Departure day, where you will fly to Hanoi with connecting flights along the way.

After arriving in Hanoi, you will pass through immigration before collecting your luggage. You will be met in the arrivals hall by a guide holding a TourCompass sign, who will accompany you to the hotel where you will be spending the next three nights. Having checked in at your hotel, the rest of the day is yours to do with as you wish. For example, you can saunter along the busy streets and alleyways of the exotic old quarter, stopping as you please to admire the sights and sounds of this amazing city. Hoan Kiem Lake is close by; it takes about half an hour to walk all the way around it – a delightful stroll in the shade of the tall trees.

Today, you can look forward to a fascinating half-day sightseeing tour that takes in the biggest sights and attractions in Hanoi. Your itinerary starts at the Temple of Literature, which was built in the 1100s by students of the Chinese philosopher Confucius. With a history stretching back almost 1,000 years, the temple is one of the last remaining examples of traditional Vietnamese architecture.

It is then time to visit the Ngoc Son Temple, which is located on a small island in the beautiful Hoan Kiem Lake. Access to the temple is across Huc Bridge, whose name literally means ‘the placed touched by the rays of the morning sun’. Here, you will hear the legend of the Emperor, the magical sword and the giant turtle after which the lake is named. The next treat is a ride on a traditional ‘cyclo’ – a bicycle taxi – along some of the 36 streets that make up the charming old quarter. The local citizens flock to the area to buy everything from noodles to Buddha figurines. The 36 streets in this part of the city were named after the goods traded there, and ‘Bamboo Street’ and ‘Tin Street’ still live up to their names. Your sightseeing tour concludes with a traditional performance at the water puppet theatre.

The day is yours to explore Hanoi on your own or choose one of our extra excursions.

There is plenty to do in the bustling capital. You can easily spend hours in the charming old quarter by Hoan Kiem Lake, where you’ll find old colonial buildings, a wide range of shops, restaurants, cafes, and art galleries

From Hanoi, the tour goes through the lush delta of the Red River to Ha Long Bay, where you join a mini cruise.

Ha Long Bay is one of Vietnam’s most outstanding natural areas. In the bay, hundreds of green-clad limestone cliffs jut vertically out of the sea, which over the course of the year fluctuates in colour from deep blue to jade green. On the large island, Cat Ba, there are several villages, with smaller fishing villages on some of the smaller islands. For travellers, Ha Long Bay is first and foremost a wonderful world-class natural area, while for the Vietnamese it is also associated with legends of dragons and drama. Ha Long Bay is about 1,500 km² in size and was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994.

You arrive in the town of Ha Long at noon and board your cruise ship, where you receive a short safety briefing followed by check-in. The boat heads out towards the secluded islands in the bay, and you can now relax and just enjoy the view of the islands and the floating fishing villages. Along the way, you visit a pearl farm, and make a stop at Ti Top Island, where you can swim and hike up to a viewpoint that offers stunning views of the bay. In the evening, you can fish for octopus from the stern of the boat and enjoy watching the magnificent sunset.

NOTE!! In the event of bad weather with storms, the Vietnamese authorities reserve the right to close Ha Long Bay to navigation for safety reasons. This happens a few times a year. In such cases, the mini cruise will be replaced with hotel accommodation and an excursion in Hanoi.

Start the day with a refreshing dip in the clear, warm waters of Ha Long Bay. Or perhaps simply enjoy the sunrise from the magnificent sun deck of the boat. You can also participate in the morning’s keep-fit session (usually tai chi) on the sun deck of the junk. Breakfast is served as the boat calmly begins to head back to port. Along the way, depending on the season, you will either visit either the island of Ti Top (in the summer), where you can swim or hike, or a pearl farm (in the winter). Once back on land, you are driven back to Hanoi, where you will spend a few hours on your own before being accompanied to the train which will take you to Da Nang.

The night train departs from Hanoi at 7 pm and arrives in Da Nang at 11 am the next day.

For a surcharge, you can fly from Hanoi to Da Nang instead of taking the night train. This option will include an extra night in Hoi An.

You wake up to a beautiful view as the train makes its way along the coast. Look out over the green mountains and the beautiful blue sea.

You arrive in Da Nang mid-morning, where you are met by a guide who drives you to your hotel in Hoi An. Having checked in, the rest of the day is at your leisure.

Hoi An is a wonderful experience and you cannot help but fall in love with the city. It is especially well-known for its charming architecture, impressive silk production, great tailors and its Old Town, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Flowing through the heart of the Old Town is the Thu Bon River, which is a glorious example of an international port dating back to the heyday of European and East Asian trading companies from the 16th to the 18th century.

