Welcome to Hanoi, Vietnam’s thousand-year-old capital.
Meet your English-speaking guide on arrival and transfer to your hotel in the city centre. Your room will be available from 2:00 PM, and the day will be adapted to your arrival time.
Begin exploring the historic heart of Hanoi:
Overnight in Hanoi.
Spend the day discovering some of Hanoi’s most important cultural and historical landmarks:
In the evening, enjoy a traditional water puppet performance, one of Northern Vietnam’s distinctive folk arts.
Overnight in Hanoi.
Leave the capital and head towards the high mountains of Northern Vietnam.
The journey follows the Red River through rural countryside before entering a region of increasingly dramatic hills, valleys and tea plantations.
Stop at Thanh Son for a walk among rolling tea fields and an introduction to local farming practices.
Continue to Nghia Lo, set in the broad Muong Lo Valley and considered an important cultural homeland of the Thai people.
Settle into the home of a local Thai family before taking a bicycle ride through the village and surrounding fields. Along the way, learn about the traditions and clothing of the Black Thai and White Thai communities.
In the evening, share dinner with your hosts.
Dinner and overnight in a traditional stilt house.
After breakfast, say goodbye to your hosts and continue towards Mu Cang Chai, one of Vietnam’s most celebrated rice terrace regions.
Between May and September, the mountain slopes are covered in rice fields that gradually change from lush green to golden yellow.
Stop at Khau Pha Pass, one of the most spectacular mountain passes in the north, overlooking the vast rice-growing valley of Tu Le.
Arrive in Mu Cang Chai in the late afternoon.
Enjoy an hour-long walk through pine forest and lush vegetation to reach a small ecolodge set on a peaceful hillside.
The rest of the day is free to relax and enjoy the mountain surroundings.
Overnight in Mu Cang Chai.
Continue towards Sapa through some of Northern Vietnam’s most impressive mountain scenery.
Stops along the way include:
Arrive in Sapa around midday.
In the afternoon, walk through Ma Tra, a Black Hmong village tucked into a small valley. Continue to Ta Phin, home to the Red Dao community, known for their distinctive red headscarves and traditional use of medicinal herbs.
Return to Sapa in the late afternoon.
Overnight in Sapa.
Spend the day hiking through the beautiful Muong Hoa Valley, southwest of Sapa beneath Mount Fansipan.
Walk through rice terraces and ethnic minority villages including:
Along the way, observe daily farming life and meet local residents working in the fields.
At the end of the day, settle into the home of a welcoming Giay family.
Share a home-cooked dinner with your hosts and learn more about local traditions.
Dinner and overnight with a local family.
Begin the day away from Sapa’s busier trails with a walk through Hang Da and Sa Seng, a remote highland area of green valleys, limestone formations and small farming communities.
Walk among rice fields, indigo plants, hemp, vegetable gardens and traditional villages.
Meet Hmong women working with indigo and discover how the community continues to produce and dye textiles using locally grown plants.
Continue through forest and mountain scenery towards Sa Seng before returning to the road.
In the afternoon, travel to Bac Ha, a peaceful highland town northeast of Sapa.
Settle into the home of a Tay family.
Share dinner with your hosts and spend the night in their traditional stilt house.
Dinner and overnight with a local family.
Around 6 hours by road
Depending on the day of the week, visit one of the colourful ethnic markets around Bac Ha:
These markets bring together communities from the surrounding mountains to trade livestock, produce and household goods, but also to meet friends and exchange news.
Afterwards, continue on foot through the hills and valleys around Bac Ha.
Walk through pine forest towards Ngai Phong Cho, a village inhabited by Flower Hmong and Phu La communities, where traditional earthen houses can still be seen.
Continue along a small mountain trail with views over valleys and rice fields.
Return to Hanoi in the late afternoon.
Overnight in Hanoi.
Travel south to Ninh Binh, a landscape of limestone peaks, waterways and rice fields often known as “Halong Bay on land”.
Begin at Mua Cave viewpoint, climbing 486 stone steps to enjoy sweeping views over the Tam Coc countryside.
Continue to Tam Coc for a bicycle ride through the rural landscape.
In the afternoon, board a small rowing boat for a journey along the Ngo Dong River, winding between rice fields and limestone formations before passing through three natural caves.
