The Hidden Custom Tour of Vietnam (10 Days Tour)

Personalized Arrival

Your arrival in Hanoi, the nation’s capital city, brings with it an unexpected diversity. The lakes and ancient pagodas are surrounded by edging trees while the modern city balances its energetic pulse with a sleepy ambiance. The scent of Vietnamese drip-coffee plays through the streets while the pedestrians, motorbikes, and bicycles flow with focus and ease. The city feels like no other that you have experienced; a mixture of European elegance with Southeast Asian energy which blends into a unique and customized world you can’t wait to experience. With the day at your leisure to explore the remarkable expanses of the cityscape you could visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Complex where the remaining artifacts of the country’s leader bring an interesting education to visitors. Just west of the Old Quarter brings the serene botanical gardens filled with monuments and memorials.

On the pathway behind the mausoleum you will find the large, yellow presidential palace sitting alongside lavish trees and a manicured garden. However, Ho Chi Minh chose to live in the simple house on stilts nearby. The fragrant trees give delightful aromatics to the afternoon while the color drifts from green to red reflecting in the pond. The wooden tiled house contains the life of Ho Chi Minh, from the chairs around a single large table meant for meetings, to the bookshelf on the second floor where his typewriter sits on the bottom ledge. Hanoi is rarely what people expect, from its balance to its elegance, charm to its energy, and you have found remarkable beauty in the beginning of your custom tailored tour.

What’s Included: transfer, accommodation

Countryside and Villages

The morning in Hanoi brings about more light which stretches over the mixture of serenity and urbanity, where the water trickles along the lakes, the leaves sway in the morning breeze, and the streets bustle with the rising sound of early risers. After breakfast you will be met by your guide and taken into the countryside where the villages outside of the capital city have evolved in their own way. The village of Bat Trang is known as the Pottery Village. Found in a region filled with rich clay, the villagers took advantage of their natural surroundings within the 15th to 17th centuries creating a demand for their pottery as far away as Japan.

Set within the overarching greenery are the village streets lined with brilliant productions, from vases to tea cups, soup bowls to planters, shaped elegantly and distinctively and alive with color. Whether watching villagers, from old men with dangling beards to young girls with small hands and tight pony-tails, perform their craft, or attempting to mold the clay yourself, the village is a unique and diverse image of Vietnam. Trade has helped shape the streets and the people for centuries, and the immense greenery of the landscape continues to spread outside of its borders.

What’s Included: breakfast, lunch, tour, accommodation

The Forest and the Sea

The quiet air wraps around Hue in the morning. After breakfast you will be met once again by your guide and driver to venture into Quang Tri Province located along the coast of the East Sea. Within the city of Dong Ha you will discover the tumultuous history of The American War detailed within the Mine Action Visitor Center and Bao Tang Quang Tri; however, the remarkable nature of the war is also still prevalent within the stunning countryside. The Vinh Moc tunnel complex is located on the border of North and South Vietnam and was meant to shelter people during air raids within the Demilitarized Zone.

Stretching a length of over 6,000 feet with six entrances that lead to hilltops and seven entrances that lead out to the South China Sea, the inner-workings of the tunnel system are captivating, from the rocky walls lined with lighting to its structural plan and organization. Model men and families are fashioned to show the lives of those during the war, whether near the hidden entrances or deep within the tunnels resting along padded mats. Above ground running over the 17th parallel and the Ben Hai River is the Hien Luong Bridge which connects the south and the north. The history of the war is still palpable, whether above or below ground, making the intersecting stories more important.

What’s Included: breakfast, lunch, dinner, transfer, tour, accommodation

The Tremendous Journey

Today you will once again depart from Hue finding yourself along the road that takes you through Hai Van Pass. The wonderful scenic route brings you along undulating hills that overlook the bay. The pass rises over 1,500 feet above sea level and is filled with rugged beauty, from the jade land to the emerald water. Often times you can find yourself winding in and out of the clouds at the peak while still finding an expanse of dark color from the canopy below. Once in Danang you will find a city that is brimming with change, and filled with luxurious resorts stretching along China Beach at its south. Within the Cham Museum you will find hundreds of sculptures within a French Colonial building trimmed with Cham elements. Brought from architectural sites from around Vietnam, the museum brings together images of Ganesh and Shiva, Vishnu and garudas adding to the display of Cham and remnants of the Kingdom of Champra within the building.

What’s Included: breakfast, tour, accommodation

Once along the Riverbanks

An early morning breakfast brings you from the bustling streets of Saigon to the bustling waters of the Mekong Delta. The remarkable waterway breaks into nine major arteries that have given life, culture, and sustainability to various regions of Southeast Asia. Once in Cai Be you will board your boat and find the extraordinary calls of the Floating Market. Traditional canoes are stacked with barrels of produce, from chilies to pineapple, and the market is a place where you can see local traditions at work. The scent of simmering soups and fried fish help bring the day to life. People pass large poles through the air filled with a vendor’s goods or passing back the money owed. The marvelous display of culture readies you for the day cruise to come as you begin to glide along the water finding the grandeur of the landscape accompanying you.

As you find yourself within the calm waters surrounded by the evergreen terraces that climb up the mountains or bordered by swaying, rising palms, you will step off of the boat at Bonsai Gardens to find the serenity of the simple trees around the delta. With their solid wood frames and sprawling but thin branches the bonsai is known for it ability to be shaped into wonderful sculptures and for having a calming effect. In the afternoon you will return to the pleasures of Ho Chi Minh City within the energetic streets that have welcomed you in.

What’s Included: breakfast, lunch, tour, accommodation