Journey Through Vietnam & Cambodia – 20 Days

This morning, we meet tour guide and driver at the lobby of the hotel and transfer 60 Km to the west of Hanoi to visit Duong Lam Ancient village. This is the first ancient village recognised as a national relic by the Ministry of Culture and Information in Vietnam. It has a history of about 1,200 years with many houses dating back up to 400 years. One special thing about the village is that most of the buildings here are made of laterite and mud, two materials that are abundant in the area. Laterite is used on house walls, gates, wells, temple walls, and so forth. The mud is taken from ponds. Apart from its historical and tourism values, Duong Lam ancient village is an important place for scientists to study resident communities in ancient agriculture. The village gate, banyan, well, communal house are important factors in classifying Duong Lam ancient village.

On arrival, we will walk along the tine ancient alleys, meet and talk over a cup of green tea with the local in the ancient house. We will then visit Mong Phu Temple, the only hamlet whose original village entrance gate remains intact.

Then, we return back to Hanoi and visit the Temple of Literature, which originally built as a temple to Confucius. Later this afternoon, we enjoy 1-hour cyclo tour of the French inspired “old quarter”. We will be free for shopping in the old quarter ranges from markets through to designer boutique stores to amazing contemporary art galleries. After the tour, we sit down to enjoy a performance of the city’s famous Water Puppets. Dinner will be a light dinner with Vietnamese Bread or Pho.

*Note:

• Kindly note this day, we will start around 9:00 am and embark on the train at 9:00 pm so please prepare your health for a long day.
• With your luggage, please separate into 2 parts. The unnecessary part, you can leave at Hanoi Hotel because we will return to the hotel after all. You can bring the main luggage to Sapa with enough supplies for 3 days here.
• We chose a 4-berth cabin for this booking. If you want to upgrade to a 2-berth cabin, please request and I will give you the surcharge cost for it. With a group of 2 people, you will share the cabin with other people.

Overnight on train
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After the train arrives at 6 am, our guide will pick you up at Lao Cai Station and we will transfer to Sapa in around 1 hour. When you arrive in Sapa, we will eat breakfast here before starting our trip. After breakfast, we transfer to Cat Cat village. After a couple of minutes, you follow the steps going downhill to Cat Cat village. You will stop by a waterfall and a hydroelectric station for a while before continuing the trek on a dirt trail through rice paddy terraces. You also will enjoy spectacular scenery while walking along a narrow river. You eventually arrive in Y Linh Ho village of the Black Hmong minority, where you can take a rest while you are served lunch nearby the river.

After lunch, you head toward Muong Hoa valley. You will pass through the Lao Chai village of the Black Hmong minority and then the Tavan village of the Giay minority by following a very popular trekking route. You will return to Sapa from Tavan by car.

Approx: 0,5-hour driving / 5 hours walking / 1-hour lunch.
Overnight in Sapa
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch (local restaurant)

After breakfast at the hotel, you will be free until we check out hotel at 12 p.m. and go to the restaurant for lunch. After lunchtime, we take a 4-minute Mountain Train through valleys, viaducts, and tunnels offering beautiful views of surrounding villages as well as nature. Reaching the Cable Car station, we get off the train and enjoy another 20-minute cable car ride up to the top. Normally, it takes at least two or three days to reach the Peak of Fansipan Mountain on foot. However, with the new three-rope cable car system, we can see the peak and spectacular surroundings from the peak within half a day.

After 3 cable cars, we enjoy the spectacular scenery of Hoang Lien Mountain and the lush forest, We walk down to the cable car station and ride back. Take the Mountain Train back to town. Lunch will be served before the tour. We transferred to Lao Cai Station for the night train back to Hanoi. The train will embark at 9:30 pm. Dinner will be on your own account.

Overnight in Sapa
Meals: Breakfast

This morning will be free until our limousine pick you up at 2:30 pm and we will transfer back to Hanoi in the next 6 hours.

Overnight in Hanoi
Meals: Breakfast

Morning
07:45 – 08:30 The shuttle bus will pick you up from the hotel and we transfer to Halong Bay in 3-hours
11:45 – 12:00 Boarding our boat at Tuan Chau Port – enjoy welcome drink, receive cruise briefing and safety instructions.

