Chao Ban! Welcome to Hanoi, we will meet you at the airport and take you to your hotel for check-in. Today is free at your leisure to rest or explore, discovering your own first impressions of Vietnam (depending on what time you arrive). Overnight in Hanoi.

Transfer, guide, hotel.

Depart at 8:00 am from your hotel by van. We will begin our day by visiting Uncle Ho at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and residential grounds learning about his great life. Next stop is the nearby Temple of Literature, the site of Vietnam's first University. Here we will also have a chance to see a traditional music performance. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant for a taste of authentic Hanoi Pho (noodle soup). In the afternoon, choose from one of the numerous museums or temples around Hanoi (Museum of Ethnology, Women's Museum, History Museum or Quan Thanh Temple).

In the late afternoon, take a cyclo trip around Hoan Kiem Lake and Hanoi's fascinating Old Quarter. This is your chance to be in the midst of typical Hanoian life and Vietnamese culture. We finish our relaxing but informative day by attending a Water Puppet Show - a favorite experience for all visitors to Vietnam. We can help you to get back to your hotel if you wish, but often our guests would rather just spend the evening enjoying a drink with a view of the city. Tour finishes at about 4:30 pm. Dinner on your own.

At 8:30 pm transfer from a prearranged meeting spot to the station for your night train to Sapa. Boarding is at around 9:50 pm. You will be in shared AC soft sleeper cabin to travel North to Lao Cai town.

(Our tour guide will show you the mini hotel which you will have a shower and basic breakfast before going on Halong bay on Day 6). 

Transfer, guide, entrance fee, breakfast, lunch, puppet show ticket, Vietnam cyclo, train ticket.

The train arrives at about 6:00 am. Look for the “Footprint Travel” sign when you exit the train station, as our guide will pick you up there. Take a morning drive through the clouds by car / van to Sapa, about 1.5 hours. When you arrive in Sapa you will be taken to a local restaurant for a morning shower, breakfast, a short rest and some last preparations before our inspiring trek.

We will then take short ride from Sapa to our trekking base. Our trek through the terraced valleys, up and down hills will take about 5 to 6 hours. We will pass rice paddies, bamboo forests, and minority villages. Lunch break along the way depending on our pace. When we arrive in Taphin village, our Dao host family will welcome us to their home where we will share in an ethnic style dinner and stay the night. 

Transfer, guide, morning shower, train ticket, entrance fee, all meals, permit, homestay

At the first gleam of daylight, you will see and hear the sounds of morning village life. You can join your host family in some of their morning activities like feeding the animals, cleaning the houses, gardening or preparing breakfast. After breakfast, we can take a short wander around the village or spend more time enjoying the view and company at the homestay.

You will be then supported by our car / van back to Sapa (30 minutes). When we arrive back in Sapa, check into the hotel, shower, and pause for lunch on your own. At 2:30 pm we will take an easy 5 km walk to Cat Cat village, home of Black H’mong hill tribe, and to take part in a traditional ethnic music performance put on by the ethnic minority people. Dinner and the evening on your own. Overnight in the hotel in Sapa.

Note: The music show in Cat Cat village is closed on Tuesday afternoon, an alternative will be arranged.

Transfer, guide, entrance fee, breakfast, music show ticket, hotel.

Sunday is a common market day for many tribes in Northwest Vietnam and Bac Ha has become renowned for its colourfulness. The market is packed different ethnic minorities coming from different villages. Their vibrant trading activities last from early morning till midday. Look for hand-made fabrics, the black smithing area, as well as the buffalo zone.

We will leave Sapa early by 7:00 am so that we can be there on time. Please pay respect to the locals here and ask permission before you taking a photo of anyone.

Lunch in Bac Ha on your own account then we will leave for a boat trip along the Chay river, The boat ride is about 1.5 hours. Return to Lao Cai near the train station. Dinner on your own well before the train leaves for Hanoi.

Transfer, guide, breakfast, entrance fee, local boat, train ticket.

Arrival in Hanoi in the early morning at around 5:00 am. Please find your way on foot back to a mini hotel near the Tran Quy Cap train station gate to have shower and a basic set menu breakfast.

Departure for Halon Bay is around 8:00 am on a shared van from your hotel. The drive takes 4 hours driving passing through the Vietnam countryside and rice paddy-life. Arriving at the port around noon, the junk's crew welcome guests on board. Check-in, enjoy a welcome drink & attend the cruise briefing. Fresh, local seafood lunch while cruising on to Bai Tu Long Bay. Stop for swimming, visit mysterious Thien Canh cave, Relax at a secluded beach, and kayak to explore the bay up close. Back on the junk to enjoy a relaxing sunset. Dinner and overnight on board.

Transfer, guide, morning shower, entrance fee, kayak, boat / junk, all meals, permit, fishing gear.

Early risers can enjoy the sunrise and the quiet breath-taking beauty of karst landscape.  From 7:30 to 8:00 am have breakfast in the fresh air, then visit Vong Vieng fishing village by a rustic row-boat. Meet the locals, visit a floating school & fish farms. Later take one more swim in the middle of the bay. There is ample time for the 11:45 am check-out from the cabin while cruising back. Lunch on the boat as we slowly cruise back to port. 

We will be ashore then hit the road back for water puppet show at a traditional Vietnamese village before getting back to Hanoi at around 6:00 pm. Hotel then pick up for the night train to Hue. Boarding is at 7:00 pm. You will be in a shared AC soft sleeper cabin.

