North Vietnam Visit & Shopping Tour - 8 Days

Day 1: Hanoi Arrival.
Welcome to Hanoi, Vietnam’s bustling colonial capital. Your driver and guide will meet you outside the baggage claim of Noi Bai Airport and take you to your hotel in the city center. In the afternoon, enjoy an orientation walk, visiting some of Hanoi’s main attractions: the Opera House, Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son Temple. In the late afternoon, enjoy a traditional Water Puppet Performance – a unique Vietnamese Art form hailing from Southeast Asia’s wet-rice culture.
Meals: None.
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi.

Day 2: Hanoi City With Shopping Tour.
Today you have a full day to explore Vietnam’s charming capital. With its wide tree-lined boulevards, French colonial architecture, peaceful lakes and ancient oriental pagodas; Hanoi is an eclectic mix that offers something for everyone. Your city tour will take you to Hanoi’s key sites: the Ho Chi Minh Complex (Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum and stilt house), the nearby One Pillar Pagoda; the Presidential Palace; the Temple of Literature; the Quan Thanh Temple, the sedate Tran Quoc Pagoda & West Lake.
Hanoi is a great place to buy specialized products, such as silver, pottery or silk products with thousands of shops. On this afternoon shopping tour of Hanoi, you will spend time exploring the many art galleries, souvenir shops and boutiques of Hanoi's atmospheric Old Quarter & French Quarter, where your guide can offer insider tips and local recommendations to suit your preferences.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi.

Day 3: Hanoi – Halong Bay – Overnight on cruise.
(The route and activities depend on specific cruise, weather condition and permission of the Halong Authority and could be changed by season).
After breakfast at hotel, get picked-up for a 2.5-hour drive on Vietnam's most modern freeways to mystical Halong Bay. With its jutting limestone islands and sparkling turquoise waters, Halong Bay is among the most popular tourism destinations in Vietnam. It is also voted as one of seven World Natural Wonders and UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Upon arrival, embark and being greeted by the boat crew and captain. Check-in to your private cabin and get refreshment before returning to the main restaurant. Savor a gourmet lunch of fresh seafood onboard as you sail out into the mystical bay. In the afternoon, cruise around some of Halong’s many islands, including Dinh Huong and Ga Choi. Along the way visit one of the bay’s 3 largest caves (Thien Cung, Dau Go or Sung Sot). Stop at an island cove with a sheltered white-sand beach and take a dip in the warm waters of the Tonkin Gulf. Pass the night on your junk, lulled to sleep by the gentle rocking of calm waters.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Accommodation: on cruise.

Day 4: Halong Bay – Hanoi.
Awake early and participate in Tai Chi on the top deck or simply relax and enjoy the sunrise over the bay’s towering islands. Enjoy a morning cup of coffee or tea, before setting out to explore nearby islands by rowboat. Return to the junk for breakfast then take advantage of the sundeck and admire the amazing rock formations of Bai Tu Long Bay as you navigate back to Halong City. Have brunch on board the boat before returning to Halong pier. Your driver will meet you at the dock and take you back to Hanoi. On the way back, you can freshen up and stretch your legs in a rest stop. There are souvenir shops with traditional Vietnamese handicrafts but you are not under any pressure to buy.
Meals: Brunch.
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi.

Day 5: Hanoi – Drive to Sapa – Sunset Tour.
Traveling to Sapa, you will be amazed not only by the beauty of the natural landscapes or the yellow terraced rice fields but also by the weekend market gathering with thousands of different kinds of goods from Gold, Silver, art woods to the beautiful brocades.
This morning, leave Hanoi for Sapa on a 6-hour journey on the Vietnam’s longest and modern highway which opened to public in September 2014. On arrival, check in to your hotel and catch a few hours of rest. Take part in a sunset tour over Tram Ton Pass, Heaven’s Gate – the highest peak of roads in Vietnam (over 2,000m above sea level). Enjoy the spectacular views of Fansipan summit, the highest peak of Indochina mountains (weather permits) and visit the nearby Silver Waterfall with marvelous scenery of the surrounding nature.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Sapa.

Day 6: Sapa – Y Linh Ho – Lao Chai – Ta Van.
After breakfast at your hotel, beginning of the trip is the moment for admire the panorama view of the town and then the valley from the main road. After 4km on the main road, we start going down on a small path down the valley to the Muong Hoa River along Y Linh Ho valley and from here lead to the Black H’mong village Lao Chai. There we are experiencing the richest traditional culture of Black H’Mong people in the region. The trekking route offers a breathtaking view of vegetable gardens and rice terraces with green mountains rising above.
After lunch time, you continue to Ta Van village to visit Zay people. Ta Van is a small village set within a picturesque valley not far from the northern Vietnamese mountain resort of Sapa. The area is renowned for its colorful ethnic minorities, and Ta Van is home to two such groups.
Later of the day, head up to the main road where the car will pick up you to transfer back to Sapa. Rest of the day, you are free to relax or to explore the town with its boutique shops, markets etc.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch.
Accommodation: Hotel in Sapa.

Day 7: Sapa – Bac Ha – Hanoi.
Leaving Sapa early in the morning, you take the drive to Bac Ha market. This drive takes you approx. 3 hours. Arriving to Bac Ha, visit the big market with its entire colorful people, such as Flower H’mong, Phu La, Dao Tuyen who gather here to buy and sell their handicraft products. Then visit H'mong King's Palace and a nearby local village. Enjoy lunch time on your own account at local restaurant then drive back to Hanoi.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi.

Day 8: Hanoi Departure.
Today is your own day to walk and shop around until your guide comes to pick-up you to Noi Bai Airport for the departure flight.
Meals: Breakfast.
Accommodation: N/A.