Afternoon
13.15 – 14.00 After the welcome onboard, be served with lunch while cruising towards the bay. Massage service is available after lunch and throughout the cruise. Please book in advance with your Cruise Manager.
14.00 – 16.00 Cruise through Halong Bay, passing the most beautiful and quiet areas including Incense Burner, Dog Stone Islet, Fighting Cock, Finger Islet.
16.00 Guests are transferred by tender to Titov Island. About one hour is spent on the island, allowing time to climb to the peak for a breathtaking 360 degree view of the Bay (there is also an expansive viewing deck half way up). After the climb, there is time left to relax on the beach and have a swim.
17.30 Depart and sail for about 30 minutes to anchor overnight.

Evening
18.30 – 19.00 Attend the Fruit and Vegetable Carving Lesson led by our Head Chef. During the lesson, the chef will conduct Fruit and Vegetable carving, showing the guests how we decorate and make some traditional Vietnamese food.
19.30 Dinner is served.
20.45 Evening activities. Board games like cards or Parcheesi are available, as well as massage service (massage service is available throughout the cruise). Also, everyone can try their luck at squid fishing on the boat with help from the crew.
23.00 End of Program for Day 1

Overnight on board
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Morning
06.30   Coffee, tea and breakfast pastries served in the dining room.
06.45   Enjoy Tai Chi lesson on the sundeck (lasting for about 30 minutes).
07.45 – 09.00 Arrive at Surprise Cave – one of the most spectacular and largest grottoes of Halong Bay. The mouth of the grotto is reached by ascending about a hundred stone steps.
09.00   Upon returning to the boat, guests will have 30 minutes to freshen up and finish packing. Please collect all of your belongings from the cabins and leave heavy luggage outside the cabins (staff will transfer directly to the pier).
09.30   Enjoy a full breakfast in the dining room. Bills are settled after breakfast. Relax on the sundeck or in the dining room enjoying the bay scenery as we approach the pier.
11.00   Arrive at Tuan Chau port, relax inside the pier building while waiting for return transportation.
11.30   Return back to Hanoi for the flight to Hue. On your arrival, our car will pick you up at the ariport and transfer to hotel in Hue for accommodation

Overnight in Hue
Meals: Breakfast, Brunch

Pick up at hotel at 8:30 AM, we will board the Dragon Boat on the romantic Perfume River heading out for the countryside. Being the ancient capital, Hue is surrounded with ancient tombs of emperors past, and a visit to the most beautiful tombs will be on the itinerary for today. The charming Lady Pagoda (Thien Mu Pagoda) will be the first stop of the day. We will enjoy a great view on the Perfume River and surrounding area. Thien Mu Pagoda is considered the symbol of Hue, and of Buddhism in Vietnam. From here, we rejoin our van and go visit King Khai Dinh’s Tomb or King Tu Duc’s Tomb.

In the afternoon, we visit the Imperial Citadel where the Nguyen Dynasty ruled between 1802 and 1945, after exploring the ruins of this wonderful monument. We will then depart to the Hue Royal Fine Art Museum, which is housed within the former Dien Long An Royal Palace. We will finish our day with the local Dong Ba Market to see the daily life of local people. Overnight in Hue

These are the famous Hue Street foods that you should know and try in Hue City:

• Banh Uot – Grilled Pork Wrapped with Hue Wet Rice Paper
• Coffee Viet – black or with condensed milk
• Che – Sweet Soup
• Bun Bo Hue – Hue Beef Vermicelli Soup
• Banh Khoai – Hue Fried Pancake
• Cha Hue– Hue Sausage
• Banh Loc – Filtered Tapioca Dumplings
• Banh Ram It – Fried dumpling topped with Sticky Rice Dumpling
• Nem Lui – Grilled Ground Pork on Stick.
• Me Xung – Sesame candy
• Bun Thit Nuong – Grilled Pork Vermicelli
• Banh Beo – Steamed Rice Discs Topped with Shrimp

Overnight in Hue
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch (Local Foods)

After breakfast at the hotel, we travel by vehicle to Hoi An along scenic highway 1A. Along the way, we will stop to contemplate the stunning views North, to Lang Co Beach and South to Danang city. On arrival in Danang, we will have a brief visit at the Marble Mountain – the five elements of the Universe (water, wood, air, fire and earth). We arrive Hoi An in the afternoon and will have a walking tour in here to visit the Japanese Covered Bridge, the Pottery Museum, Tan Ky’s old house, the Cantonese congregation, the silk street of Hoi An, and the temples, and pagodas of Chinese appearance. After the tour, we transfer back to hotel in Hoi An for relax or you can have free time in the old quarter

Overnight in Hoi An
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch (Local Foods)

This morning, we start the cooking class tour by a welcome drink at Hai Café. Then, we visit Hoi An’s colorful main market, and experience its amazing sights, sounds and aromas. We will have an opportunity to interact with the local sellers, to see and taste the wonderful variety of foods on display.

