DAY 1 : HANOI ARRIVAL (-/-/D)
Upon arrival at the airport, you are met by a local guide and transferred to hotel. NOTE : kindly note that should you arrive early, an early check-in is not included and subject to hotel’s availability. Your guide will brief an orientation of the city along the way. Once checked in we leave you at your leisure.
In the afternoon, explore Hanoi's culture through a street food tour with the head of Hanoi Gastronomy's Club. Eating on the street is a very typical activity for Hanoians and makes up an important part of the city’s unique culture. Street food is for everyone – rich, poor, old, young, tourist and local alike. Start your street food tour with an overview of basic ingredients by visiting a local food market with a chef. With some background knowledge, it’s time to hit the streets and for a culinary and cultural adventure. Most street restaurants only serve one or two dishes – and each is prepared right in front of you. Walk along small alleys and bustling streets and savor some of Hanoi’s specialties, as recommended and explained by your gastronome-translator.
Tonight meet your fellow foodies and local food guide for your first taste of delicious Vietnamese cuisine at a The Ly Club Restaurant in Hanoi’s French Quarter. Enjoy a sensory feast with the restaurants’ innovative cuisine in this beautifully restored colonial building. The restaurant also boasts an excellent section of wines.
DAY 2 : HANOI COOKING CLASS + CITY TOUR (B/L/D)
Your culinary journey begins with a visit to the local ‘wet market’ to learn about the fresh Vietnamese produce that is used in everyday cooking. Continue onto the home of a ‘true Hanoian’ who learned her culinary skills from her grandmother, a former chef who once served the French elite in the 1930’s. See how to prepare and cook authentic northern Vietnamese cuisine before sitting down to enjoy a delightful meal.
The cuisine of Northern Vietnam is not as spicy as it is in the South. The historical lack of spices makes typical northern food light with subtle flavours. Many signature dishes of Vietnam come from the North such as Hanoi’s famous Pho (a rice noodle dish with chicken or beef) but the main flavours of the north come from freshwater fish, prawns, shrimp or oysters.
This afternoon, start the city tour with a visit Ho Chi Minh complex. First visit the Soviet style Ba Dinh Square where Ho Chi Minh read out the declaration of the nation's independence in 1945. Walk through the gardens of the Presidential Palace before seeing Ho Chi Minh's house, the modest dwelling he built based on a rural Vietnamese stilt house and where "Uncle Ho" lived for the last years of his life. Carry on to the Temple of Literature, an ancient complex made up of five courtyards with pavilions, halls and statues. This fascinating site is a wonderful example of traditional Vietnamese architecture, and was home to the country’s first national university. Considered as “an escape” from the bustling city, this temple and its beautiful garden provide an opportunity to learn more about education in Vietnam since 1000 years ago until recent history. The tour concludes with the Water Puppet performance, a northern Vietnamese folk tradition. Hear the Vietnamese traditional instruments and singing from the live musicians who play throughout the show
This evening, dine at ‘La Verticale’, set in a charming 1930s villa. Meet the acclaimed Chef and owner Didier Corlou, who has lived in Vietnam for 15 years and has a clear love affair and appreciation of Vietnamese food.
DAY 3 : HANOI / HALONG BAY (B/L/D)
After breakfast, you will depart Hanoi for Halong Bay. Upon arrival in Halong you will board a junk boat (a traditional Vietnamese sail boat) and take a cruise around the bay while enjoying a delicious seafood lunch. The cruise will take you past some beautiful islands including Dog Island, Incense Urn Island, Ga Choi Island, and Hoa Cuong Island. You will also have a chance to visit a cave and have a swim on Titov Beach. Before dinner there’s a cooking demonstration – the specialty is seafood. Dinner will be served on board the junk and there will be some night fishing to enjoy afterwards. Overnight on board
DAY 4 : HALONG BAY / HANOI (B/L/D)
The morning will be spent cruising towards Halong via Bai Tu Long Bay, Fire Island, Bo Nau Island and a traditional fishing village. Lunch will be served on the boat and you will arrive back at Halong by midday. A car will take you back to Hanoi by mid to late afternoon where you will recheck-in at the hotel. The rest of the day is free. Dinner at Au Lac House, a wonderful restaurant set in a colonial building. Overnight in Hanoi.
DAY 5 : HANOI / HUE (B/L/D)
After breakfast you will be transferred to the airport for a morning flight to Hue. Check-in hotel upon arrival and take refresh for a while. Once there, you will be taken on a tour of the city and marvel at the wonderful architecture of the royal palaces and citadels constructed under the Nguyen Dynasty. The major sites, of the Imperial Citadel and Forbidden Royal City will be visited as well as the Ngo Mon Gate, the Nine Dynastic Urns, Nine Holy Cannons and Thai Hoa Palace. After lunch in a local restaurant the rest of the day will be free for you to go shopping in Dong Ba Market or just explore at your leisure.
