Description:
This is the trip that has given us many good reports from our past clients who have a passion for driving. People say Vietnam Overland helped them to meet people all over Vietnam while cruising through the Vietnam countryside, stopping when or wherever they wished to, with so free and flexible an itinerary. If you are looking for something similar to this, please contact us rightaway for detailed information

Intinerary:

Day 2: Ho Chi Minh City - Cu Chi Tunnels - Sightseeing
After breakfast, drive to the extraordinary Cu Chi tunnels, just outside Ho Chi Minh City. During the war for independence, "Viet Cong" guerillas built the labyrinth of narrow tunnels virtually underneath U.S. bases, using them to hide during bombing raids and to stage surprise attacks. Optional side trips en route to Cu Chi include visits to see how rural people live and work. View occupations such as cashew nut farming, duck breeding, rice farming and production of rice paper, a  key ingredient in Vietnamese cuisine.
Return to HoChi Minh City in the afternoon for a half-day city tour. Visit the Reunification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, Saigon Post Office, Chinatown, Binh Tay Market and Thien Hau Temple. A relaxing "Health and Beauty" package is optional. Participants can enjoy 30 minutes of one of the following: shampoo and head massage; manicure; foot massage or facial massage.
OVERNIGHT IN HO CHI MINH CITY. (B, D)

Day 3: Ho Chi Minh City - Ben Tre - Boat Cruise - Homestay
Drive to Ben Tre. Here,  take a boat to Coconut Island. Enjoy a brief walk on the island, trying native fruits and viewing local handicraft productions. Continue by boat to Tan Thach commune to visit a family-run enterprise making coconut candies. Take a horse-drawn cart to Quoi Son to visit a bee farm and to enjoy tea and candies.
Float on a sampan through the narrow,  tree-lined canals of the Mekong Delta.
Enjoy lunch at Qui Island. After lunch continue by boat to Phu Tuc village for an overnight stay. Enjoy fishing and sightseeing during a late-afternoon rowboat trip along the Tien River. Visit a local family home and have a dinner of traditional Mekong Delta foods. After dinner take in a performance of traditional rural music. Spend the night in a homestay in Ben Tre.
OVERNIGHT LOCAL HOUSE IN BEN TRE.
( B,L,D)

Day 4: Ben Tre - Cai Be Floating Market - Ho Chi Minh City
After breakfast depart for Cai Be. Take a boat trip along the mighty Mekong River and its tributaries to view the daily lives of people who work and play on the waterways of theMekong Delta.
The trip includes a visit to the unique "floating" market at Cai Be and to a family-run business producing rice paper
- a key ingredient in Vietnamese cuisine. Visit a fruit wholesale market, a local school and a French-influenced Catholic Church. Return to Ho Chi Minh City . (B,L).
OVERNIGHT IN HO CHI MINH CITY.

Day 5: Ho Chi Minh City - Da Lat
Scenic drive from Ho Chi Minh City to the central highland resort of Dalat. En route stop at rubber, tea and coffee plantations. A visit to a silk-making business is optional. Upon arrival in Dalat, visit Prenn waterfall and enjoy a brief view of the city by horse-drawn cart.
OVERNIGHT IN DALAT. (B)

Day 6: Da Lat - Nha Trang 
In the morning, tour the summer residence of Vietnam's last emperor, Bao Dai. Drop by the colorful Da Lat Market to see a variety of flowers, vegetables, and fruits available in Da Lat's temperate climate. The drive to Nha Trang begins with a series of mountainside switchbacks affording spectacular views of the arid lowlands and the sea. Stop near the seaside town of Phan Rang to visit Po Klong Garai, a well-preserved 14th century Cham Tower. Follow the coastal road to Nha Trang, stopping at a vineyard along the way. Upon arrival in Nha Trang, hotel check-in then rest of day free to enjoy this beach town . (B,D).
OVERNIGHT IN NHA TRANG.

