Practical Information about our Exploration Tours in Asia

Home | View Group Tours | View Individual Tours | Countries Information | Contact Us

Discover the real Asia

Practical Information

Our Tours

Unique tours which let you discover the real Asia
If you choose for one of our tours then you choose for travelling in a "different" manner and in small groups with like minded travelers. Personal approach and passion are top priorities. With other travel organisations you visit a country. With our tours you discover the real Asia, you "taste" a country, you experience the country through authentic experiences during the trip. We do this among other things by creating original programmes, our accommodation choice, tasting the local kitchen and also by using local transport. Each trip is an unique experience!

The programmes of our tours are as complete as possible and much is included in the price. Many excursions, for which you have to pay extra at other travel companies, are included in our programmes. The description of each tour mentions exactly what is included in the programme.

To discover and experience the real Asia is the most important thing with our adventurous exploration tours.

Our Participants

Most of our tours have a good mix of single travelers and guests who are traveling together. The average traveller is between 30 and 70 years old, we don’t have any age limits. We expect that all participants are in a good health. Flexibility and a positive attitude are essential on our adventurous tours.

Language used during the tour

Our programmes are offered worldwide. On our group tours most of our travelers come from European countries and also from other Western countries like Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the US. Therefore the Tour Leader will be English speaking and the language used during the tour will be English.

Accommodation

The accommodation is one of the most important aspects of a travel trip. A good night's sleep is absolute necessary in order to enjoy the tour in a relaxed way.

The selection of the hotels we choose is based on their location, local sphere and quality. During the tour, in the cities you will mostly stay in the better mid-range hotels, usually in the centre of town. In the countryside and the more remote regions there is no luxurious accommodation. The accommodation there will be more simple or sometimes even ”basic”. But we always strive to offer a maximum of comfort even there.

In principle the room will be shared with another participant. Single travelers share the room with another single traveler of the same sex. It is also possible to book a single room in advance. The extra cost of this is mentioned with each tour.

You will stay in in 2-person rooms with bath and/or shower, toilet and air conditioning in the cities.
During our jungle and hill tribe explorations, with home stays and in mountain villages you will stay in a communal room. In these places there is usually no air conditioning. Also in mountain regions there is no air conditioning (which is also not necessary there because of the elevation).

The accommodation during our tours is utmost important to us and we aspire to provide a balance between location, local sphere and quality of the hotels.

Small Groups

At Monsoon Adventure we travel exclusive in small groups with maximum 14 guests. By traveling in small groups it is more easy for you to discover the local 'way of life'. You can enjoy in your own way and in your own pace. Traveling this way means also that we will have less impact on the nature and the unique, local communities.
For us no mass tourism with all its negative effects, but small-scale tours with positive effects for local people and places.

Expert Tour Leaders during the tour

During the tours the accompaniment of the group is in the hands of an English speaking, expert Tour Leader. The Tour Leader ensures for a technically good implementation of the tour (accommodation, transport, meals, etc.) and for taking care of all kinds of eventualities which can occur during the tour. Our Tour Leaders are very competent in taking care of groups and they have experience in one or more countries in Asia. They have extensive background knowledge about the country where they lead the tour. Their professional knowledge, their great motivation and their passion for Asia also contribute to the success of your tour.

Transportation

We give much attention to the safety, reliability and comfort of the transportation during our tours.

Do keep in mind that transportation in Asia can be from a very different standard than we are used to in the West. The condition of the roads can sometimes also be quiet "adventurous".

We will use public transport or rented buses. Generally we use our own transport during our tours. For the group transport we use for example rented buses, mini-buses or trucks. Your personal comfort and freedom are guaranteed. Trains, boats and all other possible means of local transport are being used to bring alternation in the tour.

To book a tour

You can make a reservation for a tour via our web site by filling in the Booking Form and send to us through the internet. You can also make a booking via email by emailing us your personal details and the tour you wish to make.
After reservation you will get a confirmation of this reservation by e-mail with all data concerning your booking. You have to reconfirm this e-mail and as from that moment the reservation is definite.
An advance payment of 25% of the travel sum is required and must be paid within one week after the reservation has become definite. The remainder of the payment must be paid at the latest 6 weeks before the beginning of the tour.

We maintain ourselves the right of cancellation of a tour in case of insufficient participation. At each tour description the minimum number of participants (usually 6 persons) is mentioned. When a group tour can not run because of not enough participants, it is usually possible to make the same tour as an individual tour with 2 or 4 persons.
In case a group tour cannot go ahead as planned because there are not enough participants, then you will be informed of this at the latest 4 weeks before the start date of your tour.
At annulment by Monsoon Adventure because of too few reservations, the advance payment will be refunded entirely.

Book on time

If you make your reservation late, it can occur that a tour is already fully booked. The maximum number of participants for each tour is 14 persons. Avoid unpleasant surprises and make your reservation early.
A booking for a tour has to be made at least 2 months before the departure of the tour.

A lot of international flights are often already fully booked in advance. Therefore we advise our guests to book their flight on time, minimum 4 to 5 months before the desired departure date.

Prices

The price of each tour is mentioned with the description of the tour. At each tour is mentioned exactly what is included in the price.
All prices are in Euro (€).

Excursions

The programmes of our tours are as complete as possible with many excursions and visits included. However it is sometimes possible to make optional excursions on the free days. More information is available in the tour description or at the destination from the Tour Leader.

International air tickets

If you book one of our tours you book only a land-arrangement, with other words you make a reservation for the tour only without the international flights. You are responsible for the international flights which you have to book yourself. You can find more information on the page Air Tickets.

Visas

Possible required visas must be obtained by our guests themselves. At each tour is indicated if these must be obtained in your home country or can be obtained on the spot upon arrival. The costs of the visas on the spot are mentioned with the tour description. Do not forget to bring along sufficient passport photos.

Insurance

A travel insurance is compulsory for all participants of our tours. You can find further information and recommended insurance companies on the page Travel Insurance.

Responsible Travel

Responsible Travel is about trying to ensure that travel is a positive experience for all, people, place and the environment. It stretches from the simple things like dressing appropriately in parts of the world where showing a shoulder is disrespectful, to operate in a manner that is responsible to natural areas, to the more complicated issue of making sure that your money stays in the local community.

We all know that the economic gain of tourism can be vital for a country, but this should never be at the expense of a country's culture or environment. For more information on how to contribute to a responsible way of travelling, please read our Guidelines for Responsible Travel.

Monsoon Adventure supports various organizations during our tours. More information about the projects we support.

Description of the Tour

Each tour has a detailed description. Among other things you will find here the route of the tour, the visits included in the programme, included meals and the places where we will stay overnight.
For specific, practical information about the destination country we refer to our Country Information pages.

Meals

Discovering and enjoying an exotic kitchen is mostly one of the attractive aspects of our tours.
The included meals are clearly mentioned day by day at the tour description with the following indications: B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner.
For all our tours in Asia applies that during those tours in general the oriental kitchen will be served. Bread is, except at breakfast, mostly not available. Cooking vegetarian meals or diet meals is in many places not always possible. Preferences can be mentioned at reservation, but it is impossible to guarantee that these wishes will be fulfilled.

Out of the ordinary

An adventurous tour abroad means meeting other people, learning about other habits and another culture. In other words it will be different than at home. That is one of the attractive sides of travel, but also an aspect to take into account with regarding your travel expectations. Sometimes things can be or go very differently than what we expected. A flexible and positive attitude is thus important and necessary in order to be able to enjoy our adventurous tours to the fullest!

Discover the real Asia with the Monsoon Adventure Group Tours.