After that, we arrive at Cooking School and have a chance to freshen up before beginning our class. Working together with our Chef we learn the traditional ways of preparing and cooking Vietnamese food from scratch. On arrival, we explore the cooking school’s herb and vegetable garden, before learning about some of Hoi An’s and Vietnam’s best-known dishes.

The cooking lesson runs for about 2 hours – each dish is first demonstrated by our chef, before we prepare the same dish ourselves. The class will include a brief introduction to Vietnamese food carving (plate decoration). After the lesson, we sit down and eat exactly what we have cooked. We will finish at approximately 12.30 pm – transfer back to central Hoi An arriving approximately 1.00pm

Recipes (our food contains no MSG):

*Vegetarians are provided with replacement ingredients.

1. Making fresh Rice paper
2. Fresh Rice Paper Rolls of Shrimp
3. Crispy Hoi An Pancakes with Shrimp, Herbs & a Peanut Sauce
4. Seafood Salad with Tra Que Herbs
5. Mi Quang Chicken Noodles
6. Food Decoration – Tomato Rose & Vietnamese Cucumber Hand Fan

* Lunch includes the above meals as well as:

1. BBQ Lemongrass Beef (not included in the demonstration)

Overnight in Hoi An
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Today, we will spend all day enjoying one of the most livable cities in Vietnam. You can spend time lying on the beach and enjoy some delicious seafood in some local restaurants here.

Overnight in Hoi An
Meals: Breakfast

This morning we transfer to Danang airport for a short flight to Ho Chi Minh City. On arrival at Tan Son Nhat airport in Ho Chi Minh City, welcome up on arrival by local tour guide and driver then we transfer to hotel. After check-in, we visit all the highlights in Ho Chi Minh City such as the Reunification Palace, a palace of old President in South of Vietnam during the American war; Notre Dame Cathedral and Old Post Office, the tw                  o sites that we can’t ignore when we visit the city.

We then head to the center to do shopping at famous Ben Thanh market, this bustling and well-organized market is very popular with tourists, primarily due to its central location. It has a wide selection of goods ranging from fake Nike shoes to beautiful silk Ao Dai. Our free evening activities should be: walking around at the night market in Ben Thanh market area; explore the highest building in Ho Chi Minh City, Bitexco….

Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City
Meals: Breakfast

We pick you up at the hotel after breakfast and transfer you to Cai Be. The program will start with a visit to Tan Phong Island for biking/walking on village paths to see the local daily life: orchard, school, church, pagoda, traditional houses… On the way, we can have some stops to see how they wave the dried water hyacinth to make many products: baskets, bags, hats, wallets, and shoes…

Then, the rowing boat will take you deeper into the countryside on smaller canals to enjoy a peaceful time. Next, we back to our boat to go across one of the longest rivers in the world, the Mekong River, to come to An Bình Island. While we travel on a handmade canal to homestay, we can walk around this orchard & enjoy some cups of tea while listening to the traditional music in the ancient house.

After that, we walk into the local village to visit the local workshop to see how to make rice paper, coconut candy, pop-rice and enjoy some sweets with a cup of hot tea. It’ll give you an unforgettable experience. One more thing to do on this trip is visiting the brick kilns where you can see how the local people create beautiful potteries from clay. The cruise transfers us back to Vinh Long city where we take our own vehicle to Can Tho and spend our night here.

Overnight in Can Tho
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Early morning today, we will take the boat trip to visit the famous Cai Rang Floating Market with the busy sense right at the time. This is a biggest floating market in Mekong Delta where we can see the daily life and local people selling their products on boats. If the time permits, we can visit Binh Thuy Ancient House here. After that, you will be back to the hotel and have free time until check out. At noon, we will head back to Ho Chi Minh City and have lunch en-route. Arrive at our hotel in the afternoon and have free time at leisure.

We are picked up by Vespa driver at 6 PM and drive to meeting happy point at Cafes Zoom where we enjoy welcome drink and snack. Here, we are also be top models when the Vespa Adventure staff takes us many nice photos and send to us after the tour.

We start our tour once the sun disappears in the west; the drivers drive us around the big streets to small streets and we can see all the daily nightlife of local people. Then we stop at a seafood workshop for our first tasting meal. With all picked up dishes, we enjoy with local beer, fruit juice or cold water while streets outside are still busy.

After that, Vespa drivers take us back to center district, passing many highlight places in the city and we finally meet tour guide who take his private Vespa at the Banh Xeo workshop. This is a special street restaurant where we will have chance to see the local women cooking Banh Xeo what we later try with cold drink. When we think we can’t eat anymore, it’s time the Vespa drivers take us to a hidden Vietnamese-style coffee shop to have a taste of Vietnamese live music as local.

There is no micro, no power light, it’s only live songs and candle and people whisper to pick up drink. We can stay here long as we can or we will move to the last destination to change the music taste if we are fan of Rock & beer (Optional for family is Ice-cream workshop). We are back to hotels, say goodbye with Vespa drivers, tour guide, and enjoy a peaceful night.

Special note for children: Children must be from 5 years old traveling with parents
Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Time will be free until our car arrives at the hotel to take us to the airport in good time to board our flight to Siem Reap. Upon arrival at Siem Reap airport, you will be welcomed by our tour guide and driver before we transfer back to the hotel for check-in.

Overnight in Siem Reap
Meals: Breakfast

This morning, we will start to visit the antique capital of Angkor Thom (12 century): the South Gate with its huge statues depicting the churning of the ocean of milk, the Bayon Temple, unique for its 54 towers decorated with over 200 smiling faces of Avolokitesvara, the Phimeanakas, the Royal Enclosure, the Elephants Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King.

In the afternoon, we visit to the most famous of all the temples on the plain of Angkor: Angkor Wat. The temple complex covers 81 hectares and is comparable in size to the Imperial Palace in Beijing. Its distinctive five towers are emblazoned on the Cambodian flag and the 12th century masterpiece is considered by art historians to be the prime example of classical Khmer art and architecture. Enjoy wonderful sunset from the top of Pre Rup Temple.

Overnight in Siem Reap
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

The morning will be started with Banteay Srey, known as Citadel of Women or a Pink Temple, and Banteay Samre Temples. Then, we will visit to the unique interior brick sculptures of Prasat Kravan, Srah Srang (“The Royal Baths” was once used or ritual bathing), Banteay Kdei (surrounded by 4 concentric walls), Ta Prohm, one of the area’s most beautiful temples.

Ta Prohm has been relatively untouched since it was discovered and retains much of its mystery. Neak Pean, a fountain built in the middle of a pool (representing the paradisiacal Himalayan mountain-lake) and Preah Khan temple, Built by the King Jayavarman VII. Preah Khan is, like Ta Prohm, a place of towered enclosures and shoulder hugging corridors. Unlike Ta Prohm, however, the temple of Preah Khan is in a reasonable state of preservation and ongoing restoration efforts should maintain and even improve this situation.

Overnight in Siem Reap
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

In the morning, we will enjoy a boat ride on the Tonle Sap Lake at Kampong Phluk Village. This is the largest permanent fresh-water lake in South East Asia and flows into Tonle Sap River, joining the Mekong in Phnom Penh. We will see a fishermen’s “floating village” with floating schools, floating police station, etc. It is same as a big village floating on the lake, and the “village” move from place to place following water levels and current. Transfer to Siem Reap airport for flight to next destination to Phnom Penh.

Overnight in Phnom Penh
Meals: Breakfast

In the morning, we visit the National Museum. Housed in a beautiful traditional building, it contains many outstanding examples of Khmer craftsmanship. Learn about a brighter period in Cambodian history with a visit to the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda.

In the afternoon, confront Cambodia’s tragic past on a guided tour of the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, a former school which served as a Khmer Rouge torture centre. It’s estimated that more than 20,000 people were held and tortured here. Explore Wat Phnom, a peaceful temple situated on a hill for which the city is named. According to legend, a 14th-century woman named Penh found sacred Buddhist objects in the nearby river and placed them here on the small hill.

Overnight in Phnom Penh
Meals: Breakfast

The morning will be free until our departure flight back home. Trip ends. We wish you to have an unforgettable Asia tour package in Vietnam & Cambodia.