PEARL OF INDOCHINA

DAY 1 : LUANG PRABANG HALF DAY CITY TOUR

Arrival airport, please go to custom desk as your first point of entry to get visa-on-arrival into the country and pay stamping fees directly by cash to custom office there then guide will pick you up outside and transfer to the city for check in.

On the same day in the afternoon, explore the Royal Palace Museum, which hosts a range of interesting artifacts. We then head to the magnificent Wat Xiengthong - the most beautiful temple in Luang Prabang with its mosaic decoration and the former royal carriage. Its roofs sweeping low to the ground, which represents classical Laotian architecture. Next, visit the Museum (former king’s palace).

Back to your hotel

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Luang Prabang (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 2 : LUANG PRABANG FULL DAY PAK U CAVE & XIENGMENE

Today, take a traditional wooden boat upstream to visit the famous cave of Pak Ou. The cave locates just right on the cliff; it’s a very impressive and stunning sight. Inside the cave, there are more than one hundred Buddha images which have been brought by local people since the early 14th century when the cave was found.

On the way, stop shortly at Ban Muang Kham, which specializes in river weed making. Next, a stop will also be made at Ban Xanghai where you can enjoy the taste of the local rice wine. Lunch will be served on the terrace facing the Nam Ou River (lunch not included) After lunch, drive to Kuang Si Falls, located 30 kilometers south of Luang Prabang. The many tiered waterfalls have scooped out small basins of turquoise color. You can cool off with a refreshing swim in the pools and hike around the falls if wanted.

Return to Luang Prabang and on the way back a stop will be made at one of the local villages.

Meal: Breakfast Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Luang Prabang (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 3 : LUANG PRABANG - RICE EXPERIENCE - KUANG SI WATERFALLS

Morning we drive to Living Land Lao Organic Farm at Phoung Van village where you understand about the historical and activity of the farm in Laos.

Upon arrival, your guide and representative of the farm will briefly introduce about the farm after that you experience the real activities and life of a Lao farmer. You will really have your hand on all the activities including ploughing, seeding until reaping the harvest. You will indeed know how hard to grow the rice. Last but not least, we will shortly visit the vegetable garden and the guide also teaches you how to realize many type of vegetable. It is really exciting to learn all those things for the first time.

In the afternoon, go to see the beautiful Khuang Si Waterfall, located 30km south of Luang Prabang. You can cool off with a refreshing swim in the pools and hike around the falls if wanted. Before coming back to Luang Prabang, we still have time to visit Kuang Si Falls Butterflies Park, newly opened January 2014; it is now one of the must-see spots in Luang Prabang.

Return to Luang Prabang late afternoon for observing the sunset at Wat Siphouthabath

Meal: Breakfast Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Luang Prabang (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 4 : LUANG PRABANG - HANOI

You are free at leisure until transfer to the airport for flight from Luang Prabang to Ha Noi – Vietnam. Flight time is approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Arrival airport, Your visa should be pre-arranged, or be sure that your visa-on-arrival letter is in your carry-on luggage. Please go to custom desk as your first point of entry into the country and present these documents for visa upon arrival. Warm welcomed by our guide & driver then transfer to the city.

Your private vehicle and guide transfer you to hotel for check in. The driving distance is approximately 45 minutes.

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Ha Noi (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 5 : HA NOI FULL DAY CITY TOUR

The city tour begins with a visit to the Ho Chi Minh Complex which features the life of Ho Chi Minh, the nation’s founder. At the complex, visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, where the nation’s founder’s body is preserved (closed on Monday, Friday and through October - November), the colonial Presidential Palace, originally the French Governor Office and a fine example of French architecture in Hanoi, and the rural style Ho Chi Minh’s house on stilts where Ho Chi Minh lived and worked.

Stop by one of Hanoi’s icons, the One Pillar Pagoda, built in the 11th Century in dedication to Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara or Buddha of Compassion and reminiscent of a lotus blossom rising from a pond. Continue to the Temple of Literature, known as the first university of Vietnam built in 1070 by the Ly Dynasty to honor Confucius, sages and outstanding Vietnamese scholars.

Afternoon, continue the tour to one of the following museums of choice namely the Museum of Fine Arts, the National Museum of Vietnamese History, the Museum of Revolution, the Museum of Military History or the Museum of Ethnology.

Next, head for Hoan Kiem Lake, the center point of Hanoi whose name “The Return Sword Lake” originated from a legend of a sacred sword and home to a rare endangered giant turtle species and visit Ngoc Son Temple on the lake. Take a one-hour cycle tour of the Old Quarter of Hanoi with its ancient streets representing traditional trades from the past. Finish the tour at the Thang Long Opera Theatre with a traditional Vietnamese water puppet show.

