The Best of Vietnam in 21 Days

Every part can be changed to suit your group.

1. Day 1 Arrival in Hanoi

   We meet you at Noi Bai airport and take you to your hotel near the old quarter. In the evening your guide walks with you through the narrow streets of the old quarter, stopping at family-run stalls to taste bun cha, banh cuon and egg coffee, and ending beside Hoan Kiem Lake as locals come out to walk and exercise. Your guide gives you a short briefing about the trip and some tips for exploring Hanoi on your own. The old quarter is busy and noisy in the evening, with motorbikes, street vendors and families eating on low plastic stools, and it is the best introduction to the energy of the capital.

   
2. Day 2 Hanoi City

   We visit the Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first university, and walk the old quarter with stops at family workshops making silver, paper offerings and traditional medicine. After lunch we explore a local market and watch a water puppet show. In the evening we board the night train to Lao Cai, sleeping in a shared four-berth cabin. The Temple of Literature is a peaceful complex of courtyards, ponds and old trees, where students still come to pray for good exam results. The water puppet show is about an hour long, with live music and stories from village life and Vietnamese legends. Dinner is free so you can explore the restaurants of the old quarter. The night train is simple but comfortable, with soft berths, bedding and air-conditioning.

   
3. Day 3 Sapa Valley Trek

   We arrive in Lao Cai early and drive up to Sapa for breakfast. Our trek follows the Muong Hoa valley through rice terraces, bamboo forest and streams, with Fansipan, Vietnam’s highest mountain, in the distance. We pass through the Black Hmong village of Lao Chai and the Giay village of Ta Van, and spend the night with a family in their home, sharing dinner and stories around the fire. The walk is about 12 kilometres, mostly downhill, at a comfortable pace with many stops. Lunch is cooked by a local family, and the homestay is simple, with mattresses, mosquito nets and shared bathrooms.

   
4. Day 4 Sapa Villages

   A second walking day on quieter paths, climbing to Red Dao and Giay villages where few tourists go. We meet women dyeing indigo cloth and farmers working the terraces, and have a picnic lunch with views over the valley. In the afternoon our driver meets us on the road and takes us back to Sapa town for a hot shower and a free evening. The Red Dao women are known for their red headscarves and their knowledge of medicinal plants, and some families offer herbal baths, a relaxing way to end a day of walking. Sapa town has a lake, a stone church and a busy night market.

   
5. Day 5 Sapa to Ninh Binh

   A long but scenic drive back down from the mountains on the highway, with rest stops along the way. We continue past Hanoi to Ninh Binh and arrive in the late afternoon at a riverside lodge surrounded by limestone peaks and rice fields, with time to relax before dinner. The drive takes about six to seven hours with stops for lunch and coffee. The lodge in Ninh Binh is a peaceful place with gardens and views of the karsts, and dinner is served with local specialties such as goat meat and crispy rice. If the weather is clear, the views of the mountains and valleys on the way down from Sapa are spectacular.

   
6. Day 6 Ninh Binh

   A full day in Ninh Binh. We visit the temples of Hoa Lu, the 10th-century royal capital, then climb about 500 steps to the Hang Mua viewpoint over Tam Coc. After lunch with a village family, we cycle quiet lanes to a small pier and take a rowboat through caves and the Thung Nham wetlands, where birds nest in the cliffs. Back at the lodge for a second night. The rowing is done by local villagers who have worked these waters all their lives, and the slow pace makes it easy to spot herons, kingfishers and goats climbing the cliffs. In the evening you can relax at the lodge or cycle around the nearby villages at sunset.

   
7. Day 7 Lan Ha Bay Cruise

   We drive to the coast and board a small boat for Lan Ha Bay, away from the busiest parts of Halong. Lunch is served as we sail between limestone islands. In the afternoon we kayak through lagoons and under rock arches and swim from a quiet beach when the weather allows. Dinner on board and a night at anchor. Our boat is small, with only a few cabins, so the atmosphere is calm and personal. Lan Ha has clear water and small sandy beaches, and in the evening you can try squid fishing from the deck or simply relax under the stars.

