3 Countries 16 Days

Before booking please check the status of the trip you are joining. We do not advise you to book flights until a trip is confirmed to run.

• There is a 5% booking incentive discount for all "Available" and "Available 2 More To Guarantee" tours. To confirm your place on a tour please make the deposit payment. Your deposit payment is fully refundable at any stage before the tour shows as "Guaranteed". Your final balance is payable no later than 56 days before the trip start date.
  
  On booking your trip you are agreeing to our booking conditions. Please read them fully via the link here. For each holiday a minimum number of participants is required to enable it to go ahead. Once the minimum number is reached, the trip status will change from 'Available' to 'Guaranteed'. You can check the trip status for each departure on our  ‘Dates and Prices’  page. Other than in exceptional circumstances, we will not cancel a trip once it has reached guaranteed status and so you are free to proceed with your international flight booking and other travel arrangements. 

  Guaranteed Limited - trips are open for booking and confirmed to run but have a limited number of spaces available.
  
  Guaranteed - trips are open for booking and confirmed to run.
  
  Available 2 More To Guarantee - trips are open for booking but not yet confirmed. 2 more bookings will guarantee the running of this tour.
  
  Available - trips are open for booking but not yet confirmed.
  
  Contact - If you would like to book this tour, please contact us.
  Fully Booked - trips now closed for booking.

• Accommodation. We choose accommodation on the basis of comfort rather than luxury. Our prices are based on sharing a twin room; single rooms are available at extra cost

  Most meals are provided on the tour (see trip notes for details) along with snacks and mineral water during cycling days.

  All transportation and local guides within the itinerary.

• International flights. On some tours internal flights are not included.

  Soft and alcoholic drinks are not included in the meal plan.

  Some meals on non-cycling/cycling days (please refer to itinerary)

  Optional extra excursions.

  Visa costs are not included in your trip price.

  Personal spending money.

  Travel insurance.

  Airport transfers outside of our trip arrival and departure dates.

  Tips for local staff

  Snacks and drinks with meals

  Miscellaneous personal expenses.

The tour starts in Chiang Rai.  We appreciate that people join redspokes tours from all over the world; no matter what time you arrive at the airport on the tour start date you and your luggage will be transferred to the joining hotel. Please bear in mind that if you arrive before midday you may have to wait for your room to be made available. If you decide to arrive early or stay on after the tour, redspokes can assist you in booking your accommodation and airport transfers at additional cost. 

Our tour price does not include your international flight.

Check out www.kayak.com or www.opodo.co.uk for an idea of times and prices.

You will need to arrange multi destination flights for this tour to arrive in Chiang Rai (Thailand) and depart from Hanoi (Vietnam).

You will at all times have the security of a back-up vehicle; either a jeep or a bus. The vehicle will carry your luggage (we transport your main baggage by support vehicle from each overnight stop to the next) and yourself if you want. The backup van will be with us throughout the day stopping around every 12 miles (20 km).

Our leaders carry a good tool kit and will help to fix any bike problems so all you normally need to carry is a daypack, for your camera etc. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be equipped for all repairs, so if you are bringing your own bike on the tour you must ensure that it is in good working order. If in doubt, have it fully serviced by a bike shop before you travel.

If you wish to hire a bike or have a single room for the tour this can usually be arranged for you at extra cost. You will have the opportunity to request these extras at the time of booking or, subject to availability, at a later date, by emailing your request to us.

If you require additional accommodation or transfers in advance of the trip start date or at the end of your trip we can arrange this for you at extra cost.

We have a wide mix of cyclists on our tours from couples,friends to solo travellers. Our prices are based on twin shared accommodation. If you sign up for one of our tours as a solo traveller we will twin share you with another person of the same gender in your group. If you prefer to have your own room this is an option on most of our tours for an extra charge.

Most meals are included in your trip price apart from on non cycling days and some other exclusions. Please check the itinerary for full details. If you have a special dietary request, please advise us at the time of booking. Most diets can be catered for, but it is always important to advise us in advance.

Rice is the staple food in Vietnam. Soup with rice noodles is a national dish. Recipes for main meals make use of vegetables, meat and fish. Herbs and spices used in food preparation include basil, coriander, lemon grass, mint and black pepper. Other ingredients are garlic, onions, ginger and lime juice. There are a numerous types of noodles eaten at all times of the day and noodle and rice based snacks wrapped in rice paper or leaves are available.  Desserts include a variety of cakes and fresh fruit (bananas, durians, guavas, jackfruit, mangoes, oranges, persimmons and pineapples).  Popular drinks are tea, coffee and beer. The local spirit is rice wine.  Vietnamese food is also popular in Laos.  Lao cuisine has many regional variations, according in part to the fresh foods local to each region.  A French influence is also apparent in some areas; baguettes are sold on the street, and French restaurants (often with a naturally Lao, Asian-fusion touch) are common and popular.  The typical evening meals across Thailand are noodle and rice stir fries.  Breakfasts and lunches are a mixture of local and western style food and cater for vegetarians.  Bottled water will be offered to you whilst cycling; other drinks are not included in the tour price. You are welcome to put drinks in the support vehicle at the start of the tour. We recommend bringing a supply of energy bars/snacks with you as these may not be readily available when you are on the trip.

