Day 1: Hanoi Arrival
Upon your arrival, you will be greeted at the airport by our representative and transferred to your hotel.
Enjoy a cool drink whilst your guide introduces you to Vietnam and the exciting journey your about to embark on.
After our welcoming brief, join your guide and tantalize your tastebuds with the traditional flavors of Vietnamese food and enjoy a complimentary dinner, courtesy of Indochina Travelland.
Overnight at your hotel
(Breakfast and dinner included)
Day 2: Hanoi City Tour
This morning we embark on a an exhilarating and unforgettable ‘Xich Lo’ ride through the charming, yet bustling, 36 Street Old Quarter to Ba Dinh Square where we disembark to explore Ho Chi Minh’s Quarter. We visit the Mausoleum, Presidential Palace, One Pillar Pagoda and Ho Chi Minh Museum.
We meet our bus for a short journey to visit the infamous Hanoi Hilton Prison and the 11th century Temple of Literature, Hanoi’s first university.
After our adventures so far we’ve all worked up a hunger!
We head across the road to ‘KOTO’ – ‘Know One Teach One’. KOTO restaurant is a wonderful organization which provides opportunities for former street children. The interaction with the kids is satisfying enough!
After lunch, we drive approximately 25minutes to the Ethnology Museum. Here you will learn of the traditional culture of 54 different ethnic minority groups in Vietnam through articles, stories, displays of traditional houses, costumes, hunting equipment and much more wares used in day to day life.
We return to the center Hanoi for some time at leisure before our exciting overnight train journey to Lao Cai.
Overnight at your hotel
(Breakfast included)
Day 3: Lao Cai – Sapa
We arrive in Lao Cai around 5 am and met by our transport for a spectacular hour’s journey up the impressive mountains to Sapa.
Seeing is believing! The imagination could not visualize, nor appreciate the beauty of the stunning vistas and breathtaking mountainous rice terraces until you observe in true form.
Upon arrival in Sapa, we have a little rest and relaxation before our exploration this afternoon.
In the early afternoon we commence our exciting trek down hill from Sapa town to Cat Cat Village. Our 2 hour walk takes us through rice paddies passing by different ethnic minority villages hard at work and flower and vegetable gardens until we reach a magnificent waterfall set within the lush mountains.
We take a rest and continue to Cat Cat village where the village is eagerly awaiting our arrival. With the children’s glee and excitement and a village full of big smiling faces, we are welcomed by a local Black Hmong people.
After a welcoming and a rest, we stroll around the village, learning about the traditional way of life of the Black Hmong. We observe the fascinating demonstration of traditional fiber processing including; Weaving, Dying hemp cloth, Peeling bark from the dried hemp stalks, Tying stripped bark ribbons to form bundles and with the locals strongly encouraging us to try our hand in perfect their art….they certainly get a lot of laughs watching us! We then say goodbye to the village and drive back to Sapa.
Overnight at the hotel
(Breakfast included)
Day 4: Sapa Villages – Lao Cai train station
After re energizing and a hearty breakfast, we are picked up by our vehicle and transferred to Lao Chai village.
We start our trek at the village and continue down the valley, along local trails and across rice paddies to visit Dzay ethnic minorities and Black H’mong communities living within a different environment.
The interaction and closeness we experience with the local minority groups is an absolutely incredible experience.
We return to Sapa for some free time before our transfer to Lao Cai for our overnight train to Hanoi.
(Breakfast included)
Day 5: Hanoi – Ha Long
We return to Hanoi around 5am and head to town for breakfast.
After freshening up and full tummy’s we meet our vehicle for our journey to Halong Bay.
We leave the city behind and drive through the Red River Delta to Halong Bay, taking around 3.5 hours. The beautiful countryside that awaits your imagination, takes us through local farming life and villages, providing us plenty of opportunities to stop and capture some spectacular photographs. Be sure to keep an eye out for the amazing things the locals load onto their motorbikes!
Arriving in Ha Long Bay, we board our boat, check into our cabins before enjoying a spectacular seafood lunch sailing off into Dragon Bay.
After lunch have some free time to relax and admire the beauty of the bay as we cruise through hundreds of karst formations. Throughout our cruise today, you will have the opportunity to disembark the boat and explore Sung Sot cave, where you will learn how karsts were formed in this area millions of years ago. For beach lovers and swimmers, we make a stop at one of the sandy beaches for swimming or just relaxing.
We continue cruising the bay until the late afternoon, before setting anchor for the night.
Once anchored, there’s plenty of time for swimming or just relaxing to admire the scenery before settling into another scrumptious meal.
After dinner, why not head to the top deck and enjoy a relaxing drink whilst admiring the peaceful ambience and gazing at the millions of stars.
Overnight at the hotel
(Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Day 6: Ha Long – Hanoi
This morning we take a small bamboo boat to visit Luon, a beautiful tunnel cave set within a lagoon.
We re-board our boat and continue cruising the bay, through the old part of Ha Long City, known as the fishing town and the new built harbor bridge, whilst we enjoy our seafood brunch before heading back to the pier for our return to Hanoi.
This evening we bid you farewell and would like to invite you to join your guide in a farewell celebration dinner, courtesy of our company.
Overnight at hotel
(Brunch included)
Day 7: Departure
Trip ends.
(Breakfast included)
