Day 1: Arrival in Ho Chi Minh city.
Arrival in Tan Son Nhat airport (in Ho Chi Minh city). We welcome you at the airport and transfer you to your hotel. After checking into the hotel, at your leisure for personal explorations around the city.
Ovenight at hotel in a Ho Chi Minh city.
Day 2: Ho Chi Minh City tour (B,L)
We will pick you up at your hotel and drive to visit to the Re-Unification Palace, the former palace of President Thieu and his predecessors. Today this building is a museum and venue for Government official receptions. Inside you can visit the President’s room. Nearby is the Central Post Office and the Notre Dame Cathedral, built between 1877- 1883 and two of the city’s major landmarks. Neo-Romanesque in form, the Cathedral is the major seat of the Catholic religion in modern Vietnam. Continue to visit the War Remains Museum, where you can learn a lot about the Vietnam War.
After lunch in local restaurant, you head for Cu Chi and visit the Cu Chi Tunnels. The tunnel network of Cu Chi became legendary during the 1960s for its role in facilitating VC control of a large rural area only 30 to 40km from Ho Chi Minh City.
Overnight at a hotel in Ho Chi Minh city.
Day 3: Ben Tre – My Tho (B,L)
Enjoy the scenic journey along the National Highway bordered by green rice fields.
On arrived at My Tho, visit Vinh Trang pagoda, take a leisurely boat ride along the river, view the stilt houses, fruit plantations and fishing villages along the river banks. Proceed to Tortoise Islet, have lunch in an orchard garden. Then a boat ride to An Khanh – a less touristy attraction in Ben Tre, enjoy cruising on a hand-rowed sampan under the shadow of the water coconut trees along natural canals. Have a short cycling trip (applied for private tour/if time permitted) then enjoy seasonal fruit & honey tea to the sound of “Southern Vietnamese folk music”, performed by locals.
Visit a family business which epitomizes the idyllic rural lifestyle, taste the delicious coconut candy & observe the pastoral life as you roam through the fruit plantation and village. Meet the vehicle and return to HCMC. This trip provides a fascinating insight into daily life in the Mekong Delta and you are guaranteed to take home your own private collection of beautiful memories.
Flight to Hue. Overnight at a hotel in Hue.
Day 4: Hue city tour full day (B,L)
After breakfast, at 07.45, our guide and driver pick up you at your hotel and then take a full day to discover Hue: visit Emperor Minh Mang’s Mausoleum, Emperor Khai Dinh’s Mausoleum, Performing Programs of VO KINH VAN AN – Vietnam Traditional Kungfu and Emperor Tu Duc ’s Mausoleums. Stop on the way to see how conical hats and incense sticks are made. Enjoy a buffet lunch at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, visit the Imperial capital during the Nguyen Dynasty’s rule and then the seven – storey Thien Mu Pagoda on the riverbank. Return by boat on the gentle Perfume River and do not miss the sunset on the river.
At 17.30, return to your hotel to pick up your luggage, then transfer to Hoi An. Overnight at resort in Hoi An.
Day 5: Visit My Son Sanctuary and Hoi An city tour (B,L)
Morning: at 8.00, our guide picks you up at the hotel and you leave Hoi An for My Son Holy Land – the ruins of Cham peoples that was an Imperial city during the Cham dynasty. Here you have the chance to explore and understand the technique of the Cham people in making red bricks, to build a tower which still today is a secret to everyone, you can see a large complex of religious relics that comprises of more than 65 architectural works. It also surprises those who are curious of architectural art. In 1999, UNESCO labeled the Cham architecture in My Son as a World Cultural Heritage Site. Moreover, you have chance to enjoy traditional music performed by Cham girls in their colorful uniforms.
Afternoon: We will discover the city of Hoi An by foot. The historic town which used to be a prosperous seaport city from the 16th to 18th centuries is now a beautiful city that can’t be missed while touring the South East Asian region. While walking through the city, we will visit Hoi An’s Colorful Local Market, Tan Ky Old House, Fu Jian Assembly Hall, and the 400-year-old Japanese Covered Bridge. Travelers can also see locals who raise silkworms and produce silk for Hoi An’s burgeoning textile industry.
Stay overnight at resort in Hoi An.
Day 6: Free time in Hoi An for shopping and relaxing (B)
Pick you up at your hotel then transfer to Da Nang airport for the flight to Hanoi.
At your leisure time in Hanoi, and stay overnight at a hotel in Hanoi.
Day 7: Hanoi city tour (B,L)
After having breakfast the tour guide and vehicle will arrive to pick up you to start your Hanoi city tour at 8.30am. You will begin the tour by visiting the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Ho Chi Minh Museum. Enjoy the architectural and historical aspects of Uncle Ho’s final resting-palace. Just next door is Ho Chi Minh’s house on stilts where he used to live in the past. Lying to one side of the Mausoleum is the One Pillar Pagoda, built by King Ly Thai To in 1049 and the structure has become an important symbol for the people of Hanoi. Continue on to visit the Temple of Literature (Quoc Tu Giam) – Vietnam’s first University constructed in 1070. Its gardens and well-preserved architecture offer a relaxing glimpse into Vietnam’s past.
Have lunch at local restaurants. Proceed to visit the Ethnology Museum, one of the finest museums in the country. Then we will take you to Hoan Kiem Lake, see the peaceful water, and visit Ngoc Son Temple before taking an hour cyclo tour around the bustling old quarter to see the ancient buildings and ordinary life in Hanoi.
(Read more about these attractions)
Back to your hotel at 18.00. Stay overnight at hotel in Hanoi.
Day 8: Hanoi – Halong bay (B,L,D)
Morning: At 08.00, our guide will pick you up at your hotel and leave Hanoi for Halong City. Arrive in Halong City at 12.00 and embark on a luxury cruise, aboard a well appointed traditional junk. Enjoy a welcome drink, get a brief introduction about your cruise and safety guidelines. Check-in your cabin. Then have lunch while cruising in the magnificent Halong Bay, admiring the fascinating rock formations in the bay that rise from the emerald waters.
After lunch on the boat, board a smaller boat to visit Van Gia fishing village. Take the rowing boat through the village. Continue our explorations to the only pearl farm in north Vietnam to understand pearl farming and what makes a good pearl. Or instead of the pearl farm visit, you can enjoy swimming in the emerald clear waters of Halong Bay.
Sunset: Happy hours with free finger food and various drinks on discounts. Playing mini golf on the top deck or taking part in a cooking demonstration and food décor with our Chef.
In the evening, Dinner is served on board the junk, and after dinner, join squid fishing with the crew members, sing karaoke or just laze around or relax in your cabin. Overnight on boat.
Day 9: Halong bay – Hanoi (B,L)
Early morning risers can take part in a Tai Chi lesson on the sundeck. Then enjoy the morning view of the bay’s landscape with a cup of tea or coffee and have breakfast.
After breakfast, free time to: Join a guided visit to Sung Sot Cave (also called Surprising Cave); OR: Visit Titop Island, swim and photo hunt; OR: Do some kayaking and explore hidden parts of the bay.
Then get back to the boat at 9.00 and check out your cabin. Continue exploring Halong Bay’s 2000 islets including the Cock-fighting and Human Head Islet while cruising back to the harbor, while taking lunch onboard.
Disembark, and return to Hanoi, arriving at 17.00. Overnight at a hotel in Hanoi.
Day 10: Free time – Departure flight (B)
At your leisure until we transfer your to Noi Bai airport for your onward flight.
Vietnam was the last country on our travels to Indochina and we wanted a little opulence so booked this tour with HTS. We were not disappointed in the least, except our time spent here was not long enough. We landed in Ho Chi Minh City, were met and transferred to our lovely hotel and the following morning had a tour of the sites in and around the city. We then went to the Mekong Delta before our discovery of historical Hue and central Vietnam, including My Son and Hoi An. Hanoi was next and our holiday was complete with a cruise on Halong Bay. A great time was had by my wife and I, but longer in Vietnam would have been the icing on the cake, now we have had a taste of the people and places we will definitely return. All accommodation, food etc was divine.