Best Cultural & Heritage Vietnam 12 Days

Upon arrival, you will be met by your driver who will escort you to a waiting vehicle for your transfer to downtown with a brief introduction en route. Your guide will be holding a welcome signboard with the Sun Getaways Travel Logo & your name. 

Hanoi is Vietnam’s capital city and home to seven million people. Traditional and refined with French colonial architecture, tree-lined boulevards, scenic lakes and a bustling Old Quarter, Hanoi has a sophisticated charm. Observe locals practicing Tai Chi by the lake, with barbers and food vendors plying their sidewalk trade.

Night 1: Overnight in hotel in Hanoi

After breakfast at your hotel, our driver and tour guide will come to pick you up at about 8:00 am for a city tour. You will visit the Ho Chi Minh Complex, which includes Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum (viewed from outside; closed Mon and Fri and from Oct-Nov), – the final resting place of the beloved national hero, Uncle Ho – and President Ho Chi Minh’s stilt house where he lived off and on from 1958 to 1969. 

9.30: You’ll visit the One Pillar Pagoda, which is a group of structures that collectively make up a pagoda built over the water in the middle of a square lake. After that, you’ll have a chance to explore the Tran Quoc Pagoda on the shore of West Lake. From there, it’s onto the Temple of Literature, which was Vietnam’s first university and is dedicated to Confucius. 

12.30: You have lunch at the restaurant in the Old Quarter. Afterward, you’ll visit Hoan Kiem Lake – the heart and soul of Hanoi.

Option 1: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday

You’ll stop in at MUSEUM OF ETHNOLOGY. This superb museum showcases the depth of Vietnamese cultural diversity with an astounding collection of 15,000 artifacts gathered from throughout Vietnam. Maps, displays and dioramas are labelled in Vietnamese, French and English.

Displays portray a typical village market, the making of comical hats and a Tay shamanic ceremony; videos show the real thing. You can also check out a traditional Black Thai house reconstructed in the museum. There’s also a centre for research and conservation where scientists from all over the world study traditional Vietnamese cultures

Option 2: Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Depart for Bat Trang ceramic village which is about 20 km away from Ha Noi, this is a pottery village with a half- millenary historic development.

15.30 – 16.00: We will come back to your hotel. Free day for shopping or relaxing at your hotel. 

Night 2: Overnight in hotel in Hanoi

Have breakfast at hotel.

We’ll pick you up at hotel and drive through the verdant Red River Delta to make our way to the famous UNESCO World Heritage site, Halong Bay. 

12:00: Arrive at Tuan Chau Harbor, 12:15 Welcome to Rosa Boutique Cruise and enjoy Welcome drink while getting a brief introduction about the cruise and safety guidelines. Check-in your cabin.

12:30: Enjoy Vietnamese seafood and vegetarian lunch, while cruising in the magnificent Halong Bay, admiring the fascinating rock formations in the bay.

15:00:  You at  Tung Gau Area. The airy and fresh air, cool breezes, blue sea and sky, and natural seascape will captivate any visitors setting foot here. Especially, Tung Gau of Lan Ha Bay is extremely suitable for enjoying kayaking and swimming and then Visiting Halong Pearl Farm Village

17.30: Come back to our Cruise and relax.

19:30: Time for dinner enjoying special food on the cruise.

21:00: Evening entertainments: play games on the cruise: cards game, chess, karaoke, squid fishing, and overnight on the Cruise.  

Night 3: Overnight on board

06.30: Early morning sun risers can enjoy Tai Chi lesson on sunJulyk.

07.00: Morning view of bay’s landscape with a cup of tea or coffee. Have breakfast.

08:00:  Arriving Sung Sot Cave (Amazing Cave) and joining with guide to visiting and explore the cave

10:00:  Check-out and enjoy a fantastic cruise on the bay. Join cooking class guided directly by Chef of Rosa Boutique Cruise. You have chance to practice Vietnamese traditional dishes such as spring roll or famous cuisine of Vietnam.

11:00:  Enjoy the lunch on cruise.

