Holidays with groups of friends

Two friends smiling with a waiter in Vietnamese restaurant

Catching up with friends is always time well spent. But catching up with a group of friends on holiday? Now that’s some unmatched quality time.

Celebrating a special occasion? Want to pursue a shared interest? Simply after a group getaway somewhere different? Good news: Asia is made for groups of friends. From cycling through the mangroves of the Mekong Delta to cruising amidst the karsts of Halong Bay, preparing local delicacies at a cookery class in Busan to clinking cocktail glasses in Phuket, we put our all into selecting experiences that’ll have you making memories from the word ‘go’. And if you’d rather laze by the pool instead? No problem. You can do that, too.

Whatever your grand vision for your friends’ escape, we’ll work with you to make it happen. With fuss-free transport, local guides on hand to help you soak up the culture, and hotels that are perfectly suited to ensemble travellers (think: plenty of communal spaces, well-stocked bars and restaurants with a view), our trips allow you to be as flexible as can be, so all parties are happy. In short: all you’ll need to worry about is pleasing yourself!

Vietnam

Hanoi

Combining canary-yellow French palaces with colourful and chaotic market streets dating back to the imperial dynasties, Hanoi is the place to soak up the atmosphere of old Vietnam.

Vietnam

Halong Bay, Lan Ha Bay & Bai Tu Long Bay

Jungle-clad islands cloaked in atmospheric sea mist and 2,000 limestone pinnacles thrusting skywards: Halong Bay and siblings Lan Ha Bay & Bai Tu Long Bay are indisputably one of Asia’s great landscapes.

Vietnam

Hoi An

It may be best-known for its lantern festival and World Heritage architecture but, for us, Hoi An’s true appeal lies in its charming rural outskirts and mouth-watering foodie experiences.

Vietnam

Mekong Delta

Buzzing with longtail taxi boats and crowded with barges piled with mangoes, pineapples and fresh fish, a Mekong Delta tour is all about getting to know the rhythms of life on the water.

Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City

The yin to Hanoi’s yang, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon to its friends) offers a more internationally minded counterpoint to that northern bastion of tradition — not to mention an exciting base from which to explore Vietnam’s most interesting war sites.

Cambodia

Siem Reap

The laid-back, low-rise town of Siem Reap is the gateway to one of the most spectacular man-made sights on the planet: the sprawling, root-strangled ruins of Angkor.

Laos

Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang is Laos’s Shangri-La: sweeping golden roofs and colonial shophouses against a lush backdrop of jungle-covered mountains, and a laid-back atmosphere of peace and serenity.

Thailand

Bangkok

Bangkok is an assault on the senses. Clouds of aromatic steam battle with exhaust fumes, neon signs blink jarringly alongside confection-like temples, and 30-degree heat and humidity heightens the sensation that you’re simmering in a heady, spice-laden stew.

Thailand

Phuket

The largest and most popular of the Thai Islands has as many different personalities as it has beaches — and that’s quite a few! Pay no heed to those who say Phuket is past its prime: there are pockets of paradise here to compete with anywhere in the world.

Malaysia

Langkawi

Langkawi is a jungle-clad island paradise amid the sparkling waters of the Andaman Sea. The best way to round off a day of snorkelling, trekking or mangrove kayaking? Satay skewers and an ice-cold beer on its white, sandy beaches.

Tour of a Vietnamese market with Chef Ai

Hanoi • Vietnam

Insider Experience: Home cooking with Chef Ai

If you ask us, there’s no better way to kick off your trip to Vietnam than with this cooking class at the home of Vietnamese MasterChef finalist Chef Ai.

Upper Mekong • Laos

Cruising on the Upper Mekong

Where the Lower Mekong is broad, slow, and pulsing with life, the Upper Mekong is faster, narrower, and altogether more remote.

Exploring Ho Chi Minh City on the back of a Vespa

Vietnam

Vespa street-food tour

Vietnam is notorious for its scooter-snarled streets, but we say — if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

Ho Chi Minh City • Vietnam

Saigon's coffee culture

Sipping a sweet iced coffee at a street-side café is an unmissable Vietnamese experience — but there’s more to it than just a few ground beans and some condensed milk: these days, Vietnam is a bona fide, world-class, bean-brewing pro.

Cycling along the banks of the Thu Bon River near Hoi An

Hoi An • Vietnam

Cycling along the Thu Bon River

Usually we don’t like telling people what to do, but we’ll make an exception here: you can’t visit Hoi An without exploring its rural outskirts – and this is one of our absolute favourite ways to do it.

Luang Prabang • Laos

Boules & Barbecue

What does Laos have in common with turn-of-the-century Provence? An abiding love of the boules, for one thing.

Carol Cassidy in her workshop in Vientiane

Vientiane • Laos

Insider Experience: Carol Cassidy's workshop

There are few people better placed to introduce you to traditional and contemporary Lao textile culture than Carol Cassidy.

Kinabatangan River • Borneo

Wildlife safari on the Kinabatangan River

A riverboat safari on the Kinabatangan River just might be the best wildlife experience in the world.

Bangkok • Thailand

Bangkok after dark

Bangkok is the city that never stops eating, as you’ll discover on this late-night tuk-tuk tour of the city’s finest street-food spots and drinking holes.