Vietnam Grand Tour 25 Days 24 Nights

Day 1:  Arrival Hanoi
Welcome to Vietnam "Xin Chao” in Vietnamese transfer of 45 min to your hotel in town, (if it is still early then we can venture out for some culture shocks on a short walking tour in the Old Quarter of Hanoi-this is the way to get familiar with the people and the culture). The tour guide of Far East Tour will show you the directions or escort you upon request. Welcome dinner and Water Puppet Show at night. Overnight in Hanoi. 

Day 2:  Hanoi – City tour: the 1000 years old Capital
Leave at 8 am, on the three wheels of a cycle you will be guided through Hanoi history, culture and people and get some more shocks of the culture. This tour draws to: the Ho Chi Minh complex, Temple of literature, one of the Museums (Ethnology, Fine Art, Army, Women, History, etc.) with lunch at restaurant then back to the Old Quarter for some more exploration.

Day 3:  Tam Coc and Hoa Lu – the ancient capital city (NinhBinh)
Breakfast then leave at 8 am by mini van for a day trip to Tam Coc for the boat trip along the paddy fields through the caves then lunch served by in the "River side Restaurant". Next is the drive through the villages along the limestone mountains to visit the ancient capital city of Vietnam. Drive back to Hanoi at 4:30 pm. Night train at 9:30 pm to Sapa (soft sleeper with A/C).
 
Day 4:  Sapa – hill station with colorful minorities
 Arrive Lao Cai Station in the early morning. Jeep ride to Sapa for sightseeing en route. Arrival Sapa, take breakfast then leave for wonderful trek (5–6 hours) along the rice terraces, through the forest and cross the stream with stops for visit the H'Mong and Dzao villages (picnic lunch). Check in and stay home at the Dzao in Ta Phin village and dinner and sleep in their traditional house.

Day 5: Trek back to Sapa – Lao Cai – Hanoi
Vietnam  Breakfast and leave the village for trekking (3 hours) another way up hill to the main road then jeep back to Sapa, check in hotel with lunch served in Sapa then free after the long trek to discover the town at your own taste.
Jeep ride at 4 pm to Lao Cai Station and take night train back to Hanoi. Arrive in Hanoi in the next morning.

Day 6:  Hanoi to Ha long Bay – the World Heritage  
Arrival from Sapa in the early morning. Take a mini van Ha Long city then boat cruise straight to the Bay with seafood lunch served on the Bay, cruise along the wonderful Bay in the afternoon with cave visit and swimming, dinner and sleep on boat (under thousands of stars). 

Day 7:  Ha Long Bay – Hanoi
Visitors often wake up at 6 am for the sunrise, offering great photos as it is raising up from the ocean and through the peaks of the limestone islands Breakfast served on boat. Cruise back to Ha long City. Lunch in a restaurant and drive back to Hanoi.
 
Day 8:  Hanoi to Babe – the intact lakes inside the Nat'l Park
Depart 7.00 am by van to Ba Be (6 hours). Break for brekkie and a visit to Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Thai Nguyen city. Continue onwards to Babe then lunch in Bac Can town in restaurant. Arrival in Ba Be around 3 pm and boat ride or walk along the lake side to Pac Ngoi village, check-in the house on stilt. Dinner and sleep homestay.
 
Day 9:  Babe – Canoeing
Spend a whole day after breakfast to visit the beauty of the area on the local canoes (rafts) gliding along the river and through the pretty cave. Lunch served after visiting the waterfall. We canoe our hearts out into the tranquil Ba Be lakes for its majesty. Then swimming or trekking to visit the ethnic minorities. Dinner and talk with the local people. Overnight homestay.

Day 10:  Babe – Hanoi
Breakfast then canoeing or walking along the lake's side to the van, swimming. Leave for Hanoi by 10.00 am, lunch in restaurant en route. Arrive in Hanoi by 5.30 pm.

Day 11:  Hanoi – Hue
Breakfast, and a free day in Hanoi to taste around the city (visiting the sites of interest, cooking class, shopping). Take a night train at 7 pm to go Hue (AC soft cabin of 4 persons).

Day 12:  Hue – City tour of Vietnam last feudal dynasty
Arrival in Hue at 7:30 am then transfer to Hotel. Take a city tour around Hue by Cycle or Bicycle to visit the Forbidden Purple City. Boarding our boat for lunch and cruise along the Perfume river to visit Thien Mu pagoda and Emperors' tombs of Minh Mang, back to hotel at 5.30. Overnight in Hue.

Day 13:  Hue – Traditional villages
Brekkie at hotel then head out on a car to visit the style garden house of Tinh Gia Vien and An Hien with Courtyards, Ngoc Son Princess' residence. Lunch break and we will take you to Phu Cam conical hat-making village and Phuong Duc bronze-casting village. Drive back to Hue at 4:30 p.m.

