15 Day Vietnam Highlights Tour with Flights

Australia to Hanoi

Take a flight from Australia to Hanoi. On arrival at Noi Bai International Airport, you will be welcomed by your guide and driver who will bring you to your hotel in Hanoi City to rest up for the tour ahead. Hanoi is over 1000 years old and is currently the capital of Vietnam, as well the commercial, political, and cultural heart of the country.

Hanoi - Sapa

Early transfer by bus to Sapa. Arriving around lunchtime, you’ll check in to your hotel. In the afternoon, visit Cat Cat village (light trekking required), where you may wish to try the local apple wine or purchase a hand-woven blanket, and Sapa town.

Meals - Breakfast

Sapa - Hang Da - Sa Seng - Sapa

Leave Sapa after breakfast, and drive southwards and up Den Thang Mountain. Take an easy walk to explore Hang Da, a Black Hmong village, which displays the age-old lifestyle of the Hmong – an ethnic minority in China, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, and Cambodia, as well as in Vietnam, where over one million currently reside (along with about 2000 in Australia). We then follow the village path downhill through the stunning valley of Sa Seng. Along the way, we pass several hamlets which are organised in the typical Hmong style. The walk ends after paying a visit to Sa Pa, another hamlet of the Hmong which is located near the former Sapa traditional market.

Meals - Breakfast, Lunch

Sapa - Hanoi

After breakfast, depart for Hanoi. On arrival, check in to your hotel and enjoy free time at leisure.

Meals - Breakfast

Hanoi

Be picked up from your hotel and driven to the historic Ba Dinh complex, to visit Ba Dinh Square, where the former President Ho Chi Minh read Viet Nam’s Declaration of Independence on 2 September 1945, after almost a century of domination by France. Visit Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum,
as well as One-Pillar Pagoda, a must-see monument in Ha Noi. Next, we will visit the Temple of Literature, the first university for the sons of mandarins, for an overview of Hanoi culture and appreciation for ancient Vietnamese architecture. You will have lunch at a local restaurant, then visit the infamous Hoa Lo prison – known as ‘the Hanoi Hilton‘ during the American War.

Meals - Breakfast, Lunch

Optional activities, Water Puppet Theater and Hanoi Foodie tour available (at own expense)

Halong Bay

Travel by coach to Halong Bay and take a boat trip to explore one of the world’s great natural wonders, cruising the thousands of limestone islands filled with caves of all shapes and sizes. The sails of junks and sampans gliding along the clear and emerald waters of the bay form a magnificent picturesque scene that blends with the sky. You also get a chance to visit some of the hidden grottoes beneath the towering cliffs. A seafood lunch and dinner will be served on board the charming junk. Stay overnight on board.

Meals - Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Halong Bay - Da Nang - Hoi An

Enjoy the aquamarine waters of the bay at its best as the junk continues to cruise quietly through spectacular limestone formations. Disembark from the junk at noon and transfer to Hanoi airport for a short flight to Da Nang. On arrival, you will be picked up and transferred to Hoi An, an ancient town recognised as a World Cultural Heritage site by UNESCO. Check into your hotel and enjoy free time at your own leisure to discover the city.

Meals - Breakfast, Lunch

Hoi An

You will be escorted by our local guide to discover Hoi An by walking tour through the narrow streets of this charming town. Perhaps more than any other place in Vietnam, Hoi An retains the feel of centuries past. Once known as Faifo, Hoi An was an influential port along the Silk Road. In 1999, the town was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site listed for having the most unique architecture in Southeast Asia. It has been restored extensively over the following years. The afternoon is free at your own leisure. You may also take an optional tour, and/or attend a show in the evening (at your own expense).

Half-day cycling tour from Hoi An to Tra Que Village
Fishing Village & Waterway Eco-tour

Meals - Breakfast

Hoi An

This morning, you will visit the Réhahn Museum, to view the ‘Precious Heritage Collection’, by French Photographer Réhahn. This work focuses on the endangered cultural heritage of Vietnam’s 54 ethnic minority groups, attempting to document their rapidly-changing ways of life. Afterwards, you have free time at leisure, or you may enjoy the following optional activities (at your own expense):

Half-day Da Nang Tour (Ba Na Hills & Golden Bridge).
Evening Cultural Stage Show - Lune Performing Centre

Meals - Breakfast

Hoi An - Hue

Today, drive to Hue City stopping along the way to take pictures at Lang Co Beach. On arrival, you will take a boat trip to Thien Mu Pagoda – an historic pagoda on the banks of the Perfume River. Transfer back to the centre of Hue city to visit the massive Kinh Thanh Citadel, the most well-known and iconic site in Hue, a sprawling complex within 2.5 km of walls, comprised of the Imperial City, several museums, lakes, and lovely gardens, all laid out in a series of concentric circles

Meals - Breakfast

Hue - Ho Chi Minh

We transfer to Hue Airport to catch a morning flight to Ho Chi Minh City. On arrival at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, you are picked up for transfer to the city centre to visit to imposing Dong Khoi Street (formerly Catinat street) before going to the Notre Dame Cathedral. In the same square is the famous Saigon Post Office, the largest functioning post office in Vietnam. Continue on to visit Reunification Palace, the palace of the presidents of South Vietnam before 1975, and the War Remains Museum, where you can learn about the Vietnam War. At the end of the day, visit Ben Thanh Market before returning to your hotel, after which you are free at leisure.

Meals - Breakfast

Ho Chi Minh - Mekong Delta

Depart with our guide and driver for a scenic drive through the Mekong Delta, home to the richest agricultural lands in Vietnam. On arrival at My Tho City, take a boat trip on the Mekong River to fishing villages and Dragon, Unicorn, Turtle and Phoenix Islands. Crossing the Mekong River, you’ll cruise along a small canal to see the daily life of locals in Bến Tre Province, visiting Quới An bee farm. Visit Phoenix Island for a rice-paper workshop, then return by boat to My Tho by road back to Ho Chi Minh City. Enjoy the rest of the day free at leisure.

Meals - Breakfast, Lunch

Ho Chi Minh - Cu Chi tunnels

After breakfast, we visit the amazing Cu Chi Tunnels, a well-known historical vestige of the Vietnamese revolution. This cobweb-like tunnel complex is a network of underground dug-outs over 200 km long, consisting of many layers and turnings with meeting, living, and fighting quarters where we learn firsthand how the Viet Cong survived their extraordinary underground existence during the Vietnam War.

Meals - Breakfast

Ho Chi Minh - Australia

After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport for your return flight home.

Meals - Breakfast

Australia

Arrive home this morning.