Depart for Halong Bay, one of Vietnam’s most remarkable natural landscapes.
Board a traditional-style cruise boat and sail into Bai Tu Long Bay, the quieter northern part of the Halong Bay area.
During the afternoon:
The evening is free to relax, play cards or try night fishing.
Overnight on board.
Wake early to enjoy sunrise over the limestone formations and join an optional Tai Chi session on the sundeck.
Continue cruising through quieter areas of the bay and visit Thien Canh Son Cave, known for its impressive stalactites and stalagmites.
Lunch is served on board before disembarkation.
Return to Hanoi and take an evening flight to Hue, Vietnam’s former imperial capital.
Overnight in Hue.
Spend the day exploring Hue, capital of the Nguyen Dynasty between 1802 and 1945.
Visits include:
Overnight in Hue.
Cruise upstream along the peaceful Perfume River.
Stop at Thien Mu Pagoda before continuing to Thuy Bieu village, known for its pomelo orchards.
Explore the village by bicycle beneath fruit trees and along quiet lanes.
Visit a local family, help prepare lunch and enjoy the dishes together.
In the afternoon, continue to Sinh village, famous for traditional folk paintings. Meet a local artisan and learn about the printing process before trying the techniques yourself.
Then visit Thanh Tien village, where families have been making colourful paper flowers for generations.
Return to Hue.
Overnight in Hue.
Travel south towards Hoi An along one of Central Vietnam’s most scenic coastal routes.
Along the way, stop for views over:
Arrive in Hoi An during the afternoon.
Overnight in Hoi An.
Explore the historic streets of Hoi An Ancient Town on foot.
Visit:
Later, cycle into the countryside around Hoi An, passing rice fields, vegetable gardens and small villages.
Stop at Cam Chau village to visit a lantern workshop and learn how traditional lanterns are made.
Return to Hoi An towards the end of the afternoon.
Overnight in Hoi An.
Enjoy a full day at your own pace.
You might:
Overnight in Hoi An.
Fly to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s largest metropolis and the gateway to the south.
Begin exploring the historic city centre:
In the afternoon, travel outside the city to the Cu Chi Tunnels.
Explore part of the extraordinary underground network used during wartime, with tunnels linking meeting rooms, kitchens, shelters and medical areas.
Return to Ho Chi Minh City in the late afternoon.
Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.
Leave the city behind and travel into the Mekong Delta, a region shaped by rivers, canals, orchards and villages.
Arrive in Ben Tre and travel by boat along the waterways towards Mo Cay, an agricultural area known for coconut farming and small family-run workshops.
Continue by bicycle or motorised cart through quiet lanes shaded by coconut palms.
Stop to see how local products such as coconut sweets and household goods are made.
Then board a small rowing boat for a peaceful journey through narrow canals lined with nipa palms.
Later, travel to Giong Trom and settle into a charming riverside lodge on the banks of the Ham Luong River.
Enjoy the rest of the day at leisure, with the chance to watch sunset over the river.
Overnight at the lodge.
Begin with a bicycle ride through the coconut-growing countryside towards Oc Island.
Follow shaded village paths, visit a small local market and stop at a coconut-processing workshop to gain a closer look at everyday life in the delta.
In the afternoon, continue towards Tra Vinh, crossing the Ham Luong and Co Chien branches of the Mekong.
Visit the Khmer Cultural Museum and Ang Pagoda, one of Tra Vinh’s oldest Khmer temples, surrounded by centuries-old trees.
Continue to Can Tho, the largest city of the Mekong Delta.
Overnight in Can Tho.
Wake early and board a boat on the Mekong.
Visit Cai Rang Floating Market, where boats loaded with fruits, vegetables and other goods gather on the river.
Continue to An Binh land market, offering an interesting contrast between traditional commerce on the water and on land.
In the afternoon, return to Ho Chi Minh City.
Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.
Enjoy a free day for relaxing, exploring the city at your own pace or doing some last-minute shopping.
At the appropriate time, transfer to the airport for your departure flight.
End of your 21-day journey through Vietnam.
Thay vì dịch sát Grande traversée du Vietnam thành The Great Crossing of Vietnam, nghe khá Pháp, con chốt:
Vietnam from Mountains to Mekong, 21 Days
Private Tour
Private Tour
Private Tour
Private Tour
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