Day 7: Nha Trang - Boat Cruise
Enjoy Nha Trang's turquoise 
waters and white sandy beaches. Take a morning boat cruise to offshore islands in Nha Trang Bay. Afternoon visit  the Ponagar Cham Towers, the Long Son Pagoda, the Cathedral of Nha Trang. A visit to a local fish and food market is optional .(B).
OVERNIGHT IN NHA TRANG.

Day 8: Nha Trang - Qui Nhon
The drive from Nha Trang to Qui Nhon passes through perhaps the most beautiful stretches of coastline in all of Vietnam. The range of colours and vistas seen along this coastal and mountainous drive are unparalleled in South East Asia. Stop en route at Dai Lanh Beach to enjoy the transparent, turquoise waters, and at a Cham ruin near Tuy Hoa. A visit to the tomb of Han Mac Tu - a famous Vietnamese poet - and the rocky outcrops at Hoang Hau is optional .(B).
OVERNIGHT IN QUI NHON.

Day 9: Qui Nhon - Hoi An 
In the morning, visit the Thap Doi Cham Tower before continuing north to Hoi An. Stop en route at Sa Huynh Beach and at Tam Quan for some refreshing coconut juice. Along the rest of the drive, view the daily life of rural villagers processing cassava, farming rice and weaving grass. Arrive in Hoi An late in the afternoon. (B)
OVERNIGHT IN HOI AN.

Day 10: Hoi An - Sightseeing
Take a full-day tour of this quaint town, visiting ancient merchants' houses, a Phuc Kien temple, the 400-year-old Japanese Covered Bridge, and the colourful riverside market. Visit a workshop where artisans make Hoi An's famous lanterns. Guests learn how the lanterns are made then have a chance to create their own lanterns,  from designing the frame to gluing the cloth. (B)
OVERNIGHT IN HOI AN.

Day 11: Hoi An - Hue sightseeing
Drive from Hoi An to Hue. Stop en route at the Marble Mountains, famed for its stonecutters and for being a "Viet Cong" guerilla hideout during the Vietnam War. Continue on to Hue, passing over a spectacular mountain pass and by a seaside fishing village. Upon arrival in Hue visit the Imperial Citadel. Drive to the outskirts of Hue to visit the elaborate tomb of Emperor Tu Duc.
Stop en route at local families to learn how Vietnam's famous conical hats and colourful incense are made. (B)
OVERNIGHT IN HUE.

Day 12: Hue - Boat Cruise - Hanoi
Morning boat cruise through the centre of Hue on the romantic Perfume River. Visit the seven-storey Thien Mu Pagoda along the riverbank. Check out and transfer to airport for the flight to Hanoi. Upon arrival transfer to hotel. See the beautiful colors of Hanoi during a late afternoon. Cyclo ride through the city's old quarter. In the evening enjoy a water puppet show - a remarkable Vietnamese art form that combines traditional music, fireworks, underwater puppeteers, and elaborate puppets floating gracefully over water. (B)
OVERNIGHT IN HANOI.

Day 13: Hanoi - Bac Ninh - Halong Bay
After breakfast, visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Ho Chi Minh's former home,
the One Pillar Pagoda, the Temple of Literature and the Lake of the Restored
Sword. Afternoon drive to Bac Ninh, the cradle of traditional Vietnamese music and theatre.
On arrival take a horse-drawn cart through country lanes to visit the Dinh Bang communal house and Do temple. Enjoy local folk songs before proceeding to Halong for the evening. (B,L)
OVERNIGHT IN HALONG.

Day 14: Halong - Boat Cruise - Hanoi
In the morning relax on a 5-hour boat cruise through magnificent Halong Bay, a UNESCO designated World Heritage site. Enjoy a seafood lunch on board. Return drive to Hanoi, stopping en route at the Dong Trieu ceramics factory. (B,L)
OVERNIGHT IN HANOI.

Day 15: Hanoi - Departure
The morning is free for shopping before transfer to Noi Bai International Airport for departure. (B)