Vietnam Tour 21 days 

Hanoi - Ha Long - Cat Ba - Sapa - Hue - Danang - My Son - Hoi An - Nha Trang - Ho Chi Minh City - Tay Ninh - Cu Chi - Vinh Long - Can Tho

Code: B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner, G = Guide  

Day 1: Arrival at Hanoi (D, G)

Arriving at Noi Bai airport in Hanoi, you'll be met and driven to your hotel.

17.15: You'll be picked up to watch the Water Puppet show an art form unique to northern Vietnam, and a good, light-hearted introduction to its rural culture.

18.30: Your Welcome Dinner will be served at one of the best local restaurant.

You'll spend the night in Hanoi.

Day 2: Hanoi city tour (B, L, G)

9.00: Pick up at your hotel for your Hanoi city tour.

9.30 - 10.30: Visit Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum, his simple stilt  house where he lived

10.30 - 11.00: You'll visit the Tran Quoc pagoda, the oldest pagoda located on West Lake

11.00 - 12.00: Visit Temple of Literature - the first university in Vietnam

12.00 - 13.15: Lunch at local restaurant

13.15 - 15.30: Visit the Ethnology Museum for an overview of Vietnam's 54 distinct ethnic

15.30 - 16.15: Visit Ngoc Son Temple and Hoan Kiem Lake, the heart of city.

16.15 - 17.15: You'll have around 1 hour to walk around the Old Quarter. You'll drive back to your hotel. You'll spend the night in Hanoi.

Day 3: Exploring villages around Hanoi (B, L, G)

8.30: Drive and guide will pick you at your hotel to Van Phuc silk village

9.30 - 10.30: You値l arrive in Van Phuc village, a small village where families have specialised in weaving and dying silk over centuries.

10.30 - 12.00: Drive to Bat Trang - a village famous for its fine ceramics. You can stroll through the narrow streets to watch the manufacturing process and meet the craftspeople.

12.00 - 13.00: You'll have lunch box in the village.

13.00 - 14.30: You'll then be picked up to drive to visit the Dong Ho handicraft village, famous for its traditional wood-paintings.  

14.30 - 17.00: You値l visit the But Thap pagoda and one of a typical local agriculture village near by. You'll then be driven to visit Dong Ky village where most of the local families produce furniture inlaid with mother of pearl.

You'll return to Hanoi to spend the night.

Day 4: Hanoi/Ha Long/Cat Ba (B, L, G)

7.30: You'll leave for Ha Long Bay, one of the most spectacular UNESCO World Heritage Areas and the world's largest marine limestone karst landscape.

9.30: You'll take a short break at Hong Ngoc Embroidery workshop.

10.00 - 11.30: You'll continue driving to Ha Long Bay.

11.30: You'll board your boat, a wooden junk built from the model of the old Vietnamese court vessels. It will take you first to the World Heritage area where you'll visit Amazing Cave. You'll have time for swimming on the emerald water in Ha Long Bay.Your lunch will be provided on board, usually based on fresh seafood.

17.00: On arrival to Cat Ba Island, you'll picked up by bus to your hotel. You'll spend the night in Cat Ba.

If you don't like seafood during this trip, please let us know what you like so we can arrange for you.

Day 5: Cat Ba/Hanoi/Lao Cai (B, G)

8.00 - 8.30: Breakfast at your hotel, you'll then be free to relax at Cat Co Beach.

15.00 - 16.00: You'll take a short walk to the other harbour where you'll take a hydrofoil to Hai Phong

16.00 - 18.00: Arrive in Hai Phong, you'll take a vehicles back to Hanoi for a free dinner.

21.00: You値l be taken to the railway station for the overnight train at 10.pm to Lao Cai

You'll spend the night on the train.

Day 6: Lao Cai/Sapa (B, L, G)

5.15 - 6.30: You'll be met by your tour guide at Lao Cai Station and have a breakfast at the local restaurant.

6.30 - 11.30: You'll be picked up to visit a market frequented by ethnic minority peoples. You'll enjoy the customs of the minorities people. You'll have time for shopping in the market.

11.30 - 12.30: You'll have picnic lunch at local restaurant.

12.30 - 15.30: Drive to Sapa, a scenic mountain area with high peaks, rivers, valleys and hillside terracing. The villages are traditional and are typically tucked away at the bottom of the hill slopes. Most of the villagers wear traditional costumes. Rest of the day will be free to explore Sapa town by yourself. You'll spend the night in Sapa.

