Vietnam Holiday In Your Eyes – 8 Days From Hanoi

Vietnam is deserved to be a top country to travel in your lifetime which is famous for its peaceful country-sides, green rice paddy fields, rugged mountain ranges, exotic ethnic minorities, amazing white sandy beaches, spectacular bays, mysterious pagodas and significant historical sites. Travel to Vietnam with Vivutravel is a perfect idea and your Vietnam holiday packages will be memorable.

You will be welcomed upon your arrival at Noi Bai airport (Hanoi) by our experienced English speaking tour guide and driver before transferring to your hotel for check-in.

In the afternoon, at around 15:00, take a cyclo ride around the Old Quarter to observe the daily life of Hanoian, as well as see how locals manage in the incredible traffic.

Then, start your interesting and fantastic street food & night walking tour (the walking tour will be much more fantastic at the weekend from Friday night to Sunday as many Old Streets will blocked for pedestrians).

At first, the street food tour starts at one of Hanoi’s largest market, Dong Xuan market. In every corner, you can easily find various types of products, from dried food to pork, beef, seafood, from fruits to cakes, candies & fashion stuff. Our tour guide will give you full introductions of Vietnamese food culture with prominent ingredients as well as famous local dishes.

Next, you will try one of the most delicious foods in Hanoi, Banh Cuon at a local restaurant. There, you can easily watch how our master chefs cook and prepare the dish. Banh Cuon is made from a first layer of steamed fermented rice batter and a second layer of minced wood ear mushroom, minced pork, minced shallots that are all rolled together. It is served with dipping sauce consisting of Cha Lua (Vietnamese pork sausage), sliced cucumber, carrot, bean sporuts and fish sauce.

From there, continue our walking tour to the heart of the Old Quarter, wandering around street stalls, passing ancient house & pagodas.

Our next stop is a Grilled Pork Street Stall where small pork pieces are are flame grilled over hot coals. You can also have grilled pork with bread & vegetable that is really a Vietnam specialty and even considered one of the world best hamburgers.

It’s then our time for dessert after some main dishes and fresh fruits should not be missed!!! However, it is not only fresh fruits but all of the stuff will be mixed with condensed milk and crushed ice.

One another try should be the egg coffee, served at a quiet and ancient café shop, hidden behind buildings and busy streets. Cold Beer may be a better choice if coffee is not your style.

Finally, end the trip with Hanoi most famous ice-cream where locals really enjoy.

Overnight in Hanoi.

Ranked among the world’s best destinations, Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam with more than 1000 years of history and culture. Hanoi is also well-known for its beautiful lakes with the image of local Tai Chi in the early morning, tree-line boulevards, flowers on bicycles and delicious dishes.

08:00: Pick up and transfer to visit the Museum of Ethnology – an insight into the 54 different ethnic groups living in Vietnam.It is here you will learn about the cultural diversity of different ethnic groups from religious events to the symbolic rituals as well as display of a variety of Vietnamese homes as full-scale replicas outside.

Continue to the Temple of Literature which is the first university in Vietnam. It was constructed in 1070, first to honor Confucius and nowadays to celebrate the doctorates and ranked scholars of Vietnam.

Have lunch at local restaurant.

Then, you will have an amazing trip to the Train Street (best time to be there is around 2pm as there is a train leaving at 02:30pm and another arrival at 03:30pm) to take fantastic pictures of incoming train as well as see how locals live on both sides of the railway. A little bit far from the hustle, bustle and narrow old streets, Train street is where the trains just hurl through the residential area in mere feed away from local lives. Enjoy a cup of coffee at Train Track Coffee Shop while watching the trains pass.

Next, visit Ho Chi Minh complex with first stop at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum (outside) –a large memorial pays homage to the national hero – President Ho Chi Minh who led the country to independence and reunification. The Mausoleum is located at Ba Dinh Square where Ho Chi Minh President read the Declaration of Independence on September 2, 1945 establishing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Then take a short walk to the Presidential Palace and house on stilts.

Near from Ho Chi Minh complex, we visit to the One Pillar Pagoda (special with unique architecture of lotus flower) – a must-see place for tourists to Hanoi.

