Tour summary: HANOI – HALONG –  LAO CAI – SAPA – DA NANG – HOI AN – HUE – HCMC –  TAY NINH – CU CHI – CAN THO – CHAU DOC – PHNOM PENH – SIEM RIEP

Highlights:
Hanoi: with a history of 1,000 years’ establishment and a population of about 6 million inhabitants, Hanoi plays the important role of a capital city of Vietnam. Hanoi enjoys being a center of politics, economy, culture, tourism, education and transportation of Vietnam. Visiting Hanoi means to learn about the interesting history, cultures and hard-working living style, the fast and dynamic development in all aspects of not only the city itself, but also of the North and the whole country of Vietnam. Hanoi offers the fascinating old quarter of 36 streets of traditional guilds, interesting museums and ancient temples, beautiful lakes and shaded streets, delicious local specialties of “Pho Hanoi” and “Cha Ca LA Vong”, and more.
Halong bay: there are not enough words to describe this truly World Natural Heritage site. Legend says that once upon a time, the area of Halong bay was covered by sea and inhabited by fishermen. After being robbed by pirates for many times, the fishermen prayed to God for help. God then sent Dragon Mother and Children down to punish the robbers. The former spread down thousands of gems to attract the latter. As soon as the robbers touched the gems, the gems turned into big rocks to press the robbers under. Since then Halong Bay is dotted with thousands of rock islands of amazingly different shapes and sizes, creating the unique look of Halong. Taking a day cruise or overnight on a traditional junk is the best way to admire the gorgeous scenery and enjoy great relaxation on boat.
Sapa: located in the northwest of the country, Sapa is a mountainous district of Lao Cai province, a land of modest, quietly but many hidden wonders of the natural scene. The natural scenery of Sapa is combined with the creativity of human beings with the topography of the mountains, green forests, the paintings are arranged in a harmonious composition makes an excellent romantic landscape areas attractive.
Hue is the capital city of Thua Thien - Hue province, Vietnam. Between 1802 and 1945, it was the imperial capital of the Nguyen Dynasty. As such, it is well known for its monuments and architecture. Hue originally rose to prominence as the capital of the Nguyen Lords, a feudal dynasty which dominated much of southern Vietnam from the 17th to the 19th century.
Hoi An is located 30km south of Danang City, and it is the heart of Quang Nam central province. Hoi An attracts tourists thanks to its poetic and picturesque landscapes such as Thuan Tinh islet, Cua Dai beach,Cham island together with traditional handicrafts and famous local specialities
Cu Chi tunnels which stretched for over 200km, became legendary during the 1960s. The Cu Chi tunnels played a vital part in the U.S.-Vietnam War.
Ho Chi Minh City is the heart and soul of Vietnam. It’s a bustling, dynamic and industrious centre, the largest city in the country, the economic capital and the cultural trendsetter.
Tay Ninh, near the Cambodian border, is home to the unique Cao Dai sect, whose patron saints include Joan of Arc, Victor Hugo and Winston Churchill to name a few. The religion is a hybrid of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and Christianity
Mekong delta is about 40.000 square kilometers (km2) in area. And it is known as one of the widest and richest delta in ASEAN, in Vietnam it is considered as the biggest granary of Vietnam (the second one is Red River delta in the North of Vietnam), it provides 60% of nation’s rice. Besides that, Mekong delta is the place of different tropical fruits such as durian, coconut, banana, pineapple, dragon fruit… and when people come here they can enjoy the seasonal fruits all round year.
Chau Doc is a district and town in An Giang Province, bordering Cambodia, in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. The district covers an area of 100 km². The town is located by the Hâu River (a branch of the Mekong River flowing through Vietnamese territory) and Vinh Te canal. Chau Doc is situated 250 km west of Ho Chi Minh City. It takes about six hours to travel by bus from Ho Chi Minh City.
Tour details:
Day 1: HANOI
Arrival in Hanoi, the centuries-old beautiful capital of Vietnam, airport pick-up, hotel check-in, time at leisure.
Enjoy a fantastic trishaw(also called cyclo) ride through the bustle and hustle of Hanoi Old Quarter.
Overnight in Hanoi
Day 2: HANOI (B)
Full day for exploring the fascinating city of Hanoi where old and new things blend together, Vietnamese, Chinese and French cultures mix together.
Activities: a pleasant walk around the peaceful Ho Chi Minh area, visit HCM Mausoleum, HCM’s stilt house and garden, the One Pillar pagoda. Take another pleasant walk at the beautiful Temple of Literature, Visit the Ethnology Museum. Finally take a fascinating walk through the famous 36 busy streets of the Old Quarter and shopping.
Overnight in Hanoi
Day 3: HANOI – HALONG BAY (B-L-D)
Transfer to Halong Bay, a World Natural Heritage site. Check in aboard a deluxe junk and start cruising. Enjoy fabulous seafood, stunning sceneries, and water activities: swimming, kayaking (excluded), and fishing.
Overnight aboard
Note: In case of small parties from 2 pax to 6 pax, we will share a junk with other guests. For any parties from 7 pax up, we will charter a junk. More options can be discussed case by case.
Day 4: HALONG – HANOI – LAO CAI BY NIGHT TRAIN (B-L)
Morning continue the cruise along simply gorgeous sceneries including a very delicious lunch on board.
Afternoon: drive back to Hanoi, boarding on the Livitrans or Fanxipan night train.
Overnight on the train - 4 pax share a business air-conditioning cabin.
Note: In case of small parties from 2 pax to 6 pax, we will not send a guide to go on the train with the groups. For any parties from 7 pax up, we will arrange a guide to go on the train with the groups. More options can be discussed case by case.
Day 5: LAO CAI – MOUNTAIN MARKET – SAPA (B)
Morning: early arrival at Lao Cai railway station, then take a scenic drive up the mountains to a colourful mountainous market of hill tribes in Muong Khuong (Sunday) / Cao Son (Wednesday) / Coc Ly (Tuesday) / Bac Ha (Sunday) / Can Cau (Saturday)  etc. (depending on which date).
Afternoon: drive back to Lao Cai and go on to Sapa, a tourist hub in North Vietnam.
Hotel check-in and overnight in Sapa
Day 6: SAPA (B)
9:00 after breakfast, start a nice trekking day to Y Lin Ho village and Lao Chai village of Black H’mong people and Ta Van village of Giay people. Then transfer back to Sapa by coach.
Overnight in Sapa
Day 7: SAPA – NIGHT TRAIN BACK TO HANOI (B)
Morning: great soft trekking to Cat Cat village of the H’mong tribe
Afternoon, check out and transfer to Ta Phin village of Red Dao people. Enjoy a nice walk here. Then transfer to Lao Cai
Boarding the Livitrans or Fanxipan night train to Ha Noi
Overnight on the train - (4 soft berth with air-conditioning cabin)
Day 8: HANOI – DANANG – HOI AN (B)
5:00 Early morning arrival in Hanoi transfer for breakfast in a hotel then transfer to the airport for a flight to Danang
After arriving in Danang, tour the Cham Museum, an elegant colonial building which now houses the finest collection of Cham sculpture in the world and briefly pass Vietnam Beach, a famous spot for American soldiers during the Vietnam-American War. Continue south to Hoi An, the ancient town.
Arrival in Hoian, check in a hotel.
Free and easy
Overnight in Hoian
Day 9: HOIAN – MY SON (B)
Morning excursion to My Son, the former Religious capital of the Cham people, a world cultural heritage site. Enjoy the scenic landscapes and mysterious Cham arts and architecture
Back to Hoian. Then enjoy a relaxing city walk to more than 200 years-old temples and houses: Hoian History Museum, Fujien temple, Japanese Pagoda bridge, Phung Hung Ancient house
Transfer back to the hotel for relaxation
Overnight in Hoian
Day 10: HOIAN – HUE (B)
Morning check out the hotel and transfer to Hue, stopping enroute to visit the Marble Mountains, five stone hillocks, once islands, that now rise sharply from the surrounding rice fields. Riddled with caves and shrines, they are said to each represent one of the five elements of the universe. Continue to Hue via Hai Van Pass.
Arrival in Hue, sightseeing in Hue
Transfer to check in a hotel. Afternoon visit the Royal Citadel of Hue, enjoy a pleasant walk in this interesting area, then visit the amazingly full Dong Ba market.
Overnight in Hue
Day 11: HUE (B)
Full day enjoy Hue’s typical features: peaceful, traditional and beautiful.
Activities: lovely boat trip on the Perfume River to the beautiful Thien Mu pagoda, King Tu Duc’s tomb, King Khai Dinh’s tomb. Afternoon: excellent motorbike trip with drivers to interesting traditional villages and beautiful sceneries around Hue.
Overnight in Hue
Day 12: HUE – HCMC (B)
Morning transfer to Hue airport to take a flight to HCMC. Upon arrival, meet our guide and drivers and transfer to hotel for check in. Afternoon city tour, visit Cho Lon market, Thien Hau temple, the Reunification Hall, the Notre Dame Cathedral (1880) and Old Post Office (1886), and the Ben Thanh market
Enjoy the unique water puppet show
Overnight in HCMC
Day 13: HCMC – TAY NINH – CU CHI (B)
Full day excursion to visit two contrast sites: the colourful Cao Dai Holy See of the most egalitarian religion combining 5 religions (Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Catholicism, and Islam) and the impressive Cu Chi tunnels system, one of the most violent battlefields of the Vietnam War. After that, transfer back HCMC
Overnight in HCMC
Day 14: HCMC – CAI BE – CAN THO (B)
Breakfast at hotel, check out and transfer to Cai Be located on the Upper Branch of the Mighty Mekong River. Enjoy boating on the river, observing the fruit whole sale market in Cai Be, and see the locals producing pop rice, popcorn and other sweets.
In the afternoon continue along fruit orchards in narrow canals to the city of Vinh Long on the other side of the Mekong River. Stop at a ceramic village by the river
Transfer to Can Tho and check in a hotel.
Overnight in Can Tho
Day 15: CAN THO – CHAU DOC (B)
Early morning, check out the hotel and enjoy the boat trip to the floating market of Cai Rang and cruising  along small canals to see how the locals live.  Have a walk through Ba Cong fruit orchard and learn about farming and gardening in South Vietnam. Transfer to Chau Doc by road.
In the afternoon, arrival in Chau Doc, check in a hotel. Then enjoy another boat trip to visit the Cham village, floating fish farms. Then drive to visit the Chua Xu and Tay An temples around the Sam mountain.
Overnight in the hotel
Day 16: CHAU DOC – PHNOM PENH (B)
Morning join an express boat trip with Hang Chau boat to the border, cross the border and continue to Phnom Penh. Arrival in Phnom Penh in the afternoon, check in a hotel
Afternoon visit the Wat Phnom, the Royal palace and Silver pagoda, the National Museum and the Russian market (time permitting)
Overnight in Phnom Penh
Day 17: PHNOM PENH – SIEM REAP (B)
Morning check out the hotel and take a flight to Siem Reap. Upon arrival, meet your guide and start sightseeing at the South Gate of Angkor Thom, the Bayon and Baksei Chamkrong, the Elephant terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King
Then transfer to check in a hotel.
Afternoon tour enjoy the amazing Angkor Wat till sunset
Overnight in Siem Reap
DAY 18: SIEM REAP (B)
Visit more temples: Ban Tey Srey, Bantey Samre, Ta Prohm, Eastern Mebon, admire the sunrise, the sunset, etc.  
Enjoy Apsara Dance show at Apsara theater
Overnight in Siem Reap 
Day 19: SIEM REAP – DEPARTURE (B)
Morning take boat trip on Tonle Sap river and visit a charity vocational school
Then transfer to the airport for departure to Home Sweet home
End of tour.

Children policies: applied for children from 5 to 10 yrs old
- Sharing bed with adult: 50% of tour cost
- Extra bed: 75% of tour cost
- Twin sharing: 100% of tour cost 
Exchange Rate: 1 USD = 21,000 VND
Group price policies:
- 5% discount for any groups from 6 to 10 people
- 10% discount for any groups from 11 people or more
- Special promotion: 5% discount for all groups booking from 1 May to 30 September
All the prices are valid in 2011, subject to change without prior notices
(Except for Christmas from  24 to 26 Dec  2011 and New Year from 31 Dec  to 5 Jan 2012)
   
Hotel selection:

Or similar hotels
Tour inclusions:
- Hotel accommodation with buffet breakfast (based on twin sharing), service charge and taxes
- All meals indicated in the program (B= breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner)
- All ground transport on tour with A/C modern bus, boats, train, trishaw(also called cyclo), motorbikes, etc., 2 domestic flights in Vietnam with Vietnam airlines, 1 domestic flight in Cambodia, express boat from Chau Doc to Phnom Penh
- Visa applications for Vietnam and Cambodia
- All entrance fees for sightseeing and shows
- Local English, French, Chinese speaking guide (other languages upon request)
- Daily cold bottles of water and towels
Tour exclusions:
- International flight tickets to Vietnam and from Cambodia
- International airport tax (525,000 vnd in REP)
- Vietnam visa fee: 525,000 vnd/person at the airport
- Personal Insurance
- Personal expenses such as drinks, tips, other meals, etc…
- All other accounts not mentioned in the above inclusions.