Mrs. Kym – 22 days. Exploring Vietnam

Day 1: Ho Chi Minh (arrival)

Arrive in Ho Chi Minh, we welcome and transfer you to hotel. Your leisure time in the city on your own.

• Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh city.
• N/A

Day 2: Ho Chi Minh (city tour & Cu Chi tunnels)

Morning, we explore the Re-Unification Palace, which was the home and workplace of the president of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, and played a pivotal role in the war’s end. Visit the Notre Dame Cathedral, a stunning example of French colonial architecture, and learn about its unique history. Continue your tour at the War Remnants Museum, which provides a thought-provoking look into the harsh realities of the Vietnam War.

Afternoon, we leave the city and drive 60km to Cu Chi, where you can delve into the intricate system of tunnels and explore the Cu Chi Tunnel, an impressive feat of engineering that played a significant role in the Vietnam War. Afterwards, enjoy tea, cassava (guerrilla’s food during the war). Once the tour is complete, we will make our way back to the city.

• Overnight in Ho Chi Minh.
• B,L

Day 3: Ho Chi Minh (Leisure)

After breakfast, It’s your leisure time to rest and explore the city on your own, try local food.

• Overnight in Ho Chi Minh.
• B

Day 4: Ho Chi Minh → Mekong delta

Following breakfast at the hotel, we will depart from Ho Chi Minh and head towards Ben Tre. Our journey will include a boat trip along the Mekong River, during which we will visit a family-run business that exemplifies the idyllic rural lifestyle. We will also have the opportunity to stroll through the fruit plantation village.

• Overnight at hotel in Can Tho.
• B,L

Day 5: Mekong delta → Ho Chi Minh

Around 6.30am, we pick you up to visit the Cai Rang floating market which is wholesale market of fruit and vegetable at its busiest at this time of the day. Keep cruising through the small channels system and visit a rice noodle making village. Experience the “Monkey Bridge” in the Delta.

Break for lunch then return to Ho Chi Minh.

• Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh.
• B,L

Day 6: Ho Chi Minh → Hoi An

It’s your leisure day to rest until our driver come to pick you to airport fly to Da Nang.

Arrive Da Nang airport will transfer you to Hoi An town.

• Overnight in Hoi An.
• B

Day 7: Hoi An (Coconut Jungle + Bamboo boat + Cooking class)

8:30 – 13:00 A unique experience through the coconut forest in the heart of Hoi An old town, enjoy & experience how to prepare special foods. This tour will give visitors a great experience, especially the short vacation tourists in Hoi An, this is a perfect choice. Highlight Attractions: Going to experience a local colorful market how to deal with the local sellers and know all ingredients for the meals. Take a paddle boat trip in a unique Vietnamese bamboo basket boat down the waterways of a coconut palm paradise. Enjoy a hands-on experience of traditional net fishing and “Purple Crabs” in the canal. Welcome drink and join the cooking class. Our chef will teach you the differences about the ingredients and traditional methods how to cook 4 dishes of Vietnamese food. At the end of the course, we will provide you with recipes so you can cook Vietnamese food with your family and friends at your home. You learn 4 courses but enjoy 8 Vietnamese foods. After have lunch/dinner, our guide will drop you off back your hotel. After the lesson, you enjoy what you cooked and 4 prepared side dishes.

• Overnight in Hoi An.
• B,L

Day 8: Hoian (Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary)

Morning breakfast at hotel. Today, we start the tour by visiting My Son Sanctuary, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

After that, we transfer you to Hue.

• Overnight in Hoi An
• B,L

Day 9: Hoian → Da Nang

After breakfast, It’s your time to rest until our driver come to pick you to Da Nang city.

• Overnight in Hoi An
• B

Day 10: Da Nang (Bana hill – Golden Bridge)

After breakfast at hotel, we will have a visit to Ba Na Hills. Take Cable Car, which gains 5 world scores, to Ba Na hills station. We will have some stops to visit some famous places: Golden Bridge, Vong Nguyet hills, Linh Ung pagoda, The Old Villas of French, Nginh Phong top, Le Nim Villas, Orchid Garden. Experience hill climbing train (first and unique funicular in Vietnam) and visit an old French cellar (Debay Ancient Wine Cellar), flower garden Le Jardin D’amour and Linh Ung Pagoda.