Day 14:  Bach Ma National Park
Leave hotel at 7.30 a.m (after breakfast) for hitting upwards to Bach Ma travel center then get ready for the trek to top of Bach Ma mountain, great chances are here to learn about the diverse fauna, flora and wonderful view of Bach Ma, take a swim in the small romantic pools and fairy streams then go a break for lunch at Ngu (five) pools. An amazing waterfall of Do Quyen will be within an hour walk we head to. Dinner at the hotel, at 7 pm camping fire activities. Overnight at Bach Ma mountain hotel.
 
Day 15:  Bach Ma to Hoian – the charming old town
Great scene of sunrise in the early morning, free to walk around for a bit then we leave after our breakfast (8:30 am) go to Hoian with stopover at Lang Co beach, Hai Van Pass, Cham museum and Marble mountains. Lunch stop near the China beach and head onto the charming town of Hoian. Overnight in town.

Day 16:  Hoian – Walking tour in the ancient town
Breakfast at hotel then walk with your tour guide to visit around Hoi An: the old Tan Ky House, Covered Bridge, Phuc Kien Assembly Hall. Shop for tailored made silk products or spend your time at the wonderful beach (4 km away). Dinner and enjoy a show of traditional arts of the Center.

Day 17:  Da Nang, fly to Nha Trang – the best beaches and corals
Breakfast from hotel then airport transfer to Da Nang for flight (at 10:10 am) to Nha Trang, taxi pick up to your hotel then free to chill out on the beautiful and white sandy beach of Nha Trang.

Day 18:  Nha Trang, with boat trip
Leave hotel after breakfast to boat station for boating to 3 or 4 islands with the activities of swimming, snorkeling (one of the 29 bays in the world has the most beautiful corals), chilling out on the beach., then visiting the fishing village before returning to Nha Trang. Overnight in Hotel.

Day 19:  Car to Dalat – the Central Highland
Leave at 8:00 am for 5 hour road trip hitting upwards over the beautiful and spectacular passes to the Central Highland of Dalat. Check in at arrival of 2 pm then free to hang out at the very cool and flowery city. Overnight in town.

Day 20:  Dalat – Jungle trek
Breakfast at hotel then we start our hike at the Chicken village and wanders up into the dense jungle area of Dalat's south, this is 5 hrs walk, lunch then we will meet the boat to take us to Tuyen Lam lake, then back to town. Overnight in Dalat.
 
Day 21:  Da lat – Bike and Flight to HCM city
Breakfast at hotel then get biking city, lake trails, "crazy house", market, waterfalls, lunch at restaurant. Flight at 3:40 pm to Sai Gon, check in hotel up on arrival. Overnight in town. 

Day 22:  HCM – City tour of SaiGon
Whole day on cycle, taxi to visit city tour of SaiGon to visit Reunification Hall, Notre Dame Cathedral, former US Embassy, War crimes Museum, Chinatown, Ben Thanh Market. Overnight in Hotel. 

Day 23:  Tay Ninh and Cu Chi tunnels
We have our breakfast before taking the van of Fareast Travel at 8 am to Tay Ninh with the Great Cao Dai temple (a mixture of Buddhism, Confucius, Taoism, Hinduism and Christian). We see the noon mass (approximate 1 hour). Lunch in Tay Ninh. Afternoon we visit Cu Chi - a fabulous tunnel. You will have an opportunity to get the unique experience of guerrillas living and fighting underground during the war (a crawl through 50–100 meters out 200 km of the tunnel system is unforgettable). Local rice paper workshops, nice paddy fields are pleasant sights on the way. Overnight in Hotel in Sai Gon.

Day 24: SaiGon to the fertile Mekong Delta (CaiBe CanTho)
Departing Saigon at 08:00 head south to Cai Be. On arrival walk through the village streets and watch locals making manioc chips before boarding a boat for a journey through the town's floating market. Cruise through the secluded canals to an island where we stop to enjoy seasonal fruits before our boat takes us to VinhLong where we get back on the bus for our trip to CanTho to overnight.

Day 25:  CanTho – SaiGon – Departure
An early start for a boat trip to Cai Rang and Phong Dien floating markets. We stop for a walk on a quiet country road to take in the magnificent scenery and get close to the locals as they go about their daily routine. We try a “xe loi”, the local colonial-era cab pulled by motorbike, on a country road. In the afternoon we head back to Saigon, with a visit to a My Tho bonsai garden. Back in Saigon at 18:00.  Transfer to the airport for your departure flight. Tour ends. Far East Tour hopes to serve you next time.

Accommodation list: