Vietnam Highlight Vacation

On arrival at Hanoi’s Noi Bai Airport a Viet Prestige Travel guide will greet you and transfer by private car through the city to your hotel. Overnight at a lovely hotel in the downtown.

The colonial capital city Hanoi is a unique Asian city with tree-lined boulevards, French colonial architecture, peaceful lakes and oriental pagodas and temples dating back a thousand years.
This full day tour takes you around Hanoi’s most interesting sights, including the Ho Chi Minh Complex: Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum and his Stilts House, the Presidential Palace and the One Pillar Pagoda and, nearby, the Old Quarter also known as the 36 streets and guilds. Also on the tour, the Lake of the Restored Sword and Ngoc Son Temple, the Temple of Literature, peaceful West Lake (with lovers street Thanh Nien), the sedate Tran Quoc Pagoda and Quan Thanh Temple and one of the city’s museums, either the History Museum or the Ethnology Museum. In the evening, you will enjoy a traditional Vietnamese water puppet show.
Please note that  the Ho Chi Minh  Mausoleum is closed on Fridays and Mondays and most museums are closed on Mondays.

Leave Hanoi by road for Halong Bay. Enjoy the journey through the rich farmlands of the Red River Delta and the scenery of rice fields, water buffalo and everyday Vietnamese village life. Arrive in Halong and board your traditional junk boat. Have lunch as you cruise among hundreds of islets to discover unspoiled pockets of Halong Bay and visit ‘Sung Sot’, one of the most imposing grottoes of the Bay. After sunset, enjoy dinner before retiring to your cabin for a good nights sleep.

After your breakfast drive to the ancient port town of Hoi An. Despite the passing of 200 years and the ravages of weather and war, the centre of Hoi An remains much the same as it was in its heyday. A walking tour is the best way to see this marvelous town. For lunch sample some of Hoi An’s delectable cuisine at one of the town’s finest restaurants. Leave Hoi An after lunch for Hue, the former imperial capital of Vietnam. In Danang visit the Cham Museum, before climbing over the ‘Pass of Ocean Clouds’. Arrive in Hue late in the afternoon and transfer to hotel.

Discover the spectacular sites of Hue and admire its art, architecture, history and local food on this full day sightseeing tour. After breakfast, head to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Hue Citadel, where Nguyen rulers presided between 1802 and 1945. Passing by stunning palaces and shrines at the Imperial City and the emperor’s private residence at the Forbidden Purple City, hear interesting stories about the Nguyen Emperors and learn more about the history of the city from your informative guide.
Then, enjoy unique local food which is rated as one of the best in the world. After lunch, take a panoramic cruise along the enchanting Perfume River. Relax and get closer to nature as you pass by lush forest trees and colorful flowers on full bloom by the river bank. Disembark for a quick visit of the Thien Mu Pagoda, the tallest pagoda in Vietnam and is considered by many as the unofficial symbol of Hue. See one of its most poignant display, a car belonging to a former monk, who in 1963, drove to Sai Gon and set himself alight to protest against the South Vietnamese regime and its cruel treatment of Buddhist monks and followers. Explore the Khai Dinh Royal Tomb, and see its graceful combination of Western and oriental architecture. Emperor Khai Dinh ruled Vietnam for 9 years and his tomb took 11 years to complete.
Overnight in Hue.

Depart for Hue Airport after breakfast for the short flight to dynamic Ho Chi Minh City, still called Saigon by the locals. Take a city tour from the back of a chauffeur driven classic Vespa motorbike, which will include a visit to the former Presidential Palace, the War Remnants Museum,  the colonial Notre Dame Cathedral and the Old Saigon Post Office. You will explore the differing Districts of the city, each with their own unique history and character. This afternoon walk through the oldest quarter of the city and explore some of Saigon’s best kept secrets. (driver at disposal if needed). Visit the Beaux-Arts Museum and wander through the art galleries in the area. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.

Today, head to the Mekong Delta, leaving the hustle and bustle of the city behind to travel through Vietnam’s picturesque countryside with its rice paddies and rural villages. Enjoy a gentle cruise from Cai Be to Sa Dec as part of a leisurely exploration of the Mekong River and its hidden treasures before gliding onto Can Tho. Overnight on board.

Crossing the Mekong on the way to Cai Be Floating Market, you’ll take in traditional sights such as rice barges, wooden ship building yards and even fruit drying along the Mekong’s banks. After paying a visit to the colorful floating market check-out and disembark before the return to Ho Chi Minh City. Your private car and guide will be at your disposal until your onward flight.