After lunch at a restaurant, explore the French village or join games at Fantasy Park, which is the third biggest indoor games zone in Vietnam. Afterwards, return to Da Nang city with a stop at Central Specialties Super Market for shopping.

• Overnight in Hoi An.
• B,L

Day 11: Da Nang (Leisure)

Enjoy breakfast at hotel. Spend your leisure time for relaxation at beach in Da Nang. You can also visit some famous places on your own and try local cuisine.

• Overnight in Hoi An.
• B

Day 12: Da Nang (Leisure)

Enjoy breakfast at hotel. Spend your leisure time for relaxation at beach in Da Nang. You can also visit some famous places on your own and try local cuisine.

• Overnight in Hoi An.
• B

Day 13: Da Nang → Hue

After breakfast, We transfer you to train station to take a train to Hue, it’s take about 2.5 hours away.

• Overnight in Hue.
• B

Day 14: Hue (City)

Your breakfast at hotel. Start a city tour in Hue.

Get a boat trip to Thien Mu Pagoda. We then continue our visit at the Citadel & Hue Royal Antiques museum. Visit Dong Ba Market and have lunch at a nearby restaurant. After lunch, visit tomb of King “Minh Mang” and Tomb of King “Khai Dinh”. Proceed our tour at a nearby village where people making incense stick and conical hat.

After the tour, drive you back hotel get luggage to go to airport flight to Hanoi.

• Overnight in Hue
• B,L

Day 15: Hue → Hanoi

After breakfast, It’s your leisure time to rest until our driver come pick you to the airport fly to Hanoi.

• Overnight at hotel in Hanoi.
• B

Day 16: Hanoi (city tour)

Breakfast will be served at your hotel.
Around 08:00 – 8:30AM, 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 Godess of Mercy – It is the most unique padoga in the world.
11.15: Visit Vietnam Ethnology Museum to learn about the culture of 54 ethnic groups living in the whole country of Vietnam.
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”

• Overnight at hotel in Hanoi.
• B,L

Day 17: Hanoi → Halong

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.
8:00 – 8:10 AM, our bus 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 back flip 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

• Overnight on cruise in Hanlong bay
• B,L,D

Day 18: Halong → 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 Tuan Chau habour in Halong

Back to hotel in Hanoi.

Overnight at hotel in Hanoi

B,L

Day 19: Hanoi (Leisure)

After breakfast, It’s your leisure time to rest and explore the city on your own, try local food.

• Overnight in Ha Noi.
• B

Day 20: Hanoi → Ninh Binh

07:00-07:45: Our tour guide and driver will pick up at your hotel in Hanoi city to depart for Ninh Binh province (120 Kms). Bai Dinh Trang day tour. 10.30 Tourist to visit
Bai Dinh – Arrive in Buddha Prayer place in Bai Dinh Pagoda, the biggest pagoda in Vietnam with 500 La Han statues, biggest bronze Buddha statue in Vietnam with 10 meters in height, 100 tons in weight. Have lunch in a local restaurant with some local special dishes such as Goat meat with elderberry, pork storage vessel
13:00 Depart to visit Trang An tourist attraction, take a boat trip to visit cave complex: Sang Cave, Toi Cave, Ba Giot Cave, Nau Ruou in mystery and wildness, see the scenery of mountain and rivers Halong Bay on the land of Ninh Binh.
Overnight in Ninh Binh

B,L

Day 21: Ninh Binh → Hanoi

9:00 am Our tour guide pick you up for the tour. First stop at Hoa Lu, you will have quick visit two  temples built in honor of the emperors Dinh Le, their sons, and the Queen… to know why Hoa Lu was build as capital of Vietnam in ending of nine century.

12:00 – Enjoy lunch at our restaurant with the great local cuisine.

13:30 – Boarding a small sampan to visit Tam Coc which means literally “three caves” (1.5 hour boat trip). With Halong bay type views of majestic limestone cliffs and mysterious caves, as well as countryside landscape like peaceful streams, rice paddies and deserted green fields, Tam Coc really has it all. You will feel the fresh air and peaceful moments, very good opportunities for photo lovers, freezing the special moments and scenery.

17:15 – Return to our bus and then come back to Ha Noi

19:30 – Drop you off at your hotel/stay. Trip ends.

Overnight in Ha Noi.

B,L

Day 22: Hanoi (departure)

Morning, enjoy breakfast at hotel. Your leisure time till we will transfer you to the airport for flight back home.

• N/A.
• B

End of service!