. This is true to some degree but the people in tourism benefit along with people who make handicrafts and others. Everyone I talked to there said “tell people to come.”
Thank you again for everything you did planning the trip. It is one of the most meaningful trips we have every taken.
