CLOSER LOOK VIETNAM
Trip code: VPC
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We’ll meet you at Noi Bai airport in Ha Noi - flight details to be advised. Before heading into town, you can change your dollars into dong at the airport currency exchange bureau. Afterwards, we’ll transfer you to your hotel. The rest of the day will be at your leisure. We’ll spend few minutes to go through our itinerary before we go out to our welcome dinner.
On day 2, we’ll take the day tour of Hanoi, starting with Ho Chi Minh complex including the house on stilts and Museum. Then we’ll visit the Temple of Literature which is regarded as the first university of Vietnam established in the year 1070. After lunch, we will visit the Museum of Ethnology, take an hour ride on the “cyclo” and Water Puppet show will be great finish to our busy day.
After breakfast, we’ll leave the busy Hanoi behind for Ha Long bay (4 hours drive). We’ll board our private boat and head out into the bay. Lunch will be on the boat while we’re cruising through the spectacular scenery of thousands of limestone karsts and isles of various sizes and shapes. There are opportunities to visit one of its beautiful limestone cave before we drop the anchor for the night. You can swim in this World Heritage site’s emerald water or use the kayaks to go through “Luon” cave, a lagoon, if we see it from the air. We’ll spend the night of day 3 on our boat.
In the morning of day 4, we cruise another way back to the habour in Ha Long city where we have lunch and then bus back to Hanoi. You still have time to take a shower and stock up some snack for our overnight train to Sa Pa. It will be 8 hours on the train with AC and soft sleepers so it is comfort all the way.
The last stop of the train is Lao Cai, a border town close to China. You will be transferred to Sa Pa, 33 km, when the sun is rising behind the mountains.
You have the day free to recover from the night train until we meet again for a walk to Cat Cat village, a kind of warming up for our trek the next day. On day 6 we have breakfast before setting off on our 6-hour trek along buffalo paths and trails. This is a spectacular walk though some stunning scenery. We trek through hill tribe villages and stop for a picnic lunch en route before staying overnight with a family in Ta Van village, home of the colourful Dzay people. Wake up to the sound of the country life when horses and buffaloes go to the fields, you will have a nice breakfast and then we set off for another hard day walking through the bamboo forest, down the falls and up to the main road again where we meet our bus back to Sa Pa.
The day 8 is absolute free for you to explore this hilly town or do last minute shopping. Our bus will pick you up from the hotel at 6.00 pm back to Lao Cai for our train to Hanoi.
Note: If day 8 is Sunday or Tuesday, we have an optional tour to Bac Ha (Sunday) and Coc Ly (Tuesday) market. We will have an early start and take you to Lao Cai in the late afternoon. We can move the days around to make this trip possible. Please, let us know in advance.
Returning to the capital early in the morning, you will be transferred to our hotel. It is the chance of life time to see the early morning life of local people or join Tai Chi exercise around the Lake.
Today, we take a morning flight to Hue, the former capital of Vietnam until 1945. Lying along the romantic Perfume River, the life here is easy and relaxed. The highlight of the afternoon is to visit Tu Duc Emperor’s tomb, cruise downstream Perfume River for Thien Mu pagoda with dinner on the boat. In the morning of day 11, we take a tour inside the impressive Imperial Citadel, with the Forbidden Purple City at its heart. Sadly, most of this incredible complex was almost totally destroyed during the Tet Offensive of the Vietnam War, and reconstruction is only just beginning. However, there's still interesting sights left to see, and the Royal Relics Museum houses a wealth of historical objects including royal robes, jewellery and even chopsticks
Leaving Hue behind, we take a bus trip to Hoi An. The trip takes about 4 hours with stops on the way for photos at Lang Co fishing village, Ha Van pass and Marble Mountain.
Being a busy trading port in early 17th century, Hoi An was a goods exchange center for merchants from many different countries such as Chinese, Japanese, French, Portuguese and English … Architecture in Hoi An is a mixture of many cultures. You can see a Chinese Assembly Hall next to a villa of French architecture. And don’t forget to visit one of hundreds of tailors, shoes makers and souvenir shops. Our guide will be able to assist or to give some advice.
On morning of day 13, our guide will take you around to see typical sights such as the Japanese Covered Bridge, Assembly Hall, Tan Ky old house and Traditional Handicraft Workshops. The afternoon and the whole day next day is free for you to laze by the beach, to ride a bicycle around the countryside or to finish all your shopping. In the evening, you will have a test of your cooking skill when we attend a 5 course cooking class.
Using the newly-built road along China beach, our driver will drop you at Da Nang for a 9 hours train ride south to Nha Trang. It is a long and interesting journey - a chance to see magnificent landscape and interact with local travelers.
