Experience life as a true indigenous people along Vietnam. Overnight on cruise with endless activities. Floating on a small boat exploring Ninh Binh. Accompanying a bicycle to enjoy Mai Chau, Vinh Long. Sleep on the night train to the ancient capital of Hue and sightseeings the old city on the cyclo. Continue to visit the most vibrant city - Ho Chi Minh city. Finally ended with a series of days on the Mekong Delta River.
sales@indochinacharmtours.comToday you leave for Hanoi, the flight is not included in the trip, but we look forward with pleasure to you, looking for the best and cheapest ticket.
After a long flight you arrive in Hanoi. You will be picked up from the airport by our driver and taken to your centrally located hotel in the old quarter. Many of Hanoi's highlights are just a few minutes' walk from the hotel. Hanoi is an old city with a lot of culture, history and delicious local cuisine. So you're going to enjoy yourself here.
We will introduce you to Hanoi today. You start with a visit to the mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh popularly known as the uncle Ho. then we walk to the presidential palace and the house of Ho Chi Minh. The one-pillar Pagoda (Chua Mot Cot) is also close by. If you want to know more about the life of Ho Chi Minh visit the museum. The perspective of the presentation is that of the Vietnamese! You also visit the Temple of Literature. In the afternoon you walk through the old quarter with your guide and learn a lot from the life behind the facades. It is amazing to see how deep and narrow the houses are. We invite you to dinner today!
Today we will explore the area south of Hanoi during this Vietnam budget tour. In the surroundings of Ninh Binh and Van Long, water and karts mountains determine the landscape. Kenh Go visit you on your way to Ninh Binh. We reserve a simple but fine hotel for you in the area of Tam Coc where you will explore the area with a boat tomorrow.
During this Vietnam tour you will make a boat trip between the karst mountains in the Tam Coc area. You will be amazed by the ease with which the lady (yes) will take you from a to b. Often they also have the time to give you a neck massage halfway, so you can relax from the boat. On the way back to Hanoi we stop at the Dinh Tien Hoang temple and the Le Hoan temple. In the afternoon you are back in Hanoi.
If you want to have a Vietnam 'Hilltribe' experience during your tour, then Mai Chau is a great and beautiful place at a relatively short distance west of Hanoi. We drive you through the Hoa Binh reservoir. In the area of Mai Chau live different mountain tribes, the best known in this area are the White Thai. You spend the night in one of the small villages in the middle of the local population. So after three nights you will stay in Vietnam in a completely different world.
Today you will explore the surroundings of Mai Chau while walking and cycling. We stay regularly to let you enjoy the beautiful view. The village where you are staying is Poong Coong. It is a traditional village of white Thai. You will certainly get a lot of their culture and lifestyle. This evening your dinner is included again.
You leave the village today and on the way back to Hanoi we introduce you to another minority. You meet the Muong in the neighborhood of Hoa Binh. There are few countries where so many different tribes live as in Vietnam. These minorities are still able to maintain their own customs, language and costumes to this day. Certainly in the north of Vietnam, a different minority can predominate in each mountain valley. In the course of the afternoon we will bring you back to your hotel in Hanoi. You still have plenty of time to find a nice restaurant. You have more than enough choice in the old neighborhood where you are staying. (Transfer, bed and breakfast included)
Around 8 o'clock you will be picked up at your hotel where the 3.5 hour ride to the port of Halong Bay begins. At the beginning of the afternoon you arrive at the pier and board the comfortable Oriental Sails Cruiser. Lunch is served on board while the boat starts to sail through the beautiful bay. It is not for nothing that Halong Bay is on every travel program and is one of the most famous pictures when you think of Vietnam. This unique bay, where limestone rocks rise majestically from the sea, is in its entirety on the UNESCO World Heritage List. This afternoon you can choose from two different activities. So you can visit a fishing village by local bamboo boat where you get a unique insight into the life of the local fishermen. Or if you prefer to go kayaking you will be taken to a small beach where you can see the steep rocks close by paddling. Back on board the Oriental Sails Cruiser you can enjoy the sunset with a drink in hand before dinner is served.
