Itinerary:
Day 1: Ho Chi Minh City Arrival (No meals)
Upon arrival at Tan Son Nhat Airport, you will be warmly welcome by your driver and transferred to your hotel in city center.
Over night in Ho Chi Minh City Arrival.
Day 2: Cai Be – Vinh Long – HCM City (Breakfast, Lunch )
7:30am – Depart for Cai Be and upon arrival, set off by motorboat to visit the Cai Be floating market and watch the locals trading fruits and many other commodities onboard their vessels. Visit a small family business to see how coconut candy and crispy rice pop-corn are made. Then wander into the small villages and visit the orchard and fruit plantation, accompanied by traditional southern Vietnamese folk music. Keep cruising to Vinh Long through a series of small canals to experience the charms of the Upper Mekong Delta. Arrive in Tan Phong Island, the green pearl where you can immerse yourself in nature. Enjoy your cooking experience and learn how to prepare special Vietnamese dishes. Food cooked by yourself and fresh river food served in the heart of the garden. Relax in the hammocks to get back your energy. Cycle around the village path with fruit orchards and bonsai garden. Meet the local islanders to learn more about the local daily life in the Mekong Delta. Take a boat ride back to Cai Be and meet your bus for the trip back to HCMC, you will reach the city center at 5:30 PM
Free time to explore city by yourself .
Overnight in HCMC
Day 3: Half Day Cu Chi Tunnel + Night Walking Street Food Tour (Breakfast, Dinner )
8:00am – Depart for Cu Chi Tunnels, the trip will take approximately one and a half hours by bus. Upon arrival, before exploring the tunnels, you will have some short introduction followed by introductory video about how the tunnels were constructed and how the people survived in the harsh conditions of the war time. Then, spend your time to explore the remaining area and tunnel systems which included the special constructed living areas with kitchens, bedrooms side by side with other martial facilities like storage, weapons factories, field hospitals, and command centers helping whoever lives inside the tunnels meet their basic needs. Besides, there are also many hidden trap doors and dangerous traps within the maze - like tunnels for security purpose during the war.
Afterward, special tea and cassava (guerilla’s food during the war) will be served.
Break time for relax or time for those who want to try the real shooting gun (gun-shooting fee at own expenses). Have light lunch at local restaurant then return to HCMC and end trip at 1:00pm.
Free time and light lunch for saving room to have food tour on evening .
5:30pm – Enjoy the Walking Street Food Tour. After a short walk, enjoy your first meal of the evening - “Banh xeo”, a large rice pancake filled with vegetables, shrimps and pork. Hidden in a small alley, this local street restaurant has become very famous and serves some of the best “banh xeo” of Saigon. The second stop is a street food place located near Tan Dinh Market. There, enjoy a delicious local soup, inspired by Chinese recipes. This is followed by a tasty “com suon non nuong muoi ot”, a local dish from HCM with rice and pork ribs. Returns to hotel at the end of the tour at nearly 9pm.
Overnight in HCMC
Day 4: Ho Chi Minh City – Siem Reap (Breakfast)
Transfer to bus station for bus trip to Siem Reap, the journey will take roughly 13hrs
Upon arrival, pick up & transfer to hotel for check-in & relax
Overnight in Siem Reap
Day 5: Siem Reap – Full Day Temple Visit (Breakfast, Lunch)
After breakfast, visit South Gate of Angkor Thom. Angkor Thom (Big Angkor) is a 3km Square walled and moated royal city and was the last capital of Angkorian Empire. After Jayavarman VII recaptured the campaign from the Cham invaders in 1181, he began a massive building campaign across the empire, constructing Angkor Thom as his new capital city. He began with existing structures such as Baphuon and Phimeanakas, Elephants Terraces & Leper King Terraces and builds a grand Royal Enclosed City around them, adding the outer wall/moat and some of Angkor’s greatest temples including his state-temple, Bayon famous with its 54 towers decorated with 216 enormous mysterious smiling faces, set at the center of the city. There are five entrances (gates) to the city, one for each cardinal point and the victory gate leading to the Royal Palace area. Each gate is crowned with 4 giant faces. The South Gate is often the first stop on a tour of temples. Lunch at local restaurant
Then proceed to explore the temples of the Small Circuit. The most famous among these is Ta Prohm temple, built in the mid 12th to early 13th centuries. This makes Ta Prohm one of the most picturesque and memorable of the Angkor temples.