Transfer, guide, entrance fee, boat / junk, breakfast, lunch, train ticket.

Arrival in Hue at around 10:00 am. Station pick up then transfer to a mini hotel to take a shower and short rest.

This morning we will explore the Royal Tombs, choosing only to visit the best ones, as we have lots to do today. Visit Tu Duc Royal Tomb then lunch will be served at a local traditional restaurant at noon.

After lunch, we continue to see the Khai Dinh Royal Tomb then head back to Hue center to visit the former Imperial Citadel. Later, drive to Thien Mu Pagoda and learn more about Buddhism in Vietnam. Finally, take a short walk to the boat dock for our cruise on the Perfume River before getting back to your hotel to overnight at around 6:30 pm.

Transfer, guide, morning shower, entrance fee, lunch, local boat, hotel.

Breakfast at your hotel then we pick you up for your morning cycling trip and visit to Vong Canh hill (a great spot for pictures). Cycle and explore hidden charm of Hue's traditional, handicraft villages and countryside as well as many historical sites for the Nguyen Dynasty. Back to hotel for a shower, check out at noon 12:00 then followed by our lunch at a local restaurant.

In the afternoon, leave Hue city for A Luoi (~ 60 km). Along the way you can see the life and daily activities of the Katu and Ta Oi hill tribes. On arrival A Luoi town, you will visit Ashau village (a historical war site). Travel to a second village, named A Roang for some time relaxing and enjoying a local hot spring there.

We'll check-in to our homestay at Aka Chi village then take some time to meet and learn about the local culture of the Ta Oi people. Have dinner and enjoy a traditional music show. Overnight in stilt-house homestay.

Transfer, guide, bike, entrance fee, all meals, traditional music show, permit, homestay.

Wake up early morning to enjoy the fresh mountain air. Breakfast will be served at our homestay. Check-out, then we take an easy walk through the Aroang jungle (~ 3 hrs) to learn more about the rich fauna and flora system here. Lunch at a local restaurant on the way toHoi An. Overnight here.

Tip: This is a very good chance for you to get great tailor-made clothes at reasonable prices. Hoi An is well known for its tailoring. 

Transfer, guide, entrance fee, breakfast, lunch, hotel.

The center of Vietnam has many World Heritage Sites, and Hoi An is one of them. This ancient town of Hoi An, 30 km south of Danang, lies on the banks of the Thu Bon River.

At 8:00 am your guide will pick you up at your hotel for our bicycle trip to the countryside of Hoi An Town.

Arrival at Tra Que Organic village, then have a walk to visit the gardens of local farmers. Learn about their traditional methods and farming techniques - no machines here. Later, we will partly join-in some of the garden work followed by a short feet-soaking in Vietnamese herbs - a lovely treat.

12:00 noon, we head back Hoi An town for lunch at a local restaurant then take free time to take a rest as you wish until 2:00 pm. We'll walk around the town and experience its charming culture. We will visit the old Tan Ky House, the famous Japanese Covered Bridge, and the stylish Phuc Kien Assembly Hall. Back to hotel in the late afternoon. Free time to relax and discover other corners of Hoi An on your own. Overnight at your hotel.

Transfer, guide, entrance fee, breakfast, lunch, local bike, hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel then transfer to the airport in Danang for an early morning flight to Saigon. Airport pick up and then straight to theCu Chi outdoor museum to learn about the infamous tunnel systems of the Viet Cong. Take this opportunity to get a unique understanding of the guerillas underground fighting strategies during the war. Crawl through 50 to 100 meters of the 200 km tunnel system if you dare. On the way back to Saigon visit a local rice paper workshops and take in views of the Vietnam countryside.

Back in Saigon, we continue our trip to visit the War Remnants Museum, the Notre Dame Cathedral and the historic Central Post Office. Drop you off at your hotel around 5:30 pm. Dinner on your own and stay overnight at your hotel. 

Transfer, guide, entrance fee, breakfast, domestic flight ticket, hotel.

8.00 am departure for Cai Be (2.5 hrs). On arrival, we board a boat to experience the floating market, mighty mekong river and Dong Phu Island. A short one hour warm up on our bikes under the green canopy, explore the orchards and daily life of the Mekong farmers. Lunch break on the island then back on the boat to Vinh Long.

In the afternoon we are back on the bikes riding by immense rice fields and through numerous rural riverside villages before reaching our homestay. We are welcomed by our host family. Take some time to relax under in the garden. Dinner will be served with local special dishes. Overnight here.

Transfer, guide, bikes, entrance fee, local boat, seasonal fruit, all meals, homestay.

The sounds of morning village life might wake you up early. Join your host family in some of their activities like cleaning the house, gardening or preparing breakfast. After breakfast we take a morning boat trip to the caotic Cai Rang Floating Market and up a quiet canal for more cruising on winding. Later we are back on the bikes cycling backcountry roads (2 hrs) enjoying the beautiful Mekong Delta scenery and meeting the locals (many on bicycle too).

After lunch in a local restaurant in Can Tho town, we head back to Saigon.

Transfer, guide, bikes, entrance fee, local boat, breakfast, lunch and hotel.

Breakfast at hotel. Depending on your flight you may have some more time for shopping. Then we will transfer you to the airport for your flight home. Goodbye, and hope to see you again soon!

Transfer, breakfast.