Day 7: Sapa/Lao Cai (B, L, G)

8.00 - 8.30: Breakfast at your hotel

8.30 - 11.30: You'll hike down a scenic valley calling in at the H知ong ethnic minority villages on the way. You'll then be driven by Jeep to visit Lao Chai village - the village of Black H'mong people.

11.30 - 12.30: You'll have picnic lunch.

12.30 - 14.30: You'll take a Russian Jeep to visit Ta Van village - the village of Day people and then visit Giang Ta Chai village - a village of Red Dzao people.

14.30 - 15.00: You'll return to Sapa to refresh at a local standard hotel.

16.00 - 17.00: Escorted to Lao Cai station. You'll have dinner by yourselves. You'll then take an overnight sleeper train at 21.15 back to Hanoi. Your accommodation will be on the train.

Day 8: Hanoi free (B)

5.30: You'll arrive in the station and be escorted to your hotel. The rest day will be free.

You'll spend the night in Hanoi

Day 9: Hanoi/Hue (B, G)

Your time will be your own until you'll escorted to Noi Bai airport for your flight to Hue. On arrival, you'll check in your hotel in the city centre and have a Hue city tour in the afternoon.

14.30 - 16.30: You'll be picked up to visit Imperial Citadel, once the seat of the Emperors of the powerful Nguyen Dynasty that ruled Vietnam from 1802 to 1945.

16.30 - 17.30: You'll visit the bustling Dong Ba market, which is one of the most famous markets in the Centre areas.

You'll spend the night in Hue.

Day 10: Hue (B, L, G)

7.30 - 8.30: Breakfast at your hotel

8.30 - 10.00: You'll be taken by car to visit Thien Mu Pagoda, a tranquil pagoda in the banks of the Perfume River.

10.00 - 12.00: Take a cruise along the Perfume River to the Royal Tombs of Minh Mang, the most majestic emperor with many wives and more than 100 children.

12.00 - 13.30: Drive back to Hue for lunch at a typical Vietnamese restaurant.

13.30 - 16.45: In the afternoon, you'll drive to visit Royal Tu Duc tomb, the "poet Emperor". You'll then be picked up to visit the Royal Khai Dinh tomb is an unprepossessing concrete construction on the side of a wide valley.

16.45 - 17.30: The last famous site in your programme will be Tu Hieu pagoda, which is one of the most famous pagodas in Hue. In the evening, you'll have dinner at one of a typical famous garden house.

You'll spend the night in Hue.

Day 11: Hue/Danang/Hoi An (B, L, G)

7.30 - 8.30: Breakfast at your hotel, you'll then be picked up to travel to Hoi An.

8.30 - 12.00: You'll drive to Lang Co Beach and the lagoon far below. You'll then cross the high mountain pass of Hai Van with excellent view to see Danang spread out.

12.00 - 14.00: You'll have lunch at local restaurant and have a brief to visit Cham Museum, a remarkable Hindu statuary.

14.00 - 15.45: Driver and guide will take you to visit Marble Mountain, Stone Carving village where you can admire the stone products of local people.

15.45 - 17.30: You'll continue driving to Hoi An and have a free time to wonder around  Hoi An Town, and enjoy its considerable significance in the history of Vietnamtown.

You'll spend the night in Hoi An.

Day 12: Hoi An/My Son/Hoi An (B, G)

8.00 - 8.30: Breakfast at your hotel

8.30 - 11.15: Drive to visit the World Heritage My Son Sanctuary, the guide will show you the remains of the remarkable brick towers, and explain their origins and purpose.

11.15 - 12.00: You'll return to Hoi An. Rest of day will be free perhaps to stroll around the Old Quarter of relax on the beach. You'll spend the night in Hoi An.

Day 13: Hoi An/Nha Trang (B)

Your time will be your own until you'll escorted to Danang airport for your flight to Nha Trang. On arrival, you'll driven to your hotel to check in at the hotel overlooking the bay. The rest day will be free on the beach.

You'll spend the night in Nha Trang

Day 14: Nha Trang boat tour (B, L, G)

You'll have a breakfast at your hotel before your vehicles comes to pick to you to the harbour for your Nha Trang boat tour.

9.00 - 11.30: You'll take a cruise to Mun Island where  you'll anchor off  for swimming and snorkeling, relax on the beach and enjoy the beauty of the corals in the sea.

11.30 - 14.00: You値l cruise to Mot Island for lunch on the boat, you'll then have an entertainment such as dancing and singing together with other passengers on the boat. A floating mini bar will served some of Vietnamese wine with fruit.

