Description

Highlights: Ha Noi – Ha Long – Da Nang – Hoi An

Other Departures: Manchester – £2089, Newcastle – £2125, Glasgow – £2125, Birmingham – £2065, Edinburgh – £2395

Hotels:
Hanoi – Meliá Hanoi 5*
Ha Long – Indochina Sails Boutique 14 cabins
Hoi An – Palm Garden Resort Hoi An 5*
Ho Chi Minh – Hotel Grand Saigon 5*
Siem Reap – Borei Angkor Resort & Spa 5*

Day 1: Ha Noi Arrival
Upon arrival at Noi Bai Airport, you will meet your guide and driver and travel by car to your hotel.

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi
Room is at your disposal from 14:00 only

Day 2: Hanoi
In the morning, you will pay a visit to Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and see his traditional stilt house – now the Ho Chi Minh Museum and the revered One-Pillar Pagoda. After that, you will explore the thousand-year-old Temple of Literature, also known as the first university of Vietnam. Built in 1070 by emperor Ly Thanh Tong and opened from 1076 as a university exclusively for the princes, children of the nobility and the mandarins. In 1802, Emperor Gia Long transferred the National University to Hue, which had by then become the capital city of Vietnam. You will have time to stroll through the shaded paths of Van Mieu Park to appreciate the architecture of this historical site as well as admire 82 of the 116 original steles which were used to engrave the names of the graduates. Return to hotel in Hanoi. The balance of day is free at your leisure

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

Notes:
– The Mausoleum is closed on Monday and Friday. Easia will arrange a visit outside
– Every year, the monument will be closed between mid-September and mid-December for regular restoration and preservation of the presidential remains, which is the same as that of Lenin Mausoleum in Russia (exact dates to be checked each year)
– To be allowed to enter the mausoleum, you must cover your legs, stand in pairs in silence without crossing your arms, or putting your hands in your pockets

Option: Evening story of street food Tonight,
you’ll have a chance to understand what makes Hanoi’s Old Quarter such a captivating place. Here, you will be able to taste a wide variety of Vietnamese specialties, such as banh cuon (steamed rolled rice pancake) and banh mi (the famous Vietnamese sandwich that even appears in the Oxford Dictionary). Then, stop at a bia hoi (beer club) on Ta Hien Street and taste the fresh Vietnamese beer that is incredibly popular with locals and travelers alike. After that, you will head to a pho shop, where you will be able to choose between regular pho or pho tron (pho noodle mixed with chicken without soup). Then, make your way along Hoan Kiem Lake for one of the tastiest ice creams in Hanoi. You will then say goodbye to your guide and go on to explore Hanoi by night on your own.

Meals included: Street food
Duration: 3 hours

Notes:
– The route of street food tour may change in case of rain
– Duration of street food tour at night: 3 hours
– During street food tour, food is served enough, dinner might not be necessary

Day 3: Ha Noi – Ha Long
In the morning, you will travel to Halong without guide and arrive around noon. There, you will embark on a cruise in the must-see Halong Bay. This world-famous bay is one of the most beautiful landscapes in Vietnam, with its giant rock islets covered in luxuriant vegetation overlooking the waters. Halong Bay includes some 1,900 islands and islets of rocky peaks, often uninhabited and unvisited. This scene creates a spectacular marine landscape, which earned it UNESCO World Heritage status in 1994. You will be served lunch and dinner abroad with excellent and freshly caught seafood from the bay. At the end of the day, you will have the chance to enjoy a night fishing session on the boat.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Overnight on the boat
Distance : 180 kilometers – 2h45mins on Expressway

Remark: After roughly 2 hour driving, a rest stop is scheduled for stretching your leg. The rest stop in fact is a tourist stop which provides free parking, free restroom services; shopping and restaurant services. There are limited numbers of proper rest stops on the route so we can only resort to the options. There is no obligation in buying things at the rest stops.

