This Vietnam small group tour goes from the head to the toe of spectacular Vietnam and takes in most of the must sees. It is the cheapest and best value for money small group tour available in Vietnam today.
Start with as good as it gets scenery in Halong Bay and Sapa and end up in the Mekong Delta. In between will be Hanoi, Heritage listed Hoi An, Historical Hue, a beach break in Nha Trang before ending in frenetic Ho Chi Minh City. After all the friendly faces, special sights and culture you will have only the fondest lifelong memories of Vietnam.
Note: After careful consideration we concluded it was in your best interests to start this small group tour of Vietnam in Hanoi and finish in Ho Chi Minh City rather than our usual philosophy of starting and ending in the same city.
NOTE: Breakfast in Vietnam while filling and tasty is often short on choice and may be limited to bread, eggs and jam etc. with the occasional banana pancake. Noodle soup with the locals is the other option also. Meals provided as part of the itineraries with local operators, while substantial and tasty also, are either totally set meals or limited to only a few choices.
Group Size: Minimum 1, Maximum 8
Guaranteed to depart
English speaking tour coordinator
Visiting
HANOI - HALONG BAY - SAPA WITH SOFT TREKS TO MINORITY VILLAGES - HUE - HOI AN - NHA TRANG - NHA TRANG OFFSHORE ISLANDS - HO CHI MINH CITY - MEKONG DELTA - CU CHI TUNNELS.
Accommodation
- Three star hotel, (3 nights).
- One to two star guest houses and hotels, (5 nights).
- Simple guest houses, (9 nights).
- Overnight soft class sleeper train, (3 nights).
- Simple private cabin on boat, (1 night).
Transport
Bus, Train, Boat, Taxi.
Day Trips
- Sapa; Three nights and two days.(All inclusive with local operator as per itinerary).
- Halong Bay; Two days and one night. (All inclusive with local operator as per itinerary).
- Cu Chi Tunnels, (half day).
- Mekong Delta, (full day).
- Nha Trang islands tour, (full day).
Entry Fees
All included when part of the itinerary.
Meals
30 meals included as per itinerary.
B = Breakfast, L = lunch, D = dinner.
Itinerary
Day 1:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; HANOI - Our Vietnam small group budget tour officially starts when you check into your Hanoi accommodation. A welcoming dinner will be had in the evening. D.
Day 2:
HANOI - A totally free day to get the feel of this amazing city. Be careful crossing the roads is the best advice here. Shops and local culture abound.
The millenium old, Old Quarter is the best place to start and get a feel of the local way of life along with a stroll around Hoan Kiem Lake. Pay your respects at Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum as you start to explore the many sights and attractions. A few being the Ho Chi Minh Museum, One Pillar Pagoda, Dien Huu Pagoda, Tay Ho Pagoda among many other pagoda's and temples as well as St Joseph Cathedral. Another museum or three may include the History, Fine Arts, Womans, Army, Air force, Loa Lo Prison or Museum of Vietnamese Revolution.
For Foodies; start with a bowl of Pho. This bowl of noodle soup plus is the complete meal which the locals enjoy day and night, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Rice paper spring rolls are another of the popular choices, available in meat or vegetarian varieties. Lots of other local choices as well as International and other Asian cuisines are readily available also. Wash it all down with a USD $0.40 glass of Beer Hoi, ("fresh" draught beer), and alls well in Hanoi. B.
Day 3:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay on; HALONG BAY BOAT - An early start with a local operator will take our small group tour for an all inclusive tour for two days and one night to the UNESCO world heritage listed Halong Bay. Firstly by bus to Halong City where we will board your comfortable cruise boat for an afternoon of cruising, cave visiting and swimming in spectacular Halong Bay. Overnight will be on board your boat with a small but private en suite cabin. (An optional visit to another cave by a smaller local boat during the afternoon is not included, approximately USD $2.00). B. L. D.
Day 4:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; HANOI - In the morning we will again cruise among the limestone karsts back to Halong City. After lunch our small group tour will continue by bus back to Hanoi, arriving late afternoon. B. L.
Day 5:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay on; OVERNIGHT SLEEPER TRAIN - A free day in Hanoi before another local operator takes care of you for the next 3 nights and 2 days on a fully inclusive visit to Sapa. Firstly an overnight soft class sleeper train to Lau Cai. B.
Day 6:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; SAPA - Our small group tour will arrive a.m. in Lau Cai and transfer by bus to sensationally scenic Sapa. Check into your hotel and have breakfast. After breakfast a local guide will take you on a three hour trek to visit some local minorities with the main two groups in the area being the Hmong and Dzao. While the walking is generally gentle and on man made paths there are still a few decent uphill heart starters so a general good level of fitness is required. The afternoon is free to explore little Sapa town. Some of the minorities ladies selling tourist souvenirs around town are the most persistant vendors on earth so please stay chilled as they don't understand "no thankyou". B. L. D.
Day 7:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay on; OVERNIGHT SLEEPER TRAIN - Again after breakfast you will check out and leave your bags in storage while a local guide takes you on another trek of approximately five hours to visit some more minority villages amongst some of the most sensational scenery imaginable. Lunch will be in a local village along the way. Arrive back in Sapa mid afternoon where you will be able to get a towel and take a shower at the hotel. An optional massage is available to help those with any sore legs. After an early dinner our small group tour will transfer back to Lau Cai for the soft class sleeper train back to Hanoi. B. L. D.