It is mandatory that you are well-insured for the full duration of the tour. This must include personal injury, medical expenses, death, repatriation, helicopter or aircraft rescue, loss of luggage or equipment, cancellation or curtailments.

You should also ensure that there are no exclusion clauses limiting protection for the type of activities included in your tour. Any claims concerning matters for which you are insured must be directed to your insurers. We strongly recommend that you take out insurance at the time of booking your trip to ensure that you are covered in the event of cancellation.

For people within the UK Snowcard Insurance Services specialize in all mountain sports holidays including mountain biking. Follow the link above to obtain full information and a quote.

We choose accommodation on the basis of comfort rather than luxury. Our prices are based on sharing a twin room.  Should you wish to have a room all to yourself there is a single supplement option on the most of our tours.  For more information on the additional costs please see Dates & Prices.

The accommodation for this trip is a mix of Guest Houses & Hotels & some which have En-suite facilities and Air Conditioning.

The 3 Countries tour is suitable for Hybrid/Cyclocross/Gravel bikes or mountain bikes with slick tyres.

We strongly recommend that you have your bike fully serviced before going on the tour. Ensure that wheel spokes are adjusted, greasing all bearings, check gear and brake cables, tighten all nuts and bolts, check chain, quick release clamp and tyres. Put in a new inner tubes and check wheel rims aren't worn.

We strongly recommend that you take the following items with you.

Multi tool
Tyre levers
Pump
Spare inner tubes
Spare spokes
Check with your bike shop for disc/ brake pads
A few links for your chain
Spares for any unique things for your bikes i.e fluid or bleed kit.

Your bike must be carried as part of your luggage allowance. The weight of a bike in cardboard box is about 15-20kg, so please bear this in mind when packing for the trip and you may have to pay for excess luggage.

Your bike must be carried as a part of your luggage allowance and, to this end, we recommend you make every effort to keep your total check-in baggage to an absolute minimum. The baggage allowance for most airlines for an economy-class ticket is 20kg per person; although a degree of flexibility is usually extended to groups and the check in staff may accept up to 26kg per person without imposing excess baggage charges.

Your hand luggage is not included as a part of your overall allowance, as it is not weighed. Please inform your airline in advance that you will be taking your bike on the flight and attempt to make every effort to secure from the airline an additional baggage allowance.  

You must be in possession of a valid passport and visa. Passports must be valid for at least 6 months after the date of arrival or 1 month after expiration of visa and have 2 blank pages in your passport for each country that you visit.

Please check with the relevant embassy for details on visa requirements as they do often change without notice. It is your responsibility to arrange visas prior to the start of the trip.

Please ensure you check that all the details on the visa are correct prior to your departure.

Thailand: Most nationalities can enter Thailand for 30 days without a visa.  Please check the list on this website to see if your country is included in the visa exemption: Thai Consulate Country List.

Laos:  Your visa will be issued as you enter the country.  The visa fee is payable in cash in dollars only (no other currency is accepted).  Please visit this website for further information:  Laos visa regulations. 

Vietnam: You must be in possession of a valid passport with at least 6 months validity from date of arrival.  British and Thai passport holders do not need a visa for if they stay in country less than 14 days. For information relevant to the country for which you hold a passport, check with your local Vietnam embassy for up to date advice.  If you do require a visa please be aware that visa on arrival is not available for cyclists crossing the border Laos to Vietnam. An e-visa is not valid for this tour as it will not allow entry or exit for Vietnam at the Tay Trang border gate.  Your visa must be applied for in advance.

We strongly recommend that you contact your doctor or local Travel Health Clinic at least 8 weeks before going on your trip for advise on the correct vaccinations required for your trip. Also please refer to advice from National Travel Health Network and Centre . 

There are no mandatory vaccintations for this trip, however the following are recommended Polio, Tetanus, Diphtheria, Typhoid, Hepatitis.

Vaccination requirements can change and we aren't medically quailified to answer your questions regarding vaccinations so please also check again with your health professional before departing for your trip. 

Vietnams weather is split into two distinct weather patters Tropical and a temperate zone.  The average temperature ranges from 22 to 27 degrees all year round.  In north vietnam there are 4 season with distinct differences between them.  It can get cool in the winter but very warm in the summer.  The best time to visit North Vietnam is October to April, this is predominately a dry season with very pleasent temperatures.

Loas is best visited between October and April when the weather is prodominantly warm and dry although it's cooler in the mountains.  July and August brings higher humidity and shower with stunning lush green scenery.  However the rain is short and sharp and wont stop you exploring.

The climate in Thailand is classed as tropical with the average temperature of 82 degrees everyday throughout the year.   March to May are the hot seasons, June to October being the rainy season and November to February being classed as the cooler season.  The best time to visit thailand is all year round although most choose November to April when the temperature is cooler and dryer.

Tipping is an accepted part of everyday life, and although it is always at your discretion, you will be expected to tip to reward service. We recommend that each cyclist consider a contribution of between 2.50-4 USD per day (ie 40US$ per person) is recommended.  It is customary for this to be collected up and given to your guide who will distribute it amongst the team. Unfortunately there is usually a hierarchy for the division between guides, helpers and drivers.

Spending money depends on your taste for souvenirs, drinks etc. We estimate that £200/£275 will be more than enough to cover the tour.