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Itinerary
for Vietnam Overland TET Tour - January 2012 |
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Included meals are indicated as B =
Breakfast, L =Lunch, D = Dinner |
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20.01.12
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Depart Sydney at
9.15am on SQ 212, arriving in Singapore at 2.25pm.
Depart Brisbane at
9.20am on SQ 256, arriving in Singapore at 3.15pm.
Depart Melbourne at 11.00am on SQ 238, arriving in Singapore at 3.45pm.
All passengers depart Singapore at 5.40pm on SQ 186, arriving in Saigon
(Ho Chi Minh) at 6.45pm. Upon arrival you will be met and
transferred to the Huong Sen Hotel for check-in.
Accommodation: Huong Sen Hotel.
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21.01.12
(B/L) |
Saigon
In the morning
there is a half day Saigon tour, including a short walking tour around
downtown to the Opera House, City Hall , Notre Dame Cathedral and the
Central Post Office. Visit the former Presidential Palace
(Reunification Palace), War Remnants Museum and China Town walking
through Cho Lon, the biggest wholesale market in Vietnam, then to
see the
Thien Hau Temple, which is the oldest Chinese temple dedicated to the
Sea Goddess. Enjoy lunch at Pho Restaurant for Pho (traditional
Vietnamese noodle soup) and spring rolls. The rest of the day is at
leisure.
Accommodation: Huong Sen Hotel.
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22.01.12
(B/L) |
Saigon - Cu Chi
A half day tour to
Cu Chi, a fascinating tunnel network built by the Viet Cong in the
Vietnam War. A 'TET' lunch with traditional food and 'free flow' drinks
at a local family home. Enjoy the flower festival on the main
boulevard, interesting activities before New Year Eve and watch
fireworks on the rooftop restaurant of the hotel at midnight. The
atmosphere of the gathering of millions of people on the street at
midnight to celebrate 'TET', the traditional new year of the Vietnamese.
Accommodation: Huong Sen Hotel. |
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23.01.12
(B/L) |
Saigon - My Tho (Mekong Delta)
"Chuc Mung Nam Moi" is what everyone would say to each other today for
a Happy New Year!
Morning departure
from the hotel for a coach trip to My Tho which is an interesting
two hour drive
from Ho Chi Minh City. My Tho is a prosperous town of 200,000
inhabitants in the Mekong Delta. It is famous for its extensive
orchards and immense rice fields. Enjoy a 4-5 hour boat ride on the
Mekong stopping at an island to visit an orchard and taste some
fruit. Continue on small sampans through canals to see more local life,
a horse cart ride (typical transportation of local people), visit to a
coconut candy workshop and
an bee-keeping
farm. Lunch is at a farmer's house. Return to Saigon late
afternoon.
Accommodation: Huong Sen Hotel. |
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24.01.12
(B/L/D) |
Saigon - Dalat
Depart Saigon for
Dalat, a cool mountain resort built by the French in the 1920's as
a
hill station. Its lakes, waterfall, evergreen forest and gardens make
Dalat one of the most enjoyable places in Vietnam. You take a beautiful
drive through rubber, coffee and tea plantations, with a
stopover
at La Nga floating village with lunch at Lien Do Restaurant in Bao Loc.
Upon arrival in Dalat we check in to our hotel.
Dinner tonight is at a nice local restaurant.
Accommodation: Hoang Anh Resort. |
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25.01.12
(B/D) |
Dalat
Morning Dalat city
orientation tour with a 15 minute cable car ride overlooking
beautiful pine forests and
flower and vegetable gardens, then visit the Crazy House, Bao
Dai's
summer villa, city flower garden and an embroidery workshop. Free time
to wander around the market area. In the late afternoon leave Dalat for
Lat village to see the K'hor people
and enjoy an
interesting one hour music and dance show of the local ethnic minority
people of
the area. Dinner is at a local restaurant.
