Journey Through Vietnam

Depart U.S. for Hanoi, Vietnam

Depending on flight schedules, guests from certain U.S. cities may require a departure one day prior to your listed tour departure date. In most cases, you will be able to connect within a few hours to your connecting flight en route to Hanoi, where you will meet your tour director.

Arrive in the Vietnamese capital late this evening. After collecting your bags, please exit the baggage claim area into the arrivals hall where you will be met by a representative (holding an Odysseys Unlimited sign) to transfer you to the hotel. As guests’ arrival times may vary greatly today, no group activities are planned.

Overnight: InterContinental Hanoi Westlake

In the morning, take an orientation tour of this French-accented city with its broad, tree-lined boulevards and French-colonial architecture. Pass Hoan Kiem Lake in the heart of the city where legend has it that, in the 1400s, a deity rose from the lake and reclaimed the magic sword of Emperor Le Thai To, which was once used to drive the Chinese from Vietnam. Also see the marvelous Temple of Literature, founded in 1070 and dedicated to Confucius. (It later became Vietnam’s first university and remains an active place of worship). Pay respects at Hoa Lo Prison, also known as “Hanoi Hilton”, where throughout the Vietnam War and for many years thereafter the North Vietnamese Army held American soldiers. After time for lunch, walk through the narrow streets of the Ancient Quarter (the “36 Streets District”), where streets are designated by the type of goods you can find there – Shoe Street, Sugar Street, Paper Street, etc. This is also one of the city’s most popular gastronomic areas, with dozens of excellent restaurants, one of which will be the host venue for the welcome dinner tonight.

Overnight: InterContinental Hanoi Westlake

Meals: B, L, D

Depart early on a full-day excursion to Ha Long Bay (“Bay of the Descending Dragon”), Vietnam’s legendary waterway sprinkled with some 2,000 islands and islets and surrounded by a fairytale landscape of limestone cliffs and hidden caves. A UNESCO World Heritage site, Ha Long Bay is the home of ancient cultures dating back 25,000 years. The tour here includes a boat ride on the placid waters and a lunch of local seafood specialties. Please note that the weather in this region can be cooler and quite foggy, but it adds to the mystique of the bay. Return to the hotel in Hanoi and have the evening free to sample some of Hanoi’s renowned fares.

Overnight: InterContinental Hanoi Westlake

Meals: B, L

In the morning, enjoy a walking tour of Ba Dinh Square, a popular complex of cultural and historic sites. This was where, on September 2, 1945, Communist Party leader Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence, officially establishing the nation of Vietnam. Today, his memory is honored by the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, a massive granite tomb complex inspired by Lenin’s Mausoleum in Moscow. Interestingly, Ho Chi Minh wished to be cremated, but the nation so mourned him that it chose instead to construct this edifice to house his remains. Inside, Ho Chi Minh rests in a glass sarcophagus, visible to onlookers. Also see the bright mustard-colored French colonial Presidential Palace, the official residence of the president of Vietnam that was originally constructed to house the French governor-general of Indochina; and the 1,000-year-old One Pillar Pagoda, built on a single stone pillar to resemble a lotus blossom.

After time for lunch on your own, fly to Vietnam’s third largest city, Da Nang, situated at the mouth of the Han River on the country’s south-central coast. Da Nang is the commercial and educational hub of central Vietnam and the third biggest economic center after Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Tour the acclaimed Museum of Cham Sculpture, home to the world’s largest collection of Cham sculptures and artifacts, all of which date from the 7th to 15th centuries. The Cham people are a small ethnic group which originated in Southeast Asia millennia ago – in fact, written records of Chams date all the way back to the 2nd century CE, but their numbers have dwindled to less than half a million worldwide. Culturally, the Cham people have been influenced by many forces, ranging from Chinese to Indian and Arabian (indeed, the state religion was Hinduism for many centuries, but now a large number of Chams practice a hybrid form of Hinduism and Islam). Built in 1915, the museum is constructed in Cham style, featuring simple lines, smooth corners, and windows that are open to the sea air. 

Head to your beachfront hotel and have dinner together this evening.

