Essential Indochina Tour With Family

Sabaidee! Welcome to Luang Prabang, a tranquil town with its gleaming temple roofs, fading colonial architecture, and stunning mountain backdrop that has been claimed by UNESCO to be “the best preserved traditional city in Southeast Asia”. You are greeted by your driver at the airport for your transfer to the hotel.

After breakfast, our guide will take you on an in-depth walking tour to explore Luang Prabang. The walk is oriented towards the lesser-known parts of the town including charming lanes showing the more traditional atmosphere of the heritage town. Along the way, we will see the four different types of buildings categorized by UNESCO. The first one is the traditional Lao house which is made from tropical hardwood or bamboo and built on stilts. The second is a half-wood and half-cement house built after the arrival of the French. The third is the traditional French colonial buildings that are similar to those found in Vietnam and Cambodia. The last form of architecture you will see is the old Chinese shophouses that were built to be used for both commercial and residential purposes. In the afternoon, we will visit some famous attractions inside the city center including the oldest temple of Wat Sene and the magnificent Wat Xiengthong with its roofs sweeping low to the ground, which represents classical Laotian architecture. We then continue with a visit to the Royal Palace Museum, which hosts a range of interesting artifacts. From there, we walk to the nearby Wat Mai, which is one of Luang Prabang’s largest and most richly decorated temples. Late afternoon, we climb up to the top of Mount Phousi for an enjoyable exploration of the sacred, gilded stupa as well as a panoramic sunset view of the city and the Mekong River. The tour ends after a visit to the famous Night Market, where you can find a lovely selection of handmade textiles made by local and hill tribe people surrounding Luang Prabang. Overnight in Luang Prabang.

The day is free at your leisure until transfer to the airport for your flight to Hanoi. Xin chao! Welcome to Hanoi, Vietnam. Hanoi is one of Asia’s most enchanting cities, full of culture, history, and the engaging contradictions of a rapidly developing and deeply traditional society. You are greeted by your guide and driver at Noi Bai International Airport for your transfer to the hotel. Overnight in Hanoi.

08:00 Our guide and car pick you up at your hotel and transfer you to Ba Vi - a rural mountainous area west of the bustling city of Hanoi. 09:30 – Arrive at Ri Village where you will start the trip at your host’s house with a welcome drink. Meet Duoc (Mr.) – a Vietnam War veteran and tea farm owner who tells historical stories with his own experience. Then you will follow Duoc to his vast tea farm and learn how to harvest tea leaves. This is a green and peaceful place where you can enjoy the beautiful scenery of the village. You may then help him pick tea leaves, and be shown how to collect the best part of the tea tree to make the most wonderful beverage of Vietnam – the traditional tea. Carry on with the process of producing tea at his small workshop, most of the work there is manual. Then you will you will enjoy a fun cooking class with Chin (Mrs.). She will show you how to cook some Vietnamese dishes and you will then enjoy lunch with the food you helped cook. After lunch, stroll around the village and visit some local families to understand the rural lifestyle and learn how tofu, conical hats, and other local products are made. You will enjoy a cycling tour through beautiful paddy fields and interact with local farmers by chance. Wrap up your countryside tour with a traditional footbath in warm water with herbs, following the traditional recipes of the Muong ethnic minority. This will relay you (and your feet!) after cycling around the village. Drive back to your hotel in Hanoi. Overnight in Hanoi.

Today, depart from Hanoi for a 2.5-hour drive to Tuan Chau harbor via the new highway. You will be welcomed aboard and set sail through the bay while lunch is served. You will pass through the magical bay, where thousands of sculpted limestone islands rise from the waves like dragons' teeth. After lunch, you will take a short trek to a nearby summit for a panoramic view of the bay dotted with golden sails, and then go swimming on a quiet beach or sunbathing on the sundeck. Later in the afternoon, you will visit an interesting fishing village with the opportunity to interact with fishermen who have been living in the bay for almost three generations. Back on board, you can enjoy cocktails while watching the sunset. Later, you will unwind at a lavish dinner before an overnight stay on the deluxe junk.

Greet the day with a morning tai chi session, with an opportunity to view the sunrise over the bay. After breakfast, you will visit a beautiful limestone grotto and then go back to the boat for a final glimpse of Halong Bay while cruising back to the dock. Checkout is at 11:45 am and the boat arrives at the harbor by noon for the drive back to Hanoi airport for your onward flight to Hue. Upon arrival, you will be picked up and transferred to the hotel. Overnight in Hue.

This morning, you will drive to Toa Kham Wharf for transfer to Thien Mu Pagoda - the first stop of the day, a historic temple in the city as a symbol of Hue, located near Perfume River which will be a wonderful place for you to relax and refresh. Back to the boat for a scenic cruise to an ecolodge and spend 2 hours strolling or biking around the quiet Thuy Bieu Eco-village. You will visit the local garden, an old ancestral temple, and contact with local people. Visit some handicraft families (the incense-making family, the joss paper-making family, and the paper painting family) to discover the daily life of local people while they are working strenuously with joy and enthusiasm At the end of this tour, you will have a great time to relax by steeping your foot in medicinal herb water - a traditional therapeutic practice and enjoy excellent massage. Overnight in Hue.

