Vietnam & Cambodia Across the Mekong River – 15 Days / 14 Nights

DAY 1: ARRIVAL IN HA NOI

Arrival at Hanoi Airport. Meet your guide and driver for a private transfer to your hotel in the city center.
Overnight in Hanoi.

DAY 2: HANOI SIGHTSEEING AND MOTORCYCLE TOUR (B/L/-)

After breakfast, meet your local guide at 08:30 and begin with the Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first university (1076), renowned for its well-preserved architecture and tranquil courtyards.
Stroll the Old Quarter (“36 streets”) and Hoan Kiem Lake to learn the legend of the lake and the Ngoc Son (Jade) Temple.
Visit St. Joseph’s Cathedral and slip into the serene Pagoda Ba Da, hidden just steps from the cathedral.

In the afternoon, explore diverse neighborhoods on the back of a classic Russian Minsk motorcycle. Stop for Hanoi’s specialty pho (rolled, stirred, or fried) in Ba Dinh District. Continue to a hidden farmland on the Red River, where residents grow bananas and vegetables and live in floating homes. Pause at the historic Long Bien Bridge (1898–1902; designed by Gustave Eiffel).
Browse Hanoi’s largest open-air second-hand market in Hai Ba Trung and wander nearby alleys and a wet market to sample tropical fruits.
Head toward Dong Da District, the city’s most densely populated area, and stop at the famous train street. Visit a local home with a separate kitchen and bathroom reminiscent of 1960s Hanoi.
Conclude with a signature Hanoian egg coffee in an old café.
Return to your hotel around 16:30.
Overnight in Hanoi.

DAY 3: HANOI – HA LONG (B/L/D)

Depart at 08:30 through the Red River Delta to Tuan Chau Pier and board your selected overnight cruise on Lan Ha Bay. Lunch is served as you sail among thousands of limestone islets rising from emerald waters.
Join activities such as kayaking or swimming, or relax on the sundeck and enjoy UNESCO scenery. Dinner of fresh seafood.
Overnight on the cruise.

Alternatively, depart for Ha Long International Port to embark on an overnight cruise in pristine Bai Tu Long Bay. After the safety briefing, enjoy lunch while cruising past dramatic karsts. Afternoon options include kayaking, cave exploration, and floating village visits. Dinner onboard.
Note: Itineraries may vary due to weather and operations.

DAY 4: HA LONG – HA NOI – FLIGHT TO HUE (B/BRUNCH/-)

Greet the sunrise over the bay, enjoy a light breakfast, and savor brunch while cruising back past soaring limestone formations.
Disembark and transfer to Noi Bai Domestic Airport for a short flight to Hue. On arrival, meet your driver for a private transfer to your hotel.
Overnight in Hue.

DAY 5: HUE (B/-/-)

Depart at 08:30 for a full-day discovery of Hue, Vietnam’s imperial capital (1802–1945) and UNESCO World Heritage site (1993).
Explore the Imperial Citadel inspired by Vauban fortifications: Kinh Thanh (Capital City), Hoang Thanh (Imperial City), and Cam Thanh (Forbidden Purple City).
Visit the riverside Thien Mu Pagoda, famed for its octagonal tower.

In the afternoon, tour Tu Duc’s Mausoleum, among the most beautiful royal tombs, then the colorful Thuy Xuan incense village. Continue to the ornate Khai Dinh Mausoleum, a unique fusion of Nguyen and European styles.
Overnight in Hue.

DAY 6: HUE – DA NANG – HOI AN (B/-/-)

Depart at 08:30 for La Chu Village (≈8 km from Hue), renowned for herbs and vegetables. Enjoy an 8 km countryside cycling tour past villages, rice terraces, riverbanks, and lotus ponds (seasonal Feb–Jul).
Visit a family that produces votive paper offerings, browse a lively local market, and meet farmers at a vegetable field.
Stop by a family specializing in Banh Loc (shrimp and rice flour dumplings) to taste local specialties. Lunch at a family restaurant by the paddies, then relax with a herbal foot soak.

In the afternoon, drive the scenic coast via Lang Co and the spectacular Hai Van Pass to Hoi An.
Overnight in Hoi An.

DAY 7: HOI AN (B/-/-)

Stroll the narrow lanes of Hoi An Ancient Town (UNESCO), a gem of mixed architectural influences. Visit the Central Market, the iconic Japanese Covered Bridge, a Chinese Assembly Hall, and former merchant houses.
Afternoon at leisure for relaxing or shopping.
Overnight in Hoi An.

