Indochina in 16 Days: Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos

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, stopping at family-run stalls for bun cha, banh cuon and egg coffee, and ending beside Hoan Kiem Lake. 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 Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum area and the Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first university. After lunch we ride a cyclo through the old quarter, stop at family workshops and a local market, and end the day with a traditional water puppet show. 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 cyclo ride is slow and fun, a good way to see the old quarter’s streets without dodging the motorbikes. The water puppet show is about an hour long, with live music and stories from village life. Dinner is free to explore the restaurants of the old quarter.

   
3. Day 3 Lan Ha Bay Cruise

   We drive to the coast and board a small boat for Lan Ha Bay, a quieter part of the Halong area. Lunch is served as we sail between limestone islands. In the afternoon we kayak through lagoons and swim from a small 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. Kayaks and life jackets are provided, and the crew prepares fresh seafood for dinner.

   
4. Day 4 Back to Hanoi, Fly to Hoi An

   Sunrise on deck and a visit to a floating fishing village. We sail back to land, drive to Hanoi airport and fly to Da Nang, then continue to Hoi An for a free evening by the river. 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 flight from Hanoi to Da Nang takes just over an hour, and the drive to Hoi An about 45 minutes. In the evening the old town is lit by hundreds of silk lanterns along the river.

   
5. Day 5 Hoi An Old Town

   We walk the old town early, visiting a merchant house, an assembly hall and the Japanese Covered Bridge. Late morning a local family takes us to the market and teaches us to cook central Vietnamese dishes for lunch. The afternoon is free to enjoy the town. Hoi An was a busy trading port for centuries, and its old houses show Japanese, Chinese and French influences. The cooking class takes place in a family home, and you leave with the recipes so you can cook these dishes again at home. In the afternoon you can visit a tailor or cycle to the nearby beach of An Bang.

   
6. Day 6 Hoi An Countryside

   We cycle through rice fields to Tra Que herb village and help farmers in their gardens, then paddle a round basket boat through the water coconut forest of Cam Thanh. Lunch with a local family, then a free afternoon. 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. In the afternoon you are free to relax at the pool or explore the old town once more.

   
7. Day 7 Fly to Saigon

   A morning flight from Da Nang to Saigon. In the afternoon your guide leads you on foot through small alleys, a neighbourhood market and an old pagoda, ending with dinner at a busy street food stall. 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. The flight from Da Nang to Saigon takes about an hour and a half.

   
8. Day 8 Mekong Delta Homestay

   We drive to Cai Be and take a boat through small canals to family workshops making rice paper and coconut candy. In the afternoon we continue to a river island in Vinh Long, walk or cycle through fruit orchards and spend the night with a family, cooking dinner together. The workshops of Cai Be are family businesses, and you can taste fresh rice paper, coconut candy and local fruit along the way. 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.

   
9. Day 9 Floating Market to Chau Doc

   An early boat brings us to the Cai Rang floating market near Can Tho. After breakfast we drive west through rice fields to Chau Doc, a border town where Vietnamese, Khmer, Cham and Chinese communities live side by side. We end the day on Sam Mountain, watching the sun set over the plains. Cai Rang is the largest floating market in the Mekong Delta and is busiest just after sunrise. Chau Doc lies on the Bassac River close to the Cambodian border, and its mosques, Khmer pagodas, Chinese temples and Vietnamese churches show its mix of cultures.

   
10. Day 10 Speedboat to Phnom Penh

    In the early morning we visit a Cham village and its floating fish farms. The speedboat leaves Chau Doc at around 7:30 AM and follows the Mekong upstream into Cambodia, stopping at the border for immigration. You arrive in Phnom Penh in the early afternoon, with free time along the riverside in the evening. The speedboat is comfortable and covered, with a toilet on board, and the journey takes about five hours including the border stop. Please bring your passport and Cambodia visa or the documents for a visa on arrival. Phnom Penh’s riverside is lively in the evening with cafes, temples and families enjoying the cool air.

    
11. Day 11 Phnom Penh

    We visit the Royal Palace and the Silver Pagoda, the National Museum and the Russian Market. In the afternoon we learn about the Khmer Rouge period at Tuol Sleng, a difficult but important visit. In the evening we take a boat at sunset where the Mekong and Tonle Sap rivers meet. The visit to Tuol Sleng is moving and can be emotional, and it is optional if you prefer to skip it. The sunset boat ride is a calm way to end the day, with views of the Royal Palace, the riverside and the fishing boats returning home.

    
12. Day 12 Fly to Siem Reap, Angkor Thom

    A morning flight to Siem Reap. In the afternoon we enter Angkor Thom through the South Gate, see the more than 200 stone faces of the Bayon and walk among the giant tree roots of Ta Prohm, ending with a quiet sunset at a smaller temple. The flight to Siem Reap takes less than an hour. The Bayon was built by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century, and its carvings show daily life, battles and markets of the time. Ta Prohm has been left partly to the jungle, which makes it one of the most photographed places in Cambodia.

    
13. Day 13 Sunrise at Angkor Wat

    An early start for sunrise at Angkor Wat, then a long walk through its galleries and carvings while it is still cool. After breakfast we drive through villages to Banteay Srei, a small temple in pink sandstone with some of the finest carvings in Angkor. Free evening in Siem Reap. Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world, and its long galleries are covered in carvings of Hindu stories and historic battles. Banteay Srei is about 40 minutes from Siem Reap, and the drive passes villages where families make palm sugar and sell it along the road. In the evening you can explore Pub Street and the night market.

    
14. Day 14 Fly to Luang Prabang

    A flight to Luang Prabang in Laos. In the afternoon we walk the old town, visiting Wat Xieng Thong and the Royal Palace Museum, then climb Mount Phousi for sunset over the Mekong and browse the night market. Luang Prabang is a UNESCO World Heritage town, with more than 30 temples, French colonial houses and a quiet, relaxed atmosphere. The night market fills the main street with handicrafts, textiles and street food, and it is a nice place to try Lao dishes. Luang Prabang is small and easy to explore on foot, and your guide will suggest cafes and restaurants for the evening.

    
15. Day 15 Pak Ou Caves and Kuang Si

    We take a boat up the Mekong to the Pak Ou caves, filled with thousands of Buddha statues, stopping at a weaving village on the way. In the afternoon we drive to the Kuang Si waterfalls, where turquoise pools step down through the forest, with time to swim. The boat to Pak Ou takes about two hours upstream, passing villages, fishermen and green hills along the Mekong. Kuang Si is one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Laos, and near the entrance there is a rescue centre for Asiatic black bears saved from poaching.

    
16. Day 16 Departure

    Early risers can watch the monks collect alms at dawn, quietly and respectfully. After breakfast, free time until your transfer to Luang Prabang airport. Your guide will explain how to watch the alms giving respectfully, from a distance and without flash photography. After breakfast you can visit the morning market or enjoy a last coffee by the Mekong before your transfer. We hope this journey through three countries leaves you with warm memories of the people and places of Indochina. If you have a late flight, we can arrange a gentle morning activity such as a weaving workshop or a short boat ride.