At Highlights Travel (formerly Asia Highlights), we believe that the best journeys don't just take you to new places — they bring you closer to what truly matters: meaningful encounters, shared stories, and a deeper sense of place. Since 1998, we've been designing private, tailor-made trips across China, Japan, and Southeast Asia, with a focus on meaningful connection, cultural depth, and effortless travel. Our expert travel designers work one-on-one with each traveler, while our trusted local hosts open doors to authentic, personal experiences. With over 10,000 reviews and an outstanding 98.8% 5-star rating on platforms, our travelers consistently return with more than memories — they return with a deeper understanding. Our current journeys on Highlights Travel website focus on Southeast and South Asia, where vibrant cultures and meaningful moments await. Interested in China or Japan? Discover more curated journeys at China Highlights, Japan Highlights and Thailand Highlights — part of the Highlights Travel family.
Reviewers overwhelmingly had a great experience with this company. Consumers frequently highlight the exceptional staff, describing team members as professional, exceptionally polite, and incredibly quick to respond to every single inquiry. Travelers truly appreciate the dedicated support in creating wonderful, tailored holiday itineraries that perfectly match their specific desires and requirements.
However, some customers also noted that while the planning phase was wonderful, they were still awaiting the actual execution of their upcoming trips. People often mention looking forward to seeing how all the organized activities, expert guides, and recommended accommodations will actually perform during their upcoming adventures.
Claire, planner for our tour package to Hainan Island in Oct, is prompt in all communication with us. Good and relevant advice is given for our choice of accommodation and places of interest. A reliable planner we can trust.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-07-31
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad Claire was prompt and offered useful advice for your Hainan Island trip, making her a reliable planner. We appreciate you sharing.
Kaya has been super helpful and knowledgeable in making our booking. She is quick to respond and has answered all of my many questions.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-07-31
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad Kaya was helpful and knowledgeable during the booking process, and that she responded quickly to your questions. We appreciate you sharing.
Monica was very patient with all my questions and requests and together we finally put together an excellent itinerary that gave us everything we wanted
Highlights Travel 回复2026-06-26
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad Monica's patience and collaboration helped you build an itinerary that met your expectations. We appreciate you sharing.
This is my second time using Asia Highlights to organise a trip, and I’ve been very happy with them. My first trip was to China with my daughter, and everything went very smoothly. I’m now using them again for our upcoming trip to India. They prepared a couple of itinerary versions for us, which was really helpful, and the process has been simple and professional. They are now in the process of locking in the tour, and based on my previous experience, I’m confident it will all run smoothly. Very happy so far and would recommend them.
It was a wonderful trip to China.
For years, Yeliz from Highlights Travel has been arranging the best trips for me.
I love the service they provide—the hotels, the guides, and the attention to detail are all excellent.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-06-26
Thanks for your continued trust in Yeliz over the years. We're glad you consistently appreciate the hotels, guides, and attention to detail. We look forward to planning more trips for you.
My all experience with Highlights Travels is amazing. The team was always very attentive and helpful.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-06-12
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad the team was attentive and helpful throughout, and that your overall experience with us was amazing. We appreciate you sharing.
Monica has been GREAT in getting a customized itinerary together for us for a Japan/China trip next March!! She responds quickly & addresses every question asked. Thank you!
Highlights Travel 回复2026-06-12
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad Monica has been responsive and thorough in building your customized Japan/China itinerary for next March. We appreciate your trust and look forward to helping with the rest of the planning.
I don't expect our Highlights Travel tour was typical. Unlike other reviews I've seen, our experience was decidedly mixed. We booked a 21 day trip in Japan with Highlights Travel. Cost was approximately $33,000 for 4 persons. Here is my assessment:
1) Hotel bookings: quite good. We stayed in hotels or ryokans in Tokyo, Hakone, Tamayaka, Nagoya, Kanazawa and Hiroshima.
2) Home Stay in Tokyo: TERRIFIC stay with local person. However, directions provided by Highlights were incomplete and we were unable to find the location for over 2 hours.
