Begin the journey by unravelling Vietnamese culture, history, and religion in the capital of Vietnam with Hanoi’s highlights:

• Ho Chi Minh complex which includes the mausoleum for the nation’s hero-Ho Chi Minh, his modest former residence, the Presidential Palace, and the One Pillar Pagoda
• The Temple of Literature, a fine example of traditional Vietnamese architecture founded in 1070 by Emperor Ly Thanh Tong, and dedicated to Confucius to honor literary scholars. Vietnam’s first university was also established here in 1076
• The museum of your choice either the National Fine Arts Museum, the Ethnology Museum, or the Vietnamese Women Museum
• A ride of exploration through the lively ‘Old Quarter’ (over 1000 years old) by traditional cyclo

Experience an overnight trip to Sapa on a night train that is equipped with private sleeper beds in clean, air-conditioned shared cabins of up to four people.

Highlight experience: Grab a coffee at the Old Quarter

You will arrive early in the morning at Lao Cai Train Station where your guide will welcome and transfer you to a hotel to rest and have breakfast before starting a new day of discovery:

• Hike within the village of Y Linh Ho in Muong Hoa valley among the terraced rice fields
• Trek to the village of the H’mong minority, Lao Chai
• Walk two km to Ta Van village, inhabited by the Giay ethnic tribe
• Continue through trails, forests, and gardens to the Black H’mong ethnic group’s village: Ma Tra

Highlight experience: Admire the wonderful landscapes of the rice terraces and meet the locals

Transfer to Bac Ha where the relief from tourists is apparent.

• Tour to the H’mong Kings House that was built by the French in 1920
• Arrive at Ban Pho village and meet with the colourful Tay and H’mong members

Continue to engage with local people by familiarizing yourself to your homestay.

Highlight experience: Meet the locals and discover their way of life

Held only on Sundays, the colourful and vibrant Bac Ha Market awaits your presence:

• Meet many ethnicities: Flower H’mong, Black Dzao, Tay, Dzay, Ha Nhi and Nung
• After a day of discovery and meetings, relax on the bus ride back to Hanoi.

Highlight experience: Meet the ethnicities and discover their way of life

From Hanoi, travel to the Trang An – a UNESCO World Heritage site of both cultural and natural significance.

• Visit Hoa Lu, the site of the country’s first capital, which covered almost three sq km.
• Board a sampan and navigate Trang An River where limestone towers rise above rice fields.
• Bike towards Bich Dong Pagoda where you may access the pagoda by climbing the stairs carved into rock walls.
• If timing allows, continue biking through the countryside to the Thai Vi temple in Tam Coc.
• Acquaint yourself with your homestay host and settle yourself into their daily routine.

Highlight experience: Get on board a sampan and navigate Trang An river to admire the fascinating landscape

Transfer to go sail the spectacular UNESCO World Heritage site seascape: Halong Bay. Your cruise will navigate to Bai Tu Long Bay, a well-selected route beyond the main tourist circuit. Get ready to experience the bay’s treasures.

• Admire the fascinating formations of the bay.
• Adventure within the fantastically formed Thien Canh Son cave.
• Retreat to the white-sand beach of Hon Co Island and participate in activities such as kayaking or swimming.
• Relish the taste of skillfully prepared local seafood.
• Settle into your cabin while the boat anchors for a night’s rest.

Highlight experience: Admire the fascinating landcape of the bay

Delight in breakfast with an astonishingly enchanting view under the morning sun.

• Visit the Vung Vieng fishing and pearl farm via a rustic row-boat.
• Dive into the refreshing waters of the bay.
• Indulge in lunch and appreciate the fresh ingredients used to craft the dish.
• Return to the port in the early afternoon to travel back to Hanoi.
• Settle into an evening flight from Hanoi to Hoi An. Arrive and be welcomed by our guide and be transferred to your arranged accommodation.