Overnight: Hyatt Regency Danang Resort & Spa

Meals: B, D

Travel to the nearby town of Hoi An, an ancient market city which had the largest harbor in Southeast Asia during the 1st century CE. Now riddled with canals and waterways, Hoi An was originally the commercial capital of the Cham people before seeing a succession of Dutch, Chinese, Portuguese, and Japanese traders contribute to the building of an architecturally diverse and colorful village (which is now a UNESCO World Heritage site). Indeed, during the early part of the 17th century, Hoi An was known as one of the most important trading ports in all of Asia, welcoming tradesmen from as far away as Egypt and England. These days, the streets belong to pedestrians and bicyclists, as no cars are allowed – making it perfect for exploring on foot. Take a walking tour, passing the Japanese covered bridge, Chinese communal house, and the many low, tile-roofed houses that line the narrow streets. Next, attend a cooking lesson, the results of which you may enjoy for lunch. 

The rest of the day is at leisure to either remain in Hoi An and explore on your own (the town boasts numerous art galleries, shops, and tailors), or to return to your beachside resort for a relaxing afternoon. Dinner tonight is on your own.

Overnight: Hyatt Regency Danang Resort & Spa

Meals: B, D

Visit a neighboring village nestled amidst seemingly endless rice paddies. Gain a special insight into the everyday life of a local farming community as you walk through the village, passing modest homes, gardens of vegetables and fruit, the village temple, and a husking mill. Depending on the season, you may see the villagers engaged in threshing and harvesting. Enjoy lunch together at a local restaurant, then have the remainder of the afternoon and evening at leisure.

Overnight: Hyatt Regency Danang Resort & Spa

Meals: B, L

Depart this morning by coach for the ancient imperial capital of Hue, whose temples and attractions evoke its past grandeur as home to emperors and mandarins. Hue was the capital of Vietnam during the reign of the feudal Nguyen lords from 1802 until 1945, and remained on the world stage due to its location near the border between North and South Vietnam. The city suffered considerable damage during the Vietnam War, mainly during the Tet Offensive of 1968. In contrast to many cities in Europe, whose historical ruins were rebuilt after conflicts, Hue’s fascinating architecture was left as rubble for many years as a slight from the Communist regime towards the previous “reactionary” Nguyen rulers. 

After checking in at your hotel, enjoy a ride in a traditional cyclo: a three-wheeled bicycle in which passengers sit across a bench in front and the driver pilots from behind. From this unique vantage point, tour the Imperial Citadel, whose innermost complex houses the Forbidden Purple City, a place only the emperor, his family, and his servants were allowed entrance. A vast complex of palaces, residences, temples, courtyards, and gates, the Imperial Citadel was built in 1804 to resemble the Forbidden City of Beijing and was guarded by moats more than six miles long and walls six feet thick. Today, it is protected as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Also visit the Dong Ba Central Market, where locals buy their produce, fish, meat, and sundry items, such as Vietnam’s ubiquitous conical hats, ironware, jewelry, and tea. 

Tonight, have dinner at a local restaurant while listening to traditional music.

Overnight: Silk Path Grand Hue Hotel

Meals: B, D

Cruise along Hue’s Perfume River via sampan (a traditional, flat-bottomed boat used by coastal fishermen) to the the peaceful Thien Mu Pagoda, a Buddhist monastery that ranks among the city’s oldest and most important monuments. The pagoda was built in 1601 by the first ruler of the Nguyen dynasty; its seven-story octagonal tower makes it the tallest religious building in Vietnam. After admiring this symbol of Hue, we visit the palatial Tomb of Minh Mang (c. 1840), with its pavilions, reception hall, summer house, lakes, gardens, and courtyards modeled after the Ming Tombs of China. Surrounded by a forest and sitting on the west bank of the Perfume River, this complex contains an elaborate series of gates, pavilions, staircases, and bridges (three of which span the evocatively named Lake of Impeccable Clarity), all leading to the emperor’s tomb. The tomb is only opened once every year on the anniversary of Minh Mang’s death (January 20). 

Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant and then visit two other tombs: Tu Duc, sitting in a narrow valley within a pine forest and considered one of the most beautiful works of royal architecture from the Nguyen dynasty; and Khai Dinh, an elaborate architectural mélange of European, Asian, ancient, and modern styles. Dinner tonight is on your own.

Overnight: Silk Path Grand Hue Hotel

Meals: B, L

Today is a travel day that begins with a morning coach ride to Da Nang, where you transfer to the airport for your flight to the river port of Can Tho. This is the provincial capital where the various waterways that comprise the Mekong Delta converge – and where you spend the next two nights at your riverside hotel. Arrive late this afternoon with time to relax and enjoy the hotel’s amenities before dinner tonight.

