TRAVEL SERVICE & RESERVATION – Tony Hickey

Day 1 – 06 Mar: Hanoi (Arrival)

Arrival at the airport in Hanoi, our driver welcomes and transfers you to hotel.

Rest of the day is your leisure time in Hanoi.

• Overnight at Aquarius Premium Hotel in Hanoi.
• N/A

Day 2 – 07 Mar: Hanoi (Leisure)

Enjoy breakfast at hotel.

Your leisure time to explore Hanoi Old Quarter. You can also visit some famous places on your own and try local cuisine.

Take a rest before walking around 10 minutes to Lotus water puppet theater (16 Le Thai To street) to enjoy the show at 17:15 PM. The show lasts 50 minutes.

Evening, walking around 10 minutes to Tùng’s Kitchen (02 Hàng Bông street) to enjoy your welcome dinner at 18:30 PM. Rest of the day is your leisure time to explore the city on your own.

• Overnight at Aquarius Premium Hotel in Hanoi.
• D

Day 3 – 08 Mar: Hanoi → Ha Long bay

Breakfast at your hotel then check out your hotel, you can leave big luggage at hotel (please note to hotel staff to keep for you) and bring small bag for Halong bay trip as you will be back to this hotel to stay more.

At 07:50 – 08:00 AM, our guide pick you up at your hotel and go to Halong bay on a shuttle bus.

• 11:45- 12:00 – Welcome at waiting room 26 Tuan Chau harbour in Halong Bay
• 12:00. You will be taken on our tender from the wharf and make your way out onto the bay to board our luxurious craft, Sapphire Cruise. You will be welcome aboard and greeted with a complimentary drink. Our Crew will conduct a compulsory safety procedures session and then you are free to check into your cabin and freshen up. Take some time to have a look around the vessel or watch the magical landscape go by.
• 13:15  While our boat starts to cruise ,  enjoy the special lunch of fresh  seafood and vietnamese food  cooked by one of the best Chef in halong bay . 
• 15:00  After cruising for nearly 2 hours to explore the tranquil Bay , passing by thousands of islands and islets , the boat reaches the best area to do kayaking to see a lot of amazing limestone karst landscapes . Our boat will not bring you to the crowded and tiny beach for swimming . Our boat will stop in the middle of the Bay so that you can have chance to jump into water , take a backflip or somersault ..
• 16:30  Keep cruising to admire the stunning beauty of the Bay from our Sundeck where you can capture great  photos
• 17:00  Attend the cooking class opened right on the Sundeck , our guide will show you how to prepare and make our vietnamese traditional dish that is spring roll
• 17: 45  Join the Sunset party , enjoy fresh fruit , making friends with other members in the group , listening to soft and light music.
• 19 :00  Enjoy the special Dinner with fusion food prepared by the excellent skills of decoration of our Chef .
• 20: 30  Your free time

• Stay overnight on Sapphire Cruise in Ha Long bay.
• B,L,D

Day 4 – 09 Mar: Ha Long bay → Hanoi

• 05:45 – The nicest time of the day on Lan Ha Bay is the morning. Head to the upper deck to participate in our daily Tai Chi sessions. Relax with an early morning cup of tea, coffee or juice anywhere you wish on the boat and watch the never-ending miraculous scenery unfold before you.
• 06:30 – Light breakfast will be served in our restaurant (pastries, tea, coffee)
• 7:00 – 8:15 – Enjoy the last stage of your trip to Dark & Bright cave and islets by local rowing boats which is a wild and mysterious beauty in the middle of the World Heritage. Back to our main board afterward.
• 09:15-9:30 – Check out of your cabin as we draw closer to the mainland.
• 09:45 Enjoy your brunch on the boat.
• 11:00 you will board our tender and head back to the wharf where you will be met by your return trip vehicle to transfer you to Hanoi.
• 11:45 Tour ends at TuanChau habour in Halong
• 15:00 – 15:30 PM – drop off your hotel. Rest of day is your leisure time in Hanoi.