14.00 - 16.15: You'll continue cruising to Tam Island for swimming or relaxing on the beach. You'll have a fruit party on the boat on the way to Mieu Island. You'll be rowed in a circular bamboo-basket boat to visit a fishing village on Mieu Island.

16.15 - 16.30: You'll return to Nha Trang to spend the night.

Day 15: Nha Trang city tour (B, G)

After breakfast at your hotel, your car and driver will take you to the Nha Trang city tour.

8.30 - 9.30: You'll be driven to visit Long Son Pagoda and hike up on steps to the mountain where you'll have good view to sea Nha Trang city. You'll also visit the one of the biggest Buddhist statues in Vietnam on the top of the mountain.

9.30 - 12.10: You'll travel to visit to the impressive Ponaga Cham tower. You'll then be taken to the hot spring spa for your relaxing in the mud baths and mineral water pools.

In the afternoon, you値l be free to stroll around Nha Trang's beach. You'll spend the night in Nha Trang.

Day 16: Nha Trang/Ho Chi Minh City (B, G)

You'll be free and then be picked up to Nha Trang airport for your flight to Ho Chi Minh City. On your arrival at the Tan Son Nhat airport, you'll be driven to your hotel. You値l spend the night in Ho Chi Minh City.

Day 17: Ho Chi Minh City tour (B, L, G)

8.30: Your car and driver will come to take you for your Ho Chi Minh City tour

8.30 - 10.30: You'll be driven to visit History Museum, an exhibition of the 5th century Oc Eo civilisation.

10.30 - 12.00: You'll visit the Museum of War Remnants provides a very partial, but riveting, perspective of the American War

12.00 - 13.15: Lunch will be served at the local restaurant

13.15 - 14.00: You'll visit Centre Post Office with colonial building and the Cathedral Church.

14.00 - 14.45: Drive to visit the Jade Emperor Temple. It's one of the best Taoist temples in Vietnam

14.45 - 17.00: You'll have approximately two hour to visit the Ben Thanh market, one of the liveliest areas of Ho Chi Minh City and a visit to lacquer workshop.

You'll spend the night in Ho Chi Minh City.

Day 18: Ho Chi Minh City/Tay Ninh/Cu Chi (B, L, G)

8.30 - 12.00: You'll be picked up to Tay Ninh to visit the Cao Dai Holy See in time to watch the mid-day ceremony.

12.00 - 13.30: You'll be driven to local restaurant to have lunch.

13.30 - 14.30: You'll visit the Cu Chi tunnels, a byzantine maze of underground passages, chambers, rooms and booby traps used by both the Vietminh and the Viet Cong to suddenly materialise as if from nowhere, launch a lightning ambush, and vanish equally rapidly.

14.30 - 15.45: You'll drive back to Ho Chi Minh City to spend the night.

Day 19: Ho Chi Minh City/Vinh Long/Can Tho (B, L, G)

8.30 - 10.30: Drive to Vinh Long, a city famous by the Mekong River and floating market

10.30 - 15.30: You'll cruise to visit Cai Be floating market, fruit orchards, some traditional cottage industries. You'll have a lunch at one of the local family and have a shot show of traditional music in Mekong Delta which is operated by the local people.

15.30 - 16.00: You'll have time to wonder around the fruit market to buy some kind of famous tropical fruit such as banana, pomelo, dragon fruit and so on.

16.00 - 17.30: You'll be driven further into the Mekong Delta to Can Tho where you'll spend the night.

Day 20: Can Tho/Ho Chi Minh City (B, L, G)

8.00 - 10.45: You'll have breakfast at your hotel and then be picked up to Ninh Kieu Harbour. You'll then take about two hour boat trip to cruise along the Mekong River to Cai Rang and Phong Dien floating markets. You can enjoy the Mekong rural lifestyle.

10.45 - 13.15: You'll travel back to Vinh Long to have  lunch at local restaurant.

13.15 - 15.15: You'll return to Ho Chi Minh City for overnight accommodation.

Day 21: Ho Chi Minh City departure (B, G)

You'll be free until you'll be picked up to the airport for your international departure flight.

Prices per person in US$: 

Valid until December 31, 2007

Surcharge for peak season of hotels are not inclusive in the prices above.

Prices include:

• Breakfast and accommodation in twin or double room.

• One-way domestic flight tickets: Hanoi - Hue, Danang - Nha Trang, Nha Trang - Ho Chi Minh City including domestic flight airport taxes.

• Return train tickets: Hanoi - Lao Cai - Hanoi, air-condition soft four berth cabin.

