Day 1: HANOI ARRIVAL

Today you’ll land in Hanoi. Warmly welcome by tour guide and driver at the airport then transfer to a hotel in Hanoi. Check into your hotel.

Accommodation in Hanoi.

Day 2: HANOI SIGHTSEEING FULL DAY (B, L)

Hanoi, a city of lakes, is a very attractive city with French-style architecture. You have a full day of sightseeing ahead,  we will visit Ho Chi Minh Complex which includes Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum (outside), the Presidential Palace, House-on-Stilts, and One Pillar Pagoda, which was built by Ly Thai Tong. Then we will visit the Museum of Ethnology, this museum is widely acknowledged as the best in the country and has an extensive display dedicated to Vietnam’s 54 Ethnic minority peoples. As well as the comprehensive array of exhibits inside, there are also traditional tribal houses reconstructed within the ground.

Have lunch at a local restaurant.

After lunch, we will visit the Temple of Literature which was originally built as a temple to Confucius, this is the site of Vietnam’s first University dating back to 1070. The temple highlights the importance that Vietnamese society placed then and now on education. Then stop in the heart of Hanoi at Hoan Kiem Lake, which contains an islet with a tiny Tortoise Pagoda.

45 minutes Cyclo takes you around the Old Quarter.

Enjoy a water puppet show before returning to your hotel.

Accommodation in Hanoi.

Day 3: HANOI - SAPA - CAT CAT VILLAGE (B/L/D)

Breakfast at the hotel.

8.00: Our car and tour guide will pick you up at the meeting point and then depart to Sapa, following the Noi Bai - Lao Cai highway. Along the way, you will have a chance to contemplate the beauty of the northwest mountains where terraced fields are sparkling in sunlight or dim in thick fog. Have a short break in 30 minutes then continue the trip to Sapa.

Have lunch at a local restaurant.

After lunch, you start visiting Cat Cat Village which is occupied by the Black Hmong tribe. Here, you can see the hydroelectric power station which was built by the French in the twentieth century. You will experience the tribal way of life of ethnic minorities while enjoying wonderful views of the terraced rice paddy fields and the waterfall in Cat Cat Village. Evening: After dinner, you are free to explore the charm of Sapa by night, enjoy roasted corn, and baked eggs beside a charcoal fire, or go shopping.

Accommodation in Sapa.

Day 4: Y LINH HO - LAO CHAI - TA VAN - MUONG HOA VALLEY - HANOI (B/L/D)

After breakfast, we will trek to Y Linh Ho - Lao Chai - Ta Van Village to understand more about ethnic minority communities, and enjoy imposing mountain scenery, terraced fields, and marvelous nature. Visit ancient sacred stones big - and small ones which have many unique images, and secret signs. See the bridge made by rattan like Muong Hoa Stream. You have lunch in Lao Chai.

After lunch, the car will pick you up at Ta Van and then depart to Hanoi. Upon arrival, have dinner at a local restaurant before coming to the hotel overnight.

Accommodation in Hanoi.

Day 5: HANOI – NINH BINH – HOA LU, TAM COC (B,L)

After your breakfast, our car will take you to Hoa Lu, Ninh Binh. It takes you about 2 hours to get there.

Arrive in Hoa Lu, the ancient capital of Daicoviet (Vietnam’s ancient name), which existed 41 years since 968 when Dinh Bo Linh took the throne until 1009. This site was chosen for the capital due to its proximity to China and the natural protection afforded by the region’s bizarre landscape.

Visit the temple of the Dinh & Le dynasty; learn about the history of Vietnam in the war with China.

Then, we will go to Tam Coc to have lunch and a short rest.

Afternoon, take the small riverboat rowing along the river will bring you to visit Tamcoc, which is still called “Dry Halong Bay”. The mixture of the mountain, the river, the rice paddies, and the caves with the stalactites flowing down as mysterious marble boasts the breathtaking scenery. After that, we will leave Tam Coc and drive back to Hanoi city

Accommodation in Ninh Binh or Hanoi.

DAY 6: HA NOI - HA LONG BAY (B/L/D)

Transfer to Halong by 2 hrs driving.

Board an overnight cruise for 2D1N Halong exploration.

Stay overnight on board.

DAY 7: HA LONG BAY - HA NOI (B/L)

Get back to Hanoi from Halong Bay.

Overnight in Hanoi.

Day 8: DEPARTURE (B)

Free day at leisure until transfer to Hanoi airport for your departure flight.

Goodbye & see you the next time!