AUTHENTICITY OF VIETNAM 12 DAYS 11 NIGHTS

Arrival flight? At your arrival, meeting with our tour guide & driver for the transfer to hotel. With a Tour Guide, you Take A walk in the Old quarter of 36 corporations for the 1st discovery in Hanoi – Capital of Vietnam. The rest of day is free at leisure or for a first discovery of the city by yourself. Overnight in Hanoi. Hotel: The Oriental Jade 5*. (-)

Breakfast at hotel. 08h30: Your guide welcomes you at hotel and starts by visiting the Museum of Ethnology which includes costumes, tools, musical instruments and some houses of Vietnam's 54 ethnic groups (closed on Mondays). Then we visit the Temple of Literature, the "first university of Vietnam" and Tran Quoc Pagoda built in the 5th century. Visit the beautiful Hoan Kiem Lake with Ngoc Son Temple. A walking tour in the Old Quarters of Hanoi allows you to understand the local life before attending the evening Water Puppet Show. A visit of Street Train for the photos. Free dinner.Night in Hanoi. Hotel: The Oriental Jade 5*. (B,L)

Night on board. After breakfast, Meeting with your team of tour guide & driver for the departure for Halong Bay, passing the traditional Vietnamese countryside with its villages, markets, rice fields. Stop for a short break, visit a workshop manufacturing ceramics and a school of training of all traditional artisan crafts of Vietnam. Arrival in Halong around noon, boarding the junk. Having lunch on boat with seafood while admiring an extraordinary landscape, "one of the wonders of the world," nearly three miles of limestone islands and fantastic shapes: turtle, sailing sampan, etc., scattered in the emerald water with a surface of 1,500 km². Stop at the Surprise cave, we visit a mysterious atmosphere by thousands of stalagmites and stalactites, then climb the top of Titov island or go swimming at the beach if time permits. Back to cruise, admiring the sunset on the sundeck of the Junk, attend the cooking class and enjoy the Happy hour (buy two drinks, get one free). Dinner and overnight on board. Hotel: Rosy Junk 5*. (B,L,D)

After breakfast, continue the cruise through the Bay passing very beautiful places on return direction. Before landing, we take lunch on board early. At the pier, driver and guide await to take you to Ninh Binh, crossing the Red River delta. On the way to Ninh Binh, visit and explore the ceramic village of Dong Trieu. Arrival in Ninh Binh. Free dinner and overnight in Ninh Binh. Hotel: Emeralda Resort 5*. (B/L)

Flight about 18:00. Enjoy breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast your guide will take you to Tam Coc, a bamboo rowboat awaits you for an unforgettable 2 hours ride through a natural landscape with visiting the caves of Tam Coc. A show at once sublime and relaxing. Afterward take a bike ride to Bich Dong Pagoda located on the hillside. Lunch at a local restaurant. After lunch, get on the bus for a drive to the airport for your flight to Hue. On the way make a stop to visit the Bai Dinh Pagoda a large complex with many buildings. Inside you can see a bronze Buddha Sykamuni statue 10 meters high and 100 tons heavy which is certified as the biggest statue in Vietnam. Arrive in Hue, welcomed by local guide and driver then transfer to hotel for check in. Free dinner & Overnight in Hue. Hotel: Silk Path Grand 5*. (B/L)

After breakfast, One day of discovery & visits in Hue. The capital of the Nguyen dynasty between 1802-1945, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO since 1993, Hue offers its visitors a perfect picture of harmony between many well-preserved charms of the milieu of natural historical sites. You will begin the city tour byboat to Thien Mu Pagoda, located along the Perfume River. The cruise takes you to the Minh Mang tomb, this majestic tomb reflects the Eastern philosophy of harmony between man and nature. Lunch at a local restaurant. Visit the Imperial Citadel, a Vauban style architecture, built between 1805 and 1832 in the style of the Chinese Imperial Palace. At the end of the day, a walk to Dong Ba market where you will find the best conical hats in Vietnam. Free diner. & Night at the same hotel. Hotel: Silk Path Grand 5*. (B,L)

