Northern Vietnam Exploration

Itinerary

1. Day 01

   HANOI ARRIVAL – STREET FOOD TOURWelcome to Hanoi, the Capi...
   HANOI ARRIVAL – STREET FOOD TOURWelcome to Hanoi, the Capital City of Vietnam! Upon arrival at Noi Bai International Airport, you will be picked up by our driver. It takes us 35 minutes driving to the center of Hanoi. Check in hotel and have a short time to freshen up. Late afternoon, gear up for your trip by exploring Vietnamese cuisine through a street foodie tour. Strolling around the 36 ancient streets in the Old Quarter with your local guide, you will be introduced and savor the different tastes of the local foods such as Papaya salad with peanut and dry beef, spring roll, paper roll with coconut and molasses, sweet soup, dry cake, sticky rice with ice cream or authentic “PHO” or noodle soup. End of the trip, sip a cup of hot coffee with flavor of egg or green been at a long history local café shop. Return to your hotel and stay overnight in Hanoi. Please note: The normal check in time is 14:00pm. Night activities suggestion: enjoy local beer at Ta Hien Streets, experience the ambience of sleepless street with life music, the young people of Hanoi and also foreign tourists. Hundreds of bars and pubs in the Old Quarter are also at your disposal. Or just simple spend your time at shopping malls or various boutique Shops. Please note: Standard check in time is 14:00  
2. Day 02

   HANOI CITY TOUR (B/L)
   Today, we will start our city tour from the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, his simple house-on-stilts and the One-Pillar pagoda near Ba Dinh Square, where the most solemn ceremonies of Hanoi take place. Go on to the Temple of Literature, the very first high school of Vietnam Scholars and a temple dedicated Confucius. Have lunch at the local restaurant. In the afternoon, we will move on to the Museum of Ethnology, where you can find an excellent full collection of 54 ethnic groups living in Vietnam and wonderful implications of artifacts and patterns from their traditional handicrafts and clothes. Continue the trip to picturesque West Lake to visit Tran Quoc Pagoda, the oldest pagoda in Hanoi built from 6th Century. Late afternoon, visit Ngoc Son Temple and Hoan Kiem Lake. From here walking in the Old Quarter – the fascinating network of narrow alleys and shop houses also known as ‘The 36 Streets’ – each street being named after the merchandise traditionally sold there, ranging from fabrics to crafts and from medicines to tombstones. Transfer back to your hotel. Overnight in Hanoi. Please note: The Museum of Ethnology is closed on Monday so if your tour is on Monday, you will visit Bat Trang Ceramic Village outskirt of Hanoi instead of the Museum. Optional for evening show (quoted separately): -    My Village Show -    Quintessence of Tonkin Show  
3. Day 03

   HANOI – TAM COC – HOA LU - HANOI (B/L/-)
   A 90km drive south of Hanoi will lead you to Ninh Binh, the site of the one capital city of ancient Vietnam before Hanoi took its leading role in 11th century. The area is featured by lots of well-known sceneries, which include Tam Coc Caves and Hoa Lu ancient capital with the old temples dedicated to King Dinh & King Le reigned in 10th century. The visit in Ninh Binh starts by a boat trip in Tam Coc where spectacular limestone karsts jut out from the green paddy fields reminding about Guilin (China) and Halong Bay of Vietnam, which gives this scenery the name “Halong-bay-on-land”. Your lunch will be served at the local restaurant. After lunch continue the discovery in Ninh Binh with a cycling trip. You will pedal along the scenic village roads to explore the rice fields, limestone mountains and have a chance to chat with the local people.  Afternoon drive back to Hanoi, en route stop to visit Hoa Lu, featured with the two temples dedicated to King Dinh and King Le. Overnight in Hanoi.  
4. Day 04

