VATHN15 (TRD)- 14 Day Hanoi – Halong – Sapa – Hoian – Saigon

Looking for the full experience tour of Vietnam? This trip takes you through Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi, Halong Bay and other destinations in between with plenty of action and highlights to immerse yourself into this enchanting culture. Picture yourself relishing the rice region of Mekong Delta by taking a traditional boat local fruit farms, stopping in exciting & iconic hot spots & popular local foodie haunts for a true Vietnam experience.

Summary of Itinerary
Day 1: Ha Noi Arrival
Day 2: Ha Noi – Ha Long
Day 3: Ha Long – Ha Noi
Day 4: Limousine from Hanoi – Sapa then take a short trek to Cat Cat Village
Day 5: Sapa Trekking – Then Limousine back to Hanoi
Day 6: Hanoi – Da Nang By Soft Sleeper Train
Day 7: Hoi An Ancient Town
Day 8: My Son Holyland Deluxe Tour
Day 9: Hoi An Cooking Class
Day 10: Danang – Sai Gon By Air Plane
Day 11: Mekong Delta
Day 12: Cu Chi Tunnels Half Day
Day 13: Half Day Cyclo
Day 14: Ho Chi Minh City Departure / See You Again

• Day 1 Hanoi Arrival (Meals: No)

  On arrival Ha Noi capital, we will see at the airport have private transfer to center for check in hotel. You have free time for leisure.

• Day 2 Ha Noi - Ha Long (Meal: B, L, D)

  (Your hotel – Tuan Chau marina – Halong bay – Lunch – Surprising Cave – Titop Island – Sunset party – Dinner – Onboard night activities)
  07.45 – 08.15 approx
  – Our guide will meet you at your hotel. The shuttle bus or private car pick up
  – Enjoy the peaceful scenery as we travel through the countryside, farmlands and Red River delta
  – Get your camera ready to take photos. Comfort break. The time from Hanoi to Halong bay is approximately 3 ½ hours.
  12 – 12.30 approx
  – Arriving Tuan Chau marina. Welcome aboard the cruise. Refresh with our welcome drink. Meet the captain, crew in the cruise briefing.
  – Check into your cabin. Time to refresh and unwind
  – Set sail as lunch is served
  – Join us for a typical local lunch in the dining room or at the outdoor dining area.
  Afternoon
  -Arrive at Surprising Cave (Hang Sửng Sốt), explore the cave and find out how the cave was named aSurprising.
  -Heading to Titop island area. Drop anchor in the calm water surrounded by beautiful islets. Visit Titop island for swimming and snorkeling or do the short trek to the top of island to have the overview of Halong bay from here
  -Heading back toward the sleeping area
  Early evening
  -Summit on the sundeck watching the sunset, enjoy Sunset party. It’s ideal time to make acquaintance with new friends, sharing your traveling experience or simply watching the sunset
  -An authentic Vietnamese menu is served
  -After dinner, reward yourself with a large selection of cocktails at our bar, or take for you one of our onboard activities: book reading, games, movies, and squid fishing…

• Day 3 Ha Long - Ha Noi (Meal: B, L)

  (Tai Chi – Breakfast – Luon Cave – Cooking Demonstration – Lunch – Farewell at your hotel)
  06:30
  For the early risers join us for a Tai Chi session on the sundeck. Tai chi helps focus the mind and condition the body, joining Tai Chi session to full charge your energy for the day.
  07:00 – 08:00
  Local breakfast is served
  08:00
  – Mingling yourself in the stunning views of the Bay and it’s dramatic limestone islets as we sail through the calm emerald waters heading to Luon Cave (Hang Luồn)
  – Take your option either exploring the cave yourself on kayak or comfortably on bamboo boat rowed by the locals.
  09:00
  Check out the cabins, at your leisure while our cruise taking you pass by other beautiful highlights in the bay.
  10:00
  You will join with our short class of Cooking demonstration, how to make spring rolls before an early lunch is served.
  12:00
  Return to the shore and disembark from the cruise as our crew say farewell.
  Transfer to minibus or private and return to Hanoi.
  Arrival back at your hotel approximately
  16:30 – 17:00.
  Stay overnight in Ha Noi.

• Day 4 Limousine from Hanoi - Sapa then take a short trek to Cat Cat Village (Meal: B, L, D)

  06:30: Pick up from the hotel, get on Limousine and depart for Sapa

  13.00: Arrive Sapa Town with colorful traditional costumes of H’mong, Dzao, Tay ethnic People.
  The Limousine will be drop you off at the hotel
  • Welcome drink and itinerary briefing
  • Enjoy the lunch with local Vietnamese dishes, check-in procedures
  14.30: A short trek to the gate of Cat Cat village which is home of Black H’mong ethnic people and is located near the bottom of a deep valley at the foot of Fansipan Peak. Our local guide will show you the daily life activities of the locals, trek down to the valley bottom to the waterfall where the French built a Hydraulic Power Station; stop for photo with bridge and waterfall then you will walk uphill for bus to pick up to get back to Sapa in the afternoon.
  Trekking distance is about 3.5 kms and it lasts for 2 hours
  17.00: Come back to Sapa Town.
  Have dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, Overnight in a hotel in Sapa Town centre.