DAY 8: HOI AN – DA NANG – FLIGHT TO HO CHI MINH CITY (B/-/-)

Breakfast and free time until transfer to Da Nang Airport for a short flight to Ho Chi Minh City. On arrival, begin a multi-district city tour.
Visit the FITO Museum (Traditional Vietnamese Medicine) or the War Remnants Museum.

Step back in time at Do Phu Café, once a Liberation Army base. See the secret weapon bunker used during the 1968 attack on the Independence Palace and the historic getaway car.
Continue to hidden Van Phat Pagoda (Chinatown, District 5), famed for its ten thousand Buddha statues and traditions around preserving cremation urns.
Head to the French Quarter (District 1) to visit the Saigon Central Post Office, then stroll along Nguyen Hue and Dong Khoi, the city’s busiest streets.
Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.

DAY 9: HO CHI MINH CITY – BEN TRE – CAN THO (B/L/-)

Depart at 08:00 for a full-day trip in the Mekong Delta. Drive two hours to Ben Tre, land of coconut palms, orchards, rice fields, and narrow canals.
From Ham Luong Pier, boat along the tributaries and visit a brick kiln and coconut workshops to see how every part of the coconut is used (milk, candy, oil, mats, charcoal).
Stop at a sleeping-mat house for tea and fresh fruit, then travel by xe lôi (motor cart) or bicycle through shady country lanes past rice and vegetable plots.
Lunch at a local restaurant featuring elephant-ear fish and river shrimp.
In the afternoon, take a rowing sampan on palm-shaded canals to Hung Vuong Pier, then drive to Can Tho.
Overnight in Can Tho.

DAY 10: CAN THO – CHAU DOC (B/-/-)

Rise early for the colorful Cai Rang Floating Market aboard the Mystic Sampan, with breakfast served onboard while observing river life.
Visit a local workshop to learn how Hu Tieu (rice noodles) are made.
Continue to Chau Doc (≈120 km). En route, stop at the lush Tra Su Melaleuca Forest to spot wild birds. Take a motorboat deep into the reserve, then a rowboat through the flooded cajuput forest. Stroll to the bird-watching tower for panoramic views.
Overnight in Chau Doc.

DAY 11: CHAU DOC – PHNOM PENH (B/-/-)

At 07:00, depart by speedboat along the Mekong River to Phnom Penh (≈5 hours).
In the afternoon, visit the Royal Palace (1866) and the Silver Pagoda with its famed silver-tiled floor.
Continue to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21), the principal Khmer Rouge interrogation and detention center.
Visit Wat Phnom, the hilltop pagoda linked to the city’s founding by Lady Penh.
Overnight in Phnom Penh.

DAY 12: PHNOM PENH – SIEM REAP (B/-/-)

After breakfast, transfer by road to Siem Reap. Stop at Skoun to see famous roadside snacks (fried spiders, etc.).
Continue to Sambor Prei Kuk, Cambodia’s most impressive pre-Angkorian complex (7th century), once the capital of Chenla (Isanapura).
Stop near Kompong Kdei to see an Angkor-era laterite bridge.
Overnight in Siem Reap.

DAY 13: SIEM REAP (B/-/-)

Begin at 08:00 with the ancient city of Angkor Thom: the South Gate (Churning of the Ocean of Milk reliefs), mystical Bayon with 200+ serene faces, Phimeanakas, the Royal Enclosure, the Elephant Terrace, and the Terrace of the Leper King. Continue to Preah Khan (12th century).
Explore atmospheric Ta Prohm, entwined with giant roots and famed from Tomb Raider.
Enjoy a sunset over Srah Srang, the “Royal bathing pool”.
Overnight in Siem Reap.

DAY 14: SIEM REAP (B/-/-)

In the morning, visit majestic Angkor Wat, Cambodia’s national symbol and a masterpiece of classical Khmer art and architecture (12th century).
Afternoon visit to exquisite Banteay Srei, admired for its pink sandstone and intricate carvings, and then Banteay Samre.
Stop at Pradark Village to observe palm sugar making.
Overnight in Siem Reap.

DAY 15: SIEM REAP – DEPARTURE FLIGHT (B/-/-)

Take a boat ride on Tonle Sap Lake, Southeast Asia’s largest freshwater lake, visiting Kampong Phluk with its stilt houses and flooded forest for a vivid portrait of life on the water.
Free time until your transfer to the airport for your departure flight.