Day 4: Ha Long – Ha Noi – Da Nang – Hoi An
Early in the morning and depending on the season, you will wake up to enjoy sunrise over the aquamarine waters of the bay. Then the cruise will tour around the bay until you disembark at the end of the morning. After that, you will then return to Hanoi on a road lined with typical rice fields of the Red River Delta. Transfer to Noi Bai aiport for afternoon flight to Da Nang. Pick up at Da Nang airport and transfer to hotel in Hoi An.

Meal included: Breakfast, brunch
Accommodation: Hotel in Hoi An
Distance Ha Long – Ha Noi: 180 kilometers – 2h45mins on Expressway

Day 5: Hoi An
In the morning or afternoon, you will visit Hoi An, recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage site for its well-preserved ancient streets and houses. The town features a harmony of Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese and French architecture elements, which can be seen from the famous Japanese Bridge, the Chinese Temple and Tan Ky trading house (which used to belong to a rich Vietnamese merchant 200 years ago and has been kept original ever since). This visit will be followed by a folklore show in one of the old houses. Return to hotel in Hoi An. The balance of day is free at your leisure.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Hoi An

Option: Afternoon Vespa Tour – Rural Village Experience (Private)
In the early afternoon, take a tranquil ride along quiet, countryside paths, first stopping at a busy fish market, before heading into the rice paddies and more subdued villages. Along the way, say “Xin Chao!” to the locals making rice crackers and noodles, then cross over the Thu Bon River into beautiful farmland to take a break for some delicious local food, surrounded by seasonal vegetables and aromatic herbs. After a quick bite, your Vespa will pass duck farms and stop by to let you meet a charming mat-weaving family. Continue on to the local prawn farms and along narrow paths to a local family that brews a fantastically-popular, but potent rice wine. It’s an amazing spirit – and will certainly raise your’s! The ride will finish with a short trip back into Hoi An as the sun sets on this gorgeous heritage town.

Day 6: Hoi An
The day is free for you to wander around the Old Quarter or relax on the white sands of the beach.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Hoi An

Option: Cookery class in Hoi An (Join-in)
In the morning, you are picked up at the hotel and then go to the market with Ms. Linh, a cuisine expert living in Hoi An who loves to share her passion for food, especially Central Vietnam food, to everyone. The morning market is where you can be in the thick of the actions and get explanations for local ingredients, as well as witness daily local life. After that, you can enjoy ice coffee before go to Ms Linh’s home. Ms Linh’s home is a charming house with beautiful bamboo decoration. In the kitchen, she will demonstrate to you how to cook a dish of your choice. Her fun, enthusiast nature and her dedication will surely make the class more special than many others. And when you have finished cooking your meal, it is time to enjoy it with all others classmates. The best thing about this class is you can choose one recipe from the list of 50 dishes and more than 20 vegetarian dishes to learn. Everyone can try to cook their personal favorite recipe, not a preset menu!

Meals included: Lunch

Option: Fishing tour in Hoi An (Private)
Setting off in the early morning, you will ride your bicycles into the Cam Thanh countryside, you will ride across plains of flooded rice fields and have the opportunity to observe picturesque scenes of the local’s daily life with a background of verdant countryside. After arriving at the local boat pier, you will board a boat that will transport you to the seaport of Cua Dai, at the mouth of the Thu Bon River, which runs through Hoi An. At this point, two very different activities will be awaiting you to enjoy. First of all, you will be initiated to a form of fishing using huge nets raised by special pulleys, the catch, accessed only by paddling out in “basket boats”. After this first fun activity, a bamboo basket boat will take you into the mangrove forest. This amazing round basket boat will carry you along the forest and, from there, you will be able to watch and take part in scenes of crab fishing. At this point, you’ll no doubt be invited to try and manoeuvre your boat yourself, but it’s not an easy task making circular paddle movements while trying to make sure you keep your balance! Be that as it may, it’s certainly a lot of fun. As a reward for your morning’s efforts, you will be accompanied to a local family’s house to enjoy a lunch consisting of local dishes carefully prepared by the fishermen. The friendly and hospitable family will welcome you to give a hand in preparing the lunch or to make toys fashioned from coconut leaves, a very fun and enjoyable activity for kids.

