Experience the Magic of Vietnam in 16 Days

When you arrive at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport you’ll be met at the baggage claim by our friendly guide. Just look for the sign with our Sun Getaways Travel logo and your name. We’ll get you to your hotel and see that you’re comfortable, plus we’ll give you an introduction to the city at the same time. Then the rest of the day is yours to settle in, relax, and explore the area.

Ho Chi Minh 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 1: Overnight in hotel in Ho Chi Minh City

Breakfast at your hotel, transfer for visiting Cu Chi Tunnels. After lunch in Cu Chi, the driver back to Ho Chi Minh City. This afternoon, depending on your preference, visit either the War Remnants Museum or History Museum, and the former Presidential Palace. 

Finish the day with a stroll around the city’s colonial architecture, including the Old Saigon Post Office, Dong Khoi Street (formerly Rue Catinat), Continental Hotel, Opera House and City Hall. Then back to Ho Chi Minh City 

Night 2: Overnight in hotel in Ho Chi Minh

Have breakfast at hotel.

Meet our tour guide at your hotel Enjoy the scenic journey along the National Highway bordered by green rice fields.

On arriving at My Tho, visit Vinh Trang Pagoda, take a leisurely boat ride along the river, view the stilt houses, fruit plantations, and fishing villages along the river bank. Proceed to Tortoise Islet, and have lunch in the orchard garden.

Following breakfast at your our tour guide will come to pick you up at about 8 am to depart for a 1.5 hour drive from Saigon to Ben Tre, one of the country’s southern provinces, situated in the Delta of the Mekong River.  

Take in the highway as you leave behind the busy city. Pass Rach Mieu bridge before reaching Huu Dinh hamlet. Get on a tri-motor cycle (xe loi) ride to enjoy the lush surroundings of rice paddies and fruit farms alongside the narrow village roads. 

Arrive at the waterfront, and board the charming cruise for a glimpse at the Delta scenery while enjoying coconut juice. First stop for a visit at the coconut processing, then back to your boat the boat will stop at a brick-making shop, where the locals still use centuries-old traditional methods to make the bricks by hand where you will start a Bicycle trip around Phong Nam village around 4km, through gardens and stop at the rice noodles factory “hu tieu”, one of most popular breakfast dishes in the region. Walk about 3 minutes to visit a local home. 

The family lives on fishing, shrimp, and farming. Enjoy the tropical fruits and honey tea in her garden before taking the rowing sampan, and be paddled by a personalized rower trip to discover the maze of small canals. After the visit, the boat will be waiting for you at the pier nearby to bring you back to Ben Tre city where your car will be ready to take you back to Saigon. 

Night 3: Overnight hotel in Ho Chi Minh.

You’ll have the morning for a leisurely breakfast before we come to collect you and take you to Mui Ne.

Free at leisure on the beach or enjoy resort facilities. Overnight in Mui Ne.

Night 4: Overnight in hotel in Mui Ne

Breakfast at the hotel. Full-day free and easy at the resort. Overnight in Mui Ne

Night 5: Overnight in hotel in Mui Ne

Breakfast at the hotel. Morning, free at leisure for relaxing or swimming.

Transfer to Tan Son Nhat airport for your flight to Da Nang. Arrive in Da Nang airport, pick up and transfer to Hoi An. Overnight at hotel in Hoi An

Night 6: Overnight in hotel in Hoi An

Option 1 – Cooking class:

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

In the afternoon, explore the enchanting time-capsule town of Old Hoi An on a walking tour with your guide. Hoi An was a major seaport 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 riding a bike to Tra Que Village 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 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 as Tam huu (spring roll) and Banh xeo (pancake).

Of course, you must also join in the after-lunch nap before returning to the field to learn how to harvest and wrap the produce. Mid-afternoon we wave goodbye to your new friends and go back to Hoian to visit 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, ride 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 mats as well, so we will stop at a family to see how they weaved the mat for everyday use in the old times before having today’s popular mattresses.

Visit a local family making the famous local noodle – Mi Quang is another chance to learn the local life. You also have a chance to make and eat the perfect banh dap (rice cracker). Riding into a 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 Hoi An

Breakfast at your hotel, free time for relaxing on the beach or shopping. In the afternoon, the guide will pick you up and transfer you to Hue. On the way to Hue, stop over to visit Cham Museum, ascend the Pass of Ocean Clouds for panoramic views of the surroundings, and visit the picturesque fishing village of Lang Co Beach. 

Arrive in Hue, visit Mu Pagoda overlooking the Perfume River End the day at Khai Dinh’s Tomb which boasts a traditional Vietnamese design with a European touch, making it unique from the other tombs in Hue. Then free time.

Night 8: Overnight in hotel in Hue

We’ll pick you up after breakfast and take you to the airport for a flight to Hanoi. After you arrive we’ll get you to your hotel and see that you’re comfortable, plus we’ll give you an introduction to the city at the same time. 

Free time in Hanoi

Night 9: Overnight 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: The Hanoi city tour finishes at a mini hotel. 