06:30 - 07:00: We start the morning fresh and fruity with Thai Chi on the deck. Chi means literally; send life energy through your body. After this session you are completely full of energy to start the day.
Now that you are up early, it is wonderful to enjoy the sunrise over this beautiful seascape with a nice cup of coffee or tea and a delicious breakfast. Meanwhile, we sail to the Thien Canh Son cave. We visit this special cave after breakfast. It is a medium sized cave in Bai Tu Long Bay. It is very special to see such a cave up close!
At half past 10 we check out our rooms, you can leave your luggage at the reception.
We sail back to the port. On the way you get an early lunch on board the ship, now you can still enjoy the beautiful view from the boat.
Around noon we leave again by transfer back to Hanoi, where we arrive around 5:30. From here you will be taken to the station, so you can take the night train to Dong Hoi.
You arrive early in the morning in Dong Hoi. You will be picked up by our local guide and given a nice breakfast at a local restaurant before we leave for the Thien Duong cave with our transfer. This cave was only discovered in 2005 by a local farmer. British cavers researched it further and the cave appears to be more than 35 kilometers deep, making it the deepest of the Phong Nha national park. It is therefore not surprising that this cave is directly included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. After lunch we leave with the transfer to the hotel in Phong Nha for our overnight stay. From the hotel you have a free program to organize your afternoon time yourself.
In the morning you make a nice bike ride of about 3 hours to explore the countryside. We cycled along farm fields and along the Son River. You come to the most special places by bike. Then we return to the farm and you can enjoy a day off.
Vietnam - Hue - DMZ Hien Luang Bridge - Former DMZ day tour
Today we make a ride of about 200 kilometers to Hue. There are a number of stops along the way to learn some pieces of Vietnamese history at the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone), the area between the former separation of North and South Vietnam. We see the Hien Luong bridge and Vinh Moc tunnels. On the way we will stop for a lunch. In the afternoon we arrive at the hotel in Hue where we will spend the night.
After breakfast we board the Dragon Boat and sail over the Perfume River to the Thien Mu Pagoda. Here we visit the seven-story high tower, a symbol of Hue. After this we continue to the Imperial citadel, which was meant as a copy of the forbidden city of the Chinese Emperor in Beijing. After the Ngo Mon Gate we enter the Purple Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was reserved for the royal family Nguyen from the 18th century until the middle of the 20th century. Unfortunately, in 1968, the American bomb attack in response to a communist takeover of Hue put the largest part of the city flat. We shall see here that only a few buildings survived, such as the Thai Hoa temple, the Can Thanh temple, the Mieu and Hieu Lam Cac. All remains are worth a visit.
After lunch in the local restaurant we visit the grave of Emperor Tu Duc. This is the largest and for many the most impressive Royal tomb. After this we return to our hotel.
At 5.00 pm you will be picked up by cyclo (traditional bicycle taxi) at the hotel in Hue City. Then you will be brought to Hen Island where you can enjoy shellfish dishes, such as rice and noodles with 'cockles'. You will feel the original rural atmosphere during dinner, very peaceful and green.
We continue with the cyclo to Hanh. This is one of the best local restaurants. Here you can taste the special 'cakes', Banh beo, Banh and Banh loc made from rice flour. Definitely worth a try!
We then walk through the Le Loi street, along the Parfum river and across the Truong Tien bridge. We take you to the Dong Ba market where you can enjoy another Vietnamese classic 'Bun thit nuong', a delicious rice noodle dish.
At 19.30 we leave the noisy market Dong Ba. We continue our route to the Dinh Tien Hoang street for 'Banh khoai', a 'happy' pancake and 'nem lazy', a sort of satay. On the way you see the Imperial citadel in the atmosphere of the bustling night. At the end you are taken with the cyclo through the streets to admire the romance of the night. You can also buy nice souvenirs, such as sesame sugar, the typical Vietnamese conical hats, sour shrimps, a long traditional dress (Ao Dai) and Minh Mang wines.
