HANOI – SAPA – BAC HA MARKET – HA LONG BAY – HUE – HOI AN – HOCHIMINH CITY – CU CHI TUNNELS – MEKONG DELTA – CAI RANG FLOATING MARKET
(15 days/ 14 nights)
OVER VIEW:
Spend your holiday to travel throughout the country in 13 days to explore the true Vietnam with authentic culture. You can join in local family at homestay in some places to explore their daily life there. That’s really special experience and you will see the hidden charm of Vietnam which is much more different from other modern countries.
It also can be tailor-made to meet your expectation. Please do feel free to contact us to get free assistance.
– Private tour for your group only with your own transportation and experience tour guide
– Join in daily life of local people with some nights at local homestay.
– Included the visits to famous WORLD Heritage Sites like Historical Hoi An, magnificent Ha Long Bay and ancient capital Hue
– Explore the authentic culture, nature of Vietnam
– Spend special experience with a night on cruise on Bay
DAY 1 – ARRIVE IN HANOI
Included meals: No
Arrive in Noi Bai International Airport (Hanoi, you are meet and warm welcome. Transfer to the centrally located hotel for check-in and free at your leisure. Accommodation in Hanoi
Note: Early check in is due to the availability of hotel. Normal check in time is at 14.00
DAY 2 – HANOI VISITING AND STREET FOOD/ NIGHT TRAIN TO LAO CAI
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner with street food
This day tour is our first introduction to the history of Vietnam. We spend the morning visiting Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, and learn more about the historical and cultural events at the peaceful Temple of Literature. In the afternoon, we visit the Ethnologic museum, followed by an hour cyclo tour through the bustling Old Quarter. A walk through its exciting streets is a fascinating introduction to the different lifestyles of Vietnam, and an opportunity to shop for bargains.
You will start the street food tour with our tour guide. The tour will offers you many kinds of Hanoi’s specialties. We are open for you to discuss with our guide about the kinds of food based on your interests. At the end of the tour, you can enjoy a Vietnamese egg coffee or a glass of draught beer.
Transfer to Hanoi train station to take the night train to Lao Cai. Overnight on train (Cabin of 4 berths sharing with good A/C)
Tips: Hochiminh Mausoleum is closed on Monday and Friday and from June to September
All Museums are closed on Mondays
DAY 3 – LAO CAI ARRIVAL – SAPA (local homestay)
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
Arrive in Lao Cai Station in early morning, you are warm welcome and transfer to local restaurant for breakfast.
After that, get transfer to a trekking point in Ma Tra Village, The first trek we are doing today is on a small concrete path winding along the Ta Phin Valley in between rice terraced fields and through villages. Get picked up at Ta Phin Village and make our way back to Sapa town for lunch at local restaurant before continue your trip in Sapa with trekking through Muong Hoa Valley. We will walk through rice terraces and on local paths to Lao Chai village and then continue to the Zay village of Ta Van. Spend time looking around the village. We meet with our local Dzay hosts in their home. Free at your leisure and the rest of the evening can be spent getting to know more about daily life of local people in the village.
Dinner and overnight at local homestay
DAY 4 – CABLE CAR TO FANSIPAN PEAK/ BAC HA DISTRICT
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
After breakfast, checking out of the homestay and transfer to the meeting point to take the cable car to Fansipan Peak. From here, you will enjoy the panorama view of Sapa. Have lunch at local restaurant.
In the afternoon, get back on your private vehicle and make the way to Bac Ha town. The drive lasts for almost 3 hours. On the way, have a short stop at the border gate to China in Lao Cai city. Take a view over the border bridge and you may want to take some photos before carrying on the drive. Arrive at Bac Ha town, check in a hotel and rest for the remainder of the day. Dinner and overnight in Bac Ha.
