North Vietnam Discovery - 12 Days

Discover the breathtaking landscapes and fascinating culture of North Vietnam on this 12-day adventure. Begin in Hanoi, where you'll explore the bustling city before heading to the scenic mountains of Sapa for trekking. Journey through the stunning valleys of Lai Chau and Dien Bien Phu before arriving in Mai Chau for more trekking. Next, visit Ninh Binh for a taste of rural life before experiencing the natural wonders of Halong Bay on an overnight cruise. This tour is the perfect opportunity to immerse yourself in the diverse beauty of North Vietnam, from its vibrant cities to its stunning natural landscapes. Book now and embark on an unforgettable journey!

Day 1: Arrive in Hanoi.
Day 2: Hanoi City Tour.
Day 3: Hanoi – Drive to Sapa.
Day 4: Sapa Trekking.
Day 5: Sapa – Lai Chau – Muong Lay (Dien Bien).
Day 6: Muong Lay (Dien Bien) – Dien Bien Phu.
Day 7: Dien Bien Phu – Son La – Mai Chau.
Day 8: Mai Chau Trekking.
Day 9: Mai Chau – Ninh Binh.
Day 10: Ninh Binh – Halong Bay – Overnight on cruise.
Day 11: Halong Bay – Overnight on cruise.
Day 12: Halong Bay – Hanoi – Departure.

Day 1: Arrive in Hanoi.
Welcome to Hanoi, Vietnam’s bustling colonial capital. Your driver and guide will meet you outside the baggage claim of Noi Bai Airport and take you to your hotel in the city center. In the afternoon, enjoy an orientation walk, visiting some of Hanoi’s main attractions: the Opera House, Old Quarter, Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son Temple. This evening, savor a welcome dinner of authentic Vietnamese food at one of Hanoi’s finest restaurants.
Meals: Dinner.
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi.

Day 2: Hanoi City Tour.
Today you have a full day to explore Vietnam’s charming capital. With its wide tree-lined boulevards, French colonial architecture, peaceful lakes and ancient oriental pagodas, Hanoi is an eclectic mix that offers something for everyone. Your city tour will take you to Hanoi’s key sites: the Ho Chi Minh Complex (Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum and stilt house); the Presidential Palace; the nearby One Pillar Pagoda; the Temple of Literature; West Lake; the sedate Tran Quoc Pagoda & Quan Thanh Temple. Explore one of the city's museums (a choice between the History Museum and the Ethnology Museum). This evening enjoy a traditional Water Puppet Performance – a unique Vietnamese art form hailing from Southeast Asia’s wet-rice culture.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi.

Day 3: Hanoi – Drive to Sapa.
After breakfast, your guide & driver will meet you at the lobby of the hotel then leave Hanoi for Sapa on a six hour journey on Vietnam’s longest and modern highway.
Upon arrival, check in to your hotel and take a stroll to visit Cat Cat Village. Spend the afternoon exploring the charming town of Sapa or relaxing at your leisure.
Optional (ticket excluded in the tour package):

The world’s most modern three-rope cable car system, Fansipan Legend, was opened to public use on February 2016.
At the inaugural ceremony, representatives from Guinness World Records presented a certificate recognizing the system as the world's longest three-rope cable car (6,292.5 meters). The facility was also named the three-rope cable car system with the world's biggest height gap between its departure and arrival stations (1,410m).
The cable car system stretches from Muong Hoa valley in Sapa Town, Lao Cai Province to the peak of 3,143-meter Fansipan, known as Indochina’s rooftop.
Passengers used to spend two days climbing to Fansipan summit, but now it takes only 15 minutes thanks to this system. The dream of reaching Indochina’s rooftop, which used to be hard to do, becomes easier for everyone.
As soon as you reach Fansipan station in an altitude of 2,800m above sea level, 600 stairs await for you to climb up to the summit. Standing on the top of Fansipan, it seems that you are enjoying a life on heaven. Surroundings are range of mountains and cloud only. And then you return the station for a ride back to Sapa.
WORKING HOURS
Start: 7:30 A.M – End: 17:30
PRICE
Adult and child (taller than 1.3m): 30 USD/ person
Child: 20 USD/ person.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Sapa.

