Itinerary
- Day 1
Arrival in Hanoi
Your driver and guide will meet you at Noi Bai Airport and drive you to your hotel in central Hanoi. After settling in, you'll take a cyclo ride through the Old Quarter's narrow streets, passing French colonial buildings from the colonial era. Later that evening, you'll catch a traditional Water Puppet Performance before heading to dinner at one of Hanoi's better restaurants to welcome the trip.
- Meals
- Dinner (Welcome dinner at one of Hanoi's finest restaurants)
Included Activities
- Cyclo tour through Old Quarter
- Traditional Water Puppet Performance
- Welcome dinner at local restaurant
Landmarks/POIs Old Quarter - Day 2
Hanoi Cooking Class & City Tour
This morning starts with a cooking class that includes a local market visit where you'll learn about ingredients and Hanoian food culture from a professional chef. You'll prepare and eat your meal Hanoi style. In the afternoon, you head out to see key sites including the Temple of Literature, Hoa Loa Prison, West Lake, Tran Quoc Pagoda, and Quan Thanh Temple around the city.
- Meals
- Lunch (Local food in Hanoi style prepared during cooking class)
Included Activities
- Cooking class with local market visit
- Temple of Literature
- Hoa Loa Prison
- West Lake
- Tran Quoc Pagoda
- Quan Thanh Temple
Landmarks/POIs Temple of Literature Hoa Loa Prison West Lake Tran Quoc Pagoda Quan Thanh Temple - Day 3
Hanoi to Halong Bay Cruise
After breakfast at your hotel, you'll drive 3 to 4 hours to Halong Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Once there, you board a 24-hour cruise through limestone islands and turquoise waters. During the cruise you'll have fresh seafood lunch onboard, explore islands by boat, visit one of the bay's 3 largest caves, and swim at a white sand beach. You'll spend the night on the junk boat.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast at hotel), Lunch (Gourmet lunch of fresh seafood onboard)
Included Activities
- 3-4 hour drive to Halong Bay
- 24-hour junk cruise in Halong Bay
- Cave visit
- Island cove swimming
Landmarks/POIs Halong Bay - Day 4
Halong Bay to Hue
You can wake early for optional Tai Chi on the top deck or watch sunrise over the bay's islands. Morning coffee or tea comes next, then you explore nearby islands by rowboat. Back on the junk for brunch, you'll relax on the sundeck before heading back to Halong City. Your driver transfers you to Noi Bai Airport for a short flight to Hue, where you check into your hotel when you arrive.
- Meals
- Brunch (Brunch on junk)
Included Activities
- Rowboat island exploration
- Flight to Hue
Optional Activities
- Tai Chi session on top deck
- Day 5
Hue Imperial City Tour
You'll spend the day in Hue, Vietnam's former ancient capital. Start by visiting the Imperial Citadel, which contains the Imperial City and Forbidden Purple City where the Emperor once lived privately. The 19th-century Imperial Enclosure holds many palaces and temples to see. In the afternoon, you check out the Imperial Museum, Thien Mu Pagoda, the busy Dong Ba riverside market, and take a cooking class at a royal family house.
Included Activities
- Imperial Citadel visit
- Imperial City tour
- Forbidden Purple City
- Imperial Museum
- Thien Mu Pagoda
- Dong Ba riverside market
- Cooking class at royal family house
Landmarks/POIs Imperial Citadel Forbidden Purple City Thien Mu Pagoda Dong Ba Market - Day 6
Hue to Hoi An
Breakfast is at your hotel, then you drive along the coast through mountain passes heading to Hoi An with a stop at Lang Co Beach for photos. You'll visit the Cham Museum in Danang to see the world's finest collection of Cham artworks. Once in Hoi An, you see Phuc Kien Assembly Hall, the 400-year-old Japanese Covered Bridge, and the lively riverside market. The rest of the day is free for you to walk around town.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast at hotel)
Included Activities
- Breakfast at hotel
- Coastal drive with mountain passes
- Lang Co Beach stop
- Cham Museum visit
- Phuc Kien Assembly Hall
- Japanese Covered Bridge
- Riverside market
Landmarks/POIs Lang Co Beach Cham Museum Phuc Kien Assembly Hall Japanese Covered Bridge - Day 7
Hoi An to Saigon
After breakfast at your hotel, you'll bike to Tra Que Vegetable Village where you have herbal tea and tour the vegetable gardens. A 15-minute foot massage at a local house comes next, then you continue cycling to see how local farmers work and spot water buffalo. A professional chef teaches you to cook 2 dishes - Banh Xeo and Tra Que Spring Rolls. You'll eat Vietnamese lunch at the village, then fly to Saigon.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast at hotel), Lunch (Vietnamese lunch at vegetable village)
Included Activities
- Breakfast at hotel
- Bike trip to Tra Que Vegetable Village
- Herbal tea
- Vegetable garden tour
- Foot massage
- Countryside cycling tour
- Cooking class - 2 dishes
- Vietnamese lunch at vegetable village
- Flight to Saigon
Landmarks/POIs Tra Que Vegetable Village - Day 8
Saigon Organic Farm & Cu Chi Tunnels
You start at 7:30am at an organic farm to see cows, buffalo, and rice fields. Wearing a traditional Vietnamese hat, you pick herbs, spices, vegetables, and mushrooms before joining a cooking class. Lunch happens there while you chat with local farmers. Later, you visit the Cu Chi Tunnels, an extensive underground network built first against the French, then expanded during the American war. You can explore secret trapdoors, underground kitchens, and meeting rooms, with the option to crawl through tunnel sections.
- Meals
- Lunch (Lunch with local farmers)
Included Activities
- Organic farm visit - Cow areas, Buffalo areas, Rice field
- Herb, spice, vegetable, mushroom picking
- Cooking class
- Lunch with local farmers
- Cu Chi Tunnels visit
- Underground kitchens and living areas exploration
Optional Activities
- Tunnel crawling
Landmarks/POIs Cu Chi Tunnels - Day 9
Saigon City Tour
After breakfast at your hotel, you'll start at the Reunification Palace, one of the city's most important buildings. Next comes The Post Office Center for its French colonial design, Notre Dame Cathedral, and the War Remnants Museum. You'll have lunch at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, you visit Thien Hau Temple and Binh Tay Market before returning to your hotel by 5:00pm. That evening you'll explore Saigon by bike.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast at hotel), Lunch (Lunch at local restaurant)
Included Activities
- Breakfast at hotel
- Reunification Palace
- Post Office Center
- Notre Dame Cathedral
- War Remnants Museum
- Lunch at local restaurant
- Thien Hau Temple
- Binh Tay Market
- Bike tour - Saigon by night
Landmarks/POIs Reunification Palace Post Office Center Notre Dame Cathedral War Remnants Museum Thien Hau Temple Binh Tay Market - Day 10
Mekong Delta
You arrive at Ben Tre Town and board a boat cruise along the Ben Tre river. First you visit a brick workshop where workers handmake bricks, then navigate zigzag canals to see a coconut processing workshop with fresh coconut candy to try. A quiet village stop lets you visit a mat weaving house and try hand-loom weaving yourself. After tropical fruits, you take a cycling tour through Mekong Delta village life. Lunch at a riverside restaurant features local dishes like elephant-ear fish and freshwater prawns. After lunch, a tuk tuk takes you through the coconut forest to a rowing boat station, then you transfer to Can Tho for the night.
- Meals
- Lunch (Riverside restaurant lunch featuring local specialties - elephant-ear fish, freshwater prawns with cold drinks or beers)
Included Activities
- Boat cruise on Ben Tre river
- Brick workshop visit
- Coconut processing workshop visit
- Fresh coconut candy tasting
- Mat weaving house visit
- Hand-loom weaving experience
- Tropical fruit sampling
- Cycling tour
- Riverside restaurant lunch
- Tuk tuk ride through coconut forest
Landmarks/POIs Ben Tre River Mekong Delta - Day 11
Cai Rang Floating Market
After breakfast at your hotel, you take a boat trip to the Cai Rang floating market where each boat typically sells one particular item like pumpkins, pineapples, or sugar cane, with the product hung from the boat's highest point to signal what's for sale. You return to Saigon for an overnight stay.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast at hotel)
Included Activities
- Breakfast at hotel
- Cai Rang floating market boat trip
Landmarks/POIs Cai Rang Floating Market - Day 12
Saigon Departure
You'll have breakfast at your hotel and free time until your guide picks you up for your flight home.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Breakfast at hotel)
Included Activities
- Breakfast at hotel
