Day 1: Hanoi Arrival
You will be collected from the airport and taken straight to the spa. A revitalising pampering session that includes a full body massage and sauna treatment will ease away the jet lag before we transfer to your hotel for check-in. In the afternoon, we start our exploration of historical Hanoi with visits to a series of cultural sites, including Thang Long Citadel, the Temple of Literature and the Fine Arts Museum.
Day 2: Hanoi – Ky Son Village
After breakfast, we board a coach and drive southwest of Hanoi to Ky Son village, where we spend the day immersing ourselves into local life. During our stay, we will learn how to prepare traditional Vietnamese delicacies, join locals for their morning Tai Chi session and discover nearby villages during a leisurely bike ride through breath-taking rural scenery.
Depending on the season, we can spend some time joining farmers as they tend to their rice fields, feed animals at nearby farms and spend time hanging out with villagers. After an intense day of activities, we will enjoy a feast of local food before once again being pampered with a soothing ginger-based foot treatment.
The train arrives in Lao Cai early morning and we have breakfast before driving to Sapa. Here, we visit a bustling local market and take a quick tour of the town before enjoying lunch at a local restaurant.
We then continue on our drive to Muong Hoa Valley to start our trek. The valley is home to simply stunning scenery, with a rich patchwork of rice terraces trickling down the valley’s verdant slopes. As we walk through this breath-taking landscape, our guide will provide us with fascinating facts about rice production. Our hiking trail takes us from Lao Chai village, home to Black Hmong ethnic minorities, to Ta Van village, where the Giay minority live. This gives us the chance to learn more about the culture and traditions of these hill tribes.
Day 3: Ky Son Villlage – Ninh Binh
After breakfast, we wave goodbye to Ky Son village and head to Ninh Binh, home to sweeping landscapes that take in shimmering rice paddies, rolling tree-clad hills and dramatic limestone karsts. We visit the temple of King Dinh, or King Le, in Hoa Lu valley. This spot served as the ancient capital of Vietnam before King Ly relocated it to Thang Long-Hanoi.
We lap up our delightful surroundings with a leisurely bicycle ride from Hoa Lu to Tam Coc (10 km) and enjoy lunch at a local restaurant. We then drive to Thung Nang, where we board a small sampan and ride along the waterways, paddling past lush, green rice fields and farmers tending to their land.
Day 4: Ninh Binh – Lan Ha Bay
After an early-morning breakfast, we enjoy the refreshing country breeze before moving to iconic Lan Ha Bay. The UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to thousands of dramatic limestone karsts that jut out of the ocean.
We will board our boat to spend the day and night exploring this fascinating natural phenomenon. Unlike Camille and Jean-Bapstite in the famous movie Indochine, we enjoy a lavish meal and take part in a variety of activities, including swimming and kayaking among the ancient rock formations, fishing and learning to cook like a local with an on-board cooking demonstration. Alternatively, you can kick back and relax on the sun deck, soak up the sublime surroundings and enjoy a sundowner cocktail.
Day 5: Lan Ha Bay – Hanoi
A hearty breakfast is enjoyed on the boat as we pass by more of the bay’s intriguing rock formations and dramatic limestone islets that have been created over millions of years of harsh weather conditions and raging seas. There are a range of activities for passengers to enjoy, including fishing and informative talks from the crew about the sites we sail by.
Alternatively, kick back on the deck and soak up the sublime scenery. We arrive at the pier by late morning and disembark to enjoy lunch at a local restaurant before driving back to Hanoi (about 2.5 hours).
We will then check-in to your overnight accommodation before you have the rest of the afternoon to explore the bustling city at leisure.
Day 6: Moc Chau – Mai Chau
After breakfast, we leave Moc Chau and head to Mai Chau on a soft trek that takes us through rich countryside. Our trail weaves through sprawling corn fields, emerald rice paddies, tea hills and orchards swelling with plums, peaches and other fruit. We will pass through the small hill tribe villages and hamlets that pepper the sweeping landscapes, meeting the indigenous Hmong and Thai ethnic minorities that call them home.
We enjoy a delicious local lunch, cooked up in the kitchen of a house in a village we pass through. We then return to our accommodation to check-out and continue to Mai Chau to check-in at an eco-lodge. The rest of the afternoon is at your leisure to explore the town before dinner at our overnight accommodation.
Day 7: Mai Chau – Hanoi
After a hearty breakfast at the hotel, you have the rest of the day at your leisure before driving to Hanoi International Airport for your onward flight, bringing this six-day tour of the Tonkin region to an end.
