11 DAY HANOI TO SIEM REAP

Welcome to your holiday from Hanoi to Siem Reap with us. Upon your arrival at Hanoi airport look for our driver who will holding a sign with your name. The journey from the airport to your hotel will take approximately one hour and is an entertaining experience full of chaotic traffic, distinctive architecture and overloaded motorbikes.

Day 2 – At 8.00am our guide will meet you at your hotel to begin your personal tour of Hanoi. Beginning at the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum (closed on Monday & Friday) to pay respects to Uncle Ho and learn about his incredible life. Please note that all visitors to the mausoleum are required to wear clothes covering knees and shoulders. This applies to both men and women.The tour then continues to the nearby Presidential Gardens and One Pillar Pagoda. You can then choose two of the following; Temple of Literature, Fine Arts Museum, Hoa Lo prison or the Military Museum.

Your afternoon is free to enjoy the excitement of the Old Quarter and then you will be entertained with a Water Puppet show at the theatre in the centre of town.

A day for a Halong Bay Overnight Cruise, please note that you only need to take some essential items and leave your main luggage at the hotel. Bring your swimsuit, hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, toiletries, something warm for the winter months and a book or journal, etc. And don’t forget your camera.

8.30am The bus will pick you up. A 4 hour journey to Halong Bay will pass through lush farmlands and busy villages. Upon arrival at the harbor you will be welcomed on board your junk and settle in for a delicious seafood banquet as your boat glides through the towering limestone karsts such as Chicken Rock, Finger Islet, and Frog Islet.

The afternoon’s activities will include a tour of Bright Lagoon and visit the area by rowboat or kayak. Kayaks can be booked in advance at reception with extra cost. Anticipate a great chance to see Cat Ba Langur. Then return to main boat for swimming around the area, relaxing on sundeck or indulging yourself with spa service. Or Cooking demonstration with traditional Vietnamese food on the sundeck (or in the restaurant if weather does not allow). Cocktails at sunset and then another delicious meal on board.

Early start for a Tai Chi demonstration on the sundeck; tea and coffee available. After a buffet breakfast you will have the opportunity to discover Surprise Cave, one of the biggest caves in Halong Bay with beautiful stalactites and stalagmites. Then back on the boat and a delicious lunch is served. Returning to the shore at midday it is time to disembark, farewell the crew, and return to Hanoi at approximately 4.30pm. Your evening is free to do some last minute shopping in the Old Quarter.

You will be transferred to the airport for your one-hour flight to Hue. From the airport you will be transferred to the hotel for check it. Because it will be too early to access your rooms your luggage will be kept in storage whilst you are on your motorbike tour of Hue.

Our guide will meet you at your hotel and introduce you to our highly skilled and qualified drivers who are sensitive to tentative pillion passengers and will travel at a gentle pace of 40km and less. After a safety briefing your adventure begins. During the tour you will ride through little lane-ways, beside canals and through local markets, visit a king’s tomb, pagoda and local handicrafts. During your journey you will visit Hue’s Citadel and forbidden Purple City and learn about Vietnam’s emperors and their intriguing histories. Lunch is a delicious traditional Buddhist banquet served at a pagoda. This is a truly action packed day of scenery, history, culture and cuisine.

You have the option of joining this tour by private air-conditioned vehicle.

At 8.30 am you will depart Hue to Hoi An travelling through coastal rice paddies to the fishing village of Lang Co, before taking the scenic mountainous route over the spectacular Hai Van Pass. You will climb to 496 m (1,627 ft) on a road quoted in the Top Gear Program as “a deserted ribbon of perfection—one of the best coast roads in the world.”

Arrive in Hoi An bfore lunch, a charming World Heritage village which is being beautifully restored and preserved that will captivate you immediately. No matter what you like you will find it here, whether it is shopping, restaurants, photography, history, architecture, golf, fishing, swimming, scuba, abseiling, or massage and lazing around. Hoi An has become famous for its tailoring where there is a huge variety of fabrics to choose from.

Spend a 2 days in paradise. You may choose to lounge by your resort pool, swim at the beach or indulge in a massage, facial or pedicure. For those wanting action, optional activities include a half-day countryside cycling tour, scuba, snorkeling, abseiling, fishing or a photography tour. We can include any of these in your itinerary.

Cultural options include cooking class, My Son ancient ruins, historical walking tour of Hoi An or Marble Mountain.

Depart from Hoi An, transfer to Danang city from where we will take an hour and half flight to Siem Reap in Cambodia. Arrive, meet and assist by our Khmer guide, transfer to your hotel – Rest of the day will be at your own leisure to relax and get ready for the next days of your adventure in Angkor Wat.

Depart pre-dawn to Angkor Wat as the sun rises providing a silhouette of the temple’s uniquely shaped towers against a colored sky as the sun breaks over the horizon.

After breakfast back at the hotel start your temple exploration of the UNESCO world heritage complex at Ta Prohm, easily the most atmospheric and a highlight for anyone visiting Angkor, a haven for any photography enthusiasts. A temple where you will love to linger, swallowed by the jungle looks very much in the same state as when the French explorers stumbled upon it more than a century ago.

Inside the stunning walled city of Angkor Thom with Gates, flanked by the stone statues of gods and demons, you find yourself in an ancient world of massive stone faces and evocatively striking temples. We’ll take in the enigmatic Bayon, the mighty Baphoun Temple, Phimeanakas and the royal Palace enclosure, the Terrace of the Elephants and the Terrace of the Leper King.

In front of the magnificent Angkor Watis perfect for lunch or a break during your day trip to Temples, refresh you with fresh fruits juice and shakes, and savor some delicious Khmer, Asian or International dishes (own expense).

As you enter the main causeway of Angkor Wat and start the long walk to the main temple, feast your eyes on the sight of this imposing structure. Discover its many galleries, libraries, pavilions, courtyards and ponds full of water, carved bas-reliefs that tell the ancient Hindu legends of Ramayana and victorious Khmer battles. Climb to the holiest sanctuary at the summit of the temple, where you are rewarded with fantastic views across the complex and beyond.

The temple tour itinerary is flexible and may be adjusted by your local guide after consultation with you. Weather, festivals, your interests and energy levels all have a bearing on which temples to visit and in what order.

End of the Best f Hanoi and Siem Reap you will be pick up and transferred to the airport 3 hours before your flight. Thank you for traveling with “Vietnamese Private Tours”.