12-day Vietnam tour: Ho Chi Minh City to Ha Long Bay
Vietnam coast and highlands tour: water puppets, tunnel history, floating markets, karst limestone, villages
A 12-day guided tour of Vietnam starting in Ho Chi Minh City and moving north through the Mekong Delta, central coast, and Hanoi to Ha Long Bay, with overnight cruise, domestic flights, and 10 nights hotel included. The route covers War Remnants Museum, Cu Chi Tunnels, Hoi An Ancient Town, Marble Mountains, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, and trekking in Sapa with stays in ethnic minority homestays. English-speaking guide, airport pickups, and meals as noted are arranged throughout.
Step-by-step itinerary
Day 1: Arrival and Water Puppet Show
- Meet guide at airport
- Transfer to hotel and relax
- Evening xich lo city tour
- Watch Water Puppet Show
- Have dinner and return to hotel
Day 2: Cu Chi Tunnels and Street Food Tour
- Drive to Cu Chi Tunnels
- Explore Cu Chi Tunnels
- Try manioc snack
- Return to hotel and relax
- Evening bike ride in Saigon
- Enjoy Vietnamese pancakes and spring rolls
- Visit hidden coffee shop and learn coffee making
- Taste Vietnamese pizza and sweet soup desserts
- Return to hotel
Day 3: Mekong Delta Exploration
- Drive to My Tho town
- Visit Vinh Trang Pagoda
- Boat ride on Tien River
- Walk in Thoi Son Island village
- Row boat through creeks
- Visit honey bee and python farms
- Cruise to Ben Tre province
- Visit coconut candy workshop
- Horse cart village tour
- Lunch in orchard garden
- Bicycle ride through village paths
- Return to Can Tho and check in hotel
Day 4: Cai Rang Floating Market and Return
- Visit Ninh Kieu Wharf
- Boat tour of Cai Rang Floating Market
- Learn about floating market trade
- See Vietnamese vermicelli noodle making
- Trek village and cross monkey bridge
- Visit Can Tho market and have lunch
- Drive back to Ho Chi Minh City
Day 5: Ho Chi Minh City Tour and Flight to Hoi An
- Visit War Remnants Museum
- Visit former US Embassy
- See Notre Dame Cathedral and Old Post Office
- Visit Reunification Palace
- Lunch at local restaurant
- Transfer to airport and fly to Da Nang
- Transfer to hotel in Hoi An
- Walk tour of Hoi An Ancient Town
Day 6: Ba Na Hills and Marble Mountains
- Visit Ba Na Hills and ride cable car
- Explore Fantasy Park
- Visit King Peak and Linh Tu Pagoda
- Visit Golden Bridge
- Buffet lunch at Ba Na Hills
- Visit Marble Mountains and climb Thuy Mountain
- Visit pagodas and caves in Marble Mountains
- Visit Stone Carving Village
- Return to hotel and relax
Day 7: Hanoi City Tour
- Fly to Hanoi and transfer to Old Quarter
- Visit Ho Chi Minh memorial complex
- Visit Presidential Palace and One Pillar Pagoda
- Visit Temple of Literature
- Lunch at local restaurant
- Visit Vietnam Museum of Ethnology
- Visit Hoa Lo Prison
- Visit Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son Temple
- Explore Hanoi Old Quarter
- Return to hotel
Day 8: Ha Long Bay Cruise
- Breakfast and check out
- Drive to Ha Long Bay
- Short break en route
- Board cruise at Hon Gai harbor
- Welcome drink and cabin check-in
- Cruise Bai Tu Long Bay and lunch onboard
- Explore Vung Vieng Fishing Village by boat or kayak
- Relax and enjoy sunset
- Optional cooking class
- Dinner on cruise
- Evening activities on cruise
Day 9: Ha Long Bay and Travel to Sapa
- Morning Tai Chi exercise
- Breakfast on cruise
- Visit Thien Canh Son Cave
- Relax on sundeck and fruit carving demo
- Check out cabin and cruise back
- Transfer to pier and lunch
- Drive back to Hanoi
- Free time in Hanoi
- Transfer to train station
- Overnight train to Sapa
Day 10: Sapa Trekking and Village Visit
- Arrive Lao Cai and have breakfast
- Drive to Sapa
- Trek to Cat Cat Village
- See hydroelectric power station and rice terraces
- Lunch at local restaurant
- Check in homestay in Lao Chai Village
- Trek Lao Chai to Ta Van Village
- Interact with local people
Day 11: Fansipan Mountain and Return to Hanoi
- Breakfast at homestay
- Visit H’mong families and terrace fields
- Check out and have lunch
- Take cable car to Fansipan Peak
- Enjoy mountain views
- Take limousine van back to Hanoi
- Check in hotel and free time
Day 12: Departure Day in Hanoi
- Free time for shopping or relaxing
- Visit Trung Nguyen Legend Coffee Shop
- Enjoy coffee and buy souvenirs
- Return to hotel and check out
- Lunch with Vietnamese noodle soup “Phở”
- Rest or shop at Dong Xuan Market
- Transfer to airport for departure
What’s included
- 10 nights hotel accommodation across Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho, Hoi An, and Hanoi.
- one night on a cruise in Ha Long Bay with a private cabin.
- all domestic flights within Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh to Da Nang, Da Nang to Hanoi).
- airport pickups and dropoffs by private air-conditioned car.
- Water Puppet Show ticket.
- street food tour on scooter with Vietnamese pancakes, spring rolls, coffee and desserts.
- boat rides through the Mekong Delta with visits to honey farms, crocodile farms and coconut candy workshops.