Duration: 5 hours included lunch
Boat transportation 45-30 minutes to the seaport of Cua Dai
Duration cycling tour : 1 hour

Option: Visit My Son Sanctuary (Private)
In the morning, you will travel by car to My Son (which mean: “The beautiful mountain”) – the most important Cham archaeological site in the center of Vietnam. Dating back from the 4th to the 13th century, the 70 building complex shows that the Cham civilization was contemporary and rather close to the Khmer civilization, which makes My Son as important as the sites of Angkor in Cambodia, Borobudur in Indonesia, or Bagan in Burma. After exploring the area, you will return to Hoi An and have a free afternoon to either discover the city or enjoy the beach.

Distance : 40 kilometers – 1h 30min

Day 7: Hoi An – Da Nang – Ho Chi Minh City
At good time, transfer without guide to Danang Airport for the flight to Ho Chi Minh city. Upon arrival, you wil meet your local guide and driver then transfer to the hotel to check in. The rest of day is free at your leisure.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City

Day 8: Ho Chi Minh City
You will have a chance to discover Ho Chi Minh City – the tumultuous capital of the South. As you embark on the half-day tour tour today, very soon you will notice that the architecture in the centre of Ho Chi Minh City is still representative of the colonial era and Chinese influence. Your discovery of the capital of the South would not be complete without a visit to the city’s main historical sites: the central post office, whose metal structure was designed by Gustave Eiffel; the Reunification Palace and Dong Khoi Street. If time permits, pay a visit to Ben Thanh Market, a signature of local culture in Ho Chi Minh City.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City
Note: Notre-Dame Cathedral is closed for renovations until early 2020- Exterior only

Option: Visit Cu Chi Tunnels (Half-day)
You will leave early in the morning for the Cu Chi Tunnels, located about 2 hours from Ho Chi Minh City. Originally dug by hand by the Viet Minh (Resistance Force) during the French-Indochina War, this network of underground tunnels was expanded during the Vietnam War. At its peak, it was 200 kilometers long, 3-to-4-meters deep, and was very well-equipped with meeting rooms, medical, and sanitary posts. Today, it is one of the most important historical sites of the Vietnam War. You will begin the visit by watching a documentary on the tunnels and the war in the 60s-70s, and then you can pass through various narrow underground ducts in order to discover the many rooms: offices, kitchens, bunk rooms, weapons stores, and even hospitals. At the end of the tour, you will have the chance to taste a culinary specialty of Cu Chi, khoai my luoc (boiled cassava), a Vietnamese dish eaten daily during the war. After your visit, you will return to Ho Chi Minh City.

Meals included: None
Distance: 75 kilometers – 1 hr 55 min
Note: Not recommended for people with claustrophobia

Option: Ho Chi Minh by night on a Vespa (Private)
In the early evening, you will be picked you up at the hotel before making a stop at “café zoom” to enjoy a cocktail and an aperitif before venturing into the city. As a passenger, you will have the chance to visit many off-the-beaten places. Your journey will start in District 4 via crowded streets and busy alleys filled with people sitting on small plastic seats. You will be able to savor some seafood dishes while sipping fresh drinks. Then, moving to District 3 through to District 1, enjoy the views, noises and smells of the city, with stops along the way take a closer look whenever you like. The tour will continue towards a well-hidden Vietnamese cafe to enjoy some live Vietnamese music. Then, you will finish at a lively bar where you can have a drink and listen to some more contemporary music, or even enjoy a dance! You will finally be escorted back to your hotel at the end of this exciting night tour.

