Vietnam Family Adventure Tour – 15 Days

Day 1: Arrival in Hanoi (D)
Transfer via: International Flight on your own arrangement
Accommodations: Hanoi Boutique Hotel
Up on arrival in Hanoi, you will be greeted and transferred to hotel. Free at our leisure in the rest of the day. In the evening we will meet our guide again and we will go to the fine restaurant in town for our welcome dinner.

Restaurants in Hanoi

Day 2: Hanoi – City tour – half day (B, L)
Accommodations: Hanoi Boutique Hotel
Site visited: Ho Chi Minh Complex, Temple of Literature, Old Quarter of Hanoi, Water Puppet Show
Our tour today starts after breakfast at the hotel, the destination will be Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum with Presidential Palace, One Pillar Pagoda, outside Ho Chi Minh Museum; the Temple of Literature.
Free at leisure in the afternoon. At 5PM we have one hour cyclo tour around the Old Quarter; after that we will enjoy the Water Puppet show at the Theater. Coming back hotel.

Notes:
Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum opening time: Open from Tuesday to Thursday and weekends from 8am to 11pm. Closed on Mondays and Fridays. The mausoleum is closed for two months of the year, usually October and November, when Ho Chi Minh’s body is maintenance by Russian expert.

Hanoi Temple of Literature

Day 3: Hanoi – Halong Bay (overnight Halong Sails Junk Cruise – Share Junk) (B, L, D)
Accommodations: Halong Sails Junk Cruise
Site visited: Halong bay, caves, fishing village
We depart Hanoi to Ha Long Bay, which is now one of four World Heritage-listed sites in Vietnam.
Upon arriving in Ha Long City we transfer to our private boat for an amazing cruise of Ha Long Bay, and if the weather permits, we will have the opportunity for a swim in the crystalline emerald waters, explore the most beautiful lime stone caves in Halong bay.
The trip would not be completed without a sumptuous seafood lunch on board. Dinner will be served and we will spend overnight on board

Halong Bay from Titop Island

Day 4: Halong Bay – Cat Ba Island by traveling boat (B)
Accommodations: Holiday View Cat Ba Hotel
Site visited: Luon cave (Hallow caves), Lan Ha Bay, floating village
Rising early we can hear the sound of the ocean coming to life for another lovely day.
We will have our breakfast over sunrise before more exploration of Ha Long bay by junk and then by rowing boat to the lagoons. We will visit Luon cave, and the floating villages.
After that we move to another boat which will transfer us to Cat Ba Island. On the way we will have chance to explore Lan Ha Bay with so many beautiful islands; floating villages….Arrival in Cat Ba at around 12:00, there will be awaiting vehicle transfer us to hotel. Check in and relax at the nice beach of Cat Co.

Fishing Village Halong Bay

Day 5: Cat Ba – Hanoi (B)
Accommodations: Hanoi Boutique Hotel
Site visited: Cat Ba National Park, Military Hospital cave, Hai Phong city
Following breakfast at the hotel, we visit the Cat Ba National Park to visit the old Military Hospital cave that was used by the North Vietnamese Army during the American war.
We will return to Cat Ba Township before boarding the one-hour ferry service back to Vietnam’s largest seaport and third largest city, Hai Phong. Arriving in Hai Phong we transfer to our waiting vehicle for the two hour drive back to Hanoi.

Cat Ba National Park

Day 6: Hanoi – Free day – Night train to Hue at 19:00 (4 soft sleeper berth cabin with A/C) (B)
Accommodations: Soft Sleeper overnight train
Site visited: Free day at leisure
Free day at leisure until at 19:00; we transfer to Hanoi Railway station and take an Reunification Express train to Hue, the Formal Capital of Vietnam. Our family will stay at a private cabin (4 soft sleeper bed cabin with air conditioner).

Walking to Hanoi Old Quarter

Day 7: Hue – Boat trip in the afternoon (B)
Accommodations: Green Hotel Hue
Site visited: Thien Mu pagoda, Tu Duc Tomb, Perfume River Boat trip
Our local guide will welcome us at Hue Railway Station. Transfer to hotel, check in hotel and relax.
After lunch we take a Dragon boat along Perfume River to visit the famous Thien Mu Pagoda (Heaven Lady Pagoda), one of the Nguyen King’s Tomb (Majestic Tu Duc King’s Tomb) and back to city in the late afternoon.

