DAY BY DAY JOURNEY
Day 1: Arrive Hanoi
Upon arrival at Hanoi Airport your guide will greet you at the arrival gate holding a signboard with your name, and escort you to your awaiting vehicle for a private transfer to your hotel. After check-in to the hotel the balance of the day is at leisure.
Day 2: Hanoi
Start your morning sightseeing with private guide and vehicle by visiting the Ho Chi Minh Memorial Complex. Continue to the miniature 11th century One Pillar Pagoda that was rebuilt after being destroyed by the French in 1954. Walk through the Old Quarter, a fascinating network of narrow alleys and shop houses also known as ‘The 36 Streets’ – each street being named after the merchandise traditionally sold there. This evening enjoy a taste of Hanoian life on a street food tour with your private guide as you explore a local market and some of the city’s best street food stalls. If you’re feeling brave you can venture to the exotic section to see kicking frogs, silkworms and wriggling eels. End the tour with a cold draft beer at a sidewalk stall popular with locals. (B,L)
Day 3: Hanoi to Halong
After breakfast, depart Hanoi and transfer by road to Halong Bay, considered Vietnam’s eighth wonder of the world. Three thousand spectacular chalk and limestone outcroppings, cliffs, arches, and coves form a dragon’s tail across the bay. Board your ship and enjoy a welcome drink followed by a delicious Vietnamese buffet lunch while cruising in beautiful Halong Bay. Transfer to visit Dark and Bright Lagoon by rowboat and anticipate the chance to see a Cat Ba langur, one of the rarest langurs left. Return to the ship for a cooking demonstration followed by dinner on board. Afterward relax in your cabin or join the fishing program. (B,L,D)
Day 4: Halong to Hue
Start off your day with a Tai Chi lesson on the sundeck with complimentary tea and coffee being served. Rejuvenate your body and mind with the slow movement of Tai Chi and enjoy the dawn on the Bay, after which a light breakfast is served on board. The boat weighs anchor to sail to Cua Van floating village, which is visited by traditional rowboat or kayaking yourself there then back to the cruise. Enjoy brunch while the boat cruises back to port. Disembark late morning and transfer by private vehicle directly to Hanoi Airport for your flight to Hue. Upon arrival, your guide will escort you by private vehicle to your hotel. (B)
Day 5: Hue to Hoi An
Explore Hue today with your private guide and vehicle. Built in 1601, the Thien Mu Pagoda (“Heavenly Lady Pagoda”) is one of the oldest and prettiest religious buildings in the country. Among the many interesting artifacts housed there is the car that took the monk Thich Quang Duc to his self-immolation in 1963 Saigon. In the heart of Hue is the Imperial Citadel, a vast complex built in the early 19th century and modeled after the Forbidden City of Peking. Today, most of the buildings have been destroyed due to bombing during the Vietnam-American War, but the monuments that remain provide a fascinating glimpse into the court life of the Nguyen Dynasty. Later, journey from Hue to Hoi An, over scenic mountainous roads with spectacular views over the coastline. (B)
Day 6: Hoi An
This morning, enjoy a walking tour of Hoi An Ancient Town with your private guide. See the iconic Japanese Covered Bridge; first constructed on this site in 1593. Visit the nearby Sa Huynh Museum and the Tran Family Chapel, a house for worshiping ancestors that was built about 200 years ago. Tour the Phuoc Kien Assembly Hall, a Chinese pagoda built around 1690. Finally, visit a lantern making workshop. The framework for the lanterns is made beforehand and you can observe locals adorning silk cloth on the lanterns. Hoi An is filled with shops, boutiques, tailors, cafes and restaurants and the afternoon is free to enjoy this charming town on your own. (B)
Day 7: Hoi An to Saigon
Transfer to Da Nang Airport and fly to Saigon. Upon arrival transfer by private vehicle to your hotel. This afternoon visit the former Viet Cong-Cu Chi tunnels 25 miles northwest of Ho Chi Minh City. The 250 km of tunnels make up an impressive underground network. It was from here that the North Vietnamese waged their guerrilla warfare, and you’ll see the secret trapdoors, underground kitchens, living areas and meeting rooms. The more adventurous may explore the deeper level tunnels and the less adventurous can view excavated areas from above. (B)
