Vietnam Mountain and Beach
Duration: 10 days
Highlights: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Nha Trang Cam Ranh
To showcase all the wonders of Vietnam, both north and south, A&K have developed the Vietnam Mountain & Beach program – an enticing 10 days/9 nights package,
including Mai Chau and Nha Trang as well as visits to the major cultural sights in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Itinerary
Day 1 - Arrive Hanoi
You will be met by an Airport Representative in front of the Immigration Counter and ushered through the express line for immigration formalities. You will then follow the
Airport Representative who will assist you with collection of your luggage before leading them out of the terminal to meet with your guide.
Upon arrival in Hanoi you will be greeted by our representative and transferred to your hotel. The remainder of your day and dinner will be yours to enjoy at your leisure.
Dinner under own arrangements.
Overnight: Hotel l'Opera
Day 2 - Hanoi
Enjoy breakfast at your hotel and the rest of your morning is at your leisure to enjoy the hotel facilities.
OPTIONAL MORNING TOUR (08.00 – 12.00)
Your guide will collect you for a day of intriguing sightseeing, beginning at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. The vast tomb stands just over 70 feet tall and 135 wide and
contains the embalmed body of the revolutionary leader who played a key role in the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and with the Viet Cong during the
war with anti-communist forces.
Your next visit will be at Ho Chi Minh’s stilted house. Built using the finest wooden materials in 1958, the simple two-story wooden house is where legendary leader Ho Chi
Minh once lived. The stilted house is surrounded by banyan, frangipani, Poinciana and milkweed trees and sits next to an elegant carp-filled pond.
Next, move to One Pillar Pagoda. Built in the 11th century by King Ly Thai To, the pagoda known to locals as “Chua Mot Cot” is one of Vietnam’s most iconic temples. The
king built the temple to offer thanks to the deity he believed helped his wife give birth to his son.
Your tour of Hanoi continues at Quoc Tu Giam, a Confucian temple otherwise known as Temple of Literature. Recognized as Hanoi’s first university, the temple was also built
in the 11th century during the reign of King Ly Nhan Tong and is featured on the back of the 100,000 dong banknote. The temple, which hosts the Imperial Academy, has
educated Vietnam’s royalty and members of elite society for nearly 700 years.
Please note: Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is closed on Monday and Friday and daily each afternoon and from the 6th of September 2016 to the 6th of December 2016 for annual
preservation. The Ho Chi Minh Museum and Stilted House remain open as usual.
At 12.30 your guide will meet you at your hotel and together you will begin a combined walking & street food tour of Hanoi’s most captivating sites.
Your insightful three-hour tour begins with a visit to Ngoc Sơn Temple which is dedicated to Tran Hưng Dao who defeated attacking Mogolian troops on three different
occasions in the 13th century. The temple is built on Hoan Kiem Lake or “Lake of the Returned Sword”, considered by many as the centre of the city in the heart of the Old
Quarter.
Continue walking to a local shop to try a Bánh Cuốn (Steamed Rice Rolls) and then your guide will take you to to try Pho - a very tasty noodle soup, best cooked by a native
Hanoian.
Next, stroll around Hang Be market in the Old Quarter. A walk around this vast maze of stalls will offer you a glimpse of the exotic fruits & vegetables available in Vietnam
Before you settle down for some liquid refreshment, you will visit the Temple of Silver where the locals worship the ancestor of Silver craft. Continue your walking tour at one
of the most exciting areas in Hanoi, the intersection between Ta Hien and Luong Ngoc Quyen Streets, nicknamed “the international crossroad".
This is a place where you will witness a plethora of tourists and locals alike, gathering, chatting and enjoying Bia Hoi. This local beer is brewed daily with no preservatives so it
must be consumed within 24 hours of production, making it one of the freshest beers you may have ever tried. Take some time to sit and enjoy the fresh beer with snacks in
this charming environment to discover a taste of Hanoi’s captivating culture.
Your final stop will be to try the iconic Hanoi delicacy Bun Cha (vermicelli served with aromatic herbs and grilled pork meat ball, dipped in fish sauce). Your guide will then
escort you back to your hotel.
Dinner and the remainder of your day will be enjoyed at your leisure, however feel free to ask your guide for a local restaurant recommendation.