Accommodation: Hoang Anh Resort. |
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26.01.12
(B/L) |
Dalat - Nha Trang
Enjoy a short train ride through vegetable gardens to Trai Mat then
visit to Linh Phuoc Pagoda, a famous beer bottle and ceramic fragments
pagoda in town.
Depart Dalat for
Nha Trang, a very popular beach resort for Vietnamese and foreign
tourists. On the way visit Poklongiarai Cham Tower before enjoying a
picnic
lunch. Arrive Nha Trang mid afternoon, check-in to our hotel.
Accommodation: Michelia Hotel. |
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27.01.12
(B/L) |
Nha Trang
This morning enjoy
a boat trip to visit Tri Nguyen Aquarium and Mieu Island then Mun
Island for swimming and snorkelling. Lunch is at a nice local
restaurant.
This afternoon will be at leisure for your own exploration of Nha Trang.
Accommodation: Michelia Hotel. |
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28.01.12
(B/L/D) |
Nha Trang - Qui Nhon
Today you will
enjoy a beautiful
drive through prawn, crab farms, sugar cane and rice paddies. Lunch is
on
the way. Arrive in Qui Nhon mid afternoon, with free time to wander
around this interesting town. Dinner tonight is at the hotel.
Accommodation: Seagull Hotel. |
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29.01.12
(B/L/D) |
Qui Nhon - Hoi An
Today
we drive to the My
Lai Memorial where 504 villagers were killed by the American soldiers
in 1968, six weeks after Tet offensive. Enjoy a picnic lunch before
continuing on
to Hoi An. Upon arrival check in to your hotel. Dinner tonight is at an
excellent cafe in town "LY".
Accommodation: Hoi An Hotel. |
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30.01.12
(B/D) |
Hoi An
This morning there
will be a short walking
tour to orient you with the town.
Discover historical Hoi An, which was a prosperous seaport
city during the 16th to 18th centuries. Its community of foreign
merchants resulted in a unique architectural style with Vietnamese,
Chinese, Japanese and French influences. Hoi An is a good place
for shopping,
especially tailoring, and is a very laid-back town, only 4km to the
beach. A
good place to relax. In the afternoon, we will have a one hour cruise
on the Thu Bon River
before a beautiful
dinner with a cooking class in a nice local restaurant, 'Morning Glory'.
Accommodation: Hoi An Hotel. |
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31.01.12
(B/L) |
Hoi An - My Son - Hoi An
A half day tour
today to
visit My Son, the imperial city of the Champa Empire from the 4th to
12th centuries. My Son Sanctuary is a large complex of religious ruins
comprising more than 70 architectural remains. UNESCO recognized the
Cham architecture in My Son as a cultural heritage site in 1999. Lunch
is at a local restaurant in Hoi An. The rest of the day at leisure.
Accommodation: Hoi An Hotel.
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01.02.12
(B/L) |
Hoi An - Hue
Depart Hoi An for
Hue, the homeland of the Nguyen dynasty, the last dynasty of Vietnam
which ruled the country from 1802 to 1945. We travel over the Hai Van
Pass (Pass of the Ocean Clouds), passing through many pretty red-tiled
villages with fruit orchards, enjoying spectacular views of sky and
sea. Stop over at the 5 marble Mountains and China Beach, where the
Americans came for their R&R during the Vietnam war. Lunch is at a
nice cafe
in Hue 'The Mandarin'. This afternoon we will enjoy a one hour cyclo
ride around this
interesting city.
Accommodation: Saigon Morin Hotel. |
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02.02.12
(B/D) |
Hue
Morning
tour to the Citadel which was built from 1804-1833, then to Thien
Mu Pagoda, a famous one in Hue and Vietnam. You then take a boat trip
back to the hotel
along the Perfume River. In the mid afternoon we visit the tomb of Tu
Duc, the 4th emperor of
the Nguyen dynasty which ruled the country from 1848 to 1883 and the
tomb of Khai Dinh, the 12th emperor of the Nguyen dynasty which ruled
the country from 1916 to 1925, a beautiful mosaic building. Dinner
is at a nice local restaurant.