21:00: At the end of the tour you will be taken back to the hotel with the cyclo.
In the morning you will be picked up at the hotel and we drive together to Hoi An. After about an hour we arrive at the 'Elephant springs'. Here you can relax in the rock pools. There are a series of small waterfalls and ponds here. We drive over the spectacular Han-Van-Pas and pass a picturesque fishing village called 'Lang Co'.
Once we have arrived in Hoi An, we will have lunch in an attractive local restaurant.
In the afternoon you make a city walk to get to know this charming town that is on the World Heritage List. The narrow streets with its centuries-old houses with Chinese, Japanese, French and European influences make this a photogenic scene. You visit the 400-year-old Japanese bridge, the Phuc Kien Assembly Halls, the local fish market and if you want to visit there are numerous art galleries, tailors and small shops. Meanwhile you hear traditional music everywhere and we visit one of the most famous old houses in the city, namely the Tan Ky house. After this the guide will take you to a lantern making workshop, where you will really make one yourself. What a unique experience that is!
To start you taste different traditional Vietnamese tea varieties. You get the bamboo that forms the basis of your frame and beautiful silk, so you can choose a color pattern yourself. The teacher shows you how to make your own Hoi An lantern. The lanterns are easy to fold, or you can take them with you in your bag. It is super fun to take this self made souvenir home. So you always have a nice memory of Hoi An.
After the lesson we bring you back to the hotel for an overnight stay in Hoi An.
This day you have plenty of time to enjoy one of the nicest towns in Vietnam, Hoi An. Stroll through the small alleys, enjoy the good coffee and the nice little galleries. Or if you prefer to go to the beach, that is also possible because Hoi An is close to the sea. If you want to see more of the surroundings, it is possible to make a nice bike ride where you get to know the countryside and its inhabitants better with the help of a guide.
You can sleep late today, because the flight to the former Saigon leaves during the day (17.00 / 18.00). You also have enough time to enter the center of Hoi An and to photograph the famous Japanese bridge.
In the morning we visit the Cu Chi Tunnels. The Cu Chi tunnels is an attraction that should not be missed when visiting HCMC. You have undoubtedly already heard a few things about the Vietnam War the previous days. But how could it be that the larger, stronger, better-armed American army could not win from the Vietcong guerrilla troops? To better understand this, a visit to the Cu Chi tunnels is very interesting. This place was very strategically located near a former US military base and one of the few easily accessible roads in Vietnam at the time. For those who are interested, there is even the possibility to fire rounds of an AK47 or MK16. Afterwards we have lunch at the 'Big Pig' restaurant.
After lunch we visit the war museum. In this museum you can see moving images of the senseless war. Part of the black-and-white photography of 'Requiem' is very moving to see. This black and white series was dedicated to both foreign and Vietnamese journalists and photographers who died during the conflict. The courtyard of the museum is also very interesting to view. Here you can see the remains of the war, various rusting tanks and cannons.
After this impressive day you will be brought back to your hotel. Tonight you can enjoy a free evening.
Your Vietnam tour continues with a visit to the Mekong Delta. In the morning your guide will pick you up at the hotel and we will drive you to the Mekong delta. By boat the journey continues from Cai Be to Vinh Long. You will be surprised by the size of the delta. In the afternoon we continue the trip on the bike and on one of the many islands with small villages.
In the floating markets it is often a liveliness of buzz
Even today you go on your bike and explore the small villages and the fields where the residents grow their vegetables. It is nice to see how liveliness is in places where you sometimes do not expect it. You will encounter the Mekong river several times during your cycling trip. Often they still have a sort of upstairs room where the ancestor can also be venerated.
You will return to the mainland by boat. In Vinh Long the car is waiting and you drive back to HCMC. There you will have to explore the city even tonight and part of the next morning. Pham Ngu Lao Street is the street where the backpackers go. You will find many nice restaurants here. On the Ben Than market you eat authentic dishes together with the locals at long tables.
Today is the last day of your tour in Vietnam, at the appropriate time you will be picked up and taken to the airport.
$1714 per person