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Ha Noi (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 6 : HA NOI - HA LONG OVER NIGHT ON BOAT

Morning pickup at 8:00 AM from your hotel for transfer to Ha Long Bay, which is about 160 km or 3.5-hour drive away. The transfer is approximately 3 hours. You will see some rural areas of the Red River Delta with plenty of chances to take photos of Vietnamese farmers working in paddy fields and you may stop on the way to admire the local scenery.

Arrive in Ha Long City at 11:30 AM and check in aboard the booked junk right after the welcome drink is served. Start cruising while having lunch on board and enjoy the mighty bay view. Ha Long Bay meaning Descending Dragon Bay in Vietnamese as legend has it that it was where a holly dragon landed down from sky. The bay, famous as one of the world’s wonders and heritage sites whose formation dates back 500 million years, consists of around 2,000 karst islands and islets scattered over an area of 1,553 km2.

After lunch, take a short trek to a nearby summit for a panoramic view of the bay dotted with golden sails, go swimming on a quiet beach or sunbath on the sundeck.

Later in the afternoon, you will visit an interesting fishing village with an opportunity to interact with local people who have been living in the bay for almost three generations.

An optional kayaking trip is available weather permitting. Back onboard enjoy a lavish dinner and enjoy the bay view at sunset. Spend a night on board.

Meal: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Overnight on cruises in Ha Long Bay (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 7 : HA LONG - HA NOI - FLIGHT TO DA NANG

In the morning, refresh your body and mind with a Tai Chi exercise on the sundeck at the break of dawn. Have tea and coffee onboard and continue exploring Ha Long Bay sailing across its 2000 islets and visiting some of its major highlights. Normally, check out at 09:30, have a buffet brunch while cruising back to shore.

Disembark at 11:00 AM to transfer to Hanoi capital.

Free at leisure until meet our guide then transfer to airport for flight to Da Nang. Flight time is approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Arrival Da Nang airport, you are transferred to Hoi An town by private car & guide. The transfer from Da Nang to Hoi An is approximately 40 minutes. Check in & relax

Meal: Brunch

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Da Nang (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 8 : HOI AN CITY TOUR - THANH HA AND KIM BONG VLLAGE

Morning, discover the charm of Hoi An recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, is now a peaceful town of exceptionally well-preserved architecture, lifestyles and traditions. The town exemplifies a fascinating fusion of cultures between Vietnam and the outside world including China, Japan, Thailand and the Philippines.

Your sightseeing will include the iconic 400-year-old Covered Bridge with a small temple attached to one side as a prominent example of Japanese architecture, the Museum of Trade Ceramics which is an elegant Vietnamese style wooden house built in 1858 showcasing antique ceramic artifacts, the 200- year-old Tan Ky House typifying an ancient Chinese merchant residence, the Ong Temple built in 1653 by Chinese settlers to worship Guan Yu, an ancient Chinese general whose character stands for loyalty, bravery and justice and the local market vibrant with colors and activities.

Afternoon, continue driving to Thanh Ha and Kim Bong Village. It is well known for its carpentry. Most of Hoi An’s Old Town architecture was made by their ancestors, dating back to the town’s heyday as a commercial port. Thanh Ha was a thriving village, famous for earthenware that was sold in many provinces throughout Central Vietnam during the 16th and 17th century.

That time, the Thanh Ha villagers made the bricks, tiles and floor slabs for old building in Hoi An and the surrounding areas. Nowadays, many old buildings in Hoi An need restoring and the Thanh Ha villagers are the only contractors that can provide materials exactly like the ones when the old port town prospered.

Walking tour will be made to the pier and joint a boat for a ride to Thanh Ha, observing the craft of shaping clay into vases, kettles and cookery vessels. We then sail on to Kim Bong and visit its boat building yards, handicrafts and sculpture. Find the way back to hotel

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Hoi An (3*, 4* or 5*)

Note: Hoi An is famous for speed tailor-made clothes with 4 to 24hours for tourist.

DAY 9 : HOI AN - DA NANG - HOCHIMINH CITY

Morning, transfer to Da Nang airport for flight to Ho Chi Minh City Flight time is approximately 1.5 hours.

Meet your driver for an airport transfer with a private vehicle and guide. The transfer distance is approximately 30 minutes.

Afternoon, your guide continue to bring you to visit the War Remnants Museum which features a comprehensive collection of the machinery, weapons, photos, and documentation of Vietnam War with the both the French and Americans and the Reunification Palace which was the former residence of the President of South Vietnam until end of April 1975.

Move to Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica, a neo-Roman cathedral built over 130 years ago by the colonial French with materials entirely imported from Marseilles and stained-glass windows from Chartres. Next, visit Sai Gon Post Office, a fine colonial building which was designed and built in the early 20th Century by the famous French architect Gustave Eiffel.

Last, stop for shopping at the French-built Ben Thanh Market which dates back to 1870 and whose main entrance clock tower has become a city’s symbol.