Overnight: Hotel l'Opera
Meal Plan: B,L
Day 3 - Hanoi - Mai Chau
After breakfast at your hotel your guide will collect you and take you on a four hour transfer to Mai Chau (approx. 140km away) in a private air-conditioned vehicle, arriving
just before noon. Home to the Dzao, Muong and Thai hill tribes, the Mai Chau region is a wonderful place to discover an unchanged way of life. This intriguing tour allows a
glimpse of Mai Chau from the saddle, cruising through rich, verdant countryside and paying visit to local hill tribe villages to meet and converse with locals.
Arrive Mai Chau and have lunch at the local house and interact with one of the hosts. Your guide will assist you with check-in after lunch.
In the afternoon you will venture out to explore the beautiful ethnic villages of Mai Chau, including Na Phong and Na Meo. While there, enjoy the opportunity to mingle with
locals, and take the opportunity to chat about their traditional culture.
Visit the tooth pick factory before returning to your hotel you will take time to refresh.
Dinner is under your own arrangement.
Overnight: Sol Bungalow
Meal Plan: B,L
Day 4 - Mai Chau
After an early breakfast, set off on a bicycle tour of the local valleys. The ride, which moves from Chieng Chau - Van Mai – Cun – Mai Hich, passes through many villages,
across lush rice paddies and out into the seldom-seen countryside where you will get to know the local hill tribe people and their culture better.
Return to your hotel at around 11.00 for lunch before enjoying some time to rest and relax, free at your own leisure.
In the late afternoon you will have the opportunity to visit a home that contains more than 1,000 precious antiques. The collection is owned by a native of Hanoi whose love
for Thai culture and history inspired him to accumulate the various antiques, including hunting equipment, musical instruments and jewellery. He also owns a collection of
texts written in one of the Thai hill tribe dialects.
After exploring the fine collection of antiques, dinner and the remainder of the evening will be yours to enjoy at your leisure.
Overnight: Sol Bungalow
Meal Plan: B,L
Day 5 - Mai Chau – Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh City
After breakfast at the hotel you will have the chance to relax before checkout around 10.00 and transfer back to Hanoi in a private air-conditioned vehicle for your onward
flight to Ho Chi Minh City where you will be met and transferred to your hotel before spending the remainder of the day and dinner at your leisure.
Flight VN249 15:45-18:00 Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh City - Economy Class
Overnight: Hotel Des Arts
Meal Plan: B
Day 6 - Ho Chi Minh City
After breakfast at your hotel, at 08.30 your guide will collect you from your hotel and whisk you away to the first market by scooter. After stopping for a morning coffee, next
you will enjoy a local-style breakfast before stretching your legs with a walk around the market.
Along your stroll you see how local people shop for their daily groceries, meats and other exotic items; an awakening for your senses. Your guide will introduce you to a
variety of produce, selecting the tastiest treats to spoil your taste buds. Once through the first market, your path will take you onto another street where you will discover a
variety of musical instruments for sale.
Hop on your scooter once more to take a drive to the efflorescent wholesale flower market. Locals flock here to buy bright and colourful flower arrangements for their retail
shops, hotels and restaurants. The next market on your exploration is the concisely named “Spare Parts Market” where you can find scooter parts ranging in quality (and
price) and even replica parts copying brand names.
Your next stop is famous for Chinese herbs. Located in Chinatown, you will discover an entire street brimming with herbs for sale. Along your short walk with your guide you
will also pass the house featured in Marguerite Duras’s autobiographical novel & 1992 film adaptation “The Lover”. A Vietnamese coffee (or other refreshment) awaits you at
a neighboring café.
Your last stop takes you a pagoda built in the 18th century. Unchanged for hundreds of years, the pagoda offers a serene escape from the bustling atmosphere of
Chinatown. Your guide will then whisk you off to a local restaurant where you will enjoy a delicious local lunch.
After your excursion, return back to your hotel at 13.00 where the rest of your afternoon is at your leisure.
Just like the Western world, craft beer breweries have become very popular in Vietnam, with approximately 45 local microbreweries currently producing Czech- and
German-style lagers. The new trend appeared in Ho Chi Minh City around 2013 with the arrival of brands such as IPA (India Pale Ale). Today, explore three unique breweries
in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City that produce a wide range of beers.
