PROGRAM DETAIL
Day 01 . Wed 28 February 2018 : Hanoi arrival (SU290 @ 9AM) (-) | Guide and driver
Arrival in Noi Bai airport at 9AM, you will be picked up then transferred to the hotel in city center. The check-in is available at 2 pm. The day is free for your own exploration and shopping. Overnight at hotel.
Tour guide contact: Mr Lan (+84) 979 145 762
Accommodation: Silk Path Hotel**** - Premium Deluxe
Day 02 . Thu 01 March 2018 : Ha Noi - Ha Long Bay (B, L, D) | Guide and driver
After breakfast, you depart to Halong Bay, passing beautiful scenery along the way full of lush rice paddies and winding rivers, typical of the Red River Delta.
12:30 - 13:00 Proceed to the dining room for general information and safety briefing (3rd deck)
13:15 - 14:45 Lunch is served in the dining room
15:30 - 16:30 Visit Sung Sot Cave for hiking and exploring the stalactite and stalagmite
formation. 720 steps in total (1 hour 30 minutes tour). Rubber shoes and sandals
for hiking are highly recommended
17:00 - 19:00 Happy Hour promotion (Buy One Get One Free) (applied for House wine, Long
drinks, beers, Soft drinks and canned juice)
17:45 - 18:45 Cooking demonstration on the sundeck/dining room (optional)
19:00 - 21:00 Dinner is served in the dining room
21:00 - onward Squid fishing at the reception or watch movie in the cabin
Accommodation: Aphrodites Cruises - Luxury Balcony Bay View
Day 03 . Fri 02 March 2018 : Halong – Hanoi (B) | Guide and driver
06:15 - 06:45 Start your day with Tai-chi class on the sundeck (optional)
06:45 - 07:30 Light breakfast is served in the dining room
Guests can choose one of the two options for joining as below:
07:30 - 08:45 Option 1: Visit Luon cave for kayaking
07:45 - 09:00 Option 2: Visit Titop island for swimming and hiking (towels are provided)
09:00 - 09:30 Regular check-out time (if you have any heavy luggage, put outside of your cabins
and settle your bills at the reception, 1st deck)
09:30 - onwards Full breakfast is served while the cruise goes back to the main port
10:45 - 11:00 Disembark Aphrodite Vessel. Drive back to Hanoi for overnight
Accommodation: Silk Path Hotel**** - Premium Deluxe
Day 04 . Sat 03 March 2018 : Hanoi city tour - train to Lao Cai (B, L) | Guide and driver
You will be picked up at the hotel at 8:00am. Starting the day trip will be a visit of the Ho Chi Minh Complex, which compromises Ho Chi Minh’s mausoleum (closed on Mondays & Fridays), his former stilt-house residence, and the Presidential Palace. We will then visit the Temple of Literature constructed in 1070 to worship Confucius, which served as the first Royal National University in Vietnam. The site also honors 82 Vietnamese doctorates who passed a number of rigid exams in the feudal ages. Their names, birthdays and birthplaces are engraved in 82 headstones perched on stone tortoises. It is widely believed that touching the heads of these tortoises will bring luck. Its peaceful green compound with its neatly maintained lawns, gardens and lotus ponds make it a tranquil hideaway from the city’s bustle and heat. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant.
In the afternoon, we will visit the Museum of Ethnology, which offers informative and well-documented displays of the country’s 54 ethnic groups, including elaborate and colorful hill tribe costumes. The display continues in the museum’s garden with fascinating examples of traditional houses of numerous minority groups, from the Kinhs to the ethnic groups of the Central Highlands. Then back to the Old Quarter for a 1 hour cyclo tour. We then head to Ngoc Son Temple set on a tiny island in the middle of Hoan Kiem Lake. Ngoc Son Temple dates back to the 13th century, and the lake itself is the picturesque heart of Hanoi, frequented by tourists and locals alike. Relax at a mini hotel until being transfered to the railway station for night train to Lao Cai. Overnight on train (Soft sleeper 4 berth cabin)
Accommodation: Chapa Express Train - Hanoi - Lao Cai Deluxe
Day 05 . Sun 04 March 2018 : Lao Cai - Bac Ha ethnic market - Sapa (B, L) | Guide and driver
Arrive in Lao Cai 6:00am, and drive to Bac Ha by car to visit Bac Ha market. This is the biggest local ethnic market of the region and takes place every Sunday. Tribal people from surrounding villages flock here to exchange their products. Most still use horses to carry their loads, which means an early departure to get to the market in time.
If you visit Sapa during a spring weekend, you will frequently meet locals in their colorful costumes heading to the markets as this is the best time for youngsters to find a partner to marry. Spring in Sapa, especially around Tet Holiday (late January to early February), is therefore a very joyful time despite the cool temperatures. This is the season of courting, dating and weddings. Nature also contributes to the atmosphere vibrant red and white flowers blooming everywhere. It all makes for a rather unique setting.
After lunch, you will leave the colorful market behind, to follow a zigzag road along the mountain to visit Ban Pho 1 and Ban Pho 2 villages, inhabited by Flower H'mong people. We will stop at a local house to see how corn wine is made - a special wine Bac Ha is renowned for. Taste some and you will truly feel its local flavor. Return to Sapa in the late afternoon. Overnight at hotel in Sapa
Accommodation: BB Hotel ( U Sa Pa )**** - Deluxe
Day 06 . Mon 05 March 2018 : Sapa-Ban Khoang - Ta Giang Phinh - night train to Hanoi (B, L) | Guide and driver
Met up at your hotel in Sapa by local guide and driver for a short road transfer heading northwards of Sapa along national road 4C to O Quy Ho with several stops for magnificent landscapes of Fansipan, Sin Chai valley and especially amazing flower and vegetable farms . Then turn right to follow a narrow road for half an hour getting through the wild region with thick rain forest covering walled-up mountains, passing several waterfalls before arriving to Ban Khoang, a village of the Red Zao ethnic peoples who live their unique way of life and well maintain their traditional values. The village looks prosperous thanks to the combination of wet rice cultivation on the terraced fields with cardamom farming under the shade of trees in thick forest. Spend over an hour walking to explore this remote village for a brief understanding of local life. Leaving Ban Khoang and process along the road for about 10km to Ta Giang Phin valley inhabited by the Black Hmong who live in some small villages scattering along a peaceful stream.
Enjoy an hour lunch break on the bank of a stream before walking along village path which connects village to village to witness daily activities of local life such as plough and harrow the fields, growing, harvesting or doing some house work. In leisure months men often gather to built new houses or repair parts of old ones while women stay home making their traditional costumes. The walk ends in mid afternoon, picked up for the road ride back to Sapa.
You then return to Lao Cai train station by car to catch the night train to Hanoi. Overnight on the train (soft sleeper 4-berth cabin)
Accommodation: Chapa Express Train - Lao Cai - Hanoi Deluxe
Day 07 . Tue 06 March 2018 : Hanoi arrival - fly to Danang - Hoi An walking tour (VN 163S 06MAR T HANDAD 0930 1050 by Asiatica) (B) | Guide and driver
You will arrive at Hanoi train station early in the morning at 5.30am. You will be picked up from the station and brought to a 2 star hotel to freshen up and have breakfast. Then our car and guide will pick you up to transfer to the airport for flight to Danang, visit Marble Mountain on the way. On arrival, check in your hotel in Hoi An for relaxation.
In the afternoon, you will be taken on a half-day walking tour through the narrow, winding streets of Hoi An’s ancient town, visiting Chua Ong Pagoda, Chinese assembly halls, the 200- year old Tan Ky ancestral house, and the Japanese Bridge.
Overnight in Hoi An.
Tour guide contact: Ms Thu (+84) 905099270
Accommodation: Ha Noi Emotion Hotel*** - Day-use room
Vinh Hung Riverside Resort & Spa**** - Superior Garden view
Day 08 . Wed 07 March 2018 : Hoian - Tra Que - Cam Thanh village (B, L) | Guide and driver
Breakfast at the hotel, then ride bicycles to Tra Que Village.
Tra Que is renowned for its aromatic herbs especially for mint and basil. The basil leaves, which are smaller than usual, are endowed with a strong and special aroma. You will have the opportunity to discover the life of the farmers by introducing you to their techniques of culture. Lunch with the inhabitant.
Continue to Cam Thanh Water coconut village, have a brief introduce to the history there.
Take on the basket boat along the water coconut river, Fisherman will teach you how to catch the crabs (02 paxs/ boat ). Embark on the boat, enjoy the folk songs show by local people there.
After that, learn how to make funny tools by water coconut leaf
Continue to the ancient town, experience the daily life of fisher man along Thu Bon River
Get on Bach Dang wharf, take a bicycle back to Hotel.
Local guide bids farewell to guests. Drop off at the hotel. Overnight at the hotel in Hoian
Day 09 . Thu 08 March 2018 : Hoi An - Danang - Flight to Ho Chi Minh - Cu Chi tunnel (VN117 DADSGN 1015 1145 by Asiatica) (B) | Guide and driver
Breakfast at hotel, at 8AM, transfer to the airport for flying to Ho Chi Minh City. Upon arrival, check into hotel.
Afternoon drive to the Cu Chi Tunnels, situated 70km from Saigon. The Cu Chi Tunnel system was created around 1948 to assist the Viet Minh in their combat against French occupiers. Construction and enlargement continued during American bombings and they were turned into an underground city with living areas, kitchens, storage, weapon factories and field hospitals. The Cu Chi Tunnels could house up to 10,000 people who lived underground for years, getting married and raising children. During the Vietnam - American War the entire area of Cu Chi was designated as a fire free zone yet was heavily bombarded. Since 1988, two sections of the tunnels are open for visitors
Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh City.
Tour guide contact - Mr Lat (+84) 989 036 720
Accommodation: Liberty Central Sai Gon Riverside**** - Deluxe
Day 10 . Fri 09 March 2018 : Saigon city tour (B, L) | Guide and driver
You will be picked up at 8:00am from your hotel in Saigon, to visit the Notre Dame Cathedral and the General Post Office. The Saigon city tour then continues along Dong Khoi Street, where the Opera House and the Peoples’ Committee building, built in 1897 by French architect Ferret Eugene, are situated. The 800 seat Opera House served as the home of the Lower House Assembly of South Vietnam after 1956. You will then visit The Reunification Palace, formerly known as Presidential Palace, which was the residence of the president of South Vietnam until the end of April 1975. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant.
In the afternoon, you will take a guided tour of the city in a rickshaw for about 2-3 hours to fully understand the daily life of the Saigonese by discovering a dozen typical local markets. Stops arranged at Ho Thi Ky flower market; The medicinal plant store; The On Lang Pagoda and the Thien Hau Temple in the Cho Lon district. Return to the city center to visit the small alley Le Cong Kieu with a wide variety of antique shops.
Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh City.
Day 11 . Sat 10 March 2018 : Saigon - Ben Tre - Can Tho (B, L) | Guide and driver
Leaving the bustling city of Saigon behind, you depart to the Mekong Delta considered Vietnam’s biggest rice basket. Arrive at Hung Vuong pier in Ben Tre and embark your boat to cruise along Bến Tre River, a tributary of the great Mekong, to explore the local lifestyle and the daily hustle and bustle. Stop at the brickfield belonging to Mr. Tu Lo to see how bricks are made by hand in Vietnam and a coconut candy home factory located along the canal to witness the process of making this local candy and other souvenirs. You will then have the opportunity to taste bee honey tea at a local honey farm and a variety of tropical fruit that grow amply in the orchards of the Mekong Delta. You can then walk or go by tuk-tuk through the coconut groves and green rice paddies to soak up and relax in the tranquil countryside atmosphere. Lunch at a local restaurant.
In the afternoon you will take a trip on small rowing boats through a maze of waterways lined by two rows of palm tree. Cruise back to the pier and disembark. Drive to Can Tho for the night.
Accommodation: TTC Can Tho hotel**** - Deluxe River View
Day 12 . Sun 11 March 2018 : Can Tho- Saigon (B, L) | Guide and driver
Start from Ninh Kieu boat quay, where we cruise along the small and picturesque canels and stop to see the Cai Rang floating market (the nicest one with heaps of rowing boats). We stop to enjoy the beautiful scenery and the daily activities of the locals who lives along the Mekong canals. Walking through the village to visit a rice husking mill and a rice/noodle shop, where we observe how it is made. Disembark and visit the beautiful old Binh Thuy house. Back to Saigon. Overnight in Saigon.
Accommodation: Liberty Central Sai Gon Riverside**** - Deluxe
Day 13 . Mon 12 March 2018 : Saigon departure (B) | Guide and driver
After breakfast, you are transferred to take your departure flight from Saigon. The hotel is available until noon only.
Note: 2 pax departs on SU293 @11:10AM (pick up at 8AM from hotel)
2 pax departs on VN815 SGN REP @19:00 (pick up at 16:00 from hotel)