This evening you will dine in a restored royal house where you can learn from the family members how they bring the essence of the Royal ambiance and culture into their home
DAY 6 : HUE (B/L/-)
The morning begins with a hands-on cooking class at Vuon Y Thao restaurant where you will learn to use the right ingredients for Royal Hue cuisine. The dishes you have prepared will be served for your lunch in the restaurant.
The Royal Hue cuisine draws on extreme spices and colours to create dishes with complex presentation, served in smaller sizes than the other regions of Vietnam. A striking aspect of Hue cuisine is its lack of meat, deriving from the strong Buddhist presence in the area.
The afternoon will consist of a boat trip on the Perfume River to visit Thien Mu Pagoda and the Ming Mang Emperor’s Tomb. Transfer back to hotel where the rest of the afternoon and evening are free
DAY 7 : HUE / DANANG / HOI AN (B/L/D)
This morning we drive to Hoi An, we will cross Hai Van Pass where you will have magnificent view of the China Sea. Stop at Lang Co to have break. Visit the fascinating Cham Museum, famous China Beach and the Marble Mountains en route to charming Hoi An. Known as Faifo to early Western traders, it was one of South East Asia’s major international ports and today it still retains that special old-world feel. Enjoy a walking tour through the Old Quarter and try some of the local specialties. Hoi An is also famous for its large number of tailor shops, so if you want to have a new wardrobe made up, this is the time to do it. Dinner at the Mango Rooms
DAY 8 : HOI AN COOKING CLASS (B/L/-)
After breakfast you will go to the local market and learn which ingredients are required for Hoi An cuisine after which you will make your way by boat to the Red Bridge Cooking School. Here you will learn to make Vietnamese dishes that have been strongly influenced by Chinese cuisine during a two hour class. Each dish will be first demonstrated by the chef before you prepare the same dish yourselves and then enjoy the fruits of your labour for your lunch. The boat will take you back to Hoi An where you will have the rest of the day for yourselves
DAY 9 : HOI AN / DANANG / SAIGON (B/L/D)
Today will be a travelling day from Hoi An to Saigon. After breakfast at the hotel, you will have some time before you are transferred to the airport to take a flight to Saigon. A guide will meet you at Saigon and take you to your hotel.
This afternoon, start a walking tour to admire Saigon’s historic landmarks is a must. Old and new collide in this modern city as gleaming sky scrapers, glamorous restaurants and designer shops stand side-by-side with colonial era landmarks and post-war remnants. Appreciate the splendidly restored exteriors of the Opera House and the former Hotel de Ville which are still two of the finest buildings in Saigon. Wander up to the Notre Dame Cathedral, a red brick edifice with twin spires based on the original construction from Paris. Then head across the square to the Central Post Office, designed by the French architect, Gustav Eiffel, before he had risen to fame for the Eiffel Tower. Finally, the former Presidential Palace, the headquarters of the Saigon Government during the American war, is a short drive away and reveals the history of Saigon during its turbulent recent past.
Dinner at The Temple Club. An Indochine/Art Deco fantasia of polished lacquer, palisander, and opium-den screens, this is the city’s prettiest restaurant. Overnight in Saigon
DAY 10 : SAIGON COOKING CLASS (B/L/-)
Your morning will consist of a cooking lesson at the Vietnam Cookery Centre. The class will be taught by a professional chef who will be helped by a translator. He will teach you traditional dishes as well as talk about the history and culture of Vietnamese food. You will also be accompanied to a market and then have lunch.
In the afternoon, experience the world of the Cu Chi freedom fighters with a visit to their famous tunnel system. This network of over 200 km of tunnels became legendary during the 1960's when they played a vital part in the American War, allowing the Viet Cong to control a large rural area close to Ho Chi Minh City. In their heyday, the tunnels were functioning underground cities. Today the remaining tunnels have become a tourist attraction, giving a feel of what underground life during the war must have been like. Explore the incredible maze of underground tunnels and their living areas, mantraps, weapon factories, fieldhospitals, command centres and kitchens. Return to Saigon in late afternoon.
DAY 11 : SAIGON / MEKONG DELTA (B/L/D)
After breakfast, you will leave for My Tho where you will board a private boat and visit the famous Floating Fish Market in the the Mekong river estuary. You will have lunch on Phoenix Island at a garden restaurant and then continue the cruise along natural creeks to a quiet village in Ben Tre province. There you can visit orchards, a distillery and bee-keeping farms where you can taste natural honey and honey wine. The village also produces coconut candy. On the way back to Saigon, you will stop at a bonsai garden in My Tho.
This evening have dinner at Quan An Ngon –where you will find the best street food in the city brought together under one roof! Overnight in Saigon
DAY 12 : SAIGON DEPARTURE (B/-/-)
After breakfast, you have a free morning until your transfer to the airport for your onward flight