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 10 : HOCHIMINH CU CHI TUNNELS

Today, meet your guide and transfer about 75 km North-west of downtown Ho Chi Minh City. Discover the famous Cu Chi Tunnels, which were once a major underground hideout and resistance base of Viet Cong forces during the two wars against the French and the Americans. The tunnels, entirely hand-dug, formed a highly intricate network of interlinked multilevel passageways at times stretched as far as the Cambodian border and totaling over 120 km in length. Its complexity was beyond imagination containing meeting rooms, kitchens, wells, clinics, schools, depots, trenches and emergency exits all aimed for guerrilla warfare. The tunnels were deep and strong enough to withstand destructive bombings and self-contained enough to outlast prolonged sieges.

Afternoon, free time

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 11 : FULL DAY MEKONG DELTA TOUR (MY THO)

You will be picked up and travel past miles of flat rice fields, along a bustling road to the Mekong Delta, the world’s largest delta and Vietnam's largest rice bowl.

On arrival in My Tho City, board a motorboat and navigate through intricate canals while observing the local daily life up close as well as the landscape of waterways and lush islands. Land on Thoi Son Island where you can listen to Southern traditional music performed by native artists.

Next, you will change to a paddle boat to cruise through the narrow canals and visit households with traditional occupations of home-based coconut candy and rice-wine making.

Continue travel by motorized boat to another island to visit a bee farm and taste tea with fresh honey from the beehives and enjoy fresh fruits.

On the return to My Tho, stop to visit the Vinh Trang Pagoda, a prominent local Buddhist structure built in 1850 with a unique architectural mixture of Vietnamese, Roman, Chinese and Cambodian styles characterized by a highly ornate façade. You might enjoy a lovely lunch at a local Vietnamese restaurant.

At the end of the tour, you will find the way back to Ho Chi Minh.

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh City (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 12 : HOCHIMINH - SIEM REAP

Morning you’re transferred with a private vehicle and guide to airport for flight to Siem Reap. Flight time is approximately 1 hour. On arrival at Siem Reap international airport, please go to custom desk as your first point of entry to get visa-on-arrival into the country and pay stamping fees directly by cash to custom office there.

Welcomed by our guide and transferred to your hotel for check in and has a rest. The driving distance is approximately 30 minutes.

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Siem Reap (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 13 : SIEM REAP - TEMPLES WITH TA PROHM – PREAH KHAN

After breakfast, your guide will pick you up and transfer to visit the unique brick sculptures of Prasat Kravan, Ta Prohm. One of the area’s most beautiful temples, Ta Prohm has been left relatively untouched since it was discovered and retains much of its mystery. Unlike the other monuments of Angkor, it was abandoned and swallowed by the jungle, looking like very much the ways most of the Angkor temples appeared when European explorers first stumbled upon them. A visit will also be made to Takeo, Thommanon and Chau Say Tevoda afterwards.

Afternoon, continue to visit Preah Khan temple. It was built by the King Jayavarman VII, Preah Khan, like Ta Prohm, a place of towered enclosures and shoulder-hugging corridors. Unlike Ta Prohm, however, Preah Khan is in a reasonable state of preservation and ongoing restoration efforts should maintain and even improve this situation.

Continue your visit to Neak Pean, a fountain (built in the middle of a pool and representing the paradisiacal Himalayan mountain-lake), Ta Som, Eastern Mebon, guarded at its corner by stone figures of harnessed elephants, some of which are still in a reasonable state of preservation, and Pre Rup, the mountain-temple until sunset. Then, back to the hotel.

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Siem Reap (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 14 : ANGKOR THOM & ANGKOR WAT TOURS

Today, visit to the antique capital of Angkor Thom, built in the 12th century: the South Gate with its huge statues depicting the churning of the ocean of milk, the Bayon Temple, unique for its 54 towers decorated with over 200 smiling faces of Avolokitesvara, the Phimeanakas, the Royal Enclosure, the Elephants Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King.

After a short your rest, you will visit the most famous of all the temples on the plain of Angkor: Angkor Wat. The temple complex covers 81 hectares and is comparable in size to the Imperial Palace in Beijing. Its distinctive five towers are emblazoned on the Cambodian flag. This masterpiece is considered by art historians to be the prime example of classical Khmer art and architecture. Angkor Wat’s five towers symbolize Meru’s five peaks - the enclosed wall represents the mountains at the edge of the world and the surrounding moat, the ocean beyond.

End of day take a relaxing stopover at Prasat Chrung visiting Tadev Hole and temple with the best Sunset. Return to your hotel and end of the tour

Meal: Breakfast

Accommodation: Overnight at hotel in Siem Reap (3*, 4* or 5*)

DAY 15 : SIEM REAP DEPARTURE

Free at leisure until transfer airport for departure flight...

Meal: Breakfast