17 DAY VIETNAM LAOS HOLIDAY

Upon your arrival, your local tour guide will welcome you at the airport then escort you to hotel by private car. Check in hotel and relax to refresh from the long international fly. In the evening, enjoy a welcome dinner on the Saigon River Cruise which will give you the first impression of Saigon by enjoying the night scenery on the cruise boat.

Pick up and embark on a day tour to visit city’s best attraction on a guided tour, some of the must see including central post office, Notre Dame cathedral, war remnant museum and the interesting Benh Thanh market. Latter this afternoon you will be transferred to the airport for flight to Nha Trang, arrive and check in at your hotel for an overnight stay.

Nha Trang is the most popular beach destination in Vietnam, you will have plenty of time to explore the historical site as well as getting drenched at the tropical beach.

Note: There are optional tour such as fishing and cruise tour, please chat to us for more details

Free day at your own to explore Nha Trang or spend a day at the beach. Tonight we depart to Da Nang on an overnight very comfortable train

Upon arrival we will be traveling to Hoi An on a short drive through the magnificent Hai Van pass, arrive and check in, short rest, latter our guide will pick you up for a  morning walking tour of charming Hoi An. A wonderfully laid-back, graceful and wilfully traditional place the streets of the town, lined with lanterns, shops and tailors, are a delight to wander especially as traffic is entirely banished from the town centre. Visit an old merchant’s house, the elaborate Japanese Covered Bridge, a Chinese temple and the bustling market. Stop en route to visit Reaching Out, a social enterprise craft workshop, and watch the artisans at work. Vietnamese cooking is renowned across the world for its innovative use of fresh ingredients and spices – this evening, learn all about the local produce and the necessary skills in a hands-on cookery class.

Day 6: Tra Que Village – Travel into the countryside to Tra Que, a small farming community that supplies many hotels and restaurants in the area with vegetables and herbs. Here you can enjoy the lush green countryside and stroll through the gardens to see the farmers at work. Spend the afternoon at leisure back in Hoi An.

Leave Hoi An for Hue, taking a scenic route over the Hai Van Pass. The epitome of Vietnam’s dynastic past, Hue is a digni ed and scholarly city. Visit the imposing Imperial Citadel and Forbidden Purple City. The magnificent masterpiece of the Royal Empire, the citadel was extensively damaged during the Vietnam War. Visit the UNESCO World Heritage Royal Tomb of Minh Mang, a complex of 40 monuments set in surroundings of gardens and pools. Continue to the old Thien Mu Pagoda before taking a cruise on the Perfume River.

Fly to Hanoi. Take the afternoon at leisure or start your explorations of Vietnam’s capital.

Day 9: Sightseeing today includes a walking tour through the Ho Chi Minh Quarter, where you’ll visit Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum (closed at certain times of year) and the Stilt House set in the gardens of the Presidential Palace. Also visit One Pillar Pagoda and the Confucian Temple of Literature. End the day’s explorations with a cyclo tour through the Old Quarter and enjoy a avourful Vietnamese coffee at a café overlooking Hoan Kiem Lake. Spend the evening watching a traditional water puppet show.

Pick up and enjoy a 4 hour drive through the scenic landscapes passing amazing red river delta. Arrive at Halong and spend the night cruising amongst the karst peaks on the tranquil green waters of Halong Bay – a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a vision of awe-inspiring beauty.

Next day:Rise early this morning for sunrise over the bay. Return to Hanoi this afternoon.

Transfer to airport for a short flight to capital city of Laos. Opt to visit temples, see the golden stupa of That Luang, or scour the markets. The capital of Laos. There is a wealth of cultural delights to discover – on foot, by bicycle or, for the less energetic, by tuk-tuk.

Visit Laos’ most important national monument, Phat That Luang, or meander down the dusty riverside tracks to find villages full of friendly children, dogs and chickens. A visit to Vientiane’s vibrant, colorful morning market (which incidentally is open all day!) is worthwhile, to find plenty of local treasures. A great way to round off the day is to enjoy a spectacular sunset over the Mekong.

A picturesque drive north takes us to beautiful Vang Vieng. This quiet town is set along the Nam Song river amidst rice fields and limestone karsts. Optional activities includes: Swimming, hiking, cycling and caving

An optional early start will give you the fantastic opportunity to participate in the daily morning rituals of saffron-clad monks collecting offerings of Alms (often in the form of sticky rice) from the faithful residents. This tradition is very unique to Laos, which is the only Buddhist nation still preserving the ritual.

Following breakfast, you will depart from the hotel and go to the boat landing for an excursion upstream on the Mekong to visit Pak Ou Cave. The caves are in the side of a lime stone cliff, opposite the mouths of the Mekong and Ou rivers. The sanctuaries at Pak Ou consist of two large caves, both repositories for thousands of Buddha images, which range from mere centimeters to two meters in height.

En route, Lao villages are barely visible behind a screen of foliage. You will see slender canoes bobbing by the shore, bamboo poles and floats marking the location of nets and fish traps. Your first stop will be at Ban Muangkeo, a well-known village for Lao traditional rice whisky, called Laoh-Khao. You will be welcome to taste it and also take some with you. You will have lunch at a riverside restaurant before driving back to Luang Prabang in late afternoon. You will then continue by car to the outskirts of town to visit Ban Xangkhong, a village well-known for its wood paper making and also Lao silk weavings with natural dyes. You will stay overnight in Luang Prabang.

Day:16: After breakfast, you will drive 30 km south to visit Kuangsi Waterfall, which, though not very high, is spectacular and has truly beautiful greenery. You will visit the Talad Phosy fresh produce market and also visit Ban Na Oune, a small village of the Hmong hill tribe. Just before arriving at Kuangsi Waterfall, there is another village of the Khmu minority group, Ban Tha Pane, which you can visit. Your picnic lunch will be served at the shady park near the waterfall. There will be plenty of time for relaxing and swimming in the cool water if you like, before you head back to Luang Prabang in the late afternoon. The rest of the day will be spent by visiting various craft-shops, including silver smiths and also the Hmong market in town, where you can see the embroidery-work of Hmong women.

This morning is free before you are transferred to Luang Prabang’s  airport to board your departure flight.