Vietnam heritage way with Sapa

Itinerary

1. Day 01

   HANOI – ARRIVAL – CITY TOUR Welcome to Hanoi, the Capita...
   HANOI – ARRIVAL – CITY TOUR Welcome to Hanoi, the Capital City of Vietnam! Our local guide will be welcoming you at Noi Bai airport; it takes us 35 minutes driving to the center of Hanoi. Check in hotel and have a short time to freshen up. Late afternoon, have an overall view of the capital by a “cyclo” visit, which will go through 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. Drop by at Ngoc Son Temple located on the Hoan Kiem Lake. ). End of the day, we will enjoy a unique fascinating show of Water Puppetry, a traditional stage art of Northern Vietnam. Overnight in Hanoi. Please note: The normal check in time is 14:00pm.  
2. Day 02

   HANOI CITY TOUR (B)
   Breakfast at hotel. 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. 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. Dinner by your own arrangement then transferred to Hanoi Railway Station for the night train to Lao Cai. Overnight on the train (sharing 4-berth Cabin with AC)  
3. Day 03

   LAO CAI – BAC HA MARKET – SAPA (B)
   Arrive at Lao Cai Station at 06.00. Picked-up by local guide and driver. Have breakfast at local restaurant. If today is Sunday nothing will be better than driving overland to a market of the hill tribal people, mainly from Flower Hmong ethnical group. We will drive toward Bac Ha. With a dozen of tribes living in the surroundings, including Flower Hmong, Chinese, Nhang, Dzao, Nung, Phu La, Thai and King (or Viet), the market is extremely exciting esp. in the early morning. The winding road to Bac Ha helps maintain the colours (in both literal and figurative sense) of the area. In this market, we can meet hundreds of beautiful women from Flower Hmong tribe, who are famous for their wonderful craft and hand-made flowering clothes and textile fabrics, or intermingle with people from Black Hmong, Dzay, Dzao and other ethnic groups coming to the market not for purchasing stuffs, but for meeting and chatting – just once a week - like in a real cultural center. After lunchtime (at your own cost), we can hike around or take our car heading to further hamlets in Ban Pho. Afternoon drive to Sapa. Overnight in Sapa.  
4. Day 04

   SAPA – DRAGON JAW MOUNTAIN – LAO CHAI – TA VA – TRAIN TO HANOI (B)
   After breakfast, stroll around with your guide to visit the Sapa town including the church, walking streets before climbing up to Ham Rong Mountain with unspoiled scenery and spectacular. At here, you can visit many kinds of colorful orchid garden from Indochina area. Passing two Heaven Gate, visitors will be arriving in the top of Ham Rong is called Pitch Cloud and have panoramic view of Sapa.  Afternoon go on to Lao Chai (10km from Sapa) and walk thru 3km to Tavan with stops at the villages of the tribal people Hmong, Tay and Dzay en route. Back to Sapa town. Then drive back to Lao Cai Station, take overnight train to Hanoi. Overnight on the train (sharing 4-berth Cabin with AC) Note: Around 4-5 hours walking/trekking in total.  
5. Day 05

   HANOI – HALONG BAY – OVERNIGHT ON CRUISE (B/L/D)
   Upon arrival in Hanoi, we will be picked-up at the Station and arrive in a mini hotel for Breakfast and a short relax before transferring to Halong Bay. At 9am, head east for 3 hours to Halong Bay, the pride of the Gulf of Tonkin, a Natural World Heritage as designated by UNESCO in 1994 and 2006. The road will pass by the Red River delta with green paddyfields and rural villages, where hard-work farmers are busy with their farming jobs, ploughing buffaloes or planting seedling. 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. 
6. Day 06

   HALONG – HANOI – FLIGHT TO HUE (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. Disembark the cruise and get transferred back to Hanoi then straight to Noi Bai Aiport for the flight to Hue. Upon arrival, picked up by the local tour guide, transfer to check in hotel. Overnight in Hue.  
7. Day 07

   FULL DAY SIGHTSEEING IN HUE (B)
   Breakfast at hotel. This morning, we will explore the old capital city of Hue before Hanoi took its role as the Capital nowadays. Being recognized by UNESCO as the 1st Cultural World Heritage for Vietnam, Hue is highlighted by the old royal architectural works and the most traditional Vietnamese lifestyle. We will discover the charm of the city from the Royal Citadel, Forbidden City, Hue Royal Museum. Go on having a boat trip on Perfume River to visit Thien Mu pagoda, the iconic of Hue city. Lunch at your own. In the afternoon, visit the Tombs of King Minh Mang and Khai Dinh – two important monuments of the Nguyen Emperors since early 19th and early 20th centuries with its unique beauty. Overnight in Hue.   
8. Day 08