• Day 5 Sapa Trekking - Then Limousine back to Hanoi (Meal: B, L)

  7.00 – 7.45: Have breakfast at hotel and prepare light pack for trekking
  7:45 : Trek from Sapa to Y Linh Ho then trek through the rice terraces and along Muong Hoa Stream to the Black Hmong village of Lao Chai to see the spectacular landscape of Hoang Lien Son Mountain.
  11.00: Picnic lunch at Lao Chai Village
  12:00:Heading to Ta Van village – home of Dzay ethnic people.
  13.30: Bus picks you up at Ta Van Bridge to Sapa.
  Trekking distance is about 12 kms and it lasts for 4.5 hours
  14.00: Have a shower at shower room of our hotel.
  15:00: Limousine will be pick you up at the hotel to back to Hanoi.
  Overnight in Hanoi.

• Day 6 Hanoi – Danang By Train (Meal: B)

  After breakfast at hotel, you have relax time and discover an old quarter in Ha Noi. Check out hotel at 12:00pm, continue have free time until afternoon for transfer to train station. Train start at 19:30 to Danang. Overnight on train with soft sleeper train (4 berth/cabin).

• Day 7 Hoi An Ancient Town (No Meals)

  11:25am Arrive to Da Nang train station, private car transfer to Hoi An town for half an hour. After check in Hoi An hotel, free to visit ancient town, Japanese bridge, lantern road, Thu Bon river, use the offer bicycle to the beach…Overnight in Hoi An.

• Day 8 My Son Luxury Tour (Meal: B, L)

  8.00 – 8.30: our guide pick you up at your hotel and depart to My Son holy land – the world cultural heritage.

  10.00: Arrive at My Son and we’ll have 2 hours to discover the site by walking throughout the landscape, learning histories with our local English speaking guide, enjoying the Champa’s traditional performances.

  11.30: Get back to mini van and move to a local house to learn how to make rice paper, you will enjoy your own hand-making product later on!

  12.00: Back to  the van and have lunch at another local house. relax with cold herbal tea,  nice foods and fresh air.

  13.30:  take a boat trip to Hoi An with nice and cool breeze on boarding, beautiful river scenery on the biggest river in the Central of Vietnam named as Thu Bon River.

  14.30: arrive at Hoi An, we will drop you at your hotel. Tour ends!

  Overnight in Hoi An.

• Day 9 Hoi An Cooking Class (Meal: B, L)

  We start the day (8.15am) with a welcome drink at Hai Café (98 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Hoi An Ancient Town, Tel: 3863210) – our meeting point. Visit Hoi An’s colourful 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. Bring your swimsuit and after the cooking tour has finished relax and enjoy free use of our 20 metre swimming pool – towels and showers provided. Overnight in Hoi An.

• Day 10 Danang - Sai Gon By Plane (Meal: B)

  After breakfast at your hotel and you are free till airport transfer. Today, you will have a flight to Ho Chi Minh city and stay overnight at the most touristic area of Ho Chi Minh City.
  Overnight in Saigon.

• Day 11 1 Day Mekong Delta (Meal: B, L)

  7h30 AM Our tour guide will welcome you at our office at 123 Ly Tu Trong, District 1, or at your hotel in District 1 before heading to My Tho city by bus. Enjoy the scenery and green rice paddies during the one and a half hour bus ride. Along the way, we will visit Vinh Trang pagoda, the biggest pagoda in the Mekong delta. Continue to My Tho, where we 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, escaping the hustle and bustle of the town. We disembark at a coconut island in Ben Tre and enjoy a walk around the village. Stop at a local family home to enjoy tropical fruit, taste the honey tea and honey wine and listen to Vietnamese traditional music performed by the villagers. Check out the coconut candy shop and learn how to make candy, and see handicrafts made from the coconuts.
  Take your time snapping photos and enjoy the natural scenery before we head to the local restaurant. Lunch is set with special Vietnamese food. Enjoy your lunch outside under the shade of the trees. After lunch, enjoy your time relaxing, walking around the village, or perhaps going for a short bike ride. Travel back to Saigon and arrive around 5.00 pm for the end of the tour.
  Overnight in Saigon.

• Day 12 Cu Chi Tunnels Half Day (Meal: B)

  08:30 Our tour guide and driver will pick you up at your hotel and then start drive to Cu Chi which located 60km from HCM city, Cu Chi is now considered a heroic district for its role in the anti-American war in Vietnam. It is legendary for Original tunnels system of over 220km and is a popular spot for both Vietnamese and foreign visitors.
  The peacefully rural rice paddy scenery contains ducks and water buffalos swimming in the rivers alongside the road. Visitors will find it hard to imagine the destructions, damage and defoliation all over the area, caused by bombing and mines, When Cu Chi was” A Free Target Zone “. The remnants visitors will see show Cu Chi still has her evidence to prove the fierce battleground that took place there and visitors will see the remnants.
  12:00 Have lunch in a local restaurant
  13:00 Back to Ho Chi Minh City
  14:00 Arrive in your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City.

• Day 13 Half Day Cyclo (Meal: B)

  8.00am or 2.00pm Explore Ho Chi Minh City’s historic Chinatown, named Cho Lon, by the local transport. Feel the hustle and bustle of street vendors selling a mixture of herbs for traditional medicine. Snake your way down tiny alleys on the agile vehicles, passing many small, family-run businesses. Come in the 250-year-old Lady Thien Hau Temple (God of the Sea). Then you have time for shopping at Binh Tay Market. Enjoy Vietnamses local food at our restaurant.
  12:00 or 18:00 go back your hotel.

• Day 14 Ho Chi Minh City Departure / See You Again (Meal: B)

  After having breakfast at hotel, you have relaxing time in Ho Chi Minh city until transfer to the airport for the flight back home. See you again!