Day 1 : Arrive Hanoi

Upon arrival at Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport, you will be greeted by your guide and transferred to your hotel. This is Vietnam’s capital and celebrated its anniversary of 1,000 years in 2010. Historical emphasis on the arts and learning stipulates that buildings in Hanoi remain small, simple and in harmony with nature. You will have the afternoon at your leisure.

Overnight stay in Hanoi.

Day 2: Hanoi cooking class and city tour

Breakfast at hotel.  At 9.00 am you will start the cooking class. Meet at Hanoi Cooking Centre, enjoy a special “La Han” Vietnamese welcome tea. After that, you will have the brief introduction to Vietnamese cuisine, highlighting the of tradition foods in Vietnam. Then take a short trip to Chau Long Market to see the unique things such as the ‘wet’ and unusual tropical fruits, livestock… You can choose some fruits or food to taste for example green mango with salt and chili or watermelon…

At 10.00 am, back to Hanoi Cooking Centre and start the cooking class with the chefs. You can take home printed recipes as well as samples of some local fruit, green bean cake, quail eggs, etc.

After finishing the class, enjoy the meal that made by yourself , relax in the comfort of the Hanoi Cooking Centre dining area and enjoy free flow local beer or wine or lemon juice. Before going home, receive some gifts.

In the afternoon,  you’ll continue to visit Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum (outside), Temple of Literature. Then you’ll have free time to take a walk on the streets of The Old Quarter. You could visit Hoan Kiem Lake – one of the major scenic spots in the city, The Huc bridge, Thap But (Pen Tower), Ngoc Son Temple and a curious pagoda in the centre of the lake known as the Turtle Tower. Watch water puppets show.

Overnight in Hanoi

Day 3: Hanoi – Halong Cruise

In the morning after having breakfast at hotel, you will depart Hanoi at 07:30 for a three and a half hour drive through the Red River Delta to Ha Long Bay City. On the way, you will stop for refreshments, and upon arriving in Halong City, you will take a tender transfer to your junk and set sail through the bay while lunch is served. As you cruise the magical bay, you will notice thousands of sculpted limestone islands rising from the waves like dragons’ tee  th. Later in the afternoon, you’ll visit a fishing village with the opportunity to interact with fishermen who have been living in the bay for almost three generations. Back on board, you’ll enjoy cocktails or a cooking class while watching the sunset, and later you can unwind at a restaurant with a lavish dinner. To end the day, you can enjoy some evening activities such as movie night, board games, or a beauty treatment, before an overnight stay on the junk.

Day 4: Halong– Hanoi – Danang – Hoi An

After rising to the sound of the ocean coming to life, you’ll enjoy breakfast, take a Tai Chi class and watch the sunrise over the bay (if you choose to get up that early!) You will visit a beautiful limestone grotto, and then head back to the junk for a final glimpse of Halong Bay while cruising back to the dock. Disembarking at the Cruise Café Lounge, you’ll rejoin your private car for  transfer back to the airport for a one-hour-and-fifteen-minute flight to Danang. Upon arrival at airport, you be transfer directly to Hoi An – the Ancient Town. Once in Hoi An, you will check into your hotel and have some free time to explore before having dinner in Tam Tam Restaurant and overnight stay in Hoi An

Flight Hanoi – Danang by Vietnam Airlines

Day 5: Hoi An Cooking Class and City Tour

Breakfast at hotel and the your cooking class and city tour in Hoi An begins. We start the day (8.15am) with a drink in our meeting point. Visit Hoi An’s colourful market, and experience the amazing sights, sounds and aromas of this busy market. We will have the opportunity to interact with the local sellers and purchase some of the ingredients to be used in the cooking lesson later. We board the Red Bridge boat for a leisurely cruise (25 minutes) along the Hoi An River to the Red Bridge Cooking School. This is a chance to view local river life, so make sure your camera is handy. On arrival, we explore the cooking school’s herb and vegetable garden, before learning about some of Hoi An’s and Vietnam’s well-known dishes. The cooking lesson runs for about 2 hours – each dish is first demonstrated by the Red Bridge chef’s, before we prepare the same dish ourselves. Included in the class is a brief introduction to Vietnamese food carving (plate decoration).

After the lesson, we sit down and eat exactly what we have cooked.

In the afternoon, you will enjoy a half day orientation tour of Hoi An, including the Chinese Assembly Halls, the Japanese Covered Bridge, PhucKien Pagoda and Tan Ky House.

Following the tour there will be free time for shopping or relaxing before having dinner in Go Da Restaurant and another overnight stay in Hoi An.

Day 6 : Hoi An – Sai Gon – Cu Chi Tunnel

Free until transfer to airport for flight to Ho Chi Minh City or well-known as Sai Gon. Upon arrival, pick up and transfer to hotel. Lunch at Ngon restaurant.

This afternoon you will drive to the visit Cu Chi Tunnels. At its height, the tunnel system stretched over 250 kilometers, from Saigon to the Cambodian border, and was three levels deep. The network included innumerable trap doors, specially constructed living areas, storage facilities, weapons factories, field hospitals, command centers and kitchens. Today the remaining tunnels have become a major tourist attraction giving the visitor a unique experience and a feel of what underground life during the U.S.-Vietnam War must have been like.  Back to Ho Chi Minh City and have dinner on Indochina Cruise. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.

Flight Danang – Sai Gon – by Vietnam Airlines

Day 7: Ho Chi Minh – Ving Long – Cai Be – Ho Chi Minh 

Morning, meet and transfer to Vinh Long, a town located along the bank of Mekong river. What make the trip to Vinh Long is so worthwhile is not only the town itself, but also the beautiful small islands in the river. A boat trip will bring you to the popular spots for tourist – Binh Hoa Phuoc island where land are totally given over to agriculture, especially the raising of tropical fruits. Lunch at local restaurant. Afternoon, transfer back to Hochiminh City. Then have a farewell dinner in Indochine Sai Gon restaurant and overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.

Day 8:  Saigon Departure

Breakfast at the hotel

In the morning, you will continue a city tour of Saigon, including the Reunification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Old Post Office, the War Remnants Museum and – free at your own leisure time until transfer to airport for your departure flight – the end of service.