Nha Trang bay is listed as one of the most beautiful bays in the world that’s why the boat trip on day 16 would the most memorable. It is a good day out to enjoy nature where you can swim in blue and clean water, snorkel, enjoy seafood lunch prepared by the crew and relax on a deck chair to watch time pass by in the afternoon. Day 17 is at your leisure. Nha Trang is a famous tourist destination with long sandy beaches. There also a lot of place worth visiting: Long Son Pagoda, Dam market, Black and White pictures gallery, Po Nagar tower and mud bath.
Departing from Nha Trang, we take a bus ride to a cooler climate of Central Highlands. The 5 hours journey takes you through imposing scenery to the coffee capital of Vietnam. Be warned though: Vietnamese coffees are served black and very strong, and with lashings of condensed milk to sweeten. The last stop is Don Village, a home of E’De people with a long tradition of hunting and training elephants. You will have an opportunity to visit their traditional long house on stilts where the number of windows is equivalent to how many daughters they have as the people here still follow matriarchy system. We spend the next day exploring around. It’s great chance to try an elephant ride crossing the Serepok River, rowing on a dug-out canoe before we board our bus to Buon Me Thuot city for the night.
After breakfast, you will have time to wander around before we take another bus ride to Dray Sap water fall then, to the airport to catch the afternoon flight to Ho Chi Minh City. On day 21, we have tour to Cu Chi tunnels, the former Viet Cong’s stronghold. The time you spend there will give you an insight of the Vietnam War as well as the resourcefulness and tenacity of Vietnamese people. We come back to Sai Gon by lunch time for more exploration of the most interesting sights including the Unification Palace and War Remnants Museum.
On the morning of day 22, we leave Ho Chi Minh City and head to the border town of Chau Doc, where Lower River - one of the main branches of Mekong River in Vietnam - begins. We may also visit Sam mountain for sunset view over Cambodian border (weather permitting).
Day 23, we take a short boat trip to see fish farms and cross the river to Cham village and one of the few Muslim temple in Vietnam. After lunch in a local restaurant, we take bus ride to a Khmer pagoda and then on to Ba Chuc. This is a site of Khmer Rouge killing fields. Between 12th and 30th of April 1978, the Khmer Rouge slaughtered 3157 people there and only 2 were known to survive. The countryside you travel through is also very beautiful.
Day 24, After breakfast, we re-board our bus to Vinh Long, one of the main towns on Mekong River. On arrival, we’ll board our boat to cross the famous Mekong river for lunch in a villager’s home. After lunch, we’ll visit the local bricks and pottery kiln. Later on, we’ll go to another bonsai garden to enjoy tropical fruit which also work as a bee farm. We’ll spend some times there to play with the python or to walk around the garden. A short sampan boat will take us to our main boat for another ride to our home stay. The overnight stay allows you to understand life and the work of local people. The house is on water, camping canvas and cold water shower is our lot for the night. Noisy, however, it is a real life experience.
Starting early day 25, we’ll take a boat trip to Cai Be floating market. Staying all year on water, the floating market is the main means of trading and goods exchange in Mekong delta. Hundreds of boats from everywhere gather at the place and buying and selling works is very lively. Going further, we’ll be off to see the cottage industries such as rice paper, fish sauce, coconut candy etc. We’ll be transferred to Cai Be for our bus ride back to Ho Chi Minh City. We may stop on the way for optional lunch before arriving in town in the mid afternoon.
The whole day 26 is free for you to explore this modern city until we meet in the evening for our last dinner together. You may depart any time on day 27 for your flight home. Please, advise us your time flight for your airport drop-off.
Inclusions:
- 20 hotel accommodations (based on twin-shared, 3 stars hotel), 3 nights homestay, 1 night on the boat and 2 nights on overnight train.
- 26 breakfast (simply fried egg, butter, jam and bread, tea/coffee for drink), 5 lunches and 8 dinners
- Private transportations
- English speaking guide
- Tickets to the places
- Airfare from Hanoi to Hue and from Ban Me Thuot to Ho Chi Minh City
- Train tickets both way from Hanoi to Lao Cai and from Da Nang to Nha Trang
Exclusions:
- Travel insurance
- International flight tickets
- Cost of visa applications
- Personal expenses and tips
- And, please note that all drinks are not included.
Price: (in US Dollar and per person)
| Group of | 2 - 3 pax | 4 - 5 pax | 6 - 7 pax | 8 - 9 pax | 10 - 12 pax |
| Price | 3430 | 3260 | 3090 | 2915 | 2745 |
Single supplement: 618 US Dollars