Meals included: street food (seafood, banh xeo)
Duration of the visit: 4 hours, from 18:00 to 22:00

Day 9: Ho Chi Minh
Today is free at your leisure.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City

Option: Day excursion to visit Ben Tre – Mekong Delta (Private)
In the morning you will depart from Ho Chi Minh City to explore Ben Tre in the Mekong delta, also known as the “Green Venice” of Vietnam. After visiting a brick factory in Phong Nam where bricks are still hand-made, step onto a boat for a cruise along the Chet Say river (one of the Mekong’s arms). You will make several stops along the way to discover different local workshops, allowing you to understand better the specialities of the local economy. The boat will then cross a small canal and stop at a small village, where you will continue your discovery of the delta by visiting a workshop specializing in carpet-weaving. You will even be able to try this activity yourself, before hopping in a xe loi (a kind of motorized rickshaw) or on a bicycle to wander around the village. You will see traditional farms, rice fields and vegetable plants, before stopping at a small local restaurant to taste a delicious (and generous) lunch made of regional specialties, such as “elephant-ear fish” and freshwater shrimps. In the afternoon you will get back on the sampan for some leisure time along the narrow canals. You will travel back to Ho Chi Minh City by car.

Meals included: Lunch
Level: 0
Distance & duration: 4 to 5 kilometers – 30 minutes cycling
Terrain: Good road, easy to ride
Transportation: Transfer by car – 90 kilometers – 2 hours

Day 10: Ho Chi Minh – Siem Reap
At good time, you will travel by car without guide to Ho Chi Minh City Airport for your flight to Siem Reap. Upon arrival, you will meet the local guide and driver then travel by car to the hotel for check in. The balance of day is free at your leisure.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Siem Reap

Check-out from the hotel at 12:00
Check-in at the hotel from 14:00

Day 11: Siem Reap
This morning, you will travel on a road surrounded by hundred years old’s huge trees. All of a sudden, it will appear a majestic stone door, enter Angkor Thom called “the big city”. Magically emerging from nowhere, admire the massive curious smiling faces carved in stone – the Bayon Temple, built around the 12th – 13th century. This amazing edifice is surrounded by 54 towers, each of them adorned with 4 faces. After visiting the Bayon temple, you will travel to the Baphuon, a temple mountain built in the 11th century, whose restoration, lead by French architects ended not so long ago. Then, admire the Terrace of the Elephants, which with its length of 350 meters, was used for royal audiences and public ceremonies. Continue your visit to the Terrace of the Leper King, built in the 12th century, covered by magnificent Apsara sculptings. In the afternoon, visit the most famous temple: Angkor Wat. Starting by the central aisle, you will realise soon how huge is it. The architectural achievement is also artistic, from the wonder of all the structure but also to the little details all over it. Finish the day by visiting Ta Prohm, a temple which has been eaten by the tropical nature.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Siem Reap

Distance: 36 kilometers – 30 minutes

Day 12: Siem Reap
Today is free at your leisure.

Meals included: Breakfast
Accommodation: Hotel in Siem Reap

Option: Visit Kompong Khleang village on Tonle Sap and enjoy a picnic lunch in a local house (Private)
In the morning, leave for Kompong Khleang, a village located 40 kilometers from Siem Reap. All the houses are on stilts offering an exceptional natural environment with breathtaking views. Depending on the season and the level of water, you will enjoy floodplains, rice fields and water as far as the eye can see or impressive stilted house. Travel by boat over the canals to a large lake where people live on the water, their houses moving with the rhythm of the seasons.
After lunch you will return to Siem Reap.

Meals included: Picnic lunch in a local house
Distance: 40 kilometers – 1 hour

Day 13: Siem Reap deaprture
At good time, you will travel by car without guide to Siem Reap Airport for your international flight.

Meals included: Breakfast
Room is at your disposal until noon time only

Excludes:
-Meals and drinks which are not mentioned in the program
-Tips & personal expenses. Personal insurance. Any services not clearly mentioned in the program.
-Domestic Flights

Offer Includes
Flights from London Heathrow with Qatar Airways
Airport taxes
12 nights accommodation as per itinerary
All local boat rental and cycling as mentioned in the program.
Cruise 1 night on non-private junk in Ha Long Bay.
Transfers in an air conditioned vehicle
All entrance fees and sightseeing as mentioned in the program.
Local English speaking guide(s) as Mentioned

Meal Plans
As per Itinerary