Description
Day 1 :
Pick up from airport and transfer to hotel. After check in, we take short walk along the road in front of the King’s Residence to see the Main Shrine, where the local people usually worship, with its statue of Yeay Teap, Preah Ang Chek and Preah Ang Chorm. Buying jasmine and lotus flowers to worship is very important for the Cambodians. We continue to one of the city’s lively open markets, Psar Chars, also called the “Old Market”, where anything and everything is for sale! Then continue to Wat Bo, a large, highly respected pagoda, founded in the 18th Century. Like the Silver Pagoda in Phnom Penh, the vihear of Wat Bo contains unique wall paintings of the Reamker that are said to be late 19th Century. Look for the daily-life market scenes such as an opium smoking Chinese merchant, the colonial era French officer at the market and the French soldiers attending a traditional dance performance. Also of interest is the large collection of Buddha statues located behind the main Buddha. Overnight in Siem Reap.
Day 2 :
Breakfast at hotel: Start your sightseeing tour of Angkor area we spend a full day exploring the wondrous ancient ruins with the South Gate of Angkor Thom, which is famous for its series of colossal human faces carved in stone, the impressive Bayon Temple, the Royal Enclosure, Phimeanakas, the Elephant Terrace, the Terrace of the Leper King and the largest as well as the most complete temple of Angkor Wat. This architectural masterpiece was constructed in the 12th century and covers an area of about 210 hectares. We stroll around this massive edifice, seeing the many galleries with columns, libraries, pavilions, courtyards and ponds full of water reflecting the towering temple and the jungle covered temple of Ta Prohm is an incredible sight. There are enormous fig trees and gigantic creepers which embrace themselves in the stone foundations of the structure giving the impression of man’s creation being reclaimed by the powerful forces of nature. Overnight in Siem Reap.
Day 3 :
Breakfast at hotel. Visit the floating village of Chong Khneas, located 10 kilometers south of Siem Reap. We take a boat trip in a traditional wooden boat on the Tonle Sap Lake, the “Great Lake” of Cambodia, one of the largest in Asia. Departure to airport for boarding flight to HCMC. Upon arrival in Hanoi, you will be welcomed by local guide and transfer you to hotel for check-in. Free at your leisure time. Overnight in HCMC.
Day 4 :
Breakfast in hotel; take an excursion to Cu Chi Tunnels, an important Vietcong base during the American War. Stretching over 200 km, this incredible underground network, dug by hand out of hard laterite, connected command posts, hospitals, shelter and weapon factories. Today, you can walk through the area and learn about the day-to-day life of the VC, see the cleverly disguised entrances and elaborate booby-traps, and evenventure inside the tunnels, some of which have been modified to accommodate tourists. Return to the city for late Indian lunch and visit City Hall (Hotel De Ville), the Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office. Afterwards, tour the War Remnants Museum, which comprehensively documents the travails of the long Vietnam American War; as well as the central Ben Thanh Market, where vendors display a vast array of goods and handicrafts, appealing to every taste. Dinner at local Indian restaurant. Overnight in HCMC.
Day 5 :
Breakfast at hotel & check-out. This morning you will depart flight to Hanoi. Upon arrival in Hanoi, you will visit the very impressive Museum of Ethnology, among the finest of Vietnam’s museums. You will see many exhibits, photographs and actual houses inhabited by some of the 54 ethnic people in Vietnam. It will offer a truly colorful introduction to these ethnic tribes. Transfer to the city center to hotel for check-in. You will enjoy a one-hour cyclo tour around the Hanoi Old Quarter & Hoan Kiem Lake. You will have a shopping time in the Old Quarter streets & Dong Xuan market. Enjoy a traditional Vietnamese water puppet show. Overnight in Hanoi.
Day 6 :
You will be greeted at your hotel at 7:30 am and drive to Halong City, approximately 3 hours away. Once at Halong City, you will board our boat for a four hour cruise of this stunning place, stopping along the way to visit one of the limestone caves in the area. As we cruise, our boat staff will serve you a sumptuous local seafood lunch on boat. After a 4 hour navigation, you will go back to the harbor for a drive back to your hotel in Hanoi. Dinner at local Indian restaurant. Overnight in Hanoi.
Day 7 :
Breakfast at hotel & check-out. You will transfer to airport for boarding flight to Vientaine. On arrival at the airport, you will be met and transferred to check in the hotel. In the afternoon, we will first visit Wat Si Muang, which is famous for its supernatural power. Then, we drive to the city old quarter and visit some main sites here, including Wat Sisaket, the oldest temple with thousands of miniature Buddha statues, and the former royal temple of Wat Prakeo, which previously housed the famous Emerald Buddha Image. Enroute to Lao’s national icon, That Luang Stupa, you will have the opportunity to take some pictures of the imposing Patuxay Monument, which is known as Vientiane’s own Arc de Triumph. A spectacular view over the Mekong River at sunset is a perfect way to finish the day. Overnight in Vientiane
Day 8 :
We leave Vientiane on the road No 13 for an excursion by car or minivan to the Nam Ngum Reservoir, 100 Km from Vientiane. On the way, you stop at the Hmong village to visit the Market and meet the people. We arrive at Nam Ngum Reservoir at lunch time. Our lunch (your account) will be served at the boat restaurant on the lake. After lunch, we embark for a boat ride to visit fishing villages in the islands. On the way back to Vientiane on the road No 10, a traditional salt abstraction site at Ban Keun and continue to Dong Mark Khai Market where local people gather to sale wild animals and large selection of insects. We return Vientiane in the late afternoon.
Day 9 :
Breakfast at hotel & free until check-out. You will transfer to airport for your onward flight. Ends of services!
