Trekking in Vietnam: 15 Days & 14 Nights
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DAY 1: HANOI ARRIVAL
Welcome to Hanoi – the capital of Vietnam. Hanoi is considered one of Asia's most fascinating cities with a unique blend of asian and western charm. The French colonial legacy is still evident in many parts of Vietnam including Hanoi, illustrated by the distinctive yellow pastel colored villas and government buildings. Just voted as one of TripAdvisor’s Top 10 Destinations in the world for 2014!
Upon arrival, you will be warmly greeted by our local team that will take care of you every need for the duration of the program. We will take care of your luggage, and escort you to the hotel through the hustle and bustle of the motorbikes! You will freshen up then a fantastic dinner is waiting with a brilliant introduction to Vietnamese cuisine. Have a good rest tonight, the adventure begins tomorrow!
DAY 2: HANOI CITY TOUR + VISIT TRADITIONAL VILLAGE
Let’s start your fabulous day by visiting the Opera House and the History Museum – buildings from the French colonial era. The city's romantic charm is also found in its traditional pagodas and temples, along narrow streets filled with vendors and near the quiet and reflecting tranquil lakes of Hanoi!
In the afternoon, you will visit the traditional ceramic village: Bat Trang-13 kilometers south east of Hanoi, on the Red river. It has been famous for its ceramics for over a thousand years, particularly dinnerware and ornamental ware. While visiting Bat Trang, you can discover the process of how a product is handmade. It is hot and tiresome work, but the results are superb. Have a walk along the village, then you can see how talented and inviting the local people can be.
DAY 3: HANOI – HALONG – HANOI – LAO CAI
A trip to northern Vietnam would not be completed without a tour to breathtaking Ha Long Bay, the bay of descending dragons, which is considered the eighth natural wonder of the world, with an incomparable coastal area of 1600 square kilometers with over 2000 limestone islands in various shapes and size. You will have a scenic drive to the Halong boat station. You will board a private boat and cruise through the most beautiful place in the bay with the famous areas such as Heaven Grotto, Cock Fighting and Dinh Huong islet, while enjoying a fresh seafood lunch onboard.
This evening, you will take a night luxury train up north to Sapa – the fanciful town in fog!!! Enjoy the romantic train ride that takes you to one of the most beautiful places on earth!
DAY 4: LAO CAI – SAPA – CAT CAT VILLAGE
Upon arrival Lao Cai station, your private car and guide will escort you to Sapa - 45 mins from the train station. Sapa takes its pride in its unique climate in Vietnam. Snow falls in some years on the highest peaks. In the morning and afternoon, it is as cool as in spring and autumn. Yet, at noon, it is as sunny and cloudless as in summer. In the evening, it drastically changes into coldness just as in winter. This is actually a unique advantage, making Sapa different from anywhere else in the nation. Are you ready to discover the picturesque town? Start trekking down to Cat Cat village to know more about the ethnic minorities in Vietnam, then to the Silver Waterfall; from there you can see stunning views of the surrounding mountains and the lush forests belonging to Hoang Lien National Park. Your day will be completed with a traditional hill tribe dinner!
DAY 5: HAM RONG MOUNTAIN TREKKING
The scenery of the Sapa region in large part reflects the relationship between the ethnic minority people and nature. This is seen especially in the paddy fields carpeting the rolling lower slopes of the Hoang Lien Mountains. The impressive physical landscape, which underlies this, has resulted from the work of the elements over thousands of years, wearing away the underlying rock. You will agree with us that it would be regretful if the leisure and relaxation time in cool and fresh weather is not accompanied by visiting trips to Sapa’s prideful natural beauty spots, especially to Ham Rong Mountain. Breathtaking views, amazing local people, what more could you ask for?
DAY 6: SAPA – LAO CAI - HANOI
Today is a free & easy day for you to wander around the cozy town. Enjoy it by your own way before departing to Hanoi this evening.
DAY 7: HANOI – QUANG BINH
From Hanoi train station, our local team will pick you up, and drive you to the airport for a departure flight to Quang Bin, a peaceful town of central Vietnam which is well known recent years with many amazing caves which is featured in the National Geographic Photograph of the year in 2011. Today is a great day to catch up on some relaxation and prepare for a big trek tomorrow!