• Overnight at Aquarius Premium Hotel in Hanoi.
• B,L

Day 5 – 10 Mar: Hanoi → Hoi An

Breakfast at your hotel then check out your hotel, you can leave big luggage at hotel (please note to hotel staff to keep for you). After Hanoi city tour you will come back hotel to collect your luggage.

At 08:00 – 08:30 AM: Get picked up by our friendly guide and start to explore Hanoi City.

08.45: Arrive at Tran Quoc Pagoda located on Golden Fish IsLand in West Lake

It is the oldest pagoda in Ha Noi built in the 6th century.

09.30: Visit Ho Chi Minh complex, you have a chance to see the embalmed body of Ho Chi Minh then walk around the garden to see 2 houses where he lived & worked from 1954 to 1969. Then visit One Pillar Pagoda where worships the Goddess of Mercy – It is the most unique pagoda in the world

• Should dress modestly by covering from shoulders to knees when visiting Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, temples, pagodas…

• Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum is closed on Mondays and Fridays.

• Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum is closed at least 2 months (15thJune -15thAugust) for the annual maintaining but still can take picture Mausoleum and visit around that area

11.15: Visit Vietnam Ethnology Museum to learn about the culture of 54 ethnic groups living in the whole country of Vietnam.

Special Note: we will visit Women Museum instead of Ethnology Museum closed on Mondays

12.45: Have lunch at our restaurant. You have an opportunity to enjoy Vietnamese cuisine with 8 delicious dishes.

14.00 – 14.15: Continue to visit Temple of Literature – the first university of Vietnam, established in the 11 century.

15.15: Leave for Hoa Lo Prison Museum which originally used by the French colonists in Indochina for political prisoners, and later by North Vietnam for U.S. prisoners of war during the Vietnam War. During this later period, it was known to American POWs as the “Hanoi Hilton”

After the tour, drop you off at hotel.

At 16:30 PM, we transfer you to airport for flight to Da Nang (depart at 19:10 PM – VN 197). Arrive at airport in Da Nang at 20:35 PM, our driver transfers you to the hotel in Hoi An for your stay.

Rest of the day is your leisure time to discover the city on your own.

• Overnight at Qualia De Hotel in Hoi An.
• B,L

Day 6 – 11 Mar: Hoi An (My Son Sanctuary)

Breakfast at hotel.

07:30 – 08:00 AM, Our guide picks you up at hotel and leave Hoi An for visiting My Son Holly Land – the ruins of Cham people and was an imperial city during Cham dynasty. Here you can have more chance to explore and understand of technique of Old Cham people in making red bricks to build Tower which still now a secret to everyone, you can see a large complex of religious relics that comprises more than 65 architectural works. It also surprises for those who are curious with architectural art. In 1999, UNESCO labeled the Cham architecture in My Son as a World Cultural Heritage Site.

Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant.

Afternoon, visit Hoi An town on foot: Hoi An’s Colorful Local Market, Old House of Tan Ky, Fu Jian Assembly Hall, and the 400-year-old Japanese Covered Bridge.

• Overnight at Qualia De Hotel in Hoi An.
• B,L

Day 7 – 12 Mar: Hoi An (Leisure)

Enjoy breakfast at hotel.

Spend your leisure time for explore ancient town. You can also visit some famous places on your own and try local cuisine.

• Overnight at Qualia De Hotel in Hoi An.
• B

Day 8 – 13 Mar: Hoi An → Ho Chi Minh

Morning, breakfast at your hotel. Please check out the hotel before 12:00 PM.

Your leisure time to explore old town until 15:30 PM our driver transfer you to airport for flight to Ho Chi Minh (depart at 18:15 PM – VN 137).

Arrival at airport in Ho Chi Minh at 19:45 PM, you will be taken to hotel for check-in. Rest of the day is your leisure time to explore the city on your own.