Tu Duc King’s tomb

Day 8: Hue – City tour and transfer to Hoi An in the afternoon (B)
Accommodations: Phuoc An River Hotel Hoi An
Site visited: Hue Citadel, Forbidden Purple City, Lang Co Beach, Hai Van pass
The Nguyen dynasty ruled Vietnam from 1802 until 1945 and several of its most prominent Emperors are buried in the surrounding countryside. This morning, we will have a tour around this fabulous city. A visit to Huewould not be complete without taking in attractions such as the Citadel and the Forbidden Purple City.
After lunch we transfer to Hoi An, along the way though we will first stop at Lang Co beach, for coffee and refreshments, then onto the Hai Van pass, stopping at the top to take in the stunning views north over Lang Co beach and south over Danang city. Arriving in Hoi An we check into our hotel before spending the rest of the afternoon exploring and shopping.

Hue Royal Citadel

Day 9: Hoi An – Free day with below suggestion (B)
Accommodations: Phuoc An River Hotel Hoi An
Site visited: Optional trips to My Son or Hoi An town
Hoi An is a charming, small town which can be easily explored on foot.
Between the 17th and 19th centuries the town was a thriving international trading port with a large Chinese and Japanese population. We can spend our time walking around the historic town soaking up the atmosphere, exploring the many Chinese assembly halls and fascinating ancestral homes. The town is also famous for its shops, in particular it’s large number of tailors.
We also have the option of taking a day trip to My Son, about 1 1/2 hours away. My Son is another UNESCO world heritage-listed site. Here, in a secluded valley, the Cham built over 70 impressive Hindu-style temples, many over a thousand years old.

Hoi An walking tour

Day 10: Hoi An – fly to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) in the afternoon (B)
Accommodations: Sapphire Hotel Saigon
This afternoon we transfer back to Danang city for a short domestic flight to Ho Chi Minh city (Saigon). Up on arrival in Saigon we transfer to hotel. Relaxing in the rest of the day.

Ho Chi Minh City

Day 11: Ho Chi Minh City tour and Cu Chi tunnel (B, L)
Accommodations: Sapphire Hotel Saigon
Site visited: Reunification Palace , War Remnant Museum, Notre Dame Cathedral, General Post office , Ben Thanh, Cu Chi tunnels
In the morning, we will transfer to the highlights of the biggest city in Vietnam. The first destination is the Reunification Palace where Vietnam Liberation Army got Victory from the American War in 1975. The second place is the War Remnant Museum.
This is a place that we can see countless of artifacts, photographs and pictures documenting American war crimes. The Notre Dame Cathedral and Old Post office and Ben Thanh market are the last places we will visit before transferring to the restaurant for lunch.
In the afternoon, we will leave Saigon for the Cu Chi tunnels, otherwise known as the “Iron Triangle” or “Iron Land”. On our way there, we will drive through pleasant countryside, rubber plantations and rice paddies.
Before entering the tunnels, we will see a short, introductory video showing how they were constructed, followed by an exploration of the maze of tunnels, some of which have been widened to allow tourist access.
Also on display are various mantraps and the remains of an American tank as well as numerous bomb craters made by 500lb bombs dropped by B52 bombers. We are back to hotel at around 18:00.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Day 12: Ho Chi Minh – Mekong Delta – Home-stay (B, L, D)
Accommodations: Basic Home stay
Site visited: Cai be floating market, waterway of Mekong river, Cottage industries, work shops
This morning we set off for a drive through the Mekong Delta to the town of Cai Be, well known for its floating market. Here we will board our private boat for a cruise along the maze of waterways and canals to Vinh Long.
We will stop at the home of a Bonsai gardener for a sumptuous Delta lunch, including the popular dish of ‘Elephant ear fish’, before continuing our exploration of the tributaries and canals of the delta.
Towards the end of the day, we arrive at the home of a local family whose house is built on the side of the small river. These people will be our hosts for this evening and will tell we more about life in the Delta. (Home-stay).

Cai Be Floating Market

Day 13: Mekong Delta – Ho Chi Minh (B, L)
Site visited: Vinh Long town, workshops, Vinh Trang Pagoda, Snake farm
Rising early to the sounds of the Delta coming to life for another day, we have breakfast before boarding our riverboat once more for a cruise to Vinh Long town, stopping along the way to visit some local cottage industries.
Following this, we will rendezvous with our vehicle for the drive to the town of My Tho, where we will visit the Dong Tam snake farm and the Vinh Trang pagoda, before our return to Ho Chi Minh City.

Vinh Trang Pagoda

Day 14: Ho Chi Minh – Free day (B)
Accommodations: Sapphire Hotel Saigon
We are free day at leisure.

Ben Thanh market

Day 15: Departure (B)
Transfer via: International Flight on your own arrangement
We are free at our leisure for our final day in Ho Chi Minh before the departure flight to home.