   HUE – TRANSFER TO DA NANG – HOI AN – CITY TOUR (B)
   Have breakfast at hotel and check out. Transfer to Hoi An, an architectural combination of Vietnamese, Japanese and Chinese styles. The trip will take about more than 3-hour driving via Hai Van Pass (the “Ocean Cloudy Mountain Pass”), on the way stop to visit Marble Mountain.  Upon your arrival to Hoi An, check in hotel and then start to explore the beauty of the old town by walking over the tile-roofed Japanese Bridge, visiting taciturn Chinese Assembly Halls and Trading Houses, Hoi An museum, pagodas and strolling into the market located by Thu Bon river to discover this unique beauty. Overnight in Hoi An.   
9. Day 09

   HOIAN COOKING CLASS – MY SON SANCTUARY – HOIAN (B/L)
   Have breakfast at hotel. Today is your time for cooking class to learn more about the Vietnamese cuisine. Together with your tour guide, you will be transferred by boat trip to a local market to purchase the food. Here your guide will explain to you about the river life, traditional fishing methods as well as guide you how to choose the food for your lunch. After that, having a cooking less with our chief, on the floating restaurant. Enjoy your lunch and take a short rest. Afternoon, transfer to visit the religious centre of the former Champa Kingdom. My Son Sanctuary, 60km southwest of Hoi An, sits in a lush green valley with dozens of red brick towers and sanctuaries dating from the seventh through the thirteenth centuries. Your guide will take you through the museum and the holiest of sites before returning back to Hoian. Free at leisure in the afternoon for shopping. Overnight in Hoian.  
10. Day 10

    HOIAN – DANANG – SAIGON (B)
    After breakfast, check out and transferred to the airport for the flight to Saigon, the biggest City of Vietnam. Upon arrival, picked up by the local tour guide, then transferred to check in hotel. Afternoon, we start the city tour at the Reunification Palace, the witness of the fierce Vietnam War ended in 1975. The grand building today is a Museum and Hall of official receptions. Nearby the Palace are the colonial-styled Central Post Office and the Notre Dame Cathedral, built between 1877 and 1883 and one of the city’s major landmarks.  Have a walking tour on Nguyen Hue street to take the photos of the Opera House and the Ho Chi Minh Committee (outside). From here, walking to Ben Thanh Market one of the most typical symbol of Saigon to experience the daily life of the locals and do shopping the hand-made goods there. Overnight in Saigon.
11. Day 11

    SAIGON – MEKONG DELTA – SAIGON (B)
    After breakfast at hotel. Picked by at hotel and drive heading to My Tho the homeland of coconut and family factories with local products like coconut candy, rice paper,… Upon arrival, embark on the boat cruising on the mighty Mekong River viewing the life to the local people live along the banks. We stop at one of 4 island in the area for sightseeing. Enjoy the fresh tropical fruits served in the heart of the garden accompanied by traditional southern Vietnamese folk music at the plantation. After that you will embark on the small boats rowed the the local people thru the small cannels with water coconut tree to visit the local factories. There you will taste the honey tea and see the local people produce the coconut candy milk and of course you also can try it or stroll in the garden where the locals feed honeybee. After that enjoy the horse-cart trip through the tranquil road of the village. We continue getting on the big boat to visit the vast area. Afternoon, drive back to Saigon with stop to visit Vinh Trang pagoda, a famous pagoda in the area that its architecture is a mix of Chinese, Cambodian, and French culture. Overnight at hotel in Saigon. 
12. Day 12

    SAIGON – CU CHI TUNNELS - SAIGON (B)
    Morning visit Cu Chi Tunnels, one of the few remaining monuments to the Vietnam War. Beneath the ground lie 200 km of tunnels, dug by hand and inhabited by the forces of the Vietnamese guerillas during the conflict. At its peak, prior to the Tet Offensive in 1968, the tunnel complex was base to almost 10,000 troops. To this day, it remains one of the most impressive examples of how fierce the war used to be.  You even can try to crawl some dozens of m on the tunnel underground to have the real experience. Return to Saigon. Afternoon, your free time for shopping or own arrangment. Overnight in Saigon.  
13. Day 13

    SAIGON DEPARTURE (B)
    Breakfast at hotel. If your flight is in the  afternoon, you will have a half day more for the sightseeing and shopping before the departure till check out time and transfer to the airport for the departure flight back to your sweet home. End of our services. Please note: Hotel Check-out time is around 12.00.

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