12:00: Rosa Boutique Cruise are landing Halong Bay harbor, tourist say goodbye to sailors and finish the cruise.

12:30:  Return to Hanoi by shuttle bus.

Our driver will pick you up from the van on the way to Hanoi and direct transfer to airport for your flight to Hue. When you arrive in Hue we’ll pick you up and transfer you to your hotel.You will have free time and overnight at your hotel in Hue.

Night 4: Overnight in hotel in Hue

You’ll begin your day in Hue with a visit to the ruins of the Imperial Citadel, the capital of the Nguyen Dynasty from 1802 to 1945. Then take a bicycle trip through the Old City to Tinh Tam Lake, the ancient gardens of the emperors.

In the afternoon you can head to the Mu Pagoda, overlooking the emerald Perfume River.Your last stop will be to explore Khai Dinh’s Tomb, a traditional Vietnamese temple with a 

European touch, making it a particularly unique tomb among the ancestral ruins of ancient Hue. In the evening you can explore the city and its marketplaces on your own.

Night 5: Overnight in hotel in Hue

You’ll have breakfast in your hotel, then have some free time to shop, explore, or just relax. In the afternoon our guides will pick you up and take you to Hoi An.

Have lunch at restaurant.

On your way, you can stop to visit Lang Co Beach, a picturesque fishing village, then drive through the Pass of Ocean Clouds for a stunning panoramic view of the mountains and sea, and make a quick visit to the Cham Museum. After you arrive in Hoi An you will check into your hotel and then have the afternoon to soak up the sun at Cua Dai Beach.

Hoi An was a prosperous port from the 16th to 19th centuries trading with merchants from China, Japan, India, Indonesia and Europe who came to buy silk, spices and porcelain. Hoian’s UNESCO World Heritage Old Quarter is beautifully preserved with ornate pagodas, antique trading houses and old tile-roofed shops. It is a rich architectural fusion of Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese and European styles. 

Many of the historic buildings lining the canals and pedestrian streets have been converted into art galleries, boutique restaurants, bars and cafes. Hoi An is surrounded by attractive countryside with traditional farming and fishing, and by sandy beaches with modern seaside resorts.

Night 6: Overnight in hotel in Hoi An

Have breakfast at your hotel in Hoi An.

Option 1 – Cooking class:

Your cooking class today will begin with a visit to a colorful local markets, buying all the necessary ingredients and head back to prepare. Your cheft will demonstrate how to cook some typical Vietnam cruisine, you will then start cooking yourself and enjoy what you have cooked

In the afternoon, exploring the enchanting time-capsule town of Old Hoi An on a walking tour with your guide. Hoi An was a major sea port in Asia and it resulted in a fusion of style and culture that has been perfectly preserved. Wander traditional Chinese shops, luxurious French homes, and an ancient Japanese bridge. The town is home to silk markets, Vietnamese food stalls, and talented street performers– all of which are sure to charm you.

Option 2 – Vegetable village:

Breakfast at your hotel and then it’s time for a little bit of exercise and a bike ride to Tra Que Vilage and a visit to a local farm. This is a very special involvement in true Vietnamese rural life. You will learn about the history of the village and then be shown the daily practices of growing vegetables. You will learn how the vegetables are used in traditional Vietnamese medicine.

You will join in the activities of the farmers – collecting seaweed fertilizer, sowing, raking, watering and picking. Your cultural immersion continues as you join the family to prepare and eat the lunch you have helped grow. You will also taste other local specialties such a Tam huu (spring roll) and Bahn xeo (pancake). Of course you must also join in the after lunch nap before returning to the fiel to learn how to harvest and wrap the produce. Mid-afternoon we wave goodbye to your new friends and go back to Hoian for visiting Hoian Old Quarter. Return to your hotel for relaxing

Option 3 – Countryside biking or motor riding:

Our guide will pick you up at the hotel by motorbike, riding to Tra Que village and then ride back to  the river for  aboard a local ferry to  Kim Bong Village. This village is not only famous for wood carving but  weaving sleeping mat as well, so we will stop at a family to see how they weave the mat for every day use in the old time before having today popular mattresses.

