CLASSIC VIETNAM DISCOVERY

Ho Chi Minh City arrival, welcome and transfer to hotel.

Landing at the Tan Son Nhat international airport, you are welcomed by tour guide and driver at the pickup lobby. On the 30-minute drive from the airport to the city center, your tour guide will introduce you to the highlights of the city, and share the experiences of eating and drinking, traffic, culture, etc.

On arrival, transfer to your hotel.

Note: Hotel check in time at 14.00.

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon City) full day tour to visit Independence palace, Walking tour, War Remnant Museum, Ben Thanh market.

Pick up from your hotel to the Independence Palace, once used as the home - office of the Presidents of South Vietnam. Our visit includes the North Vietnamese tank which effectively attacked the palace in 1975 to bring the controversial Vietnam War to an end and the five-story palace with its rooms have been preserved in their late 1960s, 1970s style and a bunker basement.

Continue with a leisurely waking tour. Head to the Saigon Notre Dame Cathedral, toward Nguyen Hue walking street, walk to the unmissable city's famous landmark. The Saigon Central Post Office is a stunning building, designed by the famous architect Gustave Eiffel. It is an actually working post office with beautiful indoor decorations.

In the afternoon go to the top visited in Ho Chi Minh – the War Remnant museum, Ben Thanh Market, which has been open since 1870. 

Overnight in Saigon.

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From Saigon to Mekong delta, visiting Cai Be, boat trip, biking, overnight in Mekong Delta.

Meet our tour guide and driver for your transfer to Cai Be. Visit Cao Dai temple on route. On arrival, embark a small private boat for a cruise in a branch of the Mekong River. Experience the rhythm of life on the legendary Mekong River by visiting the canals lined with orchards.

Visiting craft workshops of rice popcorn, coconut caramel and rice cake…Go biking or walking on the village paths to discover the ancient and beautiful Phu Chau pagoda where the serenity reigns and meet the local people. 

Continue your boat trip to Vinh Long and meet the driver at the pier for a transfer to Can Tho. 

Overnight in Can Tho.

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Have breakfast at the hotel and transfer to the pier for a boat trip to visit Cai Rang floating market, the largest and most lively market in the Mekong Delta. There are so many colors and smells in the bubbling atmosphere where hundreds of sampans are filled with goods such as rice, fruits, and craft products. Everything is shown to sell from the early morning.

Leave the market and continue the boat trip through the canals and visit a fruit garden (Option - replace the garden with the nursery field by the river). Head back to An Binh Market which is full of fish, fruits and vegetables. Stop at Binh Thuy ancient house which contains the orchid garden where “The Lover” was filmed. Transfer back to Saigon.

Overnight in Saigon.

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Leave from your hotel to visit the most striking place in the history of the Vietnam War, the Cu Chi Tunnels.

Cu Chi is a real underground city made up of a large network of tunnels covering an area of over 250km long where the Viet Cong conducted the war of resistance against American troops. All of the tunnels were dug over a period of twenty years using only pickaxes and shovels. The tour includes special entering some part of tunnels. You will also have a chance to visit Ben Duoc memorial temple nearby but far less touristic built in 1993 in memory of the Vietnamese killed at Cu Chi.

Continue tour, get transfer to visit one of the most sacred attractions in Vietnam - the Cao Dai Temple. Caodaism is a uniquely Vietnamese religion that is influenced by elements of Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism and even Roman Catholicism. On a visit, you can attend the midday mass.

Take flight to Hue.

Landing at the Phu Bai Airport you are welcomed by local guide and driver.

Overnight in Hue.

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Following breakfast, transfer from hotel to visit the Emperor Minh Mang's tomb, an architectural masterpiece that harmoniously highlights the nature and imperial religious works. 

Continue, take a boat along Huong River (or Perfume River) to Thuy Bieu Village, admire the picturesque landscapes on both sides. After 1 hour, we arrive to Thuy Bieu, well-known for its divine grapefruit trees where you can take a bike around the village under the shade of the grapefruit trees and enjoy their pleasant perfume aroma and the harvested straw. The peaceful atmosphere is in every corner of the village. Then, visit a temple dedicated to the village protector, a traditional garden house built several centuries ago. This is a wonderful opportunity to stop for great photos and interact with the villagers working in the gardens and vegetable fields which should not be missed.

In the afternoon, drive to visit Thien Mu Pagoda, one of the oldest pagodas in Hue, dating back to 1601. 

After that transfer back to city center to visit the most important sites in city - Hue Citadel, the only vestige symbol for what was once the imperial city of Vietnam. The most beautiful sites in Hue are concentrated in this area including the flag tower, the South gate, the palace of supreme Harmony, the Dynasty temple area and the settlement area.

Overnight in Hue.

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Pick up from your hotel, Hoi An via Mandarin Road and Sea Cloud pass (Hai Van Pass). Stop on top of the pass to enjoy the breathtaking view of the ocean and Da Nang city. Once you arrive in Da Nang, stop to visit the Cham Museum which preserves the most important Cham culture collections in the world. Then, walk on My Khe beach where you can enjoy the view of giant Goodness of Mercy statues in the Linh Ung Pagoda. Take photos of fishermen by the beach then continue driving along the coastline to Hoi An ancient town. 

Continue to Tra Que, it is famous for its aromatic herbs, mint and basil. Walk through the village's fields and meet the farmers. It is a good opportunity to observe the techniques of vegetable gardening. 

Overnight in Hoi An.

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Pick up from hotel for Hoi An excursion. Hoi An used to be one of the most typical South-East Asian trading ports dating from the 15th to the 19th century and the Old Town is still well-preserved. The exchanged cultures is displayed on many historic buildings, religion, daily business and enriched by the authentic lifestyle of local inhabitants.

First stop is Cam Pho - one of the oldest communal houses in Hoi An. It was built in the shape of Chinese character means the country for worshipping and trading business and cultural exchange between locality and Chinese, Japanese traders. A non-touristic destination makes your visit more enjoyable and enriched by learning Japanese tea-ceremony or making toys from coconut leafs with local expert. 

Leisurely walk to the Hoi An city’s symbol - the Chua Cau or the Japanese Covered Bridge, built in the 17th century to allow the Japanese quarter to be accessible from the Chinese neighborhoods. The bridge’s original style has been carefully preserved for the last 400 years.

Continue walking through the town, immersing into local life and stop at Quan Thang ancient house - one of the most authentic old houses in Hoi An with the lively and fine architecture and sculptures were made by craftsmen of famous Kim Bong carpentry village in the oriental style. The house offers a good look of Hoi An family's daily life. 

Enrich your tour by visit Phuc Kien or Fujian Assembly Hall, built since 17th century, is the gathering place for residents, traders and visitors from a specific area in China called Fujian. It is also a religious site to honor the deity Thien Hau. Spend a visit, you will admire the colorful fountains in the courtyard, the ornate gates surrounding the property and the beautiful carved dragons in the main room.

Overnight in Hoi An.

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Spend a half day for an excursion to the sacred valley of the Champa Kingdom. Located 40km from Hoi An Town, My Son was once the most important intellectual and religious center of the kingdom of Champa and may also have served as a burial place for Cham monarchs.

Recognized as a World Culture Heritage site by UNESCO, the site preserves the 70 ruined architecture works of bricks and stones built between the 7th and 13th century. Your tour guide will explain to you all the cultural, historical and architecture values as you leisurely visit each relic. 

Overnight in Hoi An.

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Take flight to Hanoi capital. Landing at the Noi Bai airport, you are welcomed by professional tour guide and driver at the pickup lobby. Enjoy 45-minute driving to the city center (Hanoi Old Quarter) with city's briefing information about the most visited spots, culture, traffic and cuisine.

Overnight in Hanoi.

Note: Hotel check in time at 14.00.

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Take a half day trip to visit Duong Lam ancient village. Ancient Village has a history of about 1,200 years with many houses dating back up to 400 years and well-known for its surviving literate brick houses, built three to four centuries ago. Literate is red clay formed from weathered basalt found in northern Vietnam. It is also famous nationwide as “the hometown of two kings”. 

Overnight in Hanoi.

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Visit around Hanoi the leave hustle and bustle Hanoi behind to head to Sapa with 6 hours transfer. Stretch out your leg with some stop en route. Sapa is well-known itself for stunning and spectacular landscape of rice terrace and Indochina highest peak as well as colourful ethnic minority culture. Check in the hotel and free at leisure.

Overnight in Sapa.

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Enjoy a visit to Bac Ha Market (on Sundays only) where you will have chance to meet different groups of ethnic people at the market. After visiting the market take a walk on small paths through the surrounding nearby villages and then drive to Sapa for overnight.

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Start your amazing trekking day to the most impressive areas of Sapa. Drive up to Y Linh Ho Village of Black Hmong people from here, hike along small paths down the valley to the Muong Hoa River to visit the Black H’mong village in Lao Chai. Continue to Ta Van Village (1.2 km) to visit Zay hill tribe people.The Zay houses are built of wood and bamboo with a clay floor. Return to Sapa and then free at your leisure. Transfer back to Hanoi by private transfer.

Overnight in Hanoi.

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Drive about 3 hours from Hanoi to southern province – Ninh Binh Province known as "dry Halong Bay". After three hour drive, arrive in Gia Van District and embark on a short cycling journey through paddy fields en route to the nearby Van Long reservoir area. Afterwards, cycle onward to a local family home, and enjoy a cooking demonstration of using rice crackers or fried crab dishes. In the afternoon, transfer to Van Long wharf and embark a short boat trip into the reservoir at Van Long Nature Reserve.
Overnight in Ninh Binh.

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After early breakfast, bidding farewell Ninh Binh to drive to the coastal port of Halong Bay. The journey takes around four hours with a break to stretch your legs. Upon arrival in Tuan Chau Marina, embark your boat and start cruising. Halong Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site composed of almost 2,000 islands and jungle-clad limestone pillars.
After arriving at noon, you will board a beautiful boat for an overnight cruise on Halong Bay with an excellent menu of fresh seafood. Lunch and dinner are served on boat. 

Overnight on board in en-suite air conditioned room.

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Enjoy miraculous sunrise over the islets of the Bay. The boat will take us to go about marvelous areas, including the Fisherman’s Head, Turtle, the Sail, the Incense Burner Rock, the cute Sea Dog Rock or Cock Fighting Rocks and so on. Then it’s back to the boat and cruise to Halong Port arriving around noon. Back to Hanoi.

Overnight in Hanoi.

The itinerary can be changed depend on the cruise will be chosen.

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Relax and free until the transfer to airport for your home fight. End of services.

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