• Overnight at Mường Thanh Grand Sài Gòn Centre Hotel in Ho Chi Minh.
• B

Day 9 – 14 Mar: Ho Chi Minh (Cu Chi tunnels + City tour)

Breakfast will be served at your hotel.

Around 07:30 – 07:45 AM, our guide picks up you to visit Ho Chi Minh. Depart for Cu Chi tunnel, the trip will take approximately one and a half hours bus driving. Upon arrival, before exploring the tunnels, you will have some short introduction followed by introductory video about how the tunnels were constructed and how the people survived in the harsh conditions of the war time. Then, spend your time to explore the remaining area and tunnel systems which included the special constructed living areas with kitchens, bedrooms side by side with other martial facilities like storage, weapons factories, field hospitals, and command centers helping whoever lives inside the tunnels meet their basic needs. Besides, there are also many hidden trap doors and dangerous traps within the maze-like tunnels for security purpose during the war. Afterward, special tea and cassava (guerrilla’s food during the war) will be served.

Break time for relax or time for those who want to try the real shooting gun. Have lunch at restaurant in HCM city.

In the afternoon, visit Independence Palace, also known at the Reunification palace, was built on the sight of the former Norodom palace.

The Independence palace is a widely known Landmark of Ho Chi Minh City and was designed by the architect Ngo Viet Thu. Continue seeing the beautiful structures from the French Colonial times such as the Notre Dame Cathedral, the historic Central Post Office. Followed by the remarkable site of the War Remnants Museum the museum has a vast display of the both the Indochina wars.

Back to the hotel. End trip.

• Overnight at Mường Thanh Grand Sài Gòn Centre Hotel in Ho Chi Minh city.
• B,L

Day 10 – 15 Mar: Ho Chi Minh (visit Mekong Delta)

Breakfast at hotel.

07:30- 07:45 AM – pick you up at your hotel, then transfer to My Tho by bus (1.5 hours). On the way, we will visit Vinh Trang pagoda, the biggest pagoda in the Mekong delta. Upon arrival in My Tho, we will take a boat trip along the Mekong River, where you can see fish cages and floating houses on the river. The boat takes you to a small canal, where you can totally escape from the busy town. The boat cruise takes you to a coconut island in Ben Tre. Stop at a local family home to enjoy tropical fruit, taste the honey tea, honey wine and listen to Vietnamese traditional music, performed by the villagers.

Stop by the village coconut candy shop, learn how to make candy, and see some handicraft made out of coconut trees. Take a walk through the village and admire the fruits, flowers, trees, local houses, children and people. Then, we head to the local restaurant. Lunch is set with special Vietnamese food at here.

After lunch, relax, go for a walk or bicycle around the area. We’ll then travel back to the river ferry and head back to Saigon by bus, arriving at around 17:30 PM.

• Overnight at Mường Thanh Grand Sài Gòn Centre Hotel in Ho Chi Minh city.
• B,L

Day 11 – 16 Mar: Ho Chi Minh → Vung Tau

Morning, enjoy breakfast at hotel.

At 09:00 AM, our driver will transfer you to Vung Tau. Rest of the day is your leisure time at beach.

• Overnight at Ho Tram Boutique Resort and Spa in Vung Tau.
• B

Day 12 – 17 Mar: Vung Tau (Leisure)

Breakfast at hotel.

Spend your leisure time for relaxation at beach in Vung Tau. You can also visit some famous places on your own and try local cuisine.

• Overnight at Ho Tram Boutique Resort and Spa in Vung Tau.
• B

Day 13 – 18 Mar: Vung Tau → (Departure)

Morning, enjoy breakfast at hotel.

At 10:00 AM, our driver transfer you to airport in Ho Chi Minh for flight to Hanoi (depart at 15:00 PM – VN 250).

• N/A
• B

End of service!