Day 8: Saigon
Meet your driver, hop on the Vespa and visit Tao Dan Park to observe locals as they show off their singing birds (mornings only), followed by a stop at the Thich Quang Duc Memorial, a local flower market and funeral home. Pass by a special pagoda called “Ten Thousand Buddha” where 10,000 statues of Buddha and ashes of the dead are worshiped. Stop by the Post Office, the Opera House, the Cathedral of Notre Dame and the remarkable Reunification Palace. Drive down Dong Khoi Street (which means “people’s revolution”) to see the place where, in 1975, during the dying days of the former regime, an iconic photograph was taken of a helicopter lifting people out of Saigon. Afternoon at leisure. (B)
Day 9: Saigon to Siem Reap
Discover the architecture of Saigon on your morning walk, from beautifully preserved colonial-era buildings to modernist steel and glass skyscrapers. Start along Nguyen Hue Street, at the end of which is the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Building set in beautiful flowering gardens. Built in 1909 this elegant colonial building started life as the Hôtel de Ville. Take photos of the iconic Saigon Opera House built by the French in 1898. Buy stamps at the colonial Central Post Office and photograph the vaulted ceilings, arched windows and wooden shutters. Carry on to the former president’s palace, renamed as the Reunification Hall after the merger of North and South Vietnam in 1976. It has been preserved as it was when famously stormed by tanks on April 30, 1975 signifying the fall of South Vietnam. Finally, arrive at the futuristic Bitexco Financial Tower, the tallest building in Saigon with 68 floors. This afternoon transfer to Saigon Airport and fly to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Your guide will take you by private vehicle to your hotel. (B)
Day 10: Siem Reap
Angkor Wat is stunning at any time of the day, but sunrise and sunset are especially beautiful times to watch the play of light on the stones. Arise early to see the sunrise over this magnificent temple with your private guide and vehicle and for wonderful photo opportunities. The crown jewel of Khmer architecture, Angkor Wat, is the national symbol and the highlight of any visit to Cambodia. Afterwards, visit the fortified city of Angkor Thom. Enclosed by a wall and wide moats, the city includes many of Angkor’s most popular sights. The next stop is Ta Prohm, one of the most popular attractions of Angkor, as much of the jungle has not been cleared and looks very much as most of the Angkor monuments would have appeared when European explorers first stumbled across them. Finish the day at Preah Khan Temple. (B)
Day 11: Siem Reap
This morning, venture by Quad Bike into the Cambodian countryside, passing many villages along the way and lovely natural surroundings. Visit an orphanage and a school then continue to a Cambodian monastery. Note: drivers are available to accompany for those not comfortable riding by themselves. This afternoon visit Banteay Srei, a 10th century Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva. The buildings themselves are miniature in scale, unusually so when measured by the standards of Angkorian construction. These factors have made the temple extremely popular with tourists, and have led to its being widely praised as the “jewel of Khmer art.” This evening it’s off to the circus! The famous young and talented artists of the Phare Ponleu Selpak group have now come to Siem Reap Angkor. Their unique and poetic show, mixing traditional and modern theater, music, dance, acrobatics, juggling and contortion beautifully choreographed and energetically performed shows a story about Cambodian contemporary life in an ever-changing society. (B)
Day 12: Siem Reap
Today, learn about Cambodian cuisine and culture with an enthusiastic and talented team of local chefs at an organic farm, and enjoy picking your own fresh ingredients from the soil. The farm specializes in heirloom varietals of seasonal fruits and vegetable such as tomatoes, cucumber, squash, spring beans, eggplant, local lettuce, etc. Fresh and flavorful ingredients are lovingly cultivated without the use of hormones, synthetic fertilizers, or pesticides to ensure daily supply to the kitchen. (B)
Day 13: Depart Siem Reap
After breakfast, transfer with your guide from your hotel to Siem Reap Airport for your departure flight.(B)
