Easy Indochina

You arrive in Hanoi in the morning. We start our Vietnam holiday with a walking tour through the colorful Old Quarter. Follow your guide from the Sword Lake and go through a maze of narrow streets filled with little shops and craftman houses. We visit a hidden street where you find the trains going through every once in a while everyday, only a yard away from the house entrances – an opportunity for unsual photos. If we are there in the right time, we may witness one of those trains going by. In the evening, we will focus our curiousity onto the movements of the lively figurines in the famous water pupet show.

This day is yours with many options. Make up your mind if you want to discover the diversity of Vietnamese peoples in the Ethnological Museum, or you want a daytrip to the mystic Halong Bay. A dragon is said to have created the bizarre world of 2,000 limestone cliffs and islets. That sounds like a good story and we see the result as we cruise through the unique landscape on a  comfortable junk.

Early hours we visit Ho Chi Minh’s Memorial Complex and have an insight of some interesting episodes of his life. We also take a short walk on the side of the West Lake and visit the old Tran Quoc Pagoda which conveys a lots of Vietnam’s history since the 6th century. Afternoon we fly to Hue in Central Vietnam.

Hue is the former monarchy’s capital city under Nguyen Emperors from 1802. We visit the Citadel of Hue and the Imperial Tomb of Ming Mang marvelling at majestic architecture and decors. Later we take a boat trip on Hue river to visit the sacred Thien Mu Pagoda.

On the cloud pass we enjoy in beautiful weather a fantastic panoramic view of the most beautiful coastline of Vietnam. In Danang, we take in the cultural history of the Champa Empire through a superb collection of sculptures at the Cham Museum. Our destination for the day is Hoi An with a walking tour in this quaint centuries-old port town that has been awarded the World Heritage title by UNESCO.

As Hoi An has a richness of attractions, we deliberately leave this day for your own discovery. You may like to take the easy cycing tour to the village of Tra Que where you practice with your hands on herb gardening work. Or else, you may like to discover one more UNESCO attraction which is My Son, a pre-Angkorian archaeology site. Or you’d rather relax on the beautiful sandy beach near the town. You say it.

Ho Chi Minh City or usually Saigon by locals offers us a picture full of contrasts. A vibrant modern city that has not lost its sense of tradition. We walk through the colonial neighborhoods and mingle with the merchants at Ben Thanh market. Saigon at night is a great experience during an optional dinner cruise on the Saigon River.

Start your day like a Saigon’s citizen. We go to a green park with tall trees where local folks come around for daily jogging laps. In a corner we drop in an open air café which is covered with a cloud of bird cages. Enjoy the sight you see, the birds sing and the men chit-chat. Next we go to a food market, we merge into the buzzing crowd and grab a steaming bowl of pho. In the afternoon we visit the Cu Chi Tunnels, a massive system of subterranean shelter for the Viet Cong during the Vietnam War.

A day for you in Saigon. You may either like to explore the metropolis on your own, or accompany your guide on an optional tour to the Mekong Delta. We board the boat in Ben Tre and explore the world of waterways, canals and rural tranquility. We also stop at a temple of Cao Dai faith. Your guide provides in-depth information on the teachings of Caodaism. In the evening you may like to treat yourself to the awesome A O Show in which the rich culture of the Vietnam is depicted through the state-of-the-art ballet and acrobatic performance. Check with your guide.

Today we fly to Phnom Penh, the capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia. In a culinary exploration, we go off the main routes and look behind the scens. Enjoy the sights, the night markets and food stalls. We look, marvel and dine.

We visit the Royal Palace, the famous Silver Pagoda and the National Museum, whose exhibition introduces us to the development of Khmer art. In the afternoon we fly to Siem Reap and drive to the hotel.

Let’s have an overview of this mankind’s engineering masterpiece at the Angkor National Museum before we plunge into the sites. We visit most significant highlights of the complex including the famous mysterious faces of the Bayon Temple and the majestic architecture of the Angkor Wat. We will review our fabulous trip in the evening at the farewell dinner.

At leisure till transfer time. If you have late flight we will arrange extra activities or accommodation upon your request. We wish you a good journey home.