Then visit the visually, architecturally and artistically breathtaking Angkor Wat. It is a massive three-tiered pyramid crowned by five beehive-like towers rising 65 meters from ground level. Angkor Wat is the centerpiece of any visit to the temples of Angkor. The temple itself is 1 km square and consists of three levels surmounted by a central tower. The walls of the temple are covered inside and out with bas-reliefs and carvings. Nearly 2000 distinctively rendered apsara (angel) cravings adorn the walls through the temple and represent some of the finest examples of apsara carving in Angkorian ear art. Then enjoy your shopping at Old Market.
Overnight in Siem Reap
Day 6: Siem Reap – Free & Easy (Breakfast)
Free time at own leisure for the day
Overnight in Siem Reap
Day 7: Siem Reap – Luang Prabang (Breakfast)
Free time at own leisure until transfer to the airport for flight to Luang Prabang (Standard hotel check-out by 12pm at the latest)
Pick up & transfer to hotel upon arrival in Luang Prabang.
Overnight in Luang Prabang
Day 8: Luang Prabang – City Tour - Pak Ou Caves Visit (Breakfast, Lunch)
Today, we enjoy a short-guided tour seeing the city’s oldest temples of Wat Sene and the magnificent Wat Xiengthong with its roofs sweeping low to the ground, which represents classical Laotian architecture. We then embark on a cruise upstream on the Mekong River, which also gives us a breathtaking view of the tranquil countryside as well as exploring the mysterious Pak Ou Caves, two linked caves crammed with thousands of gold lacquered Buddha statues of various shapes and sizes left by devoted pilgrims. Along the way, we will stop at the village of Ban Xanghai, where the local rice wine is produced. On return, we take a short drive to another small village Ban Phanom, which is famous for its hand weaving.
Overnight in Luang Prabang
Day 9: Luang Prabang - Khouangsi Water Fall Visit (Breakfast, Lunch)
An optional early start gives 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 in Laos, being the only Buddhist nation still preserving the ritual.
After breakfast, we visit the National Museum (closed Tuesdays) at the former Royal Palace. It displays a collection of artifacts reflecting the richness of Lao culture dating from the days of the early kings right through to the last sovereign. There will also be time for us to look around the Central Market. We then continue towards Khouangsi Waterfall, en route, we visit the local villages of Lao ethnic minority groups at Ban Ouay, Ban Ou, Laoloum and Ban Thapene, and then drive to the beautiful Khouangsi Waterfall. Here you can take a dip in the inviting pools or walk along the forest trails surrounding the waterfall. We return to Luang Prabang by late afternoon and continue to Ban Xangkhong, a village well known for silk hand weaving and for traditional Saa Paper making.
Overnight in Luang Prabang
Day 10: Luang Prabang – Departure (Breakfast)
Free at own leisure till pick up & transfer to airport for your flight back home (Standard check-out at 12pm)
Accommodation as sited or similar depending on availability:
Three-Star:
HCMC – La Felix (SUP)
REP – Cheathata Angkor (SUP)
LPQ – Chitchareune Mouang Luang (ROH)
Four-Star:
HCMC – A&EM Signature (DLX)
REP – Cheathata Suites (Studio Suite)
LPQ – Villa Santi (DLX)
Five-Star:
HCMC – New World (SUP)
REP – Royal Angkor Resort (SUP)
LPQ – Satri House Boutique (DLX)
Inclusions:
- Vietnam visa approval letter to collect visa on arrival at airport (New Zealand passport holders, single entry - 1 month)
- 9-night Accommodation by Twin/ Double share with daily breakfast (standard check-in at 2pm & check-out at 12pm)
- Bus ticket from HCMC – Siem Reap
- One-way flight ticket for Siem Reap – Luang Prabang, allowance of 20kg checked baggage and 7kg hand luggage
- Ground transportation by A/C vehicle as tour program
- Regional English speaking guide for touring. For transfer: only driver, no tour guide
- Entrance fees as sites listed and boat trip in Mekong Delta
- Meals as indicated in the itinerary
- One bottle of water per day
- Join in group tours of maximum of 15 pax (minimum of 2 pax per group is required)
Exclusions:
- International flights & Visa upon arrival (25 USD/pax for Vietnam; 35 USD/pax for Cambodia & 30 USD/pax for Laos)
- Travel insurance & personal expenses
- Other meals not mentioned and beverage during meals
- Tipping for tour guide & driver
- Surcharge for peak season and holiday period: Christmas & New Year (23 December 2017 – 10 January 2018) and Chinese Lunar New Year (27 January 2018 – 4 Feb 2018)