   
8. Day 8 Back to Hanoi

   Sunrise on deck and a visit to a floating fishing village by kayak or small boat. After brunch we sail back to land and drive to Hanoi, arriving in the afternoon. The evening is free for shopping, a rooftop drink or another street food walk. The floating villages are home to fishing families who live in wooden houses on the water, and some of them farm fish, clams and pearls. Brunch is served on board as we sail slowly back to the harbour. The afternoon in Hanoi is free to visit a museum, shop for handicrafts or enjoy a coffee by the lake.

   
9. Day 9 Fly to Dong Hoi and Phong Nha

   A morning flight to Dong Hoi and a short drive to Phong Nha. A wooden boat takes us up the Son River and into Phong Nha Cave, gliding past rock formations in the cool darkness. In the afternoon we cycle through the Bong Lai valley, past rice fields, duck farms and small family kitchens, and spend the night at a farmstay. Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and home to some of the largest caves on earth. The farmstay is a simple, friendly place with bungalows, a garden and home-cooked meals, and in the evening you can sit by the river with a cold drink.

   
10. Day 10 Paradise Cave and Jungle Walk

    We walk deep into Paradise Cave, where a long boardwalk leads through chambers so high they are hard to believe. After lunch we take an easy guided walk in the jungle of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, following a stream to a clear pool for a swim. Second night at the farmstay. Paradise Cave stretches for more than 30 kilometres, and the first kilometre is open to visitors on a wooden walkway. The jungle walk is easy and follows forest paths and streams, with chances to see butterflies, birds and monkeys. In the evening you can join the family in preparing dinner.

    
11. Day 11 Phong Nha to Hue

    We drive south toward Hue and stop at sites of the former Demilitarized Zone, including the Vinh Moc tunnels, where villagers lived underground during the war. Your guide explains this difficult chapter of Vietnamese history with care. We arrive in Hue in the late afternoon. The Vinh Moc tunnels were dug by hand and sheltered whole families for years, with rooms for sleeping, cooking and even giving birth. Your guide explains this period with care and respect. Overnight in Hue, with a free evening to walk along the river. The DMZ marked the border between North and South Vietnam from 1954 to 1975.

    
12. Day 12 Hue Heritage

    A boat takes us along the Perfume River to Thien Mu Pagoda. We walk the walls, gates and courtyards of the Imperial Citadel, have lunch with Hue specialties, and visit the tomb of Emperor Minh Mang, set among lakes and pine hills. We end the day with tea in a garden house in Thuy Bieu village. Your guide shares the stories of the emperors, their court and the war that damaged much of the Citadel. Each royal tomb was designed by the emperor himself during his lifetime, so they tell us a lot about the men who built them.

    
13. Day 13 Hue Countryside to Hoi An

    In the morning we cycle through rice fields to the Thanh Toan tiled-roof bridge and visit families making incense and conical hats. After lunch we drive south over the Hai Van Pass, stopping at Lang Co lagoon on the way, and arrive in Hoi An in the late afternoon. The incense and conical hat makers have passed their skills down through generations. The Hai Van Pass was once the border between two kingdoms and is still the natural divide between the cooler north and the warmer south. On a clear day there is a wide view of Da Nang bay from the top.

    
14. Day 14 Hoi An Old Town and Cooking

    We walk the old town early, before the crowds, visiting a merchant house, a Chinese assembly hall and the Japanese Covered Bridge. A local family then takes us to the market to buy ingredients and teaches us to cook central Vietnamese dishes, which we share for lunch. The afternoon and evening are free. Hoi An was a busy trading port for centuries, and its old houses show Japanese, Chinese and French influences. In the evening the old town is lit by hundreds of silk lanterns, and you can float a candle on the river for good luck. Hoi An was a busy trading port for centuries, with Japanese, Chinese and French influences in its old houses.

