Vietnam Culinary 12 days

Warmly welcome on arrival Tan Son Nhat Airport by our driver & AC car.
Our driver transfers you to hotel in Ho Chi Minh.
The rest of the day is at your leisure.

Accommodation: Hotel in Saigon

8:00: Welcome tourists at hotel leave for Cu Chi Tunnels - played a vital part in the U.S.-Vietnam War in that they allowed the Viet Cong to control a large rural area only 30 to 40 km from former Saigon. At its height, the tunnel system stretched from Saigon to the Cambodian border. The network, parts of which were several levels deep, included innumerable trap doors, specially constructed living areas, storage facilities, weapons factories, field hospitals, command centers, and kitchens.

Visit and explore Cu Chi Tunnel - become a major tourist attraction giving the visitor a unique experience and feel of what underground life during the war must have been like. The tunnels have been widened for our benefit (otherwise we would not be able to enter them!) For those interested there's even the opportunity to fire off rounds from an AK47 or MK16 at the nearby rifle range.

Drive back the City then have lunch at local restaurant.
In the afternoon, you will have a chance to discover the Ho Chi Minh city tour through the visits of: War Remnants Museum, The Reunification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office.
Don't miss the bustling Ben Thanh Market - a fantastic place for bargains of every kind!
17:00 Ending tour at your hotel.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Hotel in Saigon

Have breakfast at your hotel.
Get picked up from your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City at 7:30 am.
Visiting HCM Agricultural Villages: Cow areas; Buffalo Areas; Rice Fields; Fish, prawn, chicken, duck areas; Big Herbs, Spices, Vegetables, and Mushrooms areas.
Here you can pick up a lot of Herbs, Spices, Vegetables, and Mushrooms on the garden
Next, you will have challenges cooking Challenges with three dishes and 1 dessert then enjoy what you have done.
It’s time to collect the cooking class certificate and drive back to city.
13:30: End tour at your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Hotel in Saigon

08:00am Pick up from your hotel to Saigon to go to Ben Tre.

The boat will cruise along the Ham Luong river (a branch of the Mekong) and stop off at various local workplaces to give you a picture of how the local economy works, including a brickwork, where bricks are still painstakingly made by hand; a salt refinery; a coconut processing workshop, where you can sample fresh coconut and see how every single part of this versatile nut is turned into food and other products; and a mat weaving house, where straw mats are woven using a hand loom – you can even have a go at weaving yourself!

The boat will then stop at a quiet village where you can have a short walk to experience real Delta village life, before boarding your xe loi (a kind of motorized rickshaw) and travelling into the forest where you can visit fruit orchards before stopping at a riverside restaurant for a delicious and filling lunch, featuring such local specialties as elephant-ear fish and river shrimp, washed down with some cold drinks or beers.

After lunch, it’s time to board a sampan for a relaxing trip along narrow canals.

16:00 End tour at your hotel in Ho Chi Minh.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Hotel in Saigon

Free at leisure until being picked up and transferred to Tan Son Nhat Airport for about 30 minutes by our driver for your flight to Da Nang City. It takes about 1 hour to fly from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang.

Upon arrival at Da Nang Airport, be welcomed and picked up by our driver to transfer to Hoi An.

Check-in to your hotel and free at leisure.

17:00 Zip off the usual tourist trail, and straight into foodie heaven. A local food-loving guide will uncover hidden treasures and snacks favored by locals, such as white rose, bread, sweet soup.

Next, go to Hoi an local market and wander around the food stalls, where you might find amazing cao lau noodle and much more. Next, we will taste Vietnamese coffee

Then, head to the heart of Hoi An ancient town, sit on authentic boat on Hoai river in the evening and release flower garlands like a local. You also listen to interesting daily stories from boatmen. If you join our tour on Thursday and Saturday, we will play traditional folk games like Bai Choi (Bingo game), Dap Nieu (blindfolded game).

21:00 After tour, you have the option to return to your hotel, or on Pub Street, where you can experience Hoi An bar life.

Meals: B, D

Accommodation: Hotel in Hoi An

Have breakfast at your hotel.

08:00am In the morning picking up you at hotel lobby.

Ride a bicycle to a local farm in Tra Que village. You will take a trip around the vegetable garden and join the farmers in preparing the land and fertilizing it with seaweed from the local lake. Continue doing some next steps such as: raking the ground, sowing, watering greens, picking greens and many more gardening activities.

Then spend the rest of the morning working the land in the time honored way. Before riding back to Hoi An, on the way back we will stop at Japanese tomb and Chuc Thanh Pagoda

Have lunch at local restaurant.

In the afternoon, walk to the old town, buy entrance tickets and begin the tour.

Follow the narrow lanes lined with centuries-old houses influenced by Chinese, Japanese, French and European architectures and visit its numerous places of interest: the … 400-year old Japanese Covered Bridge, the Phuc Kien Assembly Halls, the local fish market

After your walking tour, if you have free time, you can do shopping at the old town. Guide will take you back to the hotel.

16:00 Drop off at the hotel.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Hotel in Hoi An

Have breakfast then check out of your hotel.