- bicycle tour through Mekong villages.
- entrance fees to War Remnants Museum, Cu Chi Tunnels, Hoi An Ancient Town, Marble Mountains, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, Hoa Lo Prison and other sites.
- overnight train to Sapa.
- trekking in Sapa with homestay accommodation in Lao Chai Village.
- cable car rides to Ba Na Hills and Fansipan Mountain.
- meals as noted in the itinerary.
- mineral water and tissue throughout.
- life jacket and raincoat for water activities.
- English-speaking guide.
- pre-approval letter for visa on arrival.
Times
- Every day 08:30
Before you book
Operated by Luco Travel - Vietnam Tour Operator
Prices and times updated 9 days ago
Traveler reviews
The experience
The tour starts in Ho Chi Minh City with a water puppet show on your first evening, then moves into the war history and street food of Saigon: a scooter-back tour through rush-hour alleys where you learn to make Vietnamese pancakes and coffee the traditional way. From there, the route heads south into the Mekong Delta for three days: boat rides through My Tho and Ben Tre, hand-rowing through coconut groves, visiting honey farms and crocodile farms, and cycling through village paths. You'll see the Cai Rang Floating Market at dawn, where boats sell goods by hanging samples from poles, and cross a bamboo "monkey bridge" built from a single tree.
A domestic flight takes you to Da Nang and Hoi An, where you walk the 400-year-old Japanese Covered Bridge and merchant houses of the ancient town. The next day climbs Ba Na Hills by cable car to the Golden Bridge, one of Vietnam's most photographed landmarks, then descends to the Marble Mountains, a cluster of five limestone peaks with pagodas and caves inside. After another flight north to Hanoi, you visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex, the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, and Hoa Lo Prison, which holds exhibits on both French colonial rule and American pilots held during the war. An overnight train carries you to Sapa in the far north.
The final stretch is trekking through Sapa's terraced rice fields and ethnic minority villages. You trek to Cat Cat Village, occupied by the Black H'mong people, then stay overnight in a homestay in Lao Chai Village where you interact with local families. The next morning, a cable car takes you up Fansipan Mountain, Vietnam's highest peak at 3,143 meters, before a limousine van returns you to Hanoi. The tour ends with a stop at a Vietnamese coffee shop and a bowl of phở before your departure flight.
Is this one for you?Book this if you're arriving at Ho Chi Minh City airport and prefer a fully guided journey north through all three regions: the itinerary moves you from the Mekong Delta through central Vietnam to Halong Bay with domestic flights and hotel transfers included.
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Top questions
What languages is the tour guided in?
Live guide in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Chinese and Malay.
Can children come?
Yes. Ticket types: Child (5 to 9 years); Infant (under 5): free.
What's included in the 12-day Vietnam tour?
The tour includes 10 nights hotel accommodation, all domestic flights within Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh to Da Nang and Da Nang to Hanoi), airport pickups and dropoffs by private air-conditioned car, one night on a cruise in Ha Long Bay with a private cabin, the Water Puppet Show ticket, all entrance fees to attractions listed, meals as noted in the itinerary, a street food tour on scooter, bicycle tour in the Mekong Delta, boat rides and activities, and an English-speaking guide throughout. Mineral water, tissue, life jacket and raincoat are provided.
Do I need to arrange my own international flights and visa?
International flights to and from Vietnam are not included in the tour price, nor is the visa, though the operator provides a pre-approval letter for visa on arrival, which simplifies the process. You arrange and pay for your own flights to reach Ho Chi Minh City on day one and depart from Hanoi on day 12.
What happens during the street food tour in Ho Chi Minh City?
On day two evening, you ride on the back of a local's scooter through Saigon's rush hour, stopping to learn how to make Vietnamese pancakes (bánh xèo) and spring rolls, sitting on small plastic chairs in alleys the way locals do. The tour includes tastings of hidden coffee shops where you learn to make coffee without a machine, Vietnamese pizza, and 3–5 kinds of sweet soup desserts, ending around 21:30 when you return to your hotel.
What is the Mekong Delta portion of the tour like?
Days three and four focus on the Mekong Delta around My Tho and Ben Tre. You take a motorboat through the Tien River, visit Thoi Son Island where you hand-row through coconut groves and taste honey tea at a bee farm, cycle through village paths, and visit a coconut candy workshop. You also cross a bamboo monkey bridge and see crocodile farms. The Cai Rang Floating Market on day four shows boats selling goods by hanging samples from poles, and you learn how Vietnamese vermicelli noodles are made.
How long is the trek in Sapa and what is it like?
The Sapa portion spans days 10–11. You trek to Cat Cat Village, home to the Black H'mong ethnic group, passing terraced rice fields and a waterfall, then trek around Lao Chai and Ta Van villages where you stay overnight in a homestay and interact with local families. On day 11, after breakfast at the homestay, you take a cable car up Fansipan Mountain, Vietnam's highest peak at 3,143 meters, before returning to Hanoi by limousine van.
What is included in the Ha Long Bay overnight cruise?
The cruise departs from Hon Gai Harbor and includes one night in a private cabin, a welcome drink, lunch aboard, exploration of Vung Vieng Fishing Village by bamboo boat or kayak, dinner, and optional activities like cooking class, board games, squid fishing or karaoke. The next morning includes Tai Chi exercise, breakfast on deck, and a visit to Thien Canh Son Cave before returning to shore by midday.
12-day Vietnam tour: Ho Chi Minh City to Ha Long Bay
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from US$ 1,943 per person
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