   HANOI – PU LUONG – WATER WHEELS WALK AND RAFTING (B/L/D)
   Pick up and transfer from your hotel in Hanoi to Pu Luong retreat. In the morning, you enter Pu Luong Nature Reserve by road via a breath taking mountain pass giving you a panoramic view of the whole valley. You arrive at your accommodation in time for a delicious lunch, followed by free time to explore the beautiful retreat, with its captivating panoramic views and tranquil setting. Vietnamese set menu lunch at the retreat.  In the afternoon, you will be transferred to a suspension bridge over the Cham River, where you begin your walk in search of stunning water wheels. Get up close to each wheel and discover how water is moved from river to handmade bamboo aqueducts via simple constructions of all sizes. Arriving at a local fisherman’s house, you have a short rest to gear up for the rafting adventure with Dinh and his team. Float along the calm river and enjoy the views, in between learning how to paddle and steer your handcrafted rafts. Arriving at scenic Tan Lap Bridge, you disembark to be transferred back to Pu Luong Retreat for dinner. Overnight in Pu Luong.   
5. Day 05

   ENTHRALLING TREKKING ROUTES (B/L/D)
   Breakfast at the retreat. We start early in the morning to descend into the beautiful valley facing the Retreat where you walk around tumbling rice terraces. Trek through small paths shrouded in vegetation to slowly reveal a picturesque village sitting at the base of a towering mountain. Your camera will not be able to sit still! Continuing to the base of the valley, you weave between roads and farm land, villages and wild fields, ponds and rivers, mountains and open land. Savour the ever-changing scenery as you trek to a beautiful spot to enjoy a simple picnic lunch. After enjoying delicious food, you have your free afternoon to explore the refreshing water to the nearby river, before moving to pick up point to be transferred back to the Retreat for dinner.  Overnight in Pu Luong.    
6. Day 06

   VILLAGE LIFE AND THE COMMUNITY – PU LUONG – HANOI (B/L/-)
   Breakfast at the retreat.  You have the chance to get close to village life and interact with locals living in the hills above the Retreat. Glimpse at daily life, walk around working farmland and rice fields, and learn about making weaving colorful textiles, followed by lunch at the Lodge. Check out the Lodge in the afternoon and transfer back to your hotel in Hanoi.  Overnight in Hanoi.
7. Day 07

   HANOI - HALONG - OVERNIGHT ON BOARD (B/L/D)
   After breakfast, head East for more than 3 hours to Halong Bay, the pride of the Gulf of Tonkin, a Natural World Heritage as designated by UNESCO in 1994 and 2006. Upon arrival in Halong, check in the overnight cruise to discover the magnificent beauty of this “Descending-dragon” bay, created by thousands odd-shaped limestone rocks and karst grottoes. After a lunch on board, we can visit the Grottos, stop for swimming or kayaking, passing floating houses and approach islets to enjoy their beauty in close distance. Back to the cruise, enjoy cooking demonstration before having dinner. Evening attend activities on the boat or relax at your own leisure. Overnight on the cruise.  Please note the program may be little varied upon the cruise you choose. 
8. Day 08

   HALONG – HANOI (B/Brunch/-)
   You should wake up early to enjoy the dawn on the sea in the early morning. The Vietnamese call the "East Sea" by a point-oriented name "Eastern Sea", so you may guess how miraculous seeing the sunrise over the islets of the Bay. After breakfast our boat will continue to cruise in marvelous areas, where almost each islet has its own name, adopting its shape or reminiscent like Sail Island, Fisherman’s head rock, Butterfly rock or Turtle islet etc. Check out your room and have brunch on board while the cruise coming back the pier. Transfer overland to Hanoi. Check in hotel. Your time at leisure. Overnight in Hanoi.  
9. Day 09

   HANOI – DEPARTURE (B)
   Breakfast at the hotel. Check out the hotel. Picked up by driver and transfer to the airport for the departure flight back to your sweet home or extending some days for beach relax or sightseeing at other cities.  Please note: The normal check out time is 12:00pm.

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