Day 8:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; HANOI - Our small group tour will arrive early a.m. in Hanoi. A free day after that at leisure or to explore Hanoi. No meals.
Day 9:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay on; OVERNIGHT SLEEPER TRAIN - A last free day in the capital before boarding the last of our three overnight train trips to historical Hue. B.
Day 10:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; HUE - Our small group tour will arrive a.m. in Hue with the rest of the day free to see the sights . Maybe the Citadel, a Pagoda, Church or Museum? Far to many sights to list here. Hire a cyclo or stroll is the way to go. No meals.
Day 11:
HUE - Another free day to continue your exploration of Hue. B.
NOTE: For a few dollars there are some optional day trips from Hue which can be booked on arrival. A trip on the Perfume River with some tomb visits along the way or a visit to the DMZ are just two available.
Day 12:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; HOI AN - From Hue our small group tour will continue south today via Danang to the quaint and charming UNESCO World Heritage listed town of Hoi An. If anybody wishes to have a short stop in Danang along the way to visit the Museum of Cham Sculpture and/or the Danang Cathedral we can do that also. B.
Day 13:
HOI AN - Hoi An is also the place to look out for that tailor made suit you were thinking about or just relax with a coffee by the Thu Bon River. Hoi An is a favorite with all travellers. For sightseeing there are numerous attractions on an easy half day meander around town. Start at the Phac Hat pagoda followed by the Truong family chapel, the assembly hall of the Fujian Chinese congregation, the Quan Cong Temple, the Quan Am Pagoda and history museum, the museum of Sa Huynh Culture, the Hoi An Church, the Japanese covered bridge and finish with a local coffee or USD $0.40 glass of beer Hoi ("fresh", draught beer), riverside. The above sights are only a few of the many available. Most places are free to visit while a few charge a small entrance fee or ask for a donation. B.
Day 14:
HOI AN - Another free day to soak up the atmosphere of Charming Hoi An. Checking out the local markets along the river is yet another option today. B.
Day 15:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; NHA TRANG - After a lazy morning our small group tour will transfer back to Danang for an afternoon train to Nha Trang. Arriving late in the evening. B.
Day 16:
NHA TRANG - A free day to relax or explore this large but pleasant city by the sea. Apart from lazing on the nearby scenic beach there are numerous sightseeing options around town. Remember to take off your shoes before entering the Po Nagar Cham Towers which were built before the 12th century for Hindu worshippers and are still in use today by Buddhist followers. Then it could be on to the Long Son Pagoda or the small Khanh Hoa Museum which houses some of Ho Chi Minh's personal affects among other things. Again there are too many sights to list here but those who don't want the beach will not become bored. B.
Day 17:
NHA TRANG - This morning a local boat operator will take our small group tour on a full days tour to some of the many offshore islands. There will be the chance for a swim and a snorkel as well as seeing some local life on an island or two. B.L.
Day 18:
Tonight our Vietnam small group tour will stay in; HO CHI MINH CITY - Today again by bus our small group tour heads to Ho Chi Minh City. Hopefully by now you will have mastered how to cross the roads so seeing more of the attractions will not hold as much fear of the teeming traffic chaos. There is lots to see and do. The War Remnants Museum is a truely gruesome look at the utter futility and horrors of war or on a lighter note the History, Fine Arts or museum of Ho Chi Minh City will keep you fully occupied. Any free time in between could be used to visit the nearby Ben Thanh Market or the Huynh Thuc Khang street market. A taxi ride to Cholon will see you in either the Binh Tay or An Dong markets with the latter particularly good for clothing and cheap local eats. B.
Day 19:
HO CHI MINH CITY - A free day for shopping, sightseeing and trying some more of the great food on offer. More rice paper or fried spring rolls, another bowl of Pho, aromatic curries and numerous other local specialities often cooked in coconut milk. Vegetarians wont be short on choice either as most things come in vegie options also. B.
Day 20:
HO CHI MINH CITY -A full days tour with a local operator by bus and boats to the Mekong Delta to get a close up view of the lifestyles of the locals. Firstly by bus to the town of My Tho, seventy kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City. Then by boat you will visit Dragon, Unicorn, Phoenix and Tortoise islands. Sights along the way include a fishing port and stilt houses. Lunch will be had riverside in an orchard. Then it will be by a small local rowing boat through some smaller jungle shrouded channels to try some local fruits and honey as well as be entertained by some island villagers performing Southern Vietnamese folk music. B. L.
Day 21:
HO CHI MINH CITY - A local operator will take our small group tour on a half day tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels, 30 minutes away by bus. You will see a ocumentary film on the legendary tunnel system which is over 220 ilometres long. For the slim and brave you may wish to limbo along a short tretch of tunnel to experience it first hand. Above the ground you ill see some of the booby traps and other ingenious contraptions used to survive in this tunnel city. A last free afternoon on your return before a farewell dinner in the evening. B. D.
Day 22:
Our Vietnam small group budget tour is officially over when you check out of your Ho Chi Minh City accommodation. An airport transfer is included as always. B.
Tour Departure Dates
2012
05 May, 02 Jun, 07 Jul, 04 Aug, 01 Sep, 06 Oct, 03 Nov, 01 Dec
2013
05 Jan, 02 Mar, 06 Apr, 04 May, 01 Jun, 06 Jul, 03 Aug, 07 Sep, 05 Oct, 02 Nov, 07 Dec
Any other date on application. (Minimum two people).
Price
P/P, land only;
USD $1,650
Single Suppliment: USD $550