At 18.30 your guide will collect you from your hotel and take you on a walk to your first tasting stop to try a variety of craft ales brewed by a group of expats whose brand has
quickly become popular with the city’s beer lovers.
Walk on to the next locally owned brewery that specializes in German-style lager production. Located in an old villa, the brewery offers an authentic Vietnamese atmosphere
to enjoy with your glass of beer.
Continue your beer exploration with a short walk to another brewery that’s become very popular amongst locals after work, making it an ideal place to relax with freshly
tapped beer as you observe the local nightlife. Chat with your guide to learn more about the culture of Ho Chi Minh City over dinner at the brewery before making the return
journey to your hotel by cyclo, enjoying the glamor of the city by night as you glide through the streets.
OPTIONAL AFTERNOON TOUR (3 HOURS)
Begin your half-day guided tour of Ho Chi Minh City with a choice of visiting the History Museum (Closed on Monday), set in the Zoo and Botanical Gardens, or the War
Remnants Museum.
Built in 1929 by the Societe des Etudes Indochinoises, it was known as ‘Musée Blanchard de la Bosse’ until 1956, when it was renamed the Saigon National Museum. In
1975, it was expanded, renovated and renamed the Historical Museum. The Museum now houses an excellent collection of artefacts illustrating the evolution of Vietnamese
culture from ancient times (approximately 300,000 years ago) up to the 1930s, when Vietnam’s Communist Party was founded.
If the History Museum does not enliven your interest, you may opt to visit to the War Remnants Museum. Over the years, the museum has held a number of colourful
names, primarily as it contains exhibits relating to the American phase of the Vietnam War. Among the at-times grisly items on display are an American tank, infantry
weapons, war photographs, the original French guillotine brought to Vietnam in the 20th century, and even a once-operational UH-1 "Huey" helicopter.
Continue on to visit the Reunification Hall, one of the most historic landmarks in Ho Chi Minh City built on the site of the former Norodom Palace. Designed as the
Presidential Palace during the Vietnam War, it was where the official handover of power took place during the Fall of Saigon in 1975. The building is preserved almost as it
was under the old regime with elegant interiors decorated with fine Vietnamese arts and crafts. One of the many attractions within the building is the underground Command
Post of the now-exiled president.
Make a brief photo stop at the Notre Dame Cathedral in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City. It has a neo-Romanesque façade and two bell towers tipped with iron spires that reach
a height of 190 feet, dominating the skyline. Your next stop will be to visit the classic 19th century French colonial Post Office. The largest post office in Vietnam, it is an
important communications hub for most of the city’s inhabitants. Inside, the building has huge vaulted ceilings with vast maps of Vietnam on both sides of the main hall.
Overnight: Hotel Des Arts
Meal Plan: B,L
Day 7 - Ho Chi Minh City – Nha Trang
Enjoy breakfast at your hotel.
Your morning is at leisure until your transfer at 14.00 to Tan Son Nhat airport for your onward flight Nha Trang.
Flight VN1356 15:55-17:00 Ho Chi Minh City/Nha Trang - Economy Class
On arrival at Nha Trang Airport, you are met by the Resort Representative who transfer you on a private vehicle to the resort pier where you will be transferred by shared
boat to your resort for check in.
Enjoy the remainder of the day at your leisure.
Overnight: Ka Lam Retreat Ninh Van Bay
Meal Plan: B
Day 8 - Nha Trang
Enjoy breakfast at your resort and today is yours to enjoy at leisure.
Overnight: Ka Lam Retreat Ninh Van Bay
Meal Plan: B
Day 9 - Nha Trang
Enjoy breakfast at your resort and the rest of your day is at your leisure to enjoy the resort facilities.
Overnight: Ka Lam Retreat Ninh Van Bay
Meal Plan: B
Day 10 - Nha Trang – Ho Chi Minh City Departure
Enjoy breakfast at your resort.
Your day is at leisure until your transfer time to Nha Trang Airport for your departure flight to Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City and board your flight back home
(clients own ticket).
Flight VN1351 12:15-13:10 Nha Trang/Ho Chi Minh City - Economy Class
Meal Plan: B