Experience Vietnam like never before with this fascinating tour. Discover the impressive natural beauty of Halong Bay onboard a traditional Vietnamese junk, where limestone and dolomite islands rise jaggedly from the sea, to the tranquility and distinct European feel of Hanoi, famous for its lush parks and peaceful lakes. Continue through the heart of Vietnam and explore traditional handicraft villages, ancient pagodas and temples. Hoi An offers an exciting stop; this ancient town, influenced by Chinese and Japanese traders during the 16th century, retains much of its Chinese feel and original structures. Complete your tour in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon. This modern city is full of charm; from the wide boulevards and stately homes of the French Quarter to the outdoor food court of Ben Thanh Market and the mysterious Cho Lon, Saigon's China town, there is a wealth of cultural adventures to be had. Before returning home, spend a day cruising the Mekong Delta and visit a local family producing coconut candies. You will be whisked away by boat, plane and bus through the bustling cities and ancient towns of this charming country.

Package Includes

One way flight Hanoi to Hue

One way flight Danang to Ho Chih Minh City (Saigon)

Round trip airport to hotel transfers

10 nights accommodations

Day cruise Mekong Delta

Breakfast daily

English-speaking guide provided

All entrance fees

Total of 28 meals: 10 breakfasts, 9 lunches, and 9 dinners

Hotel taxes and service charges

Vacation Package Itinerary

Day 1: Depart USA

Day 2: Arrival Hanoi

Arrive Hanoi, the bustling capital of Vietnam, a fusion of Asian and French influences, and the seat of the Vietnamese Government. Hanoi a city of 2million people, is famous for it's lush parks and peaceful lakes. The city is divided into districts, many of which are named for a lake within the district. Hanoi is a pedestrian-friendly city where most vehicles are two-wheeled.

Upon arrival into Hanoi you will be greeted at the airport and transferred to your hotel
Welcome dinner at Dong Phuong restaurant

Accommodation in Hanoi (D)

Day 3: Hanoi - Hai Phong

Breakfast at the hotel

Morning city tour, visit: One-Pillared Pagoda (Mot Cot Pagoda), built in 1049 in the shape of a lotus flower. According to a legend, King Ly Thai To, who had no male offspring, once saw in a dream the goddess of compassion (Acalokitesvara) sitting on a lotus who handed a boy to him. The King later married a young peasant woman he had met by chance and a son was born to them. As a token of gratitude, he had the pagoda built and dedicated it to the goddess.

Ho Chi Minh's House-on-Stilts, which is located in the compound of the Presidential Palace. It is made from wood, in the style typical of the houses of mountain ethnic minorities. Next to the house are century old trees by the side of a beautiful lake. President Ho Chi Minh lived, worked, and held meetings here with top leaders from 1954 until he passed away in this house in September 1969.

Lunch at "Cha Ca Restaurant" for specialty of fish cake.

Proceed to Hai Phong, which is known as the city of flower-lined streets and is also the third largest city of Vietnam, after Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, and the second most important port in Vietnam.

Dinner at the hotel

Accommodation in Hai Phong (B,L,D)

Day 4: Hai Phong - Ha Long - Hanoi

Breakfast at the hotel

Transfer to Halong pier

Board a Junk Cruise from Cat Ba Island to Halong Bay, one of the most magnificent natural splendors of the far east, a UNESCO heritage site, which is made up of 1,969 islands of various sizes with limestone and schist caves. "Ha Long" means "where the dragon descends into the sea". From the emerald-green waters of Ha Long Bay some 3,000 limestone and dolomite islands rise jaggedly from the Gulf of Tonkin (the scales on a dragon's back). Local lore has it that an enormous dragon created the bay and outcroppings as it thrashed it's way toward the open sea to prevent the intrusion of enemy navies

Seafood Lunch onboard Cruise

Back to Hanoi

Dinner at Ha Hoi restaurant

Enjoy a Water Puppet Show, a traditional and unique Vietnamese Art. This highly entertaining form of theatre uses the water surface as a stage. Standing waist-deep in the water, the master puppeteers are hidden behind a bamboo screen. The technical virtuosity of the puppeteers is startling and the music enticing. The entire atmosphere is truly enchanting. Many of the brief episodes relate to scenes of daily life

Accommodation in Hanoi (B,L,D)

Day 5: Hanoi - Hue

Breakfast at the hotel

Morning visit to: Hoan Kiem Lake, which is considered the most beautiful lake in the city, with Ngoc Son Temple, which was built in the 19th century, dedicated to the god of literature, which is linked to the bank by a beautiful curved bridge called The Huc (morning sunshine)

One-hour cyclo tour around the 36 street old quarter.