Day 4: Sapa Trekking.
Enjoy breakfast in the hotel while breathing fresh mountain air.
At 10:00 A.M, leave Sapa by car toward Lao Cai City, after a 3 km drive you will ascend a hill to a remote ethnic minority village of Sa Seng where you will be able to see how the Black H'mong's daily life is, This community has recently shifted from a migratory lifestyle. Notice the traces of past villages with stone wall foundations that would have been seasonally used. Enjoy lunch in Sa Seng, before trekking uphill along the side of Den Thang Mt. After an hour arrive at Hang Da Village, at the elevation of 1,800m. Take in the breath taking view of the Muong Hoa Valley. The next 30 minutes are level walking before descending through Hau Chu Ngai village. Continue descending into Hong Den Hamlet, consisting of only a few homes scattered on a rocky point. Take a moment to enjoy some of the best scenery in the area. Keep trekking down the trail to Hau Thao village and then conclude your day at Ta Van Bridge where you will meet your driver and travel back to Sapa Town.
Meals: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch.
Accommodation: Hotel in Sapa.

Day 5: Sapa – Lai Chau – Muong Lay (Dien Bien).
In the morning, you are free to relax or discover the town on your own.
At 10:00, drive to Silver Waterfall with marvelous scenery of the surrounding nature. Visit Hoang Lien National Park and the nearby Tram Ton Pass, Heaven’s Gate – the highest roads in Vietnam (over 2000m) which divides Sapa Town and Lai Chau Province. Admire the spectacular views, even the Fansipan summit, the highest peak of Indochina mountains (weather permitting).
Keep driving downhill to Lai Chau where you will enjoy lunch in a local restaurant. You will then have a nearly three hour journey to Muong Lay Town (Dien Bien Province) where you will spend the night.
Muong Lay is a resettlement town lining the bank of the mighty Da River which drives the nation’s largest hydropower plant and home to some of the country’s most colorful hill tribes. The town centre is located in a long narrow valley, at the head of which is the confluence of the Da River, the Nam Na River and the Nam Lay Stream. Since Muong Lay became a resettlement area for those ceding land for the Son La Hydropower Dam, it has undergone a metamorphosis, becoming a modern urban area with full community services, as well as an attractive tourist destination in Vietnam’s North West provinces.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Muong Lay.

Day 6: Muong Lay (Dien Bien) – Dien Bien Phu.
Today's drive offers spectacular views through mountains but take note, some parts of the road might be under-construction or landslide. Arrive in Dien Bien Phu City around noon.
Dien Bien Phu was the site of a major French defeat (1954) in the First Indochina War, and was of tremendous historical significance. The French defeat here led to their complete withdrawal from their colonies in Indochina, and the division of Vietnam into North and South. The battle of Dien Bien Phu is described by historians as: the first time that a non-European colonial independence movement had evolved through all the stages from guerrilla bands to a conventionally organized and equipped army able to defeat a modern Western occupier in pitched battle. As such, it had a massive effect on world politics, inspiring other independence movements and spurring a period of decolonization, particularly in French ruled Africa.
Nowadays, Dien Bien Phu is a relatively quiet town, with a population of approximately 100,000. It acts as a regional hub for the province's trade and transportation.
After having lunch, visit Vietnam Military History Museum (sometimes called Dien Bien Phu Victory Museum) and cemetery and then on to famous “A1 Hill”, the site which saw some of the fiercest fighting between French and Vietnamese forces in the battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1946. Conclude your day with a visit to French Command Bunker (west of River Ron).
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Dien Bien Phu.

Day 7: Dien Bien Phu – Son La – Mai Chau.
After breakfast, (at 8 A.M) check out of the hotel for the drive to Mai Chau, a small town nestled in the midst of a lush valley and surrounded by emerald-green rice fields. The most picturesque scenery on today’s journey is Pha Din Pass, a charming pass at elevation 1,300m with breath taking view, well-known as a historical site during the 1st Indochina War ended in 1954. According to local legend, “Pha Din” means the connection between Heaven and Earth. Have lunch time in Son La City (150km from Dien Bien Phu). Continue the journey and stop en route to visit villages of various tribes including the Thai, Muong and Dzao and orchard, tea farm in Moc Chau plateau – Vietnam’s premier tea-growing region. Arrive in Mai Chau in late afternoon, check in your homestay in a Thai village for the night. Enjoy dinner with a local family.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Homestay in Mai Chau.

Day 8: Mai Chau Trekking.
Mai Chau valley is a scenic patchwork of villages and limestone cliffs about 150 kilometers from Hanoi. This beautiful mountainous area with thick jungle, bamboo groves, tea plantations and waterfalls lends itself to fantastic walks and short treks to ethnic villages.
After breakfast, walk around Thai villages before an easy trek (from 2 to 4 hours) through Xa Linh, Pa Co which is home of the Green Hmong hill tribe. You may have chances to chat with the local minority people who will be out and about, collecting firewood, working in the fields and tending to their animals. Have picnic lunch along the trails. Then enjoy a leisure walk to Thai villages of Van Mai, Mai Hich, Cum and Xam Khoe before transferring back your homestay. Join the family for dinner, witness a performance of the traditional songs and dances, and enjoy an evening immersed in age-old cultures.
Meals: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch.
Accommodation: Homestay in Mai Chau.