3) Guides: Decidedly mixed. Our initial guide, Kento, was fabulous. We had him in Tokyo. Pretty good English but more important quite knowledgeable. We had one other guide, Ethan, in Kyoto who was similiarly knowledgeable. Our other three guides (Takayama, Kanazawa and Hiroshima) either didn't speak very good English or had to resort to their phones/Google to answer our questions. One guide completely mixed up a Sake Tour we paid for, instead guiding us into a Sake Tourist trap that reminded us of Las Vegas.
4) Activities: In general, quite good. We had spent considerable time with our consultant to devise an itineary that worked for all 4 of us.
5) Communication with our lead consultant from Highlights: Throughout, we had trouble communicating with our lead guide, based in China. We worked with her over 2 months before our trip, trying to make sure our requests were understandable. In the end, we had numerous times where we were unsure about logistics. For the Home Stay, for example, our consultant informed our HomeStay person she should take off a day to be with us. She failed to tell us that fact and we had already arranged a number of activities on our own that day. Quite awkward. Or today, unclear how to get to our car to the airport. Driver didn't speak English and we had to use Google Maps repeatedly to find him at Shinjuku Station.
I know our experience may be unusual, but we would not use Highlights Travel again.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-05-28
Dear Michael,
Thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed review. We have read it carefully.
First, we are genuinely glad to hear that you enjoyed the hotel and ryokan stays, the Homestay experience itself, and the work of Kento and Ethan. That part of your feedback means a lot to our team.
More importantly, we hear your concerns regarding the inconsistent guide quality, the Sake Tour experience, the Homestay arrival confusion, and communication gaps with our consultant. Even if some of these were not as intended, your experience clearly fell short of what you should expect.
We take your feedback seriously. As a direct result of your review, we are:
1. Reviewing the preparation and on‑site performance of the three guides you mentioned
2. Re‑examining how we brief and support guides for paid activities like the Sake Tour
3. Auditing our Homestay and airport transfer handover process to avoid confusion
We have also followed up with you directly via email to ensure your feedback is fully heard. We truly value the time you took to share your thoughts with us.
Thank you again for your honesty. It will make us better.
Best regards,
Highlights Travel Team
Ms. Monica Mo was very patience with us, responsive and flexible. She gave us an itinerary with the flexiblity to making changes.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-05-28
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad Monica was patient, responsive, and flexible throughout the planning process, and that she provided an itinerary that allowed for changes. We appreciate you sharing.
Monica was absolutely incredible to work with and went above and beyond every step of the way planning our Southeast Asia trip. She took the time to really create the perfect itinerary that balanced adventure, culture, relaxation, and logistics seamlessly. From coordinating flights, activities and hotels to helping us maximize our time in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand, every detail was thoughtfully planned.
Monica was super responsive, patient, and adjusted plans whenever needed, and made what could have been an overwhelming process feel easy and exciting.
I cannot recommend Monica highly enough.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-05-28
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad Monica was able to balance adventure, culture, and logistics across Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand, and that she remained responsive and patient throughout the planning process. It's good to know she made a complex trip feel manageable and exciting. We appreciate your strong recommendation.
The travel agent, Monica responded promptly to all my requests and handled every itinerary change with ease. Booking was simple, and the question-and-answer process was quick and efficient.
Highlights Travel 回复2026-05-21
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad Monica was responsive and handled itinerary changes smoothly, and that the booking and Q&A process felt quick and efficient. We appreciate you sharing.
Very flexible in creating a custom itenarary, great support all the way to our journey in Singapore and Indonesia!
Highlights Travel 回复2026-05-08
Thanks for your feedback. We're glad the team was flexible in creating a custom itinerary for Singapore and Indonesia, and that support continued throughout your journey. We appreciate you sharing your experience.
This will be my third trip with Chinahighligts. I'm a extremaly satisfied customer
Highlights Travel 回复2026-05-08
Thanks for your continued trust and loyalty over three trips. We're glad you've been consistently satisfied with your experiences. We appreciate you sharing that.