Tour Overview
Day-by-Day Itinerary
Hanoi Arrival and City Tour
Arrive at Noi Bai International Airport. Complete customs, then meet your private guide and driver. Transfer to your hotel and check in.
City tour covering the Temple of Literature and the French Quarter, giving you a sense of why Hanoi is known as the Paris of the East. Visit Ngoc Son Temple, reached by crossing the iconic red Huc Bridge over Hoan Kiem Lake. Continue to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Presidential Palace, Presidential Garden, his House on Stilts, and One Pillar Pagoda.
Stroll through the Old Quarter, a maze of narrow streets lined with traditional shops, markets, and street food stalls. Note: if your flight lands after 4:00 p.m., the itinerary will be adapted to a night city tour or food tour.
Dinner at a local restaurant. Attend a traditional Water Puppet show. Optional extras include the Quintessence of Tonkin performance, a night tour of Hoa Lo Prison, or a hop-on hop-off bus.
Overnight in Hanoi
Hanoi to Ninh Binh — Hoa Lu and Trang An
Breakfast at the hotel. Drive through rural northern Vietnam to Hoa Lu, the first ancient capital of Vietnam. Explore the two remaining sanctuaries of the ancient citadel: the King Dinh Temple and the King Le Temple, set against a backdrop of limestone karsts, rivers, and lush greenery.
Lunch at a local restaurant. Continue 2 km to Trang An Boat Station and board a small sampan for a river journey through the Trang An Landscape Complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Glide through enormous limestone caves, past rice paddies, and along valleys enclosed by near-vertical cliffs, taking in the spectacular scenery.
Dinner at a local restaurant. Return to Hanoi. Enjoy the night market or optional night activities at leisure.
Overnight in Hanoi
Hanoi Departure
Breakfast at the hotel. Check out. Your guide and driver will transfer you to Noi Bai International Airport for your departure flight.