Group of Alessandro Lipovscek and Giacomo Brogneca

Hi Lam,

You have to apologize for not writing you before because work and children captured me for a few days.

The trip was beautiful and we were very happy. The guide in Saigon was as good as the one of Phnom Penh (really good).

The guide to Siem Reap was kind, correct, but in my opinion a bit too detached and honestly really unhelpful, in short, good and kind but really only for 90 year old tourists and group tours. For the rest to you how are you?

I wanted to gather the opportunity to wish for a good Christmas (though already past) and a happy new year. I was really happy to meet you and I would recommend your agency to all my friends who would like to go.

If you need some courtesy let me know.

P.s: When you come to Italy do not forget to warn me

Alessandro and Giacomo

Group: Mrs. Alessandro Lipovscek and Mrs Giacomo Brogneca

Travel date: 30/11/2012 – 15/12/2012

Tour Detail

Day 01: Welcome to Hanoi (-/-/-)

Fly to Saigon. Upon arrival to the airport, you well be met by our guide and transfer to you hotel. Free dinner and overnight stay at hotel.

Hanoi, the political capital of Vietnam from 1010 to the present, means in Vietnamese “city in the rivers”, which in this case is Red. Hanoi looks like a typical French town of the beginning of the century, with avenues, parks, monuments and a crowded center of shops and colors.

Day 02: Hanoi visit (B/L/D)

At 09:00AM, our waiting guide and driver will welcome you at your hotel and transfer us to Temple of Literature. Following is a visit to The Presidential Palace (formerly Palace of the Governor-General of French Indochina), Ho Chi Minh’s house-on-stilt and nearby One Pillar Pagoda. Then followed by Tran Quoc Pagoda.

In the afternoon, visit Van Mieu literally translated “Temple of Literature” which is wel-known in Vietnam for a combination of Confucian sanctuary and academy, the centre also housed the country’s first university, founded in 1076. We have time to wander through the stone tablets and soak up a thousand years of learning with our local guide. Lunch break in a local restaurant.

Next is Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake Walking tour. Followed by, we travel by rickshaw cyclo (traditional bike-propelled cart) and foot along tree-lined boulevards and through the 1000-year-old Old Quarter, exploring the markets and taking in some of the city’s great colonial architecture.

We finish day by visiting Ngoc Son Temple.

Dinner with the Vietnamese family: Amo Travel’s special product.

Accommodation in hotel.

Day 03: Hanoi – Halong (B/L/D)

Morning

Your train will arrive in Hanoi at the early morning. Your driver and guide would see you at the station then take you to an restaurant for breakfast, before setting out on a 3.5 hour drive to the UNESCO World Heritage Site: Halong Bay. Then you would have 24 hours on a traditional style Vietnamese Junk Cruise which would set sail at noon and board your junk. Lunch with diversified fresh seafood would be served on board.

Afternoon

Aboard the cruise, you would take time to visit several highlight locations:

• 3 largest caves: Thien Cung, Dau Go, Sung Sot
• Titop beach for swimming (weather permit) or being on the deck for sunbathing
• Nearby summits where you can take short trekking to watch over the bay from the high.

Back on the junk, the stunning sunset time is on your view and a dinner awaits with cocktails available for purchase from the bar. Passing the night on your junk, the gentle rocking of calm waters will lull you to sleep.

Day 04: Halong – Hanoi – Flight to Hoi An (B/L/-)

Morning

Waking up early in the calming sounds of waves crashing the nearby islands, you can enjoy a morning coffee and watch the sun rise on the top deck, or you may join Tai Chi Class if you wish to. You will continue sailing around the magnificent bay and even to Bai Tu Long, where the movie “Indochine” was filmed. Sitting on the upper deck and enjoy the breath-taking beauty of the rocky islands rising from the crystal-clear water of the bay. The brunch would be served while the junk starts cruising back.

Afternoon

Your cruise will end at noon (around 12:00 pm) and your driver will be waiting at the dock and ready to take you right to Noi Bai airport for your in-country flight to Hue. Upon your arrival, your guide  and driver would meet you at Phu Bai airport in Hue and take you to the hotel for check-in.

Note: You could have a choice to go back to Hanoi for further shopping or visit one place: But Thap Pagoda or Tho Ha Village or Phu Lang Pottery Village before the transfer to Noi Bai Airport (applied for the tour with private car) fo the flight to Hoi An.

Upon arrival at Hoi An, transfer to hotel. Free dinner and accomodation in hotel.

Day 05: Hoi An visita (B/-/-)

Breakfast at hotel.

We take a walking tour through the narrow streets, visiting a number of attractions in town: the PhucKien Assembly Hall, the Chua Ong Pagoda, the Japanese Covered Bridge, the hundred-year old merchant house … and colorful local markets. Hoi An is also famous for its large number of tailor shops, so if you want to have a new wardrobe made up, this is the time to do it.

Overnight in hotel.

Day 06: Hoi An – Danang – Hue – Hue visita (B/-/-)

Morning transfer to Hue.

Stop to visit the pass of Hai Van (Cloud Pass) where the sky, the mountain and the sea reach. Visit the Sculpture Village under Marble Mountain with Linh Ung Pagoda.

Arrival in Hue.

The Hue Citadel is situated on the Northern bank of the Perfume River. It covers an area 500 ha and has a system of three circles of ramparts: Kinh Thanh Hue (Hue Capital Citadel), Hoang Thanh (Royal Citadel) and Tu Cam Thanh (Forbidden Citadel). The Hue royal complex has been officially recognized by the UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

In the afternoon, enjoy a scenic boat trip on the Perfume River to visit the Thien Mu Pagoda or Heavenly Lady pagoda, one of the oldest ancient architectural structures for religious worship in Hue. Situated 4 km upstream on the banks of the Perfume River, it is an active