Take a car ride from Hoi An to Hue (3 hours). Pass by Danang, visit the Cham Museum. En route visit Marble Mountain, and see Lang Co Beach, Hai Van Pass and My Khe Beach.

Arrive in Hue. Have lunch at local restaurant then Check in to your hotel in Hue.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Hotel in Hue

In the morning, 8:00 start your trip, board a boat for a trip on the Perfume River to visit the towering Thien Mu Pagoda, one of the most famous Vietnamese landmarks. Differing legends explain how the pagoda came to be - one tells of an old woman who instructed Lord Hoang Nguyen in 1601 to walk contemplatively along the river with a lit incense stick and to build a city at the spot where the incense stopped burning.

We then take a short drive into a lush valley of the river where seven tombs were built for seven Nguyen emperors. Each is an expression of the unique personality of the man whose remains it holds and each is comprised of three elements: a temple dedicated to the worship of the deceased emperor and his queen, a stone stele that records the biographical and historical high points of his life, and the royal tomb itself. We will visit two of the tombs of emperors Minh Mang and Khai Dinh before driving outside of town for a lunch of classic Hue cuisine at a restaurant in a beautiful garden setting.

In the afternoon, we return to the center of Hué city. The massive Kinh Thanh Citadel is the most well known and iconic site in Hué. Begun in 1805 by Emperor Gia Long, it is actually a sprawling complex comprised of the Imperial City, several museums, lakes, and lovely gardens, all laid out in a series of concentric circles. We also visit the Forbidden Purple City, originally built in the early 1800s for the personal use of the emperor and staffed by eunuchs who posed no threat to the royal concubines. Nearly destroyed in the Tet Offensive, the ruins today house the Royal Library and the grounds flourish with mimosa plants and vegetable gardens.

17:00 End tour at Hue Airport. Take flight Hue – Hanoi.

Arrive in Noi Bai Airport, get picked and transferred to your hotel in Hanoi.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

Have breakfast at your hotel. Start an exciting day with awesome cooking class.

08:30am Driver pick you up from your hotel and transfer to cooking class then we will meet at cooking class. Enjoy a special Vietnamese welcome tea

Next, a short brief introduction to Vietnamese cuisine highlighting the contents of tradition meal.

After that, you will take a short walk to the Chau Long Market - Enjoy a tour of the market highlighting the ‘wet’ / unusual fruits / livestock / silk worms, with Tracey Lister and/or cooking center chefs. A lot of opportunities for you to take photos

After the market tour, back to cooking center and commence cooking class with Tracey Lister and /or cooking center chefs. Take home printed recipes as well as samples of some local fruit, green bean cake, quail eggs, etc.

On completion of the cooking class, enjoy the meal and a chance to chat with Tracey Lister and Dinh Phung Linh. Relax in the comfort of the cooking center dining area and enjoy free flow local beer or wine or lemon juice

12.30pm Finish cooking class. Receive going home gift and visit the cooking center shop with Vietnamese Culinary tools, books, spices etc available for purchase

12:30 Our drive and tour guide pick you up at your hotel then transfer to Temple of Literature - the first university in Vietnam, the site of Vietnam's oldest university and dedicated to one of the world's most famous scholars, Confucius.

From here, we continue the walking tour of Hanoi 's vibrant Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake , the focal point of the city. This is not only a beautiful spot but also is the historical site of the legend of Le King and golden turtle in the lake. Our guide will tell you about the legend of the lake and how it become one of the Must-See places in Hanoi Old Quarter for both domestic and international tourists.

16:30: Come back to your Hotel, finish the tour.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

This morning leave Hanoi for Halong Bay – World Natural Heritage site – via the Red River Delta with 3.5 hours drive. Upon arrival to Halong Bay, you will be welcomed on board for a junk cruise and set sail in the bay while lunch is served. Cruising further in the the magical bay, you can see thousands of sculpted limestone islands rising from the waves like dragons' teeth on the turquoise waters.

After lunch, take a short trek to a nearby summit for a panoramic view of the bay, swimming on a quiet beach or sunbathing on the sundeck. Late afternoon, visit an interesting fishing village with an opportunity to interact with fishermen who have been living in the bay for almost three generations.

At sunset, kayak or simply take a bamboo rowboat to discover a water tunnel with many coral reefs in a scenic lagoon. Back on board your junk, enjoy watching the peaceful sunset and later unwind at a restaurant with dinner served. Overnight on board.

Meals: B, L

Accommodation: Cruise

Wake up on the bay to the sounds of waves and bird welcoming the new day. You will have an opportunity to view the sunrise over the bay.

After breakfast, visit a beautiful limestone grotto then walk back to the boat for a final glimpse of the majestic Halong Bay while cruising back to the dock.

Get picked up and transferred by the shuttle bus to Hanoi. Free at leisure the rest of the day and overnight at Hanoi Hotel.

Meals: B, Br

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

You have the morning free to relax before your return flight home. Finish unforgettable Vietnam trip.

Then you will be transferred to Airport for your flight back home.

Good bye & see you in the next time!

Meals: B

Accommodation: N/A