DAY 8: QUANG BINH – PARADISE CAVE
Be ready to have a 7km long trek today! Mother Nature has created a really incredible site here. There’s no word to describe how big and gorgeous the Paradise Cave is. Explore the cave, and let us know how you feel. It is one of the biggest caves on earth!
DAY 9-10-11: TU LAN CAVE SYSTEM
Your journey to the deep starts today! You are going to spend three-days and two-nights deep in the remote jungle of Tu Lan, on the border of Laos. The three-day trek is more difficult with a number of steep inclines over limestone mountain paths. You will have more time to explore the fascinating caves in the area including Hang Ken, which was featured in the National Geographic Photograph of the year in 2011 by trekking through the thick scrub valley, swimming into dark caves, and climbing up a rocky hillside. There are many beautiful cave formations, underground rivers and spectacular waterfalls inside the caves that you will get to experience!
A highlight for many on the three-day trek tour is the time spent at your campsite, listening to the sounds of the waterfall and the night critters, enjoying a delicious BBQ with your group, drinking the local vodka, singing out loud in the middle of the jungle, gazing up through the jungle at the starry night and hearing some interesting stories about the local minority people!
All the gear will be provided: helmet, trekking boots, headlight, life jacket, hammock, sleeping bag. Sleeping in a hammock while listening the sounds of the jungle would be a great experience.
DAY 12: QUANG BINH – SAIGON
Time to goodbye the stunning caves. Today you are heading to Ho Chi Minh City, or well known as Saigon this afternoon.
After 1.5 hours you will be greeted at Saigon – the busiest city in Vietnam. The city orientation tour will starts after you have time to relax and freshen up at hotel. The tour includes a photo stop at former Presidential Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, Post Office Center, and the Opera House. Saigon is also famous for its lively nightlife, let’s have a dinner on a boutique river cruise boat along the Saigon River to feel the beat of Saigon’s night.
DAY 13: CU CHI TUNNELS
Cu chi tunnels is 45km from the city. It was an underground network which is 250km length, and used by Viet Cong soldiers as hiding spots during combat, as well as serving as communication and supply routes, hospitals, food and weapon caches and living quarters for numerous North Vietnamese fighters. You did trek in the jungle, now it’s time to run in a tunnel. The tour takes a half day, in the afternoon you can either walking around the city, or just relaxing with a good massage at a nice spa.
DAY 14: BIKING IN MEKONG DELTA
Starting with an early day, you are going to spend a day cycling to Tien Giang – one of 13 beautiful towns of Mekong Delta. Cycling through the country roads in the Mekong Delta and the peaceful countryside landscape is the perfect way to discover the beauty of the Tien Giang province and its canals and plantations. After arriving at Tien Gang, you begin your journey cycling along paths lined with pineapple plantations, man-made canals, and rice fields. Watch as local farmers tend to their land and harvest rice and pineapples. Next you will cycle through a traditional village, under the shade of coconut and star-apple trees. Here you will stop for lunch and eat delicious traditional Vietnamese cuisine.
In the late afternoon, you will return to Ho Chi Minh city and your hotel. All transport including bicycle and safety helmet are included to ensure you enjoy a fascinating and safe day of cycling.
DAY 15: DEPARTURE
It is always tough to say goodbye. Hope you had a memorable trip in Vietnam. Thank you for choosing 4U Tours & Travel to accompany you during the trip. Have a safe flight, and see you in your next trip! If you are continuing your journey to another one of our destination, our local team will supply you with the flight information, escort you to the airport and you will be greeted at your next destination by our team for continued care and service!
**Please note this is an itinerary we have created which features the highlights of trekking in Vietnam in a 15 day period. We have a completely customizable itinerary so depending on the amount of times you have and the amount of things you want to see, we will make adjustments accordingly! We have Vietnam as our main destination visit and the other countries as pre or post extension tours just to give you an idea of planning your trip. Of course our goal is to make your trip to Southeast Asia as great as possible so let’s work together and create what is best for you! Contact us at www.4utours.vn for more possibilities!