You will have a room for a shower at a mini hotel from 17h30 to 20h30. You will have dinner by yourself and free time until about 20h40, our tour guide will pick you up and check in station to check in on your right cabin to Lao Cai station. 

We’ll get you situated in an air-conditioned, 4-berth cabin with soft sleepers for an overnight train to Lao Cai. You will arrive at Lao Cai at about 6:00 am the next day.

Night 10: Overnight on train

The train arrives at around 6:00 am. Look for the “Sun Getaways Travel’s Logo & Your Name” sign when you exit the train station, as our guide will pick you up there and transfer you to the former hill station of Sapa.  

After having breakfast at a local restaurant, Walking through the town for about 20 minutes before turning to a dirt road to Ma Tra Village, where inhabited by Black H’mong ethic. Continue trekking up the village and getting through paddies fields will lead you to an ancient Catholic abbey, built by French colonists. 

Walk 2 km more to reach Ta Phin Village to explore the daily life of Red Dzao. Here you have good choices to buy woven and textile brocades, which is made by ethnic people and have a picnic lunch before exploring the village and Ta Phin Cave and the small hamlet of Black H’mong people. At the end of the day, return to Sapa. The rest of the afternoon and evening at leisure.

Night 11: Overnight in hotel in Sapa

Following a hotel breakfast, meet your guide in the morning and depart on a second trek from the town of Sapa to Golden Stream Valley. 

Today’s trekking offers more stunning views of rice terraces and gardens as well as Mt Fansipan, whose summit rises 10,312 feet (3,143 meters) above sea level.

After crossing a suspension bridge, marvel at the breathtaking scenery as you continue through the Golden Stream Valley, stopping at Lao Chai village for lunch. 

After your meal, follow your guide on a walk through this village where Black Hmong people reside, and continue to Ta Van village, home to the Dzay tribe. This part of the hike is relatively easy, though the trail can be quite slippery if it rains, so good footwear is recommended. 

You’ll visit with some local families and learn about their daily lifestyle and fascinating culture, before departing to the main road to meet up with your driver and return to Sapa.

Followed by an afternoon free to explore the town on your own. In the evening, The car will pick you up for the night train back to Hanoi. Arrive at Lao Cai train station and take the night train back to Hanoi.

Night 12: Overnight on train

Arrive in Hanoi train station at around 5h00am. Check in a small hotel ( near train station). Have breakfast at hotel.

Driver will come to pick you up around 08h00 am with our shuttle bus to start the 3-hour-and-a-half drive to Halong Bay

12:00: At Tuan Chau International Marina, a tender boat will take you to our Halong Phoenix Cruiser. A refreshing welcome drink is served and you can check into your cabin.

13:00: When you are putting all of your stuffs into your cabin, our boat starts gliding out to the centre of the World Heritage Site. Your set menu lunch, at the boat’s restaurant, is would be served with fresh local seafood, but vegetable menu is always available at your request. From the marina area, our cruiser passes by Duck then Thumb Islands before reaching to Luon cave area for kayaking.

15:00 – 16:00: We have time to gear up for one hour kayaking around Luon cave area .Our guide will show you some basic safety guidelines and techniques to paddle before helping you to sit on our brand new sit-on-top kayaks. After that our boat will help you visit the Titop Island one hour for swimming, sun-bathing or getting a panoramic view on island peak.

17:00: As the sun sets over the bay, we head back to our cruise and relax. Coffee, tea and fruits will be available on the sundeck or you can order your favorite drink while our boat cruises to the night’s anchorage area.

19:00: Dinner will be served with local seafood. After dinner you may choose to enjoy drinks from the bar or top deck or experience squid fishing before retiring.

Night 13: Overnight on Cruise

07:00 – 07:45: Enjoy the morning view of the beautiful landscape with a cup of coffee or tea. Have breakfast in the fresh air.

08:00 – 09:00: You will visit the impressive Cave of Halong Bay – Surprising Cave (Sửng Sốt) with your tour guide, a truly awesome and amazing cave to experience.

9:00 – 9:30: Check out of your cabin and settle your bill as our boat begins cruising back to the harbor. Experience more views of Halong Bay such as Fighting Cocks Island (Symbol of Halong Bay), Incense Burner and Stone Dogs Islands.

10:30: A cooking demonstration onboard shows you how to make authentic Vietnamese Spring rolls. You will learn about the recipes and techniques that create this popular dish of Vietnamese people.

11:00: Lunch is served on board during cruising towards the harbor.

11:45: Depart the Halong Phoenix Cruiser and travel by tender boat back to Tuan Chau International Marina where you then board the bus for your return journey to Hanoi. Arrive at your hotel around 15.30

Night 14: Overnight in hotel in Hanoi

Have breakfast at hotel in Hanoi.

Free time in Hanoi.

Night 15: Overnight in hotel in Hanoi

Your time will be your own until your private car and driver arrive to take you to the airport for your flight to your next destination. Finish the unforgettable Vietnam Tour with Sun Getaways Travel. Goodbye & see you the next time!

Note: Check-in time – 2.00 pm and check-out time – 12.00 pm