Highlight experience: Get into a rustic row-boat and visit Vung Vieng village

You will arrive early in the morning at Dong Hoi Train Station where your guide will welcome and transfer you to a hotel to rest and have breakfast before starting a new day of discovery:

• Discover Phong Nha by car through Phong Nha national park, visit animal rescue centre, botanical garden.
• Visit Phong Nha cave, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park in Quang Binh. This cave is voted as one of the most wonderful caves in the world for a number of reasons: for its longest underground river, the most beautiful and widest dry cave, most beautiful sandbank and reef, as well as for its most spectacular stalactites, stalagmites and longest water grottos. It is well worth a visit, especially for the journey up the river and into the cave in a traditional Dragon Boat. Suitable for any fitness level.
• Paradise cave (Thien Duong cave) has been considered as the largest dry cave in the world. The interior feels as lofty, heavenly and humbling as a grand cathedral. With vaulted ceilings rich in stalactites, it’s an exceptionally pretty cave.

Highlight experience: Be dazzled by the idyllic Phong Nha cave

Our guide will brief and review the rules on village roads when you prepare biking suite, bag for one more adventure day.

You will be picked up at your hotel in Phong Nha to the starting point for briefing and to review the rules on village roads.

Begin your cycling journey:

• Cycling along Son River to reach to Bong Lai village with the opportunity to join in local farming activities in the rice paddies or peanut fields or learning how Vietnamese style popcorn is made.
• Stop at Gia Hung village, where there is a local rice wine shop which is known as the best in the area. Learn how to make rice wine – you are invited to taste some but remember that we will keep cycling after that!
• Leaving the village, you will take a local ferry to reach to the other bank of Son River. From here, we will be cycling on unpaved roads paths.
• After some uphill, descend into Bong Lai valley where you will be visiting to a local farm runs by a VC Veteran couple. Learn how they do farming and enjoy the seasonal fruits in their farm.
• Later on, cross the Rao Con River to get to a recently famous attraction of Phong Nha – the Pub with cold beer – which is featured on Huffington Post. Take your cold beer or soft drink and enjoy the view from the hill in the fresh air.
• Lunch with roasted chicken and vegetable and peanut sauce at “Pub with cold beer” or with pork cooked in a bamboo tree will be served at the Farm of the veteran couple.

Highlight experience: Have a break into the Pub with cold beer

• After breakfast, start your journey to Dong Hoi, along with the sea to Cua Tung Beach, have a coffee break and enjoy the nice breeze from the sea.
• Reach to the Vinh Moc tunnel, the refuge of some 400 North Vietnamese refugees during the bombing operation “Rolling Thunder” with over 2000 days, know more about the Vietnam War and how the people lived during those hard days.
• Drive back to Dong Ha for lunch break.
• After lunch, continue the north to the old DMZ, the old de-factor border between North and South Vietnam for 18 years, where we will take a walk on the Freedom Bridge across the Ben Hai River, the river that was the only true physical demarcation line between the two Vietnams.
• Drive all the way back to Hue.

Highlight experience: Go through the Vinh Moc tunnels to discover how village people hide during the War

The cultural and geographical center of Vietnam, Hue has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for the ancient relics, historical monuments, and fine continuation of imperial traditions. Discover Hue, Vietnam’s former capital, built by the Nguyen Dynasty…

• Stroll through the Imperial Citadel, and imagine the brilliance of bygone days.
• Visit Thanh Tien village – a village that has been crafting paper flowers for 400 years.
• Experience a conical hat and incense-making village, a real microcosm of Vietnam as a whole!
• Peer into the magnificent mausoleum of Khai Dinh, the final emperor’s resting place.
• Admire the graceful garden-style homes at An Hien.

Highlight experience: Discover the fascinating culture and history of Vietnam

After breakfast, a transfer from your hotel to Toa Kham wharf for a cruise on the legendary Perfume River.

• Buy fresh ingredients for the cooking class at Dong Ba in the packed open-air market.
• Embark on a traditional dragon boat heading for Thien Mu pagoda – the symbol of Hue city.
  Continue cruising the picturesque Perfume River, surrounded by rural scenery, before reaching Thuy Bieu Village:
• Go for an adventurous amble or bicycle ride to visit the garden-house styled homes, ancestral temple, and the village
• Prepare traditional Hue cuisine carefully with the chef and tuck into your “achievement” afterward
• Relax by dipping your feet in medicinal herb water – a traditional therapeutic practice – and unwind with an excellent massage by a visually-impaired masseuse

Highlight experience: Get ready for the cooking class to learn more about Hue cuisine

Take a drive to Hoian via the Hai Van Pass, known as “the pass in the clouds”, which offers spectacular views.
Take in the “living museum” that is the riverside port town of Hoian – a UNESCO World Heritage site in its entirety:

• Stroll through the delightful trading port and see the remaining centuries-old buildings in Hoian.
• Scuttle down Hoian’s narrow alleys, passing charming homes with wooden balconies, fascinating architectural features, beautiful temples, and the famous covered Japanese Bridge.
• Visit a lantern factory where you can try your hand at making your own lanterns!
• Discover the historic port area of the city, lit up at dusk by hundreds of beautifully coloured lanterns that create spectacular photo opportunities.

Highlight experience: Take a drive to Hai Van Pass

• Take in the literal “breathe of fresh air” that is the riverside port town of Hoian.
• Settle into a morning flight from Hoian to Saigon. Arrive and be welcomed by our guide at the airport and be transferred to your arranged accommodation.


Highlight experience: Enjoy your free time in Hoian

Saigon (currently Ho Chi Minh city) varies from the rest of Vietnam due to its modern flair. Various cultures mesh together to create a colourful city with foreign influences:

• Built by the Cantonese congregation, Thien Hau Temple and the Binh Tay Market both reside in the Cholon district
• The War Remnants Museum houses a history of locals’ perspectives of the American/Vietnam War
• The old Presidential Palace is where victory was declared after years of fighting and is preserved as found with vehicles still in the garages
• The Notre Dame Cathedral and Old Saigon Post Office are both magnificent displays of French architecture

Highlight experience: Visit the War Remnants Museum to learn more about the history of Vietnam during the war

Leave Saigon behind and head for the rich, fertile lands of the Mekong Delta region and its extraordinarily busy inhabitants:

• Wind along narrow waterways on a local sampan and observe productive rice fields, fruit orchards, and historical buildings.
• Visit local industries in Riverside homes, see the manufacture of regional specialities such as coconut candy, rice paste etc.
• Observe the floating market at Cai Be.
• Arrive in Sa Dec, a Venetian-style settlement with properties on the water.
• Tour the old neighbourhood with its colonial French and Chinese architectural influences.

Highlight experience: Get on board into sampans to navigate on the Mekong waters

From Long Xuyen, cruise to Tiger Island.

• Observe the lushly thick vegetation along the riverbanks, and the life of local people.
• Admire the workmanship and architecture of yesteryear.
• Revel in your surroundings as you take dinner in an ancient house in Choi Moi, meet the family who owns this house, and learn more about the traditional way of life in South Vietnam.
• Continue your cruise towards Rach Gia.

Highlight experience: Meet the locals and discover their way of life

• An early breakfast will be served in order to be on time for the boat connection to Phu Quoc.
• Absorb the ambience of Rach Gia, situated in the Gulf of Thailand, and famed for its fishing and agricultural produce.
• Embark on your second boat of the day, and head to the island paradise that is Phu Quoc.

Highlight experience: Relax and get ready for the next exciting day in Phu Quoc

Highlight experience: Rejuvenate on fine sand beaches, accompanied by aquamarine waters.

• Rejuvenate on fine sand beaches, accompanied by aquamarine waters.
• Transfer to the airport for your departure flight to Saigon and your flight home