North Vietnam Package with Halong Bay Cruise

You will start your Vietnam 5 Day Itinerary in North by the arrival at the Noi Bai Airport.

Your first day in Hanoi, you will receive the warm-hearted welcome from our local guide in the airport and head straight to the center of the city (approximately an hour). After that, our guide will be happy to assist you to check-in at your hotel (normal check-in time is 14:00 but in some case, you still able to have a room earlier).

The city of Hanoi is an amazingly energetic place that forms harmony within contradicting elements: old world and new world, traditional and modern. One cannot say they have been to Hanoi if they have never visited Hanoi’s famous Old Quarter. The Old Quarter – the heart of the capital– is the oldest as well as the busiest district of Hanoi for centuries. Spending your leisure time wandering around and enjoying the fresh air of Hoan Kiem Lake (Sword Lake) will be highly recommended for you after having a long flight and get ready to discover the many popular attractions in Hanoi.

You may have lunch by yourself or rest in your hotel until late afternoon. Then it’s time for you to enjoy the first memorable thing in Hanoi: Water Puppet Show – one of the unique traditional arts of Vietnam and of the world. Our friendly guide will walk with you to the water puppet theater right in the center of Hoan Kiem Lake. It takes about 01 hour for the show and then you will be happily off to enjoy our warm welcome dinner at a lovely restaurant.

Ending the first day, you can feel free to walk around the Old Quarter by yourself and come back to our hotel for a good night's sleep.

Your Day 2 of this Vietnam 5 Day Itinerary you will visit Hanoi City Tour.

Starting the second day with Hanoi City Tour, your knowledgeable tour guide will pick you at your hotel lobby at 08:30. To discover all of the must-see places in Hanoi we will spend at least a full day. Beginning the tour with the Ho Chi Minh Complex including the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum (closed on Monday and Friday and every afternoon), the Ba Dinh Square, the Ho Chi Minh's House on Stilts and the One Pillar Pagoda – a unique architecture and tranquil garden. You will have a very special experience here with lines of visitors, including visiting foreign dignitaries, pay their respects at the mausoleum to see the body of Uncle Ho (Ho Chi Minh)-The Great Vietnamese President. 

After spending time at the first place, we will have a chance to visit one of the most popular museums in the city such as: Vietnam Military History Museum, Fine Arts Museum, Hoa Lo Prison Museum (as known as Hanoi Hilton – nicknamed by U.S pilots during the American war) or the Ethnology Museum which focuses on the 54 officially recognized ethnic groups in Vietnam.

Have a rest at noontime by having lunch in one of the local restaurants and well - prepared to continue our tour. 

In the afternoon, we will discover the first University of Vietnam- the Temple of Literature (Van Mieu- Quoc Tu Giam ). It was constructed in 1070 under Ly Thanh Tong's dynasty in order to honor the Confucius and nowadays to celebrate the doctorates and high-rank scholars of Vietnam. Turning back to the Old Quarter and it is the time for you to explore the interesting 36 streets (local people call Hanoi 36 Pho Phuong) where each street is named after, and often still linked to, the artisanal trade specific to it over centuries ago. The Hanoi City Tour ends. Dinner is your leisure activity and you can have free time for shopping or hang around before coming back to your hotel. 

Get ready our third day for Hoa Lu - Tam Coc Day Trip, we will transfer to Ninh Binh for about 02 hours. Tam Coc means “ three caves“ and many tourists visit Tam Coc because of its special and flawless natural scenery. Starting the tour by sampan boat rowed by the locals to go along Ngo Dong Rivers leading to the Tam Coc Caves. You’ll enjoy an outstanding range of green hills with rice fields at the base. It will change by the season before the harvest season, it may have green color then turn yellow when the harvest comes. That will be a great chance for you to chat with the local boat rower and understand more about the local life of people in Northern Vietnam. We will have our lunch at the local restaurant after we get back from the harbor.

In the early afternoon, our tour guide will take you to Hoa Lu Ancient Capital of Vietnam between the 10 and 11 centuries founded and protected by The Dinh and The Le Dynasties. You will have an opportunity to learn more about the unique architecture in wood carvings of Vietnamese in the 17th century as well as the valuable and historical relics while visiting The Dinh and The Le Temple. 

Your Hoa Lu Tam Coc Day Trip ends with the transfer to Hanoi. Coming back to Hanoi City Center, after showering and resting in the hotel, you will be shown all of the best street food Hanoi has to offer. Take a seat on a low-slung plastic stool, you will get to enjoy a front-row seat in the Old Quarter – one of the unique experience in Hanoi. There is a huge selection of street foods that the city offers: from Pho (Noodle Soup) – an internationally recognized Vietnamese dish to Bun Cha (Barbecued pork with vermicelli and Vietnamese veggies and several other options waiting for you. 

Today will be the best highlight of your Vietnam 5 Day Itinerary in North. We will visit Halong Bay - One of the most beautiful bay in the world and enjoy the cruise in Halong Bay trip.

After breakfast in the hotel, you will start the Halong Bay 1 Night Cruise from the busy city of Hanoi to the best heaven on earth of Halong Bay in reality. Our tour guide and driver will pick you up at 08:00 then start our journey through 3.5 hours (estimated around 165 km one-way drive ). On the way, you will have a chance to see and take photos of several rural areas from the beautiful rice-paddy fields scenery of Red River Delta countryside to the peace of Northern Vietnamese villages. By the middle way, we will have a short break for about 30 minutes. 

Around noon time, you will arrive at Tuan Chau Harbor and have a quick check-in process in the cabin on the cruise. The guide of the cruise will give you a general itinerary and information before serving lunch. Enjoy the splendid dishes from Vietnam (any diet is at your request) as you see the stunning scenery with thousands of limestone mountains and islands from your window. Take a nap then get ready to join the interesting onboard activities (subject to each boat’s itinerary) like kayaking, sampan boat rowing, swimming or cooking demonstration by the cruise chef or enjoy an icy-cold cocktail in happy hour on the sundeck. Dinner will be served on board. In the evening, you will be free to relax on your own. Otherwise, you could join others in squid fishing or watch movies about the amazing Halong Bay. Stay on the Halong Bay Overnight Cruise. 

One unique experience that you could have if you are staying overnight on the cruise, you will have an opportunity to do Tai-chi in the early morning. People believe that it will bring you long lasting life and health, and positivity if you practice Tai-Chi every day. After starting your day with morning exercise, you will enjoy a tasty breakfast to fill you with energy for kayaking to Hang Luon (Luon Cave)- a majestic cave which is inaccessible by the larger boats. It will be a remarkable experience to have in Halong Bay. Lunch will be provided and our Halong Bay 1 Night Cruise ends, disembark to Tuan Chau Harbor. Our guide and driver will be waiting there to take you directly to Noi Bai Airport to catch your flight back home or your next destinations. Say goodbye to Hanoi! North Vietnam 5 Day Itinerary ends!