Around 18:00, you will be transferred to a Village named Da Phuc – around 26Km from Hanoi city center where “The Quintessence of Tonkin” Show (20:00-21:00) – a new & interesting show will be performed. With the celebration of the history of northern Vietnam and the preservation of traditional water puppetry at its heart, The Quintessence of Tonkin is also an emotive expression of the ancient union between religion and monarchy. The show is romantic, poetic and emotional, and brings a breath of fresh air and stirring excitement to Vietnamese entertainment. Before enjoying the show, spend your dinner time at an open air restaurant called “Cho Que”, meaning a countryside market.

Overnight in Hanoi.

We start at 9.00 A.M for the 2.5 hours drive to Halong Bay (150 km) through highways connecting Hanoi – Hai Phong & Hai Phong – Ha Long Bay. Our destination is Halong bay – the most famous World Heritage Site in Vietnam, famous for its beautiful seascape, thousands of spectacular islands and islets jutting out from the sea, amazing caves with marvelous stalagmites and stalactites in different sizes and shapes.

11:30 – 12:00 Upon arrival, you’ll be welcomed on board our luxury junk and treated with wine and fresh local seafood. As our junk gliding further into the tranquility of Ha Long Bay amid the towering mountain cliffs and on the emerald green water, you’ll have relaxing time combining the fine tastes of the wine and the freshness of Ha Long Bay. During the cruise, we’ll stop some times for visiting the amazing Sung Sot cave and the Ti Top white sand beach before anchoring for the night. Overnight on board the junk in the wild of Halong Bay

It is said that your Vietnam Tours will not be complete without a tour to Halong Bay and spending one night on romantic Halong Cruise. People describe Halong Bay as majestic and mysterious, inspiring and imperious and words alone cannot do justice to the natural wonder that is Halong Bay, a priceless collection of unfinished sculptures hewn from the hand of nature.

After breakfast, we’ll take a little sampan or kayak to visit a secret lagoon of Ha Long Bay while the surrounding mountains are just waking up. After that our cruise takes us further into the Bay of Bai Tu Long traveling past the Human Head Island, the Turtle Island, and the Duck Islet… to the studio site where the famous Indochine film was shot. Around noon, our junk travels back to the harbor, pick up and drive back to Noi Bai airport for the flight to Da Nang.

Met by our driver and transferred to your hotel.

Check in and overnight in Hoi An.

This morning, we cycle to Tra Que vegetable village where you will have a good time learning how to grow vegetables, water vegetables and the life of a Vietnamese farmer. Then you will learn to cook typical Vietnamese dishes. Lunch with what you cook.

In the afternoon, experience the basket boat – the boat that Vietnamese fishermen use for fishing. It is a fun time

Back to your hotel and overnight in Hoi An.

After breakfast, we transfer you back to Da Nang airport for the short flight o Ho Chi Minh city

Met by your private tour guide and driver and visit the Independence palace

After lunch, we drive to visit Cu Chi tunnels to learn more about Vietnamese people and the so-called Vietnam war.

Back to Ho Chi Minh city and stop at Ben Thanh market for a quick visit

Check in and overnight in Ho Chi Minh city

Leaving the hustle and bustle of Ho Chi Minh City and start your trip to depart for My Tho, the town lies on the left side of the Mekong River. Upon arrival, visit Vinh Trang pagoda which sated back to the late 19th century. Then boarding the sampan and cruising down the river around the four beautiful islands known as Dragon, Unicorn, Phoenix and Tortoise islands. Stop over at Unicorn Island, go walking around country lane and seeing orchards, enjoy tropical fruits, folk song music which performed by the local people. Visit the fruit plantation.

Riding a hand-rowed sampan through Thoi Son canal and treat yourself in the beauty of the countryside, visit the family business, visit honey-bee farm, enjoy honey tea and coconut candy workshop.

Have lunch at local restaurant. Break time.

In the afternoon, time for cycling around the Tan Thach village, meet the local villagers to experience the local daily life in the Mekong delta. Hammock relaxing and enjoy cool breeze for those can’t join the cycling trip. Return to Ho Chi Minh city.

Overnight in Ho Chi Minh city

Free time at leisure for you to wrap up your memorable Vietnam Holiday until Vivutravel’s private guide will see you off at the airport for departure flight with the sincere thanks for your travel to Vietnam and with Advebture Indochina Travel. We hope that you have enjoyed your Vietnam trip and look forward to welcoming you back for your next Vietnam Tour, goodbye and see you again!!!