Overview
Tour overview
Ten days shaped around what people built here, and why. You walk the tunnels at Cu Chi, cross the Japanese Covered Bridge in Hoi An’s Ancient Town, stand among the red-brick towers the Champa Kingdom raised at My Son, visit the Temple of Literature and ride a cyclo through the Old Quarter of Hanoi, then spend a night on Ha Long Bay.
Three of those are UNESCO World Heritage sites, and the itinerary leaves room to take them in: a whole free day in Hoi An, a morning by bicycle through the herb gardens at Tra Que, and a day on the Mekong with Elephant-Ear Fish for lunch.
Guiding is in English and the physical demands are light. The price is for central three-star hotels with one night in a cabin on the bay, and it covers both domestic flights; four-star and five-star hotels are quoted on request. It suits a traveller who reads the museum labels, a returning visitor who saw the beaches and missed the history, and anyone choosing between the north and the centre who would rather not choose. Our Vietnam travel guides explain visas and the best months to travel; shorter options are on the day tours page.
Map
Tour map
Tap the map to enlarge it. It stays one tap away in the corner while you read the days below.
Itinerary
Day by day itinerary
Day 1Arrive in Ho Chi Minh City
A driver meets you at Tan Son Nhat International Airport and takes you into the centre of Ho Chi Minh City to check in. Nothing else is planned for today. If you have the energy, head out on your own (optional) to see the French colonial buildings and the new towers of downtown; if not, settle in and sleep off the flight.
Day 2A day on the Mekong River
The road takes you south-west into the Mekong Delta, and the first stop is Vinh Trang Pagoda near My Tho. At the river a motorised boat carries you out to the islands off My Tho, where local musicians play the folk songs of the south and honey tea is poured for you.
Then you change to a small paddle boat, rowed by hand along narrow canals in the shade of the palms, and watch a family workshop turn coconut into candy before the drive back to the city.
Day 3The Cu Chi Tunnels, then a flight to Hoi An
Sleep in, or take your coffee at a local cafe. Later you set off with a guide for a half-day visit to the Cu Chi Tunnels, the underground network dug during the war, and see the hidden living quarters, the workshops where weapons were made and the field hospitals below ground. A firing range on site is optional and paid on the spot.
From Cu Chi you go straight to Tan Son Nhat for the short flight to Da Nang, and a driver takes you on to Hoi An.
Day 4Hoi An Ancient Town on foot
A guided walking tour of the Ancient Town takes in the local market, a historical museum and the merchant houses that have stood since Hoi An was a trading port, built in a mix of Vietnamese and Chinese styles. You visit the assembly halls, watch craftspeople at work and cross the Japanese Covered Bridge. When the tour ends in the afternoon you are free to have clothes made, or to sit by the river.
Day 5Cycling to Tra Que, a cooking class and the temples of My Son
The morning is on two wheels: you ride through Hoi An’s lanes to the central market, then out to Tra Que, the village that grows the town’s herbs and salad vegetables on beds fertilised with river weed. After a walk through the gardens there is a herbal foot soak, then a cooking class with a local chef where you make fresh spring rolls, banh xeo pancakes, rice pancakes, banana flower salad and fish in a clay pot, and eat what you cooked.
The afternoon belongs to My Son Sanctuary, a UNESCO World Heritage site where the Champa Kingdom built red-brick temples between the 4th and 13th centuries. A short Apsara dance performance at the site closes the visit before the drive back to Hoi An.
Day 6Hoi An, unplanned
The day has no programme, and everything you add is optional and at your own cost. Rent a bicycle and ride out to the beaches near town, have clothes made to measure at one of the silk shops, or walk the lantern-lit streets slowly. If you would rather have a plan, a guided tour of the Hoi An area can be arranged on request.
Day 7Fly to Hanoi: Tran Quoc Pagoda, the Temple of Literature, Hoa Lo Prison and a cyclo ride
A driver takes you from Hoi An to Da Nang Airport for the flight north, and another meets you at Noi Bai for the drive into Hanoi.
The afternoon starts at Tran Quoc Pagoda on West Lake, founded in the 6th century and the oldest pagoda in the city. Next is the Temple of Literature, set up in 1070 and later Vietnam’s first national university, then Hoa Lo Prison, a French colonial jail built between 1886 and 1901 that is now a museum.
The day ends with a 45-minute cyclo ride through the narrow streets of the Old Quarter, the driver pedalling behind you, before you are dropped back at the hotel.