Day 9: Mai Chau – Ninh Binh.
After breakfast, bid farewell the Thai host and depart Mai Chau for a countryside drive through Ninh Binh province where fascinating limestone karsts jut forth skywards between verdant rice paddies and lazy rivers. A stop at Cuc Phuong National Park is an interesting way to break up the long drive.
Upon arrival, check in to your hotel and spend a couple of hours to relax. At sunset, you will enjoy a relaxing sampan tour along Ngo Dong River, passing under rocky outcrops and through three limestone caves (Tam Coc). During the rowing boat ride, you will enjoy a unique landscape that has been dubbed “Halong Bay on Land”.
Take a short walk through limestone mountains to Thai Vi temple which was dedicated to the four Kings of the Tran dynasty in the 13th century and now offers a place of peace and simplicity against a back drop of ancient architecture.
Spend the night at your hotel in Tam Coc.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Tam Coc (Ninh Binh).

Day 10: Ninh Binh – Halong Bay – Overnight on cruise.
After breakfast at the hotel, your driver will take you on a 4-hour drive passing the countryside of the Red River Delta to Halong Bay.
* The following Halong Bay itinerary is a sample for our standard service on a 3 star junk/ cruise. Different programs are available through our luxury cruise itineraries on the Violet, Jasmine, Ginger, Paradise, Au Co or Indochina Sails or other budget cruises. Please contact us for more details.*

Explore Halong Bay on Oriental Sails. This 3-day cruise into the legendary Gulf of Tonkin (Halong Bay, a part of Bai Tu Long Bay and Lan Ha Bay) includes various activities that will indeed provide a truly unique experience!
12:30 – 13:00: Embark on Oriental Sails followed by cruise briefing.
13:00 – 15:30: Savor a delectable lunch as Oriental Sails cruises further along the limestone islands of Bai Tu Long Bay.
15:30 – 16:30: You are free to choose the options below:
Option 1:  Fishing village visit
TFor those who are interested in local daily life: Take a bamboo rowing boat trip (around 45 minutes) around Vung Vieng fishing village – one of the largest fishing villages in Halong Bay to see the life of local fishermen. The village is set in closed lagoon, surrounded by mountains, excellent settings for some good photos.
Option 2: Beach and Kayaking
For those who like some water activities and beach, the tender shall take you to Ban Chan Beach, where you can enjoy yourself on the beach, swimming or playing volleyball… or try your hands in some kayaking in the magnificent pristine waters of Halong Bay.
16:30 – 17:30: Return to Oriental Sails and have bath then relax as the sun starts to set.
17:30 – 19:00: Enjoy Happy Hour at the bar and on the sun deck and take part in our cooking class with Oriental Sails Chef.
19:00: Dinner is served. After dinner, socialize with other guests, try your hand at squid fishing or just laze around. Singing and dancing activities are available till 22h00. Overnight on board at Cong Do Area.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Accommodation: on cruise.

Day 11: Halong Bay – Overnight on cruise.
06:30 – 07:00: Start your day with Tai Chi on sundeck.
07:00 – 08:00: Have breakfast at sunrise
08:30 – 10:30: Picked up by day boat and cruise forward Lan Ha Bay.
10:30 – 12:00:  Kayaking at Dark and Light Cave.
12:00- 13:00: Have lunch.
13:00 – 15:00: Cruise to Three Peaches Beach, relaxing, kayaking and swimming
15:00 – 17:30:  Return to mother boat and overnight at Cong Do Area.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Accommodation: on cruise.

Day 12: Halong Bay – Hanoi – Departure.
06:30 – 07:00:  Start your day with Tai Chi exercise on the sundeck.
07:00 – 09:00: Catch morning view of seascapes with a cup of tea or coffee, have breakfast while cruising toward Thien Canh Son Cave.
09:00 – 09:30:  Visit Thien Canh Son Cave – the medium size and less visited cave in Bai Tu Long Bay.
09:30 – 10:00: Check-out room. Luggage can be delivered to the reception area.
10:00 – 11:00: Head back to the Harbor. Have early lunch on board.
Disembark Oriental Sails at Halong wharf around noon. Here, your driver awaits for the transfer back to Hanoi’s Noi Bai Airport to end your great journey.
Good bye and safe travels!
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: N/A.