• Boats cruise as programme, sharing a luxury cruise on traditional junk in Ha Long Bay.

• Hydrofoil ticket: Cat Ba - Hai Phong

• Travel by private, air-conditioned vehicle with an experienced, safe driver.

• Experienced English-speaking tour guide as indicated in the itinerary.

• Entry fees for all sightseeing as mentioned in the programme.

• Lunches and dinners, as specified, in the local restaurants and on the boat in Ha Long Bay.

• Government Taxes.

Price do not include:

• International flight tickets and airport tax.

• Visas.

• Dinners except as specified above.

• Drinks, gratuities and personal expenses.

• Insurance.

Hotel list for First Class standard

• Hanoi: Sofitel Metropole Hotel (***** colonial building, city centre) or similar

• Cat Ba: Holiday View (*** 5 minutes walk to the beach, overlooking the Lan Ha Bay, Family Suite) or similar

• Sapa: Victoria Hotel (**** the best hotel in Sapa with separate building)

• Hue: Saigon Morin Hotel (**** luxury colonial hotel, overlooking the perfume river, Deluxe room) or similar

• Hoi An: Victoria Hotel (**** the best modern resort hotel on China Beach with swimming pool, Deluxe Sea View room) or similar

• Nha Trang: Vinpearl Resort (***** ten minutes by speed boat, on the island, Deluxe Sea View) or similar

• Ho Chi Minh City: Carravelle Hotel (***** luxury colonial hotel in the city centre) or similar

• Can Tho: Victoria Hotel (**** overlooking the Mekong River) or similar

Hotel list for Deluxe standard

• Hanoi: Sofitel Plaza Hotel (***** overlooking the West Lake) or similar

• Cat Ba: Holiday View (*** 5 minutes walk to the beach, overlooking the Lan Ha Bay, Suite) or similar

• Sapa: Victoria Hotel (**** the best hotel in Sapa with separate building)

• Hue: Saigon Morin Hotel (**** luxury colonial hotel, overlooking the perfume river, Deluxe) or similar

• Hoi An: Victoria Hotel (**** the best modern resort hotel on China Beach with swimming pool) or similar

• Nha Trang: Sunrise Beach Hotel (***** luxury hotel overlooking the bay) or similar

• Ho Chi Minh City: Majestic Hotel (**** colonial building, overlooking the Saigon River, Deluxe) or similar

• Can Tho: Victoria Hotel (**** overlooking the Mekong River)

Hotel list for Superior standard

• Hanoi: Sunway Hotel (**** city centre) or similar

• Cat Ba: Holiday View (*** 5 minutes walk to the beach, overlooking the Lan Ha Bay) or similar

• Sapa: Victoria Hotel (**** the best hotel in Sapa with separate building, Superior)

• Hue: Huong Giang Hotel (**** overlooking the Perfume River, Superior Riverview) or similar

• Hoi An: Dong An Beach Hotel and Resort (**** on the China Beach, Superior) or similar

• Nha Trang: Yasaka Hotel (**** overlooking the Nha Trang Bay) or similar

• Ho Chi Minh City: Grand Hotel (**** colonial building in the city centre) or similar

• Can Tho: Golf Hotel (**** city centre)  or similar

Hotel list for Mid-range standard

• Hanoi: Army Hotel (***city centre with swimming pool) or similar

• Cat Ba: Holiday View (*** 5 minutes walk to the beach, overlooking the Lan Ha Bay) or similar

• Sapa: Hoa Sua Hotel (local standard) or similar

• Hue: Heritage Hotel (*** newly opened in the city centre) or similar

• Hoi An: Lotus Hotel (*** with swimming pool, 2km from town centre) or similar

• Nha Trang: Green Hotel (*** new high rise building) or similar

• Ho Chi Minh City: Empress Hotel (*** city centre) or similar

• Can Tho: Saigon Can Tho Hotel (*** overlooking the Mekong River) or similar

Hotel list for Budget standard 

• Hanoi: Nam Hai Hotel (** in the Old Quarter) or similar

• Cat Ba: Princes Hotel (** local standard) or similar

• Sapa: Hoa Sua Hotel (local standard) or similar

• Hue: Green Bamboo Hotel (** local standard in the city centre) or similar

• Hoi An: Pho Hoi Riverside Resort (*** near the Old Quarter) or similar

• Nha Trang: Vien Dong Hotel (** local standard) or similar

• Ho Chi Minh City: Chancery Hotel (*** city centre) or similar

• Can Tho: Ninh Kieu Hotel (** local standard) or similar