DAY 5 – BAC HA HILL TRIBAL MARKET/ NIGHT TRAIN BACK TO HANOI
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch
After a breakfast at your hotel, we will depart for Bac Ha Sunday market. Here you will see Flower Hmong, Phu La, Dao, Tay, Nung…all hill tribe groups gather around for trading. It is an awesome experience of seeing colors, understanding traditions and feeling the atmosphere. The market offers a variety of local products includes colorful embroidery, handicraflocalts and all types of daily necessary stuffs. Here also available animal market where people sell and buy or barter animal such as dogs, pot-bellied pigs, cows, buffalos and so on.
After lunch at local restaurant, get transfer to Bao Nhai and then followed by a short walk around Trung Do Village and take a boat trip along Chay River (If the water level and the weather are permitted) then head back for Lao Cai City for your own dinner. Transfer to Lao Cai train station to take the night train back to Hanoi. Overnight on train. (Cabin of 4 berths sharing with good A/C)
Note: Hill Tribal market in Bac Ha: Bac Ha Market on Sunday, Coc Ly Market on Tuesday, Cao Son Market on Thursday, Can Cau Market on Saturday
DAY 6 – HANOI ARRIVAL/ HA LONG BAY (OVERNIGHT ON CRUISE)
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
Arrive in Hanoi Station in early morning and you will have room at a mini hotel nearby the station for refreshment and breakfast. Then, we will depart for Ha Long Bay, listed as a World Heritage Area of outstanding natural beauty. Driving through the heart of the Red River Delta where you will see many farmers tilling their green fields, stop on route to admire the landscape picture, you might take picture of buffalo. Ha Long Bay means “Dragon descending to the sea” as it is known in Vietnamese, picturesque Ha Long bay has more than 1.000 limestone islets rising from the sea, many of them containing beautiful grottoes. Arrive in Ha Long and board the cruise. You will have a full day activities on Ha Long Bay include visiting the floating village, nice cave, demonstration cooking class… Dinner and overnight on cruises.
Note: Each cruise will have the different itineraries. The itineraries of cruises may be changed due to the weather and the water condition
DAY 7 – HA LONG BAY/ HANOI/ NIGHT TRAIN TO HUE
Included meals: Breakfast/ Brunch (early lunch)
Weak up in early morning and you can enjoy in the Taichi Exercise. Han a light breakfast with cake, tea and maybe noodle. Continue to explore Ha Long Bay following the program of cruise. Back to cruise and check out, have brunch. Disembark the cruises and take the transfer back to Hanoi. On the way, you will stop at Do temple in Bac Ninh Province to explore the history and stories about 8 Kings in Ly Dynasty. Enjoy a Quan Ho Performance (a very special folk song in Vietnam which was recognized as a UNESCO Intanginble Cultural Heritage in 2009)
Back to Hanoi and free for dinner (account on your own). Transfer to the train station to take a night train to Hue. Overnight on train (Cabin of 4 berths sharing with good A/C)
DAY 8 – HUE ARRIVAL AND VISITING
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch
Arrive in Hue, you are warm welcome and have a breakfast as locals in Hue (Hue Beef Noodle)
You then visit the impressive tombs of King Minh Mang and Khai Dinh and then take time to visit Hue’s Ancient Citadel and Imperial City. Created in the 19th century, inside the citadel was a forbidden city where only the emperors, concubines, and those close enough to them were granted access; the punishment for trespassing was death. Today, little of the Forbidden City remains, though reconstruction efforts are in progress to maintain it as a historic tourist attraction.
Take cruise on the Perfume River to visit Thien Mu Pagoda. The rest of day is free to explore the crowded market of Dong Ba where you can bargain for anything from souvenirs and bronze goods, to Hue sesame sweetmeat and conical poem hats. Overnight in Hue
DAY 9 – HUE/ DANANG/ HOI AN
Included meals: Breakfast
Depart for Hoi An. On the way, we stop to visit Hai Van Pass, Cham Museum and Mable Mountain.
Hai Van Pass, also known as “Sea Cloud” Pass crosses. This is the pass vehicles generally used to travel from Da Nang to Hue and vice versa. The pass goes through the highs and lows of the Truong Son Mountain Range and gives travellers a spectacular view of the shoreline. As the name says, during winters or raining days, the pass get misty and it makes you feel as though you are travelling on clouds.
Marble Mountain was one of four mountains located south of Da Nang that stretched from the coast inland (westward) for about three miles. These mountains are riddled with caves and tunnels. Continue on to Hoi An and check in your hotel. Free time at your leisure. Accommodation in Hoian
DAY 10 – HOI AN COOKING CLASS AND ANCIENT TOWN VISITING
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch
In the morning you will enjoy in the cooking class in Hoi An to know about the cultural cuisines of Vietnam. We start the day with a welcome drink at the meeting point. Then visit Hoi An’s colorful market, and experience the amazing sights, sounds and aromas of this busy market. We will have the opportunity to interact with the local sellers and learn about all the ingredients to be used in the cooking lesson later.
We board the Red Bridge boat for a leisurely cruise (25 minutes) along the Hoi An River to the Red Bridge Cooking School. This is a chance to view local river life, so make sure your camera is handy.
On arrival, we explore the cooking school’s herb garden, before learning about some of Hoi An’s and Vietnam’s well-known dishes. The cooking lesson runs for about 2 hours – the Red Bridge chefs first demonstrate each dish before we prepare the same dish ourselves. Included in the class is a brief introduction to Vietnamese food carving (plate decoration). After the lesson, we sit down and eat what we have cooked.
Transfer back to Hoi An town for your visiting the ancient town. Hoi An nestled on the banks of the Thu Bon River. Before the river silted up, Hoi An was one of the most important trading ports in Southeast Asia, and a Centre for East-West exchange and trade. The visit including: Japanese Bridge, Phuoc Kien Pagoda, Tan Ky House or Tran Phu 77 and one of the museum.
Overnight in Hoi An
DAY 11 – HOI AN/ DANANG/ FLY TO HOCHIMINH CITY (SAIGON)
Included meals: Breakfast
Free at your leisure until time transfer to Danang airport to take a direct flight to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). On arrival, you are warm welcome and transfer to hotel for check in. Overnight in Saigon
DAY 12 – HOCHIMINH CITY VISITING AND CU CHI TUNNELS
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch
Today, we will start a full day tour in Hochiminh City (formerly named Saigon) and Cu Chi Tunnels. Saigon is the largest city in Vietnam and Cu Chi Tunnels is famous with underground tunnel network under American War .
Get picked up from your hotel in Saigon and start with 1.5hour drive to Cu Chi tunnels. Get the overview of Cu Chi by watching a documentary. Your guide walks you around to witness the traps, bunkers, trenches and experience crawling a piece of the underground tunnels. Have lunch at local restaurant.
In the afternoon, we will visit the War Remain Museum to know more about the strong history of Vietnam. The next stop is visiting Independence Palace that is the symbol of the Vietnamese’s Victory against the French colonial occupation. We will visit the Notre Dame Cathedral, built between 1877 and 1883 and one of the city’s major landmarks. In the other side of Notre Dame is Sai Gon Central Post Office. The building was constructed by the French colonists in early 20th century during French Indochina. This post features the Gothic architecture style and was designed in well harmony with the surrounding ward.
Overnight in Saigon
DAY 13 – SAIGON/ MEKONG DELTA/ CAN THO
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch
This morning, we will depart for My Tho. Visit to the flood plains of the Mekong Delta, “the mystic serpent with nine tails.”
Take a boat trip along Mekong River by motor-boat. During a boat cruise along Mekong River you will have a chance to see fish cages, floating house and the activities on the River. The boat take you to Xep canal, where is the place you totally escape from the busy town. The boat cruise in the coconut trees canal takes you to a small islet. We disembark and have a walk around the village. Stop at a local family to enjoy tropical fruit, taste honey tea, honey wine and listen to Vietnamese traditional music, performance by the villagers. Continue walking on the village’s road and have a horse cart trip along village road. Get off for a rowing boat in the small canal to the motor-boat and then head to the restaurant on the other islet.
Get back to the pier and make your way to Can Tho – the center of Mekong Delta. Check in hotel and leisure. Overnight in Can Tho.
DAY 14 – CAN THO/ CAI RANG FLOATING MARKET/ SAIGON
Included meals: Breakfast/ Lunch
After breakfast we take into the water to witness Vietnam’s largest floating market – Cai Rang where literally hundreds of boats laden with locally grown fruit and vegetables come to trade. Our boat arrives at the dock where we return to Ho Chi Minh by road. Stop en route for lunch at Mekong Restop restaurant before getting back to Saigon. The reminder of the day is at leisure.
Overnight in Ho Chi Minh.
DAY 15 – DEPARTURE FROM HOCHIMINH CITY
Included meals: Breakfast
Free at your leisure until time transfer to Tan Son Nhat airport to take your direct flight to your next destination. End of our services.
****** HAVE A NICE TRIP *****
HOTEL LIST:
PLACE/ CITY | SUPERIOR OPTION | DELUXE OPTION | LUXURY OPTION |
Hanoi | Essence Palace Hanoi Hotel
Deluxe balcony room |
Silk Path Hanoi Hotel or Similar
Deluxe room |
Oriental Jade Hotel or Similar
Oriental Pearl room |
Train Hanoi – Lao Cai – Hanoi | Sapaly Express or Similar
Cabin of 4 berths charing with A/C |
||
Sapa Homestay | Local stilt house on Ta Van Village | Local stilt house on Ta Van Village | Local stilt house on Ta Van Village |
Bac Ha | Huy Trung Homestay
Private room |
Huy Trung Homestay
Private room |
Huy Trung Homestay
Private room |
Ha Long | V’Spirit Premium Cruise or Similar
Deluxe balcony room |
Peony Cruise or Similar
Deluxe balcony room |
Indochine Cruise or Similar
Junior Suite |
Train Hanoi – Hue | Livitran Express or similar
Cabin of 4 berths charing with A/C |
||
Hoi An | Royal Riverside Hotel
Deluxe City room |
Vinh Hung Riverside Resort
Superior room |
Palm Garden Resort
Superior room |
Hue | Cherish Hue Hotel
Deluxe Balcony |
Moonlight Hue Hotel
Superior room |
Pilgrimage Village
Superior room |
Saigon | Paradise Saigon Hotel
Deluxe room |
Alagon D’Antique Hotel
Deluxe room |
Rex Saigon Hotel
Premium room (West Wing) |
Can Tho | Ninh Kieu 2 Hotel
Superior room |
Can Tho Ecolodge
Deluxe room |
Victoria Resort
Superior room |
Included:
– Accommodation at hotel basing twin/double/triple sharing as noted
– 01 night on overnight cruise in Ha Long Bay
– 01 homestay on stilt house in Sapa and 01 night at homestay in Bac Ha
– Night train for Hanoi – Lao Cai – Hanoi and Hanoi – Hue (cabin of 4 berths sharing)
– Cooking class in Hoi An (join class)
– Street food tour in Hanoi with local food and drinks
– Kayak/ Rowing boat on the Bay
– Meals as indicated in program at local restaurants (excluding drinks)
– Modern transportation during your day tour.
– Boat cruises in Ha Long, Hue and Mekong Delta
– Entrance fees as stated in the tour program.
– Local good and experience English speaking guide in all your day tour
– Water on car.
Complimentary:
– Approval visa letter to entry Vietnam (not included the visa fee at 25.00/ pax which will be paid directly at the airport)
Excluded:
– International ticket in/ out Vietnam
– Domestic tickets Danang – Saigon
– Compulsory gala for Christmas (24 Dec) and New Year (31 Dec) – To be advised.
– Banking/ Credit card fees (if any)
– Any meals, drinks other than specified.
– Tip and personal expenses.