Before going to Da Nang, I was a little bit worried about the language barrier, and particularly I was travelling with my parents who are in their 60s.
Things started to get solved as soon as I wrote to Xuan Tu as her English gave me confidence and she had a lot of ideas taking care of all my considerations.
I try my best not to repeat what the other comments have mentioned.
On the day of arrival, our flight was exceptionally full and we spent more than half hour for immigration and another half hour for luggage clearance. I knew she had been waiting for us for more than 1.5 hours at the airport but she still gave us a big welcome and greeted us with smiles.
Xuan Tu is very experienced and professional. She listened to our request and customised our trip. On the first day, we had a special request to find a local friend but we lost contact with him for decades. We just had very limited information but she proactively helped us to ask a number of local people. The process was not easy but after almost an hour, she could really make it! It’s really amazing! A BIG thanks to her professionalism and passion.
We also requested her to take us for local food but not the “Westernised” Vietnamese food to fit the taste of Western people and she immediately understood our request. The food she brought us was amazing and very local, eating in a local way and often we were the only tourists inside the shop. Well done! This was exactly what we wanted.
One day when we wanted to have a day trip in Hoi An, unfortunately, Xuan Tu got sick but she managed to find her friend to do the tour for us. As she wanted us to understand more about Hoi An, for our best benefit, she found her friend who was born in Hoi An. He could explain to us anything related to Hoi An. He was not in any way worse than Xuan Tu. He could also take good care of my parents. As it was better to commute by motorcycles and bicycles for part of the tour to save time, energy with a more local experience while I was not sure whether my parents could handle them well. He carefully planned the trip and let me parents try step by step. My parents turned out saying that it was the happiest moment in the trip.
I also appreciate the driver, Tuong, who drove carefully despite of roads full of motorcycles. I used to be worried sitting on a speeding car but I could hardly catch a moment over the speed limit. The car was not a high-class one but my parents said that it was easier for them to get in and out of the car (maybe Xuan Tu’s special arrangement for my parents?) with better air-conditioning than the local taxis. Tuong is also a cheerful person. Together with Xuan Tu, it was a trip full of fun.
Xuan Tu is detailed minded and all the things were very well planned. She is also flexible and adaptive. She is able to react according to different situations. I could hardly find anything to complain.
I strongly recommend Xuan Tu no matter you are travelling Vietnam in couples or in groups, with kids, teens or elderly. Without her, our trip could hardly be so enjoyable, smooth and unforgettable. I used to travel few times a year and she is the best tour guide I have ever met.
P.S. Our stay in Da Nang and Hoi An was 7 days but Xuan Tu’s schedule was so full that she could only spare 2.5 days with us even though I contacted her almost one month ahead.
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Traveller: Panacea568 from Tripadvisor 