Free time for shopping.

Lunch at "KOTO" (Know One Teach One) Restaurant, a restaurant and training school, created by Mr. Jimmy Pham to provide hospitality training for disadvantaged children in Hanoi.

Transfer to the airport for a flight to Hue, Vietnam's capital under the emperors of the Nguyen Dynasty from 1802 to 1945, and arguably the most beautiful city in Vietnam. The city's regal past can still be seen today inside the walls of the Citadel and the war-ravaged Forbidden City. Hue is also an important center of Buddhism. In Hue many pagodas were constructed more than 300 years ago. Hue is also a place where the royal music originated, and is noted for it's traditional dishes and sophisticated handicrafts.

Vietnam Airlines flight # 247 Hanoi to Hue 16:40 - 17:55.

Upon arrival into Hue you will be met and transferred to your hotel.

Visit to: The Palace of Princess Ngoc Son, the second daughter of King Dong Khanh, who ruled Vietnam from 1864 to 1889. The house with it's original scenery and where the family's original possessions remain give visitors a good idea of their way of life. A collection of documents and objects dating from the early 20th century provides further insight into life in Hue Under Vietnam's last dynasty.

Hosted Dinner with the family

Accommodation in Hue (B,L,D)

Day 6: Hue

Breakfast at the hotel

Boat trip on Perfume River to Thien Mu Pagoda (Heavenly Lady Pagoda), it's name came from a legend when the Lord Nguyen Hoang first settled in Hue, built the pagoda in 1601.

Imperial Citadel, which has a 10KM Perimeter, was built in 1804 by Emperor Gia Long (the first Nguyen emperor) on a site chosen by geomancers. It was originally made of earth, but during the first few decades of the 19th century, tens of thousands of workers labored to cover the ramparts, built in the style of French military architect Vauban, with a layer of bricks 2m thick.

Lunch at Club Garden restaurant

Emperor Khai Dinh's Tomb, the final monument of the Nguyen Dynasty. This complex features ceiling murals, frescoes, and a dragon staircase. Located on the slopes of the Chau E Mountain, six miles south of Hue, it took over 10 Years (1920 - 1931) to complete. this grandiose concrete tomb is a mixture of typical Vietnamese and French colonial architecture

Visit MINH TU Center for homeless children

One-hour cyclo ride in Hue

Dinner at Vuon Xinh restaurant

Accommodation in Hue (B,L,D)

Day 7: Hue - Da Nang - Hoi An

Breakfast at the hotel

Depart for Da Nang, one of the biggest American military bases in the 1960's with the famous China beach via Hai Van Pass, which offers stupendous views of the surrounding countryside, to Danang, a seaport of endless stretches of unspoiled sandy beach midway between Hanoi to the North and Ho Chi Minh to the South. The city was the center of civilization of the Champa Kingdom, a kingdom that flourished in the area as early as the 2nd century A.D.

Upon arrival to Da Nang, visit: Cham Museum. Located in the center of Danang, this museum houses appealing stone sculptures (from the 4th-14th centuries) of Vishnu, Shiva, and other Gods of the Cham Empire.

Lunch at Dai Thong restaurant

Proceed to Hoi An Old Town, which lies on the banks of the Thu Bon River. Occupied by early Western traders, Hoi An was one of the major trading centers of Southeast Asia in the 16th century. More than five centuries ago the Vietnamese nation of Dai Viet expanded it's kingdom of Champa, which covered much of what is now central Vietnam. Hoi An emerged when Japanese and Chinese traders built a commercial district there in the 16th century. Hoi An still has a distinct Chinese atmosphere with low, tile-roofed houses and narrow streets; the original structure of some of these streets still remains almost intact. The houses were made of rare wood, decorated with lacquered boards and panels engraved with Chinese characters. Pillars were also carved with ornamental designs.

At leisure on the beach

Dinner at Pho Hoi II restaurant

Accommodations in Hoi An (B,L,D)

Day 8: Hoi An

Breakfast at the hotel

Morning walking tour of through old Hoi An, visit Phung Hung Ancient House, which used to be a shop-house of the former merchants, a city house of special value built in the middle of the 19th century.

Museum of Hoi An, also the pagoda of Quan Yin, a religious construction built in 1653, contains photographs and many precious artifacts such as maps, statues, porcelain, ceramic, scales, anchor, jar burials, family records, etc. It is the very place one should visit first in old Hoian.

Kwan Kung Temple, was built in the middle of the 17th century to worship Kwan Kung, the most famous general of the "Three States" time (in Chinese history) who is the resplendent symbol of morality: faith, loyalty, frankness, righteousness.

Japanese Covered Bridge, which was built in the 16th century, with a Japanese pagoda to protect the sailors on the northern side, the statues of two dogs at the western end, and two monkeys at the eastern end.

Hoi An Market, and Workshop of Traditional Handicrafts.

Lunch at Han Huyen Floating restaurant

In the afternoon enjoy a Special Hand-made Tour. Hoi An is not only famous for the charm of an ancient town and the mixing culture of Vietnam, China, and Japan, but also for handy-made products. You will have a chance to Make a Hoi An Lantern by yourself.

Dinner at White Lantern Restaurant

Accommodations in Hoi An (B,L,D)

Day 9: Hoi An - Saigon

Breakfast at the hotel

Transfer to Da Nang airport for your flight to Ho Chi Minh City, the largest city in Vietnam with a population of nearly 6 million, is not only a commercial center but also an industrial, cultural, scientific, technological, and tourist center; and is the second most important city in Vietnam after Hanoi. Incomes here are typically twice that of Hanoi and the city's skyline is rapidly changing, reflecting the sharp influx of foreign trade within the last decade. The central city area is still called Saigon.

Vietnam Airlines flight #321 Da Nang to Saigon 08:20 - 09:30.

Upon arrival into Saigon you will be met and transferred to your hotel

City Orientation Tour including visits to: Notre' Dame Cathedral, a magnificent building located in the heart of the city, built in a French style between October 1877 and April 1880 at a cost of 2.5 million French francs. The Central Post Office, a French-style building with it's glass canopy and iron frame right next to the Notre Dame Cathedral. The structure was built between 1886 and 1891 and is by far the largest post office in Vietnam. City Hall, completed in 1908, also known as "Hotel de Ville" at the northern end of Nguyen Hue Boulevard Opera house.

Lunch at Cool restaurant

Afternoon free for shopping at Ben Thanh market

Dinner at Dai Khanh restaurant

Accommodations in Saigon (B,L,D)

Day 10: Saigon - Mekong Delta

Breakfast at the hotel

Depart Saigon for a scenic morning drive to Ben Tre Province in Mekong Delta.

Embarking on board and Cruising on Mekong River to visit a local family producing coconut candies, tasting some tropical fruits grown in the region.

Take a Horse Cart to Quoi Son to visit a bee farm, have a cup of hot tea mixed with bee honey and lemons at a local farmers house. Travel by boat to Con Qui island for lunch and enjoy a local music performance. You will be picked up by boat to return to the main town of My Tho, visit Vinh Trang Pagoda if time permits.

Return to Saigon in the late afternoon

Visit China Town with the 150-year-old Thien Hau Chinese Temple, dedicated to a sea goddess

Dinner at Chateau restaurant

Accommodations in Saigon (B,L,D)

Day 11: Saigon - Cu Chi - Tay Ninh - Saigon

Breakfast at the hotel

Depart for Cu Chi Tunnels, located about 25 miles from Ho Chi Minh City in an area that was controlled by the Vietcong through it's now legendary system of tunnels. At the height of the war, the tunnels stretched from Saigon to the Cambodian border. In Cu Chi District alone there were over 155 miles of tunnels, some several stories deep. This district is known nationwide as the base where the Vietnamese mounted their operations of the Tet Offensive in 1968.

Family visit to a farmer's home, where refreshments and snacks are served. This is a local family that makes it's living out of producing the Rice-Paper, the outside wrap around for spring rolls. While here, you can take an inner look at the owner's house, including kitchen, living room, and bedrooms.

Proceed to Tay Ninh Province, the center of the Cao Dai Religion, which includes and unifies elements of christianity, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Islam and a number of other religions. The religion worships as saints such different characters as the Hindu deity Brahma and Sir Winston Churchill, Moses and the French author Victor Hugo. The religion was founded in the 1920's by a Vietnamese government official, Ngo Van Chieu. The most important cathedral of the religion is the Great Cao Dai Temple. Apart from the cathedral, the complex includes a number of other buildings, among them a school. All buildings are painted pastel yellow. The cathedral is built in a style mixing oriental and European elements. Women and men have to enter the cathedral by different portals.

Attend the Mass at Cao Dai Holy Shrine at noon

Lunch at Trang Bang for specialty of noodle soup

Return to Saigon

Visit to Tay Son Lacquer-ware Factory, to learn how this famous traditional Vietnamese product is made and to see examples of finished products.

Dinner at the Blue Ginger restaurant

Accommodations in Saigon (B,L,D)

Day 12: Saigon Departure

Breakfast at the hotel

Morning at leisure

Transfer to Saigon's Tan Son Nhut airport for your return flight home
(B)