Tours out of Ho Chi Minh City and across Vietnam
Vietnam and the neighbours
Up the length of Vietnam, then slow down in Luang Prabang
Saigon and the delta, four nights in Hoi An, three in Hanoi, then a one-hour flight to Luang Prabang for four nights at the pace the town sets.
Overview
A fast country, then a slow one
This route is built around a change of speed. Eleven days in Vietnam cover the country from the delta to the karsts south of Hanoi, with enough nights in each place to stop living out of a bag. Then a short flight lands you in a small town of monasteries on a peninsula between two rivers, where the most demanding thing on the programme is a boat upstream.
Four nights in Luang Prabang is more than most itineraries give it, and it is the part people remember. Two nights there is a transit stop. Four lets the town work on you: the morning market, a temple at an hour when nobody else is in it, a waterfall on a weekday, and evenings with nothing to do.
- Length
- 15 days, 14 nights
- Start
- Ho Chi Minh City
- Finish
- Luang Prabang
- Flights
- Da Nang, Hanoi, Luang Prabang
- Longest drive
- About 2 hours, Hanoi to Ninh Binh
- Pace
- Brisk in Vietnam, deliberately slow in Laos
Nights
Four bases
Day by day
Day by day
Day 1
Arrive in Saigon
Met at the airport by our driver and taken into District 1 or 3. The rest of the day is free.
Day 2
The city with a guide
A morning that mixes the obvious and the local: the war museum and the palace first, then a coffee on a pavement and a walk through the alleys of District 3. Afternoon free.
Day 3
Cai Be and the canals
South to Cai Be, about two hours, then the rest of the morning on a sampan in the narrow channels around An Binh. Lunch at a family house, back by late afternoon.
Day 4
Fly to Da Nang, on to Hoi An
About an hour and twenty minutes in the air, forty-five minutes by road. The first evening in the old town.
Day 5
Hoi An’s old town with a guide
The merchant houses, the assembly halls and the Japanese bridge before ten, then the central market for lunch. Afternoon at the tailors or the beach.
Day 6
My Son at opening time
An hour inland to the Cham sanctuary at My Son, arriving as it opens, then back by boat down the Thu Bon for the last stretch.
Day 7
Free in Hoi An
A day with nothing booked. Bicycles are at the hotel.
Day 8
Fly to Hanoi
A late-morning flight north, about an hour and twenty minutes. Our northern partner’s driver meets you. Late afternoon around Hoan Kiem lake.
Day 9
Hanoi
The Temple of Literature and the Old Quarter at walking pace, a noodle lunch, and the evening free for the street food of the Old Quarter.
Day 10
Ninh Binh for the day
About two hours south to Trang An, where rowing boats take you through limestone caves and along flooded valleys. A short climb for the view at Hang Mua. Back in Hanoi by early evening.
Day 11
Fly to Luang Prabang
About an hour in the air. Our partner in Laos meets you and you are on the peninsula in twenty minutes. Climb Mount Phousi for sunset if you have the legs, or walk the night market below it.
Day 12
The town, slowly
A guided morning through Wat Xieng Thong and the smaller monasteries, the old royal palace, and the lanes between. Lunch by the Nam Khan, and the afternoon free.
Day 13
Up the Mekong to Pak Ou
The river trip to Pak Ou
Two hours upriver by long-tail boat to the Pak Ou caves, packed with thousands of old Buddha images, stopping at a weaving village on the way. Afternoon at the Kuang Si falls, about an hour by road, where the pools are turquoise from November.
Day 14
A last day with nothing in it
Deliberately free. A cooking class, a massage, a second visit to the morning market. We can suggest, but we will not fill it.
Day 15
Leave Luang Prabang
Transfer to the airport, twenty minutes away, for your onward flight.
Price
Price
| Travellers | Tier 1 — simple | Tier 2 — comfortable | Tier 3 — the good ones |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 travelling | from 2195 | from 2745 | from 4170 |
| 4 travelling | from 1800 | from 2250 | from 3420 |
| 6 travelling | from 1625 | from 2030 | from 3085 |
Luang Prabang hotels cost more than their Vietnamese equivalents, and the good small ones fill early from November to February; that is the main thing that moves the price. The flight from Hanoi to Luang Prabang runs on a limited schedule, so its fare is less negotiable than the Vietnamese domestic legs.
Included
What is included
What the price includes
- Fourteen nights in your chosen tier, with breakfast
- Private car and driver on all transfers and touring days
- English-speaking guides on touring days
- The three flights within the trip, economy
- The boats at Cai Be, Trang An and Pak Ou
- Entrance fees in the day-by-day
- Lunches as listed
- Our 24/7 line throughout
What it does not include
- International flights in and out
- Visas for Vietnam and Laos
- Travel insurance
- Drinks, dinners and tips
- Activities on the free days
Practical
What to know about Laos
The morning alms round in Luang Prabang is a religious practice, not a show. Watch from across the street, stay quiet, do not use a flash, and do not buy rice from the vendors to hand out unless it means something to you. Our guide will explain it the evening before.
Laos issues an e-visa, accepted at a limited list of entry points that includes the main airports, and a visa on arrival at most international gates. You arrive here by air, which is the simple case, but we still check the arrangement against your passport and the airport at the time of booking. Your Vietnamese visa is separate.
In Laos we work with a long-standing local partner who supplies the guides and vehicles; there is no Ben Thanh office there, and your planner in Saigon stays your contact. March and April bring haze from crop burning across northern Laos, which is why the best months for this trip stop in February.
Not for everyone
Who this does not suit
If you like to be busy every day, four nights in Luang Prabang will feel long, and you should book something else — the fifteen-day Vietnam route by train, or three nights here instead of four. It also skips Ha Long Bay and the northern mountains, which some people consider essential; we think Laos is the better use of the days, but it is a trade.
Common questions
Questions travellers ask most
Can we reach Laos overland instead of flying?
Yes, but it is a very long day on mountain roads from Hanoi, and a Lao visa on arrival at the land gate. For fifteen days we would not give up two days to it.
Is Kuang Si worth the drive?
Yes, on a weekday morning or late afternoon. On Sunday afternoons it is busy with local families, which is pleasant in a different way.
Can we add the train to Vientiane at the end?
Yes. The Laos–China railway takes about two hours to Vientiane, and flights home from there are often easier. It adds a night.
Related
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Example journey
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Day trips, regional routes and full-length itineraries.
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