Day 8Hanoi to Ha Long Bay
A scenic drive to the coast, then you board a cruise ship and sail into Ha Long Bay, among some 1,600 limestone islands and islets rising out of the green water. The boat anchors in a quiet cove where you can swim and go into the grottoes under the cliffs.
Day 9Ha Long Bay back to Hanoi
Be on deck early to watch the sun come up over the bay. The rest of the morning is for a swim and some time in the sun on the deck while the boat makes its way back to the harbour, where a driver waits to take you back to Hanoi for your last night in Vietnam.
Day 10Hanoi, and home
The morning is free until your transfer: pick up souvenirs in the Old Quarter or have a last bowl of pho before you leave (optional, on your own). When it is time, a driver collects you from the hotel and takes you to Noi Bai International Airport for your flight home.
Hotels
Where you sleep
Stays may change to similar ones depending on availability for your dates. We will let you know in advance. You can also upgrade to 4-star or 5-star hotels.
Transport
Transport on this tour
Vehicle type depends on the size of your group.
Inclusions
What is included
- 8 nights in hotels of your chosen class
- 1 night on a Ha Long Bay cruise
- Meals as listed in the itinerary
- Domestic flights
- Airport transfers and road transport
- English-speaking guide on guided days
- Entrance fees and activities in the itinerary
- International flights to and from Vietnam
- Vietnam visa or e-visa fees
- Travel insurance
- Meals and drinks not marked on the itinerary
- Optional activities and anything the itinerary describes as carrying an extra fee, including the shooting range at Cu Chi and the optional tours on day 6
- Single room supplement
- Tips and personal spending
This tour is also listed on TourRadar. If you would rather book through them, or you want to read what other travellers wrote, the listing is public.
View on TourRadarGood to know
Good to know
Before you go
- The tour starts at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City and ends at Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi, so book your international flights into the south and out of the north.
- The price of US$956 per person is for the 3-star class, two people sharing a double room, and it already includes both domestic flights.
- 3-star (the price shown): Queen Ann Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, Serene Nature in Hoi An and Golden Rooster Hotel in Hanoi. 4-star: Alagon City Hotel & Spa, Silk River Hotel and Golden Legend Palace Hotel. 5-star: The Myst Dong Khoi Hotel, Palm Garden Hoi An (a resort) and Apricot Hotel. The night on the bay is on Le Journey Cruise, or on the 5-star Ambassador Cruise. Upgrades to 4-star or 5-star are quoted on request.
- Hotels are booked as named or similar, so a hotel may change to another of the same standard.
- Day 6 in Hoi An is free, and the morning of day 3 is yours until the Cu Chi tour: anything you add then is optional and paid separately.
- Pack swimwear for the bay, shoes you can cycle in for the Hoi An countryside, and a hat for My Son, where the temples stand in open ground.
- Tell us about vegetarian or other dietary needs before the trip; the cooking class and the lunches can be adapted.
- Your passport must be valid for at least six months after the tour ends.
Cancellation policy
If you cancel, we refund what you have paid minus a cancellation fee. The fee depends on how long before your arrival date you cancel:
- More than 60 days before: 10%
- 30 to 59 days before: 20%
- 15 to 29 days before: 40%
- 8 to 14 days before: 80%
- 7 days or less before, or no-show: 100%
The two domestic flight tickets are booked in your name once the tour is confirmed, and any airline charge for cancelling them is added to the fee above.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Where does the tour start and finish?
It starts at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City on day 1 and finishes at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on day 10. Your international flights do not have to use the same city twice.
Which UNESCO World Heritage sites does the tour visit?
Three of them: Hoi An Ancient Town on day 4, My Son Sanctuary on day 5, and Ha Long Bay on days 8 and 9.
Is there a guide the whole way through?
Guiding is in English on the guided days, which are days 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8 and 9. Days 1, 6 and 10 are transfer days or free days.
How much free time is there?
Day 6 in Hoi An is completely unplanned, and the mornings of days 3 and 10 are yours.
Can children come?
Yes, there is no minimum age. The cycling on day 5 is gentle and on flat ground, and the swimming in Ha Long Bay is the usual favourite.
Are the domestic flights included in the price?
Yes. The price of US$956 per person includes both domestic flights, Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang on day 3 and Da Nang to Hanoi on day 7, with the airport transfers at each end. It is based on two people sharing a double room in the 3-star hotels, and upgrades to 4-star or 5-star are quoted on request.
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