Vietnam Tales

HANOI ARRIVAL Morning, tour guide and driver pick you up at Noi Bai airport and transfer to downtown then start a full day city tour beginning with Ho Chi Minh Complex which features the life of Ho Chi Minh, the nation’s founder. At the complex, visit Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum where the nation’s founder’s body is preserved (closed on Monday, Friday and through October - November) and the rural style house on stilts where Ho Chi Minh lived and worked. Stop by one of Hanoi’s icons, the One Pillar Pagoda, built in the 11th Century in dedication to Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara or Buddha of Compassion and reminiscent of a lotus blossom rising from a pond. Continue to the Temple of Literature, known as the first university of Vietnam built in 1070 by the Ly Dynasty to honor Confucius, sages and outstanding Vietnamese scholars. Afternoon, go to Hoan Kiem Lake, the center point of Hanoi whose name “The Return Sword Lake” originated from a legend of a sacred sword and home to a rare endangered giant turtle species and visit Ngoc Son Temple on the lake. Next, take a one-hour cycle tour of the Old Quarter of Hanoi with its ancient streets representing traditional trades from the past. Finish the tour at the Thang Long Opera Theatre with a traditional Vietnamese water puppet show.

Hanoi – Hoa Lu & Trang An Complex Morning, transfer you to Ninh Binh about 100 km South of Hanoi (2.5 hrs drive) to Hoa Lu District, Ninh Binh Province. Discover the first capital of Vietnam, visit the two old temples one dedicated to Dinh Tien Hoang, the only king of the Dinh Dynasty and also Vietnam’s first emperor, and the other to the succeeding kings of the Le Dynasty. Afternoon, continue to visit Trang An, a tourist attraction that has over 310 species of higher plants, many algae and fungi. In particular, there have some rare woods and amount of valuable trees used for food and medicine. Take boat trip to visit cave complex: Sang Cave, Toi Cave, Ba Giot Cave, Nau Ruou in mystery and wildness, see scenery of mountains and rivers Ha Long on the land of Ninh Binh. End of the day, transfer back to Hanoi.

Transfer from Hanoi to Da Nang Morning, transfer to the airport for flight to Da Nang. Arrive at Da Nang, tour guide transfer to city central and visit the Non-Nuoc Beach and Marble Mountain by lift, whose peaks represent the five elements of the universe. Next, visit: Linh Ung Pagoda, Son Tra Marina. Stop at Han Market for shopping.

Transfer from Da Nang to Ba Na Hill Morning, transfer to Ba Na Hills, pass the sea shore on Nguyen Tat Thanh Street, one of the most beautiful roads of Da Nang City and Red Beach, where the French first landed in Da Nang. Arrive at the Cable car station at the foot of Ba Na Mountain. Enjoy the first leg Cable car, which achieved two Guinness World records in 2009, longest non-stop cable car (5,042m) and highest non-stop cable car (1,292m). Sitting in the cabin, in mid-air, looking upon the endless tree line of the forests, brings you with spectacular views of the lush jungle and fairly waterfalls along the way. Experience the pristine ecological systems of the Ba Na Mountains will leave you with a sense of unforeseeable discovery. Visit the Le Jardin, old wineries, remains of French Villas, and Ling Ung Pagoda with 27m high Buddha statue. We then leave the Le Jardin for the second cable car station to visit the top of mountain and see the remaining old villas. Conquer the Peak of Chua Mountain at the height of 1,487m. View the whole Da nang city under the cluster of white clouds. Leave Peak of Chua Mountain, visit the trail of Dreaming Stream, Rainbow Waterfall, Suspension Bridge, Golden Valley, and ruined Opera House. Freely then we return to Cable car station at foot of Ba Na Mountain then transfer to Da Nang city for visiting Dragon Bridge, Love Bridge.

Da Nang – Hoi An Ancient Town – Basket Boat Morning, transfer to Hoi An ancient town and join a basket boat tour at Cam Thanh Coconut Village. Here, you will be enthusiastically welcomed by the local people, they will lead you to visit the creeks in the water coconut woods by basket boats. You will be instructed to fish crabs and you will see the performances of rowing basket boat by the local rowers Afternoon, we discover Hoi An ancient town which are the famous Japanese Covered Bridges, the Pottery Museum, the 200-year-old Tam Ky House, the Chua Ong Pagoda, and the bustling market. We visit these sights on an exciting walking tour past many low-tiled houses scattered along the small streets and assembly halls which reflect the town's multi-cultural past.

Da Nang – Hochiminh – Cu Chi Tunnel Morning, transfer to Da Nang airport for flight to Ho Chi Minh city Arrive at Tan Son Nhat airport, the tour guide will pick you up and transfer you to Cu Chi tunnels. The Vietnamese are proud of their resolve in their prolonged history of struggle against invading armies, and the story of the people of Cu Chi is indicative of that spirit. The residents of Cu Chi then took their war underground, literally, developing a network of tunnels that, at its height, stretched as far as Cambodia and included meeting rooms, kitchens, and triage areas.

Hochiminh – Mekong Delta Today we take an excursion to My Tho. We will be traveling past miles of flat rice fields, along a bustling High Way. On arrival at My Tho, we board a Mekong cruise boat to Thoi Son Island where we will be entertained with traditional music. We will then change to a paddle boat to cruise through the narrow canals and visit homegrown industries like coconut candy and rice-wine making. We next travel by motorized boat to another Mekong island to visit a bee farm and try tea with fresh honey from the beehives and enjoy fresh seasonal fruits. As we return to My Tho there will be a visit to the Vinh Trang Pagoda. Back to Ho Chi Minh city and relax.

Hochiminh City Tour & Departure Morning, city tour. the Reunification Palace which was the former residence of the President of South Vietnam until the end of April 1975, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Old Sai Gon Post Office, a neo-Romanesque cathedral constructed between 1877 and 1883 using bricks from Marseilles and stained-glass windows from Chartres. Afternoon transfer to Tan Son Nhat airport for departure flight.