Accommodation: Saigon Morin Hotel. |
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03.02.12
(B/L/D) |
Hue - Vinh
Depart Hue for
Vinh, a city in the north badly damaged by the American bombings during
the
war, and was rebuilt by East Germany. This is the homeland of a very
famous person in Vietnam and the world, Ho Chi Minh. On the way you
stop at Ben Hai
River known as the DMZ. Lunch is in Dong Hoi. Arrive in Vinh in the
late
afternoon. Dinner tonight is at the hotel.
Accommodation: Saigon Kim Lien Hotel. |
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04.02.12
(B/L/D) |
Vinh - Hanoi
In the morning you take a tour to visit where Ho Chi Minh (called
by the people Bac Ho, uncle Ho) was
born and grew up. Depart Vinh for Hanoi, the capital of the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam, a very strong French influenced city which is one
of the 10 most beautiful cities in Asia. On the way stop over at Tam
Coc known as Dry Halong Bay where you will enjoy a one hour boat ride
in a sampan on a small stream winding between rice fields and limestone
cliffs rising almost vertically out of the paddy fields. A spectacular
sight! Lunch is at Dzung restaurant in Tam Coc.
Arrive into Hanoi early evening. Dinner is at a nice local restaurant.
Accommodation: Royal Gate Hotel or similar. |
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05.02.12
(B/L/D) |
Hanoi
This morning we
will have a half day tour with visits to Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum,
and residence, then to the Ethnology Museum. Lunch will be at KOTO. The
rest of the day is at leisure.
In the evening enjoy the water puppet show, an unique art of the
Vietnamese from the 11th Century. Dinner is at a nice local restaurant.
Accommodation: Royal Gate Hotel or similar. |
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06.02.12
(B/L) |
Hanoi
In the morning enjoy a one hour interesting cyclo tour around the Old
and
French Quarter of Hanoi. Then a visit to the Temple of Literature,
built in the 11th century,
which is known as Vietnam's first university. Lunch is at 'Little
Hanoi' Restaurant. The rest of the day is at leisure.
Accommodation: Royal Gate Hotel or similar. |
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07.02.12
(B/L/D) |
Hanoi - Halong Bay
Depart Hanoi for Halong Bay, listed as a world heritage area of
outstanding natural beauty. Dragon descending on the sea', as it is
known in Vietnamese,
picturesque Halong Bay has around 1,969 limestone islets rising from
the clear emerald water, many of them containing beautiful grottoes.
Arrive Halong, then board Bai Tho Junk for check-in registration. Lunch
is on board. You have a fantastic cruise in Halong Bay with a visit to
Sung Sot Cave and a swim at Titov Beach. Enjoy dinner on board while
watching the sunset. (It depends on the weather condition).
Accommodation: Bai Tho Junk. |
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08.02.12
(B/L/D) |
Halong Bay
We have a few more hours on the junk, in this time we will have a
morning cruise where you pass Man's Head Island and Tortoise Island.
You will visit Luon cave by a small bamboo boat, you will then pass Bai
Tu Long Bay, Toad Island and Bai Tho Mountain. Early lunch on board
before disembarking. A drive around Halong city before checking into
your hotel. The afternoon is at leisure to enjoy the scenery of the bay
from the balcony of the hotel or perhaps have a swim in the pool. There
will be a farewell dinner at the hotel.
Accommodation: Saigon Halong Hotel. |
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09.02.12
(B) |
Halong Bay - Hanoi
In the morning you will depart Halong Bay for Hanoi Airport.
Depart Hanoi at 1.15pm on SQ 175, arriving in Singapore at 5.40pm.
Sydney passengers depart Singapore at 8.35pm on SQ 221, arriving in
Sydney at 7.25am (10.02.12).
Melbourne passengers depart Singapore at 9.15pm on SQ 227, arriving in
Melbourne at 7.40am (10.02.12).
Brisbane passengers depart Singapore at 9.15pm on SQ 235, arriving in
Brisbane at 7.05am (10.02.12). |
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