Overnight: Victoria Can Tho Resort

Meals: B, L, D

Rise early for an excursion by boat to the floating vegetable market at Cai Rang, one of many such markets on the Mekong’s lower reaches. Lifeblood of southern Vietnam (and the world’s 12th-longest river), the Mekong River is surpassed only by the Amazon in terms of aquatic biodiversity. Its tributaries cover some 15,600 square miles of southwestern Vietnam and supplies half of the country’s rice and fish, so it’s no wonder why it is considered a biological treasure-trove. Millions of people live within the mighty river’s drainage basin, which counts as one of the country’s two “rice bowls,” as well as a major producer of vegetables and tropical fruit. It is along the river that locals conduct the business of everyday life, as you see farmers lined up displaying and selling their goods by advertising them via bamboo poles suspended over their boats. After this scenic outing, visit Old Can Tho Market on foot, soaking up more of Vietnamese market life. Have the remainder of the afternoon at leisure before enjoying dinner together at a local restaurant.

Overnight: Victoria Can Tho Resort

Meals: B, D

A coach ride this morning brings you to Cai Be in the upper reaches of the storied Mekong. Here, board motorized sampans for an up-close look at river life as we explore the maze of tributaries and inlets that lead to tiny settlements and villages populated by fishermen and farmers. Reminiscent of the canals and creeks of the American bayou, these channels wind through the overgrown landscape and provide transport, trade, and connection to the outside world for these settlements.

Have lunch together, then travel by coach to Saigon (the name Ho Chi Minh City is used interchangeably). Once the proud capital of South Vietnam, Saigon was renamed in 1976 by the war’s Communist victors as Ho Chi Minh City and virtually closed to the outside world. Since the institution of economic and political reforms in the mid-1980s and the reentry of a peaceful and united Vietnam into the community of nations several years ago, Saigon has once again reclaimed its more cosmopolitan outlook – and its former name. Reach your hotel late this afternoon, and then dinner is on your own in this vibrant city.

Overnight: Sofitel Saigon Plaza

Meals: B, L

History comes alive this morning with a visit to the Reunification Palace, the former South Vietnamese Presidential Palace and wartime headquarters that remains preserved just as it was on April 30, 1975, when Communist tanks entered the city. Also tour the History Museum, housing a fine collection of art and artifacts of Vietnam’s indigenous peoples. Continue to the stunning Central Post Office and the Jade Emperor Pagoda, which was built in honor of this supreme Taoist god. Constructed in 1909 by Saigon’s Chinese community, the pagoda is still a working shrine used by locals and is known for its intricate wood panel carvings and statues depicting scenes from Taoist and Buddhist lore. 

Later, attend a traditional water puppet performance and then enjoy dinner together at the hotel.

Overnight: Sofitel Saigon Plaza

Meals: B, D

On this morning’s tour, visit a place of infamy: the Cu Chi Tunnels. Built over a period of 25 years beginning in the 1940s and used to sabotage the French occupiers, the tunnels are marvels of engineering, stretching from Saigon to the Cambodian border. Parts of the tunnels descend several stories deep, and include living areas, storage facilities, weapon factories, field hospitals, and kitchens. Americans will be most familiar with the tunnels because of the role they played during the war: these tunnels allowed the Viet Cong to engage in combat in an area completely surrounded by Americans and South Vietnamese. Those who choose to will have a chance to descend into one of the tunnels, while those choosing to remain outside will have ample opportunities to tour the excavations above. Our guide will advise about each tunnel’s length and level of difficulty before entering. Note: If you choose to go underground, wear clothing that can get dirty (you will also need a pair of sturdy walking shoes).

Return to your hotel in time for lunch on your own; then the remainder of the day is free to explore as you wish. Saigon boasts virtually hundreds of pagodas and places of worship, including the Giac Lam Pagoda, the city’s oldest. Other options include a stroll along the city streets, a shopping excursion for fine silks and locally made crafts, or a visit to one of the colorful free markets or the Saigon Opera House. 

Tonight, gather for a farewell dinner.

Overnight: Sofitel Saigon Plaza

Meals: B, D

Depart for the airport and board your flight(s) to the U.S. 

Depending on flight schedules, some guests will leave in the morning and return to the U.S. this evening, while others will depart this evening and return to the U.S. one day later, on Day 16. Guests with evening flights will have hotel rooms reserved for late checkout.

Guests on the “Cambodia: Angkor Wat & Phnom Penh” Post-Tour Extension will fly at midday to Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Meals: B