After breakfast. We will visit a village specialized in the manufacture of conical hats and incense sticks then we will go to see the tomb of Emperor Tu Duc, located in the middle of frangipani trees and pines. It is not a simple tomb, it evokes the idea of ​​​​eternal life more than death. Let's continue with a visit to the old Tu Hieu pagoda and its magnificent architecture. Lunch in a local restaurant before taking the road to Da Nang, passing by the famous Cloud Pass road. We will have a very nice view of tens of kilometers of Lang Co peninsula’s beach. In Danang city, we will visit the Dragon Bridge. Continue to Hoi An, once called Hai Fo or Fai Fo, was among the most active commercial ports in all of Asia, during the 17th to 18th centuries: Chinese, Portuguese, Japanese, Indonesians, then French and Dutch rubbed shoulders there. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, this charming city fascinates us not only by the authenticity of the architecture, the romantic landscapes of the river and the beach, but above all by the phantasmagorical light of the lanterns after sunset. Free dinner at a local restaurant & Overnight in Hoi An. Hotel: Silk Sense Resort 5*. (B,L)

Breakfast at the hotel, Meeting with the guide at 08:00 AM for a day of visits and discoveries on bike the city of Hoi An and its suburbs. Take the bike ride to the authentic villages of the suburbs of Hoi An, then a sampan basket ride to the nautical palm arroyos to see the fishing activities. We continue the bike rides towards the villages of Cam Thanh and Kim Bong where you will rest at home and attend the family cooking class. Have lunch with the inhabitants. Relaxing with traditional foot massages, a siesta and return to Hoi An to visit historical sites such as the old traditional Vietnamese houses, the house of the Chinese congregation, the Japanese covered bridge in the old town. Return to the hotel or stay in town for your personal discoveries. Free dinner in a restaurant in town and overnight in Hoi An. Hotel: Silk Sense Resort 5*. (B,L)

Flight about 15:00. Breakfast at the hotel, check-out. And then meeting with the driver for the transfer to Danang airport for the flight to CAN THO. Arrival in CAN THO, welcome by the local team and then transfer to hotel for check-in. In the afternoon, you make the visits and walks in places: the old houses, the pagoda and visit a garden of exotic fruit trees + tasting of these fruits on site. Free dinner & overnight in Can Tho. Hotel: Sheraton 5*. (B)

Breakfast. Early departure (around 07:00) for a boat trip on the 2nd arm of the Mekong. Visit the floating market of CAIRANG, the liveliest and most typical of the delta. Disembark then take the road to Saigon via the Mekong Delta, with stop lunch at local restaurant with the local specialty "Elephant Ear Fish". Arrival in Saigon, visit to: ChinaTown - Cho Lon with its congested streets and Binh Tay market full of goods: fruits, vegetables, fish, plants, roots and dried seaweed constituting the basic ingredients of the traditional Chinese pharmacopeia. Photo stop in front of the Reunification Palace: built from 1962 to 1966 in place of the Palace of the Governor General of Indochina dating from 1865. The palace has 95 rooms, each of which is decorated according to its function. There are also two showrooms, a 33-room house to accommodate guests, and several facilities for entertaining such as a tennis court and stilt houses. On April 30, 1975, tanks of the North Vietnamese army smashed through the heavy wrought iron gates of the palace. South Vietnamese President Duong Van Minh and 45 members of his government surrendered without resisting. Notre-Dame Cathedral: built in red brick in a neo-Romanesque style between October 1877 and April 1880, it has two square bell towers 40 m high, topped with iron spires. The Central Post Office: built by Gustave Eiffel, it offers a very beautiful glass roof framed in iron. Free dinner & Overnight in Saigon. Hotel: La vela Saigon 5*. (B,L)

Breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast, meet with your guide and driver for a full day discovery of Saigon. First you will visit to Opera House and City Hall, both were built during the colonial time and bear clear mark of French colonial architecture. Then go to War Remnants Museum where there is a vast display of machinery, weapons, photos, and documentation of Vietnam War. In the courtyard massive military vehicles are for exhibition as well as tiger cages for the visitor to get a feel on how it was to be a prisoner during wartime. In the museum building itself, each floor represents a separate theme from the war and the war crimes committed. After lunch, continue the day with a visit to Ngoc Hoang Pagoda (Jade Emperor). The pagoda boasts a set of about 300 ancient statues, including 100 made from cardboard, presenting a meeting of genies with the Jade Emperor. Using only paper and bamboo laths, artisans created lively statues with an august nuance. Afterward go shopping at Ben Thanh Market. Free dinner & Overnight in Saigon. Hotel: La vela Saigon 5*. (B,L)

Departure flight? After breakfast. Free time until the check-out. Meeting with your guide & driver for the transfer to Airport for your Back flight. (B)