    
15. Day 15 Hoi An Countryside

    We cycle out to Tra Que herb village and help the farmers in their gardens, then paddle a round basket boat through the water coconut forest of Cam Thanh. After lunch we take a small ferry to Cam Kim island and ride its quiet lanes past boat builders and woodcarvers. Tra Que farmers grow their herbs without chemicals, using seaweed from the river as fertiliser. In Cam Thanh, the basket boat rowers like to show off by spinning their boats, so be ready to laugh and hold on. The ride is flat and easy, mostly on quiet country lanes, and suitable for all ages.

    
16. Day 16 My Son and Fly to Saigon

    An early start brings us to My Son, the temple valley of the Cham kingdom, before the heat and the crowds. We walk among the brick towers and return to Hoi An by late morning. In the afternoon we fly from Da Nang to Saigon. My Son was the spiritual centre of the Cham kingdom for almost a thousand years, and its brick towers stand in a green valley under Cat’s Tooth Mountain. The flight from Da Nang to Saigon takes about an hour and a half. The flight from Da Nang to Saigon takes about an hour and a half.

    
17. Day 17 Saigon’s Hidden Neighbourhoods

    A full day in Saigon away from the main boulevards: an early morning market, small temples and alleys where families live and work, the old streets of Chinatown and a quiet peninsula on the edge of the city. In the evening we walk and eat our way through local street food stalls. Saigon is a city of contrasts, where tall towers stand next to old pagodas and narrow alleys full of family life. Your guide shares stories about the history of the city and how it is changing today, and recommends places for your free time.

    
18. Day 18 Ben Tre by Bike and Boat

    We drive to Ben Tre, the coconut province of the Mekong Delta, and cycle small roads through coconut groves and villages, visiting family workshops along the way. After a countryside lunch, a sampan takes us through narrow water coconut canals. We spend the night at a riverside lodge. Ben Tre is known as the land of coconuts, and you will see how almost every part of the tree is used, from the fruit and oil to the leaves for roofs and the shells for handicrafts. The cycling is flat and easy, with many stops for photos. The riverside lodge is a peaceful place with gardens and comfortable rooms.

    
19. Day 19 Vinh Long Island Homestay

    A boat takes us to an island in Vinh Long, where families grow fruit and make bricks and pottery along the river. We walk and cycle through the orchards and spend the night in a homestay, helping our hosts cook dinner. The kilns of Vinh Long have been producing red bricks and pottery for generations, and their tall domes along the river are one of the most beautiful sights in the delta. The homestay is simple and clean, with fans, mosquito nets and shared bathrooms. The family grows fruit in their garden, and dinner is often fish from the river and vegetables from the garden, shared around a big table.

    
20. Day 20 Cai Rang Floating Market and Can Tho

    An early boat brings us to the Cai Rang floating market, where farmers sell fruit and vegetables from their boats. We explore the small canals around Can Tho, visit a rice noodle workshop and have lunch, then drive back to Saigon in the afternoon. Cai Rang is the largest floating market in the Mekong Delta and is busiest just after sunrise. The rice noodle workshop is a family business where you can see how rice is turned into noodles, from the soaking to the drying in the sun. Can Tho is the largest city in the delta, with a lively riverside and night market for your last evening.

    
21. Day 21 Departure

    Free time in Saigon until your transfer to Tan Son Nhat airport. Depending on your flight time, you may have a few hours for last shopping, a coffee or a visit to a museum. Your guide or driver will pick you up at your hotel in good time and help you with check-in at the airport. Depending on your flight time, you may have a few hours for last shopping, a coffee or a visit to a museum. Your guide or driver will pick you up at your hotel in good time and help you with check-in at the airport. If you have a late flight, we can arrange a cooking class, a visit to the Cu Chi tunnels or a walk in Chinatown.