Away from the river, you will find yourself in a maze of cosy, charming streets. Wherever you turn, you will see how the former colonial powers have each made their mark on the district. Colourful lanterns, Japanese houses, Chinese temples and French yellow merchants’ houses fill the cityscape. Shops, street kitchens, cafés and restaurants line the streets, where you can while away several hours connected to the city’s free Wi-Fi.

The fact that Hoi An’s Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site naturally makes it a major draw for tourists. The streets might be busy, but there is still a lovely calm to the area, and the district has managed to retain its authenticity and charm. It also helps that cars, scooters and motorcycles are denied access.

You spend three nights at this wonderful gem of a place, giving you plenty of time to enjoy and explore different parts of the city.

These days are yours to do with as you wish. You can choose to spend them enjoying the beach and the water, or exploring the charming city and the old harbour area.

For an extra fee, you can take one or more excursions.

Today, you will be picked up from your hotel and driven to the airport in Da Nang, before flying to Vietnam’s biggest city, Ho Chi Minh City.

It might be something of a shock to come from the peaceful Hoi An to this hectic metropolis inhabited by some 10 million people and where there are just as many scooters and motorcycles. Fortunately, you will be rewarded with an incredibly exciting and modern city. This is seen in the city’s buildings, which are a good mix of old and new – modern high-rise buildings in glass and well-preserved colonial buildings.

On your arrival at Ho Chi Minh City Airport, you will be met by a guide who will drive you into the city in time for lunch.  The tour then starts, and the first stop is the Central Post Office, designed by the world famous French architect Gustav Eiffel.

Opposite the post office is the iconic Notre Dame Cathedral, built between 1863 and 1880. As you stand facing the church, you have a grey building behind you. Some may recognise it as the “Pittmann Apartments” building at 22 Gia Long Street from the photo taken on 29 April 1974 by Dutch photographer Hubert van Es in connection with the fall of Saigon. Many people thought it was the American Embassy, but it actually housed the United States Agency for International Development and the CIA officer Conrad LaGueux. The photo shows a helicopter landing on the roof of the building to evacuate US government employees when the North Vietnamese forces penetrated Saigon.

From here you walk towards the Saigon River along the Dong Khoi shopping street, which held a central role in Graham Greene’s novel “The Quiet American”. You later pass the beautiful Saigon Opera House, which was built in 1901. The tour continues to the Reunification Palace where the Vietnam War – or the American War as the Vietnamese call it – ended on 30 April 1975 when a Vietnamese tank drove through the gate to end the war, which left 58,000 Americans and 3 million Vietnamese dead. You will then visit the War Museum, which is spread over several floors. Here, you have time to wander around on your own and see the harsh photos of the war – a truly moving experience!

The tour continues with a visit to one of the peaceful oases in the bustling metropolis: The atmospheric Jade Emperor Pagoda with its small pond full of small tortoises. The locals flock here to pray and light small candles and incense sticks. The tour rounds off at the covered Ben Thanh Market, the city’s largest and most authentic market, where you can find everything from fruit and vegetables to clothing, electronics, souvenirs and food stalls. You will be driven to the hotel to check in, and the rest of the day is yours to do whatever you please. The hotel is situated in District 1, which is still known as Saigon and is considered to be the inner city, while District 2–11 is called Ho Chi Minh City.

You will be picked up from your hotel and driven towards the Mekong Delta, south of Ho Chi Minh City. The Mekong River itself runs 4,500 km through 6 countries from its source to the delta south of Ho Chi Minh City. The delta is known as Vietnam’s pantry and is, as the nickname suggests, an extremely fertile place. The delta covers an area of almost 40,000 km², but the area covered by water depends on the amount of rainfall and the season.

You won’t get far from Ho Chi Minh City before you start seeing beautiful green rice fields. The climate here allows farmers to plant and harvest three crops a year.

Arriving in the small charming town of Cai Be, you board a boat that takes you around the lush Mekong Delta. Here, you can experience the locals with their boats filled with watermelons, coconuts, and pineapples, or patiently waiting for another fish to bite. The area was formerly known for its floating markets, but today, goods are sold on land.

Then, you visit a family that produces and sells various products made from water hyacinths. The tour also passes by a small home factory that produces “pop rice,” a local specialty in the Mekong Delta.

You now board a sampan, a traditional boat, and sail through the labyrinth of narrow channels in the charming delta before enjoying a late lunch in a beautiful old local house. Here, you will also be shown how to make the traditional Vietnamese pancakes, banh xeo.

Afterward, you are sailed back to Cai Be and from there, driven back to Ho Chi Minh City.

The day is yours to explore the city on your own, check out the various markets or eat your way through the delectable street kitchens.

You will be picked up from your hotel and driven out to the airport to catch your flight from Ho Chi Minh City back to the UK. There will connecting flights along the way. If you have chosen to extend your trip with a beach holiday or a visit to Cambodia, you will continue on to the relevant destination.

Arrive back in the UK after a wonderful holiday.