Vietnam Budget Tour

Trip Highlights

• Local homestay with Giay minority in Sapa
• Visit Vietnam Museum of Ethnology and participate in the Museum's interesting outdoor activities
• Visit to Vietnam's most famous World Heritage Sites

Trip Summary

Day 1: Hanoi Arrival

You will be warmly welcome upon arrival Hanoi airport and transferred to your hotel by our driver. Free at the rest of the day. Meals are on your own. Overnight in Hanoi

Hanoi

Day 2: Hanoi City Tour > Night Train to Lao Cai

Morning pick up and enjoy a day Hanoi city tour including Ho Chi Minh complex (Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Ho Chi Minh Museum, The Presidential Palace, House on stilt and One Pillar Pagoda). Continue to visit the Temple of Literature - the First University of Vietnam. Lunch in a local restaurant. Afterward, visiting Vietnam Museum of Ethnology. Return to Hanoi Old Quarter for a daily-life-discovering walking tour. Return to hotel. Dinner is on your own. Free until time for transfer to the train station for your night train to Lao Cai. Overnight on train

One Pillar Pagoda

Day 3: Lao Cai > Sapa - Trekking to The Village

Early morning arrive at Lao Cai. Transfer to breathtaking-landscapes Sapa (a home to various Vietnamese ethnic minorities) with our local guide. Local breakfast at Sapa before trekking to the villages. Sneak through the market and leave the busy town behind before going downhill to idyllic Cat Cat village. Stop by a waterfall and a hydroelectric station for a while. Trek through rice paddy terraces and enjoy spectacular scenery while walking along a narrow river. Arrive at Y Linh Ho village of Black Hmong minority, where you can take a rest while river-nearby lunch is served. Head to Muong Hoa valley then pass through Lao Chai village of Black Hmong minority and then Ta Van village of Giay minority. Walk along the valley to enjoy the view and swim in the river nearby. Dinner and homestay with local people.

 Y Linh Ho village in Sapa

Day 4: More Trekking – Sapa > Night Train Back to Hanoi

Leave for Giang Ta Chai village of Red Dao minority after breakfast. Trek through bamboo forest belonging to Hoang Lien National Park. Pass by a romantic waterfall, take a rest and enjoy the surrounding. Find a nice place to enjoy lunch. Continue toward Su Pan, a small village located by the road. Back to Sapa by car. Free until time for transfer to Lao Cai train station for your night train back to Hanoi. Dinner is on your own. Overnight on train

Giang Ta Chai village

Day 5: Hanoi > Halong - Shuttle Bus - Group Tour

Morning arrive to Hanoi train station, transfer to your hotel for check in and your own breakfast. Wait for bus to the Halong Bay trip. Arrive to Halong at noon and get on traditional wooden boat/cruise. Enjoy your time for relaxing, sightseeing and swimming. Visit the Floating Fishing village and go swimming if the weather permits. Meals are included. Overnight on board

Floating Fishing village on Ha Long Bay

Day 6: Halong > Hanoi

Wake up on the bay to the sounds of waves and birds welcoming the new day. View the sunrise over the bay and after breakfast, visit a beautiful limestone grotto. Have a walk back to the boat for a final glimpse of Halong Bay while cruising back to the dock. Drive back to Hanoi. Dinner is on your own. Overnight in the Capital City.

 Ha Long Bay in the morning

Day 7: Hanoi > Hue

Morning transfer to Noi Bai airport for your flight to Hue. Upon arrival at Phu Bai Airport you will be transferred directly to your hotel. In the afternoon you will embark on a tour of the city, including the Citadel and the Forbidden Purple City, the Imperial Museum and Dong Ba market. Dinner is on your own and you will stay overnight in Hue.

Meridian Gate Hue

Day 8: Hue > Hoi An

Morning enjoy hotel breakfast before discovering the ancient capital city. Cruising Perfume River by boat. Visit Thien Mu Pagoda and ornate Minh Mang's tomb. Lunch at local restaurant. Transfer to Hoi An in the afternoon after traveling over the Hai Van pass and visiting Cham Museum with handicraft village on the foot of Marble Mountain .Check in Hotel in Hoi An and have some free time to explore the town. Dinner is on your own. Overnight in Hoi An

Thien Mu Pagoda

Day 9: Hoi An Free Day

Free day in Hoian for your shopping or discovering the ancient town. Meals are on your own. Overnight in Hoian

 Hoi An ancient town

Day 10: Hoi An > Flight to Ho Chi Minh City

Morning transfer to the airport for your flight to Saigon. Upon arrive to Saigon, transfer to your hotel for relaxing. Free at the rest of the day. Meals are on your own. Overnight in Saigon

 Saigon by night

Day 11: Ho Chi Minh City > Cu Chi Tunnel - Group Tour

Morning enjoy a half day tour to 200-km-long legendary Cu Chi Tunnel, where was enormously devastated by bomb and mine but still played a vital role in the War. In their heyday, Cu Chi were specially designed as a multi-purposed tunnels used for living areas, storage facilities, and command centers. However, the violent past has been blurred away by peaceful rural rice paddy with ducks and water buffaloes happily co-existing. Morning visit the tunnels and watch a short introductory video showing how the tunnels were constructed. Spend the next hour exploring the tunnels. Afterwards, enjoy tea, cassava (guerrilla's food during the war). Return to Saigon. Free at the rest of the day. Meals are on your own. Overnight in Saigon

 Cu Chi tunnel

Day 12: Ho Chi Minh City > My Tho > Ben Tre > Ho Chi Minh City - Group Tour

Morning pick up at your hotel then leave Saigon, enjoy the scenic journey along the National Highway. Visit Vinh Trang pagoda in My Tho, take a leisurely boat ride along the river, view stilt houses, fruit plantations and fishing villages. Proceed to Tortoise islet, have lunch in the orchard garden. Boat ride to An Khanh - a less touristy attraction in Ben Tre, enjoy cruising on a hand-rowed sampan. Enjoy seasonal fruit & honey tea to the local sound of "Southern Vietnamese folk music". Visit a family business epitomizing the idyllic rural lifestyle. Taste delicious coconut candy & observe local villagers' pastoral life. Meet the bus and return to Saigon. Take home your own collection of beautiful memories. Drop off at your hotel. Dinner is on your own. Overnight in Saigon

 My Tho - Vietnam

Day 13: Ho Chi Minh City Out

Free until time for your transfer to the airport for your flight back home. Trip ends

 Flower floating market in Ho Chi Minh city