Visit a local family making the famous local noodle – Mi Quang is the other chance to learn the local life. You also have a chance to make make and eat the perfect banh dap (rice cracker). Here, the local ferry crossing takes guests to the water coconut palm fringed Cam Thanh village.  Have lunch at Cam Thanh homestay. Back to town for a walking tour and free in the evening.

Note: If you prefer biking than scooter tour, we can be flexible to modify the route, matching with your ability.

Night 7: Overnight in hotel in Hoian

We’ll pick you up after breakast and take you to the airport for a flight to Ho Chi Minh City.

After you arrive we’ll get you to your hotel and then you can spend the evening exploring the bustling city of Ho Chi Minh City.

Ho Chi Minh City is a city that never sleeps and offers a plethora of great restaurants and bars catering to all tastes, from street food vendors to the rooftop bar at the Rex Hotel, where international correspondents covered the Vietnam War and where the U.S. military attaché’s press briefing was held daily and dubbed the “Five O’clock Follies”. Whatever your interests, be sure to ask your guide for personal recommendations.

Night 8: Overnight in hotel in Ho Chi Minh

We’ll pick you up in the morning and take you to the Cu Chi Tunnels, a major part of the Vietnam-American War and a fascinating day trip– explore the mysterious tunnels, find hidden doors and once-deadly traps. 

After lunch, we’ll go back to HCMC and spend the afternoon either visiting the War Remnants Museum or the Presidential Palace, whichever you prefer. Then stroll around the city’s colonial streets in the evening to the Old Saigon Post Office, Dong Khoi Street, Continental Hotel, Opera House and City Hall.

The War Remnants Museum was originally opened in September 1975, it displays old military equipment and other related items from the Vietnam War. In the courtyard we will find some larger exhibits including a F5A fighter and a UH1-Huey helicopter. The Reunification Palace, formerly known as the Presidential Palace was the sight of South Vietnam’s surrender in April 1975. Notre Dame Cathedral, General Post Office and the Opera House are beautiful examples of architecture from the French colonial period. We have  last time for visit Ben Thank Market. Back to hotel and relax.

Night 9: Overnight in hotel in Ho Chi Minh

08:00 – 08:30 AM, Pick up at your hotel & start to Mekong Delta tour. On arriving at the Mekong River after over 2 hours of driving. Pick up at Phong Nam Pier (Phong Nam old ferry station). Take the boat along the  River – one of the tributaries of the Mekong River, Sightseeing lively activities along the river as fishing, and water transferring. Stop at brickwork – coconut charcoal making and coconut husking. 

Visit one of the plenty of coconut processing workshops where coconut candies are made and have a chance to learn the coconut candies-making process located along the canal. Turn on natural scissors creeks where they look smaller and smaller to go to village. Take a walk to family making sleep mats. Afterward, being on a cart powered by a motorbike or biking  and traveling through some tranquil villages where vegetable gardens to be able to touch on real life and find out about tropical culture from Peasants. Lunch at a local restaurant.

Afternoon, take a bike around the village, row a boat along Water Palm Creek, and boat to Hung Vuong Pier. Driving to Can Tho. Overnight at the hotel in Can Tho. 

Night 10: Overnight in hotel in Can Tho

This morning, local boat to Cai Rang floating market, taking in the traditional sights such as rice barges, traditional shipyards and tropical fruits drying along the river banks along the way.

After a visit to the colorful floating market, check out and disembark before the return to Ho Chi Minh City. 

Night 11: Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City

After breakfast at the hotel, this morning is free at your leisure for last minute shopping and sightseeing before your private car and driver arrive to take you to the airport for your flight to your next destination. Tour ends

Accommodation: Check-out time is at 12:00 pm.

This is the end of your trip with Sun Getaways Travel. We thank you for joining us on this incredible experience to explore all the wonders of Vietnam. Goodbye, and we hope to see you again next time!