DAY 1

Ho Chi Minh City Arrival

Xin Chao! Welcome to Ho Chi Minh City, also known as Saigon – the most dynamic city of Vietnam where modern high-rise buildings sit next to ancient temples

Start your visit of Saigon with panoramic views of Ho Chi Minh City from its highest building. At 68 floors, the Bitexco Building rises 262 meters into the sky. The eye-opening view from the Skydeck gives you a sense of the vibrant city you will be exploring during your stay. Continue with a leisure walking tour, start at the Saigon Post Office, a classic French colonial structure, is still a functioning post office today and features huge ceilings, a giant portrait of Uncle Ho, and many beautiful details. You continue to Notre Dame, the Neo-Romanesque Notre Dame Cathedral built in the late 1800s is one of the city’s major landmarks. From there, head over to Bach Dang Ice-cream, the authentic ice-cream shop in Saigon

For the evening you have a special highlight: a dinner cruise onboard on the Saigon River

Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City

DAY 2

Cu Chi Tunnels & Ho Chi Minh City

Depart Ho Chi Minh City, head out to Cu Chi Tunnels to explore the maze of tunnels used during the war

Back in town, an extra fun family activity awaits you at Vin-Space called the “family art blast”

Later in the evening, take in a show at the Saigon Opera House. The À Ố Show is a new kind of art performance set within the context of Vietnamese life and is performed as a “new circus” show à la Cirque de Soleil—a truly one-of-a-kind experience and fun for the whole family

Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City

DAY 3

Ho Chi Minh City – Mekong Delta

Depart Saigon and head south to Ben Tre, famous for its coconut production and quiet, peaceful waterways. When there, take a ride through a local village and board a boat to take you through the local waterways. Stop at a coconut processing, brick making shop where the locals still use centuries-old traditional methods to make the bricks by hand. From here, stop at a rice noodles factory to see how “hu tieu” is made, one of most popular breakfast dishes in the region

Take a visit to a local home making rice paper to chat and taste the crispy rice paper his family makes. Close your day by catching fish in the pond and picking vegetables before joining the cooking demonstration

Overnight in Ben Tre at a local homestay

DAY 4

Mekong Delta – Ho Chi Minh City – Da Nang – Hoi An

In the morning, visit the My Long Market and then a Cao Dai temple

Head back to Ho Chi Minh City in the afternoon before flying to the Da Nang Airport and transferring to your hotel in Hoi An

Overnight in Hoi An

DAY 5

Hoi An: Cooking class

Today, you will learn more about Vietnamese cuisine. Head out to a local village market to source local ingredients before heading on the to the Red Bridge Cooking School. Working with the Red Bridge Chef, you'll prepare 4 famous dishes, including ‘Pho’. Enjoy your lunch!

After the class, stroll the the ancient streets of Hoi An, lined with Chinese traders’ homes and wooden houses reincarnated as restaurants, cafés, and outlets for local artists, craftsmen and tailors. Hoi An's unique fusion of Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese architecture is well displayed here, in what is arguably Vietnam's most tourist-friendly town. In the late afternoon, take a class to make traditional lanterns out of bamboo and silk

Overnight in Hoi An

DAY 6

Hoi An: Farmer & fishermen life

Start the day cycling along back roads witnessing Vietnamese rural life first hand, working the ground with a farmer in an organic vegetable village and riding a water buffalo in a rice paddy field. Later, you will board a boat to join local fishermen doing traditional net fishing. Experience paddling the unique Vietnamese bamboo basket boat, rounding out your experience with the local farming and fishing communities

Overnight in Hoi An

DAY 7

Hoi An

Enjoy the day at leisure at your resort and soak up some time in the sun and surf

DAY 8

Hoi An – Da Nang – Hanoi

Take a short flight from Da Nang to Hanoi, one of Asia’s most enchanting cities, full of culture and history

In the afternoon, you visit the Vietnam History Museum. Established in the 1920s as the Musée Louis Finot, the Vietnam History Museum is housed in an ‘Indochinese style’ structure and traces the history of the Vietnamese people from the earliest times to the present day

Walk to nearby Hanoi Opera House for photos of the most beautiful French architectural buildings left in Hanoi and drop by a local café and ice cream shop to relax and enjoy the atmosphere while observing the local life

As nightfalls, explore the Old Quarter, a place you must see to experience Hanoi, where you will find shopping and cultural/historical sites all wrapped into one

Overnight in Hanoi

DAY 9

Hanoi

Head to Ba Dinh Square in the morning to visit the Ho Chi Minh Complex. This complex features the mausoleum of the founder of modern Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh. If it is open, you can walk through the mausoleum to view his body. You can also see the Presidential Palace and Uncle Ho's house on stilts in the park-like complex

Continue with the Temple of Literature, dedicated to Confucius, built in the 11th century. It was the first university in Vietnam and students still come here to burn incense. You will find a peaceful atmosphere tinged with incense smoke, and sunken lotus ponds populated by fish and turtles

Located on the outskirts of Hanoi by the banks of the Red River, Bat Trang is a traditional handicraft village specializing in ceramics. Discover the small, hidden alleys of this village and visit a local workshop to interact with the craftsmen and observe the complete production cycle, from preparing the clay to shaping the products, painting them and firing them in the kiln

In the evening, take in a Water Puppet show, a unique piece of theatre famous in Hanoi

Overnight in Hanoi

DAY 10

Hanoi – Halong Bay

Head out to Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In Ha Long you will board your overnight cruise amongst the limestone islands rising majestically out of the turquoise bay. You pass grand rock formations and quaint fishing towns, and sample a delicious lunch of freshly caught fish and seafood

In the afternoon you can choose from several interesting activities: a cooking demonstration with chef on board, an optional traditional massage, or a refreshing swim. End the day with a spectacular set-menu gastronomic dinner

Overnight on board

DAY 11

Ha Long Bay – Hanoi

Start the day with calming Tai Chi, often accompanied by an amazing sunrise and the quiet breath-taking beauty of the bay’s landscape. The cruise passes beautiful spots such as Trong, Trinh Nu and the Me Cung Caves, and you will have a chance to explore Surprise Cave before having buffet brunch on board. Back at the dock, where you will be met and transferred to Hanoi

Overnight in Hanoi

DAY 12

Hanoi departure

Spend the morning at your leisure

Then head off to your next adventure