Today you continue by road to the South and Hoi An. The scenery is remarkable, as the route hugs the coastline of the East Sea before winding up the spectacular Hai Van Pass. Here you can stop to admire the stunning views: north over Lang Co Beach and south over Da Nang. Reach Hoi An at noon time and check in at your hotel. This afternoon, walk to explore the ancient streets of Hoi An, lined with Chinese traders’ homes and wooden houses reincarnated as restaurants, cafés, and outlets for local artists, craftsmen, and tailors. Hoi An's unique architecture is well displayed in what is arguably Vietnam's most tourist-friendly town. Explore the beautiful 16th-century Japanese Bridge. A symbol of Hoi An and a testament to its fascinating history, the Japanese Bridge was constructed around the early 17th century, though the exact date is unknown. The bridge, also known as the Pagoda Bridge (Chua Cau), was built by Japanese craftsmen who were part of a larger community of foreign merchants active in Hoi An. Overnight in Hoi An.

Free at leisure. Overnight in Hoi An.

Free at leisure to explore Hoi An Ancient town. Overnight in Hoi An.

Free at leisure until transfer to Danang airport for flight to Ho Chi Minh City (as known as Saigon). You are greeted by your driver at Tan Son Nhat International Airport for your transfer to the hotel. Saigon or Ho Chi Minh City is the largest city in Vietnam. It is the bustling economic capital and cultural trendsetter of the country, yet holds the timeless traditions of an ancient culture. Overnight in Saigon.

Your guide meets you in the hotel lobby at 8.00 am and off we go for an original morning to explore the less traveled trails of this fascinating city. Prepare to travel back in time as we first head to District 3, where we visit the oldest café in town which was opened in 1938. Enjoy a refreshment, before we immerse ourselves into some genuine Saigon popular culture. Walk through a massive street market, gently elbow your way between conical hats and mobile street food sellers to exit at Chung Cu. Here you will find yourself in the heart of Saigon’s working class, which has remained mostly unchanged since the 1960’s. Marvel at the size of these old residential buildings as we walk through and into the Ho Thi Ky quarter. A place known for its spectacular flower market, and its maze of quiet narrow streets. A place also surprisingly famous for its Khmer delicacies since the 1990’s. Here you will be able to enjoy some of these traditional snacks. We continue deeper into District 10, a fantastic destination where every street corner holds a surprise and a chance to amaze you. Our urban adventure takes us to one of the most famous street food streets in the city, time for lunch! In the afternoon, we take a digestive walk around the colonial buildings of District 1. We start at the Independence Palace and continue to the Notre Dame Cathedral and the Saigon Central Post Office before we get to the beautiful Nguyen Hue Street where the City Hall is. We transfer back to your hotel afterwards, end of the day at leisure.

Breakfast at the hotel. Then you will transfer to Cai Be. Firstly, you will visit the local workshop to see how to make rice paper, coconut, pop-rice... Enjoy some sweets with a cup of hot tea. Then, the rowing boat will take you deeper into the countryside on smaller canals to enjoy a peaceful time. A lunch will be served at the local house After lunch, we’ll come to Tân Phong island for biking/walking on village paths to see the local daily life: orchard, school, church, pagoda, traditional houses... On the way, we can make some stops to see how they wave the dried water hyacinth to make many products: baskets, bags, hats, wallets, shoes... Come to visit the local garden, we will enjoy some cups of tea while listening to traditional music. The cruise will back & end at Cai Be pier. Transfer back to Ho Chi Minh City. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh.

Free at leisure until transfer to airport for flight to Siem Reap. Upon arrival, our driver will pick you up at the airport and transfer you to the hotel. Overnight in Siem Reap.

Wake up early in the morning for sunrise at Angkor Wat. Return to your hotel for breakfast. After breakfast, visit Angkor Thom, the South Gate of Angkor Thom, Bayon Temple, built from the late 12th century to the early 13th century by King Jayavarman VII and consists of 54 towers, the Royal Enclosure, the Phimeanakas, the Elephants Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King, then visit Ta Prohm, surrounded by jungle. Afternoon, continue to visit Angkor Wat, the largest temple in the world and covers an area of 200 hectares and is surrounded by a moat and an exterior wall measuring 1300 meters x 1500 meters. Early evening, you will be taken by Tuk Tuk, a small open-sided taxi common in Cambodia, to cruise around the suburb of Siem Reap town and for a blessing ritual by Buddhist monks for happiness, prosperity, and safety for your journey.

Free at leisure to explore Siem Reap. Overnight in Siem Reap.

Free at leisure until transfer to Siem Reap International Airport for your departure.