After breakfast, your guide and driver will transfer you from Hanoi to Ha Long International Harbor, where you will board your two-night cruise through Bai Tu Long Bay. After a welcome on deck and a safety briefing, lunch is served as you set sail, threading through limestone karst formations rising from the water.

The afternoon stops at Cap La for kayaking among rocky islets and sheltered coves before returning to the boat for sunset over the bay. A set dinner of Quang Ninh seafood follows, with squid fishing off the back of the boat available late into the evening.

The morning begins with a visit to Thien Canh Son Cave, considered the most impressive natural cave in Bai Tu Long Bay, its stalactites and stalagmites formed over thousands of years. Kayaking follows around Hon Co before the junk continues to Cong Dam for a BBQ lunch prepared by the chefs directly on the beach, with time for swimming and beach activities afterward.

Come back onboard in the afternoon to relax before a Vietnamese cooking class on deck as the sun goes down. Dinner is served on the bay, with squid fishing available for those who want to stay up late.

The final morning on the bay begins with a visit to Vung Vieng, a small fishing village where local fishermen take you through the community by bamboo boat. Come back onboard for checkout and lunch as the vessel makes its way back to port.

On the drive back toward Hanoi, a stop at Yen Duc village in Dong Trieu province includes a water puppet show performed by local artists before your guide and driver take you to the airport for the flight south to Hue. On arrival, a transfer brings you to your hotel with the evening at leisure.

The morning takes you to Thuy Bieu, an ancient village on the outskirts of Hue where traditional garden houses and communal halls reflect a blend of royal legacy and rural life tied to the rise and fall of the Nguyen dynasties. You’ll visit a Roman-style amphitheater where tigers and elephants once dueled, a temple cemetery dedicated to the kings’ loyal war elephants, and a historic bronze casting village.

A cruise down the Perfume River follows, stopping at Thien Mu Pagoda, one of Vietnam’s most recognizable landmarks, before continuing to the Imperial Citadel and the Purple Forbidden City, built by Emperor Gia Long in the early 19th century.

On the drive from Hue to Hoi An, you’ll stop at Lang Co for a boat ride across the lagoon with a local fishing family. The lagoon is rich with snapper, grouper, crab, shrimp, and squid, and your guide will help translate as the family shares what life on the water looks like day to day. A fresh seafood lunch prepared by the family in their home follows before continuing south over the Hai Van Pass to Hoi An.

The morning begins at Hoi An Central Market, where a walking tour winds through the alleyways and local workshops that make up the beating heart of the old town. A drink break on a riverside veranda offers a chance to watch fishing boats on the Thu Bon River before the route continues through the historic streets to the Japanese Covered Bridge. From there, a visit to a local family’s workshop for a hands-on lantern-making session rounds out the morning.

The afternoon is dedicated to food. The street food tour begins at a unique interactive dining venue where live food counters showcase traditional Central Vietnamese cooking techniques — rice paper made from scratch, hand-cut noodles, rice crackers roasted over open flame, and Hoi An’s famous Cao Lau. Hands-on activities include cutting noodles, making wontons, and working the bún noodle machine before sitting down to a meal assembled from the different stations.

Today you’ll cycle out of the old town to visit a local family home where the morning begins over a ca phe sua da and a conversation about the neighborhood’s history and preservation. From there, the route winds through rice paddies and into the surrounding villages, stopping at an incense-making couple who still work entirely by hand, a rice mill where old and new methods are compared side by side, fishermen repairing boats along the waterway, a whale temple, a local rice wine producer, and textile weavers working on traditional hand looms.

The final stop is a coracle — a small round fishing boat — where you’ll try traditional fishing techniques before cycling back to the family home for a cold drink and a local meal.

This morning, board a flight south to Ho Chi Minh City, where your guide will meet you on arrival for a half-day tour of Saigon’s most significant landmarks. The route covers the Reunification Palace, former residence of South Vietnam’s president before 1975, the Notre Dame Cathedral, and the colonial-era Central Post Office before continuing to the War Remnants Museum, which documents the American War from the Vietnamese perspective. The city itself is worth taking in between stops: a dense, fast-moving mix of French colonial architecture, Chinese pagodas, street markets, and modern towers that gives Ho Chi Minh City its distinct energy.

In the evening, an optional performance of Chao Show offers a contemporary take on Vietnamese traditional music, with 30 instruments, immersive visuals, and nine regional dishes served throughout the 90-minute show.

Set out by private speedboat along the Saigon River to the Cu Chi Tunnels, arriving without the crowds that come with the overland route. A guided exploration of the underground network — built and used by Viet Cong fighters during the American War — is followed by a riverside lunch at a tranquil retreat before the speedboat returns to the city.

The evening begins with sunset drinks at a rooftop bar over the Ho Chi Minh City skyline before a Vespa tour through the city’s streets after dark. The night moves between two local restaurants sampling authentic Ho Chi Minh dishes, past the city’s most iconic landmarks in the evening light, and ends at a music bar where the city’s younger generation gather. All food and drinks throughout the evening are included.

This morning, head out of the city for the two-and-a-half-hour drive to Ben Tre in the heart of the Mekong Delta. The day begins at My Long market, where locals sort and sell fresh fish and produce and rice paper cakes are made to order. From there, a boat takes you along the waterways through coconut groves and narrow palm-lined canals, stopping at a farmer’s home to watch coconut jam being made and sample it with tea. A xe loi ride through local villages leads to a coconut processing workshop before a wooden rowboat glides you along the quieter canals at a slower pace.

Lunch is a spread of local specialties at a riverside restaurant, followed by a final stop at a traditional brick kiln where bricks are still handcrafted using age-old methods. A boat brings you back to Ben Tre for the drive to Ho Chi Minh City.

After breakfast, say goodbye to the mainland and head to the airport for the short flight to Phu Quoc, Vietnam’s largest island off the coast of Cambodia in the Gulf of Thailand.

Set out by speedboat from An Thoi Port for a full day exploring the coral reefs off southern Phu Quoc. The first stop is a calm stretch of water for a gentle warm-up before the boat continues to Half-moon Reef or the North-East Coral Reef depending on conditions, where coral canyons, anemones, and schools of fish reward both surface snorkelers and free-divers. Crystal Reef, home to one of the largest cactus coral clusters in the area, follows before a final stop at a quiet, crowd-free island for fresh fruit, sunbeds, and time on the beach before the return to port.

Enjoy a free day to spend as you please on the island. For those who want to get back in the water, an optional snorkeling excursion visits Coral Jungle Reef, one of Phu Quoc’s healthiest reef systems, for around an hour and a half of guided snorkeling along the island’s less-visited coastline, finishing at a secluded beach with fresh fruit and drinks.

Other activities include kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding, visiting the Phu Quoc night market, setting out on a guided tour of the jungle, joining a yoga class, or exploring the island by bicycle.

Say goodbye to Vietnam and head to the airport to catch your departing flight.