Tours out of Ho Chi Minh City and across Vietnam
Vietnam and the neighbours
Three countries, three weeks, no wasted days
Hanoi and the bay, four nights in Luang Prabang, back into Vietnam for Hoi An, Saigon and a night in the delta, then four nights at Angkor. The flights take the long legs.
Overview
Three weeks is the least three countries need
Three countries in three weeks sounds like a sprint, and done badly it is one. What makes this version work is that the long distances go by air and every stop gets at least three nights, apart from the bay and the delta, which are single nights by design. You never pack and unpack two days running more than once.
The shape is a loop out of Vietnam and back again: Hanoi and the bay, a flight across to Luang Prabang, a flight back into central Vietnam at Da Nang, south through Hoi An and Saigon to the delta, and a final hop to Siem Reap. That order keeps every flight short and lets the trip finish at Angkor, which is the right place to end it.
- Length
- 21 days, 20 nights
- Start
- Hanoi
- Finish
- Siem Reap
- Flights
- Four legs, none over 2 hours
- Longest drive
- About 4 hours, Saigon to Can Tho
- Pace
- Comfortable, with three free days
Nights
Nine bases in twenty nights
Day by day
The three weeks, day by day
Day 1
Arrive in Hanoi
Met at Noi Bai by our northern partner’s driver; about forty-five minutes to the hotel.
Day 2
Hanoi
The Temple of Literature, the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum area, and the Old Quarter on foot, with a noodle lunch. Evening free.
Day 3
To the bay
Two and a half to three hours by expressway, aboard for lunch, kayaking in the afternoon, dinner at anchor.
Day 4
Back to Hanoi
Dawn on deck, brunch as the boat returns, back in the city by mid-afternoon.
Day 5
Fly to Luang Prabang
About an hour in the air. Our Lao partner meets you; the afternoon is a first walk along the Mekong side of the peninsula.
Day 6
The monasteries
Up early to watch the alms round from a respectful distance, then a guided morning through Wat Xieng Thong, Wat Mai and the former royal palace.
Day 7
The river and the falls
A long-tail boat upriver to the Pak Ou caves, back for lunch, then the Kuang Si falls in the late afternoon when the day visitors have thinned.
Day 8
Free in Luang Prabang
Nothing booked. This is the day most people say they are glad they had.
Day 9
Back into Vietnam at Da Nang
A connection through Hanoi in most seasons, landing in Da Nang in the afternoon, then forty-five minutes to Hoi An.
Day 10
Hoi An’s old town
A guided walk before ten through the merchant houses and assembly halls, then lunch at the market.
Day 11
My Son and the river
The Cham sanctuary at opening time, an hour inland, and a boat back down the Thu Bon.
Day 12
Free in Hoi An
The beach at An Bang, bicycles, or a tailor.
Day 13
Fly to Saigon
About an hour and twenty minutes south. Our own team meets you. Evening street food in District 4 if you want it.
Day 14
Saigon
The palace, the war museum and Cho Lon, with the afternoon free for the heat.
Day 15
Down to Can Tho
Three and a half to four hours south, with a sampan morning on the canals at Cai Be on the way.
Day 16
Cai Rang at dawn, back to Saigon
The floating market while the wholesale trade is still going, breakfast, a walk through a rice-noodle workshop, then the drive back to Saigon.
Day 17
Fly to Siem Reap
An hour and a quarter in the air and an hour into town. The pass bought late in the day normally also covers the sunset that evening, so the first temple comes before dinner.
Day 18
Angkor Thom and Ta Prohm
The Bayon, the terraces and Ta Prohm, then a long break for the heat.
Day 19
Angkor Wat, properly
Sunrise if you want it, then the galleries and the bas-reliefs with a guide who can read them. Afternoon off.
Day 20
Banteay Srei and the outer temples
Out to Banteay Srei and back via the grand circuit. A last evening in Siem Reap.
Day 21
Leave from Siem Reap
Transfer to the airport.
Price
Price
| Travellers | Tier 1 — simple | Tier 2 — comfortable | Tier 3 — the good ones |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 travelling | from 3195 | from 3995 | from 6070 |
| 4 travelling | from 2620 | from 3275 | from 4980 |
| 6 travelling | from 2365 | from 2955 | from 4490 |
The flights and a night on the bay make up much of the price; after that it is hotels, and this route crosses three hotel markets with very different rates. Luang Prabang and Siem Reap in December and January are where Tier 3 costs most. Going in the green season, from June to September, lowers the price noticeably in Laos and Cambodia.
Included
What is included
What the price includes
- Twenty nights in your chosen tier, with breakfast
- Private car and driver on all transfers and touring days
- English-speaking guides on touring days
- The four flight legs within the trip, economy
- All meals on the boat night
- A three-day Angkor pass and the entry fees in the day-by-day
- Boats at Pak Ou, Hoi An, Cai Be and Cai Rang
- Our 24/7 line throughout
What it does not include
- International flights to Hanoi and from Siem Reap
- Visas for all three countries
- Travel insurance
- Drinks, dinners and tips
- Activities on the free days
Practical
The visa point that catches people on this route
Because you leave Vietnam for Laos and come back in at Da Nang, you need to be allowed to enter Vietnam twice — a multiple-entry e-visa, or an exemption that covers both entries, depending on your passport. A single-entry visa will leave you stuck at Luang Prabang airport. Laos and Cambodia both issue e-visas that work at the airports on this route, and both also have a visa on arrival. We check all three against your passport before we book.
We run the south ourselves. In the north of Vietnam, in Laos and in Cambodia we use local partners we have worked with for years; we do not claim offices there. One planner in Saigon keeps the whole thing together.
The best window is November to February. After that the north of Laos hazes over from crop burning, and Angkor becomes very hot from March to May; you can travel then, but you will spend the middle of each day indoors.
Not for everyone
Who this does not suit
If you would rather see one country well than three countries adequately, book something else: our eighteen-day slow Vietnam trip, or Laos on its own. Four flight legs, one of them a connection, is also a lot for anyone who finds airports draining. And this is not the trip for mountains or beaches — it is built for towns, temples and rivers.
Common questions
Questions travellers ask most
Why go into Laos and then back into Vietnam?
Because Luang Prabang is an hour from Hanoi, and going there from the south later would mean a longer and costlier connection. The price is the double Vietnamese entry, which we sort out with you.
Could we drop the delta night?
Yes, and put it on Angkor or on a free day in Hoi An. We include it because the floating market is only worth seeing at dawn.
Is this route good for older travellers?
Yes. There are no long drives, the flights are short and the steepest thing is the climb at Angkor Wat, which is optional.
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Old town, beach, tailors and the honest timing.
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Angkor on a three-day pass, planned around the crowds.
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Example journey
Vietnam and Cambodia
Hanoi, the bay, Hoi An and Saigon, then three nights at Angkor.
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Example journey
The grand Indochina route
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Day trips, regional routes and full-length itineraries.
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