Real Taste of Vietnam - 13 Day Tour

Welcome to Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam! You will be greeted by our tour guide and transfer directly to hotel in Hanoi.

Check in time will be available at 2:00pm, and in case that you would like to secure an early-check in, an additional charge will be applied.

Optional: The rest of this day is free at leisure. You might have a sleep to recover, or wander around for some own exploration, or consider taking part in one of our suggested activities below:

• Water Puppet Show: A traditional Vietnamese water performing art, at which Vietnamese folk tales, history and local lives are introduced via colorful puppets.

• Vietnamese Cooking Class or Foodie Tours: Food in Vietnam, especially Hanoi, is totally tasty and able to mesmerize any visitor. A short walk around Old Quarter for some of Hanoi’s best food, or participation in a fun Vietnam’s cooking class could be a good start to your journey in this lovely country.

Please contact our travel consultant if you are interested in these services, and we are available 24/7 for assisting you.

Note: Please be advised that both international and domestic might be crowded at sometimes during the day, so in case that you arrive and cannot find our representatives, please be presented at Pole No.10 (Outside the Terminal Gate) and contact us, so we could easily search for you.

Guides meet you up at hotel to explore Hanoi. You will have chance to visit parts of Hanoi that you would be inaccessible by car and hard to find by walking. Let's experience fabulous tastes and sights and enjoy the streets of Hanoi like a local with motobikes.

1. Café Trứng (Egg Coffee) at Café Giảng on Yen Phu St.

It sounds a bit weird but the taste is amazing. Even if you are not a coffee-lover, it is still worth trying this creative mixing of coffee by Vietnamese people. While you enjoy your drink, we will talk about the day’s itinerary and destinations.

2. Long Bien Bridge/ Chuong Duong Bridge

Long Bien Bridge was the longest bridge in Asia when it was built from 1899 to 1902. Known as the oldest bridge in Hanoi that is still living and sharing the daily life with Hanoians silently. At this stop, while you can take some time to enjoy the view and take pictures, our tour guide will also introduce the history of the bridge as well as details about the life of locals from 2 sides of it.

After that, we will pass through the famous Chuong Duong Bridge - the four-lane, steel span bridge’s claim to fame is that it was the first sizeable bridge designed and built by Vietnamese workers, with no international assistance.

3. Nha Hat Lon (Hanoi Opera House)

Hanoi Opera House is a project built by the French government in the early years of the 20th century. While you’re enjoying the very famous Trang Tien’s Ice cream, we’ll tell you all about its unique structure with the outstanding values in terms of history, culture, architecture and art.

4. Ho Guom (Hoàn Kiếm Lake)

Located in the centre of Hanoi‘s historic district, Hoan Kiem Lake is a lovely, peaceful place with a fascinating history. In 1428, legend has it that Emperor Le Loi obtained a magical sword from the Dragon King to fight against Chinese oppressors. At this stop, we will have a chance to see “Ly Thai To Monument”. This is a cultural and architectural work which aims to honour King Ly Thai To (974 – 1028). He is the first king who found Capital Citadel of Thang Long (Hanoi today).

5. Nha Tho Lon (St. Joseph's Cathedral)

Next stop, Saint Joseph Cathedral, located at 40 Nha Chung street, Hanoi, is a Roman Catholic cathedral with neo- gothic style, which was built about 120 years ago. Construction began in 1886, with the architectural style described as resembling Notre Dame de Paris. The church was one of the first structures built by the French colonial government in Indochina when it opened in December 1886.

6. Hoa Lo Prison

Hỏa Lò Prison was a prison used by the French colonists in French Indochina for political prisoners, and later by North Vietnam for U.S. prisoners of war during the Vietnam War. The French called it Maison Central, a generic name for a colonial prison. Whatever its name, the notorious prison housed a century of torture within its walls.

7. Ho Tay (West Lake)

West Lake is known as Hanoi’s largest freshwater lake. It’s a huge body of water – it has a circumference of 17km – and there are plenty of historic places of interest, five-star hotels, stylish restaurants, cafes, and nightlife venues that are worth exploring along the shoreline.
The West Lake is bordered by several significant pagodas. Vietnam’s oldest pagoda, Tran Quoc pagoda, was built in the 6th century and is located on an island in the middle of the West Lake.

8. Huu Tiep Lake and The B52

We will then have a quick visit to the B52 plane crash site. This is a remarkable victory of Vietnam soldiers during the Vietnam war. You will also get to visit a local market nearby to see daily activities of the Hanoians.

9. Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is the final resting place of Ho Chi Minh, the most iconic and popular leader of Vietnam, known to his people as ‘Uncle Ho’. His body is preserved here in a glass case at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in central Hanoi. While you can take some time to see the attraction from outside and take pictures, our tour guide will fill you in with more stories about our Uncle Ho & the historical information.

10. Lunch at Old Street

The last stop to enjoy some delicious local Vietnamese food after a whole trip. After that, our driver will drop you off at your hotel in the old quarter.

Note: The above itinerary is subject to change, based on the day’s weather and traffic conditions.

After breakfast at hotel, driver picks up and transfer to Halong Bay, listed as a World Heritage of outstanding natural beauty, known in Vietnamese as “Dragon descending to the sea”.

Upon arrival, the boat crew welcome you and check in then enjoy a cruise around Halong Bay with a delicious local seafood lunch served on board. You can also behold thousands of limestone islands and grottoes rising from the clear, emerald water.

Following break, depending on each cruise’s itinerary of the day, you’ll join some activities on boat to discover the beauty of the bay such as visit a cave, doing kayaking or enjoy swimming in the sea before getting back to the junk for relaxing and dinner. Overnight on board.

You might start your 2nd day in Halong with an early tai-chi class, or simply wake up and witness the amazing sunrise on the bay. After breakfast, cruise take you to explore the most stunning caves in Halong.

The early lunch will be served on the way getting back to the main dock for transferring to Hanoi.

You will have free time for visiting Hanoi Old Quarter and try Vietnamese street food tour at 17;30

We will take you to go inside the small lane and alleys inside the Hanoi Old Quarter and show you how real Hanoians live, work and eat. By far our most popular tour, this tour is great fun and perfect way to discover some of the lesser known dishes that the locals lover to eat. From Bun Bo (Sauteed Beef Rice Vermicelli), Banh Cuon (Steamed rice rolls), “Banh Mi” and end with unique Ca Phe Trung (Egg Coffee) which will round off our four courses perfectly. Local life, local stories; local food and local drink tasting.

It's the little things that make all the difference in your travel experience!

Breakfast at hotel then relax until flight time, our driver picks you up at hotel then transfer you to the airport to catch flight to Hue.

Upon arrival, tour guide welcomes you at the airport then transfer you to hotel in City Centre to check in. 

Late afternoon, cyclo driver will pick you up from your hotel. You'll have chance to taste a range of delicious Hue cuisines and feel the romance of Hue at night. Have dinner in royal style and enjoy "royal dishes" which are used to served only the King in the past. Overnight at hotel.

Our itineraries today start with a visit to Thien Mu Pagoda, a famous Buddhism attraction which is located at the bank of the enchanting Perfume River. The pagoda is fascinating because of not only ancient design of the buildings, but also good location at which you could enjoy the peaceful atmosphere of the Perfume River.

Leaving the pagoda, we continue our journey today with a visit to the Imperial Citadel. We will spend most of the time around the citadel, with visit to front gate, the Flag Tower, The King’s Palace, and the Museums of Royal Antiquities. Our next and last stop will be Dong Ba Market, the largest traditional trading place in not only Hue City, but also the adjacent provinces. Walking through kiosks, you will have chance to understand daily business of local sellers, their way of doing business, as well as purchase some interesting souvenirs before having lunch at the local restaurant.

Following the break, we visit Khai Dinh Tomb (built from 1920 - 1931) which is the smallest tomb of the Nguyen Emperors, but took the longest time and cost a lot of money to build. This is a perfect combination of Oriental & Western Styles.

Our trip continues with a visit the most majestic Tomb of Emperor Minh Mang, which is famous for landscape and Oriental Architecture. This tomb was planned and started by Minh Mang but built by his successor - King Thieu Tri, from beginning of 1841 to1843.

After Minh Mang tomb, we will travel to conical hat village to see how craftsmen make this beautiful product and get a chance to interact with locals before transferring back to hotel.

Pick up at hotel in Hue, then transfer to hotel in Hoi An via Cloudy Pass. Land transportation by shuttle bus or private car will be used, with stop at some spots on the way for sightseeing and photoshoot (admission fee is not included).

In the morning, local guide meets you at hotel lobby. Then ride to a local farm in Tra Que Village. You will take a trip around the vegetable garden and join with the farmers in preparing the land and fertilizing with seaweed from the local lake.

Continue doing some next steps such as: raking the ground, sowing, watering greens, picking greens and many more gardening activities. Spend the rest of the morning working the land in honored way, before having a break to prepare lunch with your host family. Your lunch consists of many local delicacies including ”tam huu” spring roll, 'banh xeo' or local pancake of people in middle region. Relax with a foot massage.

Say good bye to your host family and ride back to Hoi An. Late afternoon, ride to the home of a craftsman. Craftsman will show you a brief introduction about the history, shape and color of the lantern as well as steps of making them.

You will have a chance to make your own lantern and keep it as a souvenir.

Evening Walking Foodie tour is perfect combination of discovering Hoi An cuisine and culture. Our tour starts around sunset, and will walk you through local cafes, food stalls, markets, and restaurants, giving you a filling food adventure for the memory books.

We start to go to local areas and wander around the food stalls to discover Hoi An traditional dishes, including: 

Banh Mi

You will have chance to taste the signature Vietnamese sandwich hand-made by royalty, the Banh Mi Queen.

Cao Lau

Perhaps the difference between Cao Lau and other noodle dishes is the texture. Cao lau noodles are firmer and chewier - very similar to Japanese Udon - than those found in typical Vietnamese noodle dishes such as pho. The best bet for finding authentic Cao Lau in Hoi An is to eat from street vendors who only serve Cao Lau or a small handful of local dishes

Banh Beo

We go through small alleys and stop at local business house and see how real Vietnamese life looks like. Here, we will discover a Vietnamese traditional cake: Banh Beo – a popular snack of Hoi An people.

Banh Khot

Banh Khot is one of popular Vietnamese street food, a round pancake made with rice flour, turmeric, coconut milk, quail egg and vegetables at a famous street vendor near Hoai Square.

Balut

One of the Top 10 weird foods in the world. Egg no more, duck not yet - It is not because of the taste but because of its appearance.

Local coffee

Enjoy a cup of authentic Vietnamese coffee, famous for its mix of strong drip coffee and sweet condensed milk, that's sure to re-energize you for the rest of the day before finishing your journey to make it more memorable.

Free at the Ancient Town or go back to hotel. 

Enjoy your free time before transferring to airport in Da Nang for flight to Ho Chi Minh City.

On arrival, transfer from airport to hotel. Check in and relax.

Meet our tour guide at the hotel’s lobby, and let’s start our journey to Cu Chi Tunnels, which is about 70km far from Ho Chi Minh City. The attraction is a collection of underground tunnel and construction, from hospital, bedrooms to ammunition storage using by North Vietnam’s army during Civil War (1955 – 1975) as a military camp. You are provided opportunities to crawl along some of the tunnels for exploration more about the Vietnam War, or touch a real-gun with the firing-gun services here (with an additional charge).

Lunch is served at a local restaurant on the way we return to Ho Chi Minh City.

In the afternoon: Enjoy the attraction of Ho Chi Minh City. Sightseeing examples of French colonial architecture and exploring the Vietnam’s turbulent in past at the War Remnants Museum. Our guide will show you the most interesting sights that Ho Chi Minh City has to offer. Depart from your hotel to the Reunification Palace; this beautifully preserved palace was the residence of the President of the Republic of Vietnam. On April 30th 1975 the American War officially came to an end here. Afterward, we visit Saigon Notre Dame Cathedral, which was built in 1880, and the Old Post Office, which was built sometime between 1886 and 1891. It is one of the best examples of classical French colonial architecture. Our last stop would be at a local Market where you can practice your bargaining skills while shopping for souvenirs. Discover local life and culture. You’ll find some of the friendliest, liveliest, most convivial people in the city in here. Return your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City.

Free time in the rest of day

08.00: Pick up at your hotel in Saigon and travel to Ben Tre Province.

The boat will cruise along the Ham Luong River (a branch of the Mekong) and stop off at various local workplaces to give you a picture of how the local economy works, including a brickwork - where bricks are still painstakingly made by hand; a coconut processing workshop - where you can sample fresh coconut and see how every single part of this versatile nut is turned into food and other products; and a mat weaving house - where straw mats are woven using a hand loom – you can even have a go at weaving yourself! The boat will then stop at a quiet village where you can have a short walk to experience real Delta village life, before boarding your 'xe loi' (a kind of motorized rickshaw) and traveling into the forest where you can visit fruit orchards before stopping at a riverside restaurant for a delicious and filling lunch, featuring such local specialties as elephant-ear fish and river shrimp, washed down with some cold drinks or beers. It’s time to board a sampan boat for a relaxing trip along narrow canals.

Around 17:00 Back to your hotel in Saigon.

Enjoy your lazy last morning in Ho Chi Minh City, and have breakfast at hotel's restaurant. You are free until our transfer comes, and you are transported to airport for your flight back home. We say goodbye after arriving at the airport, and we hope to see you on your other vacation in Vietnam.

Note: Hotel check-out time is 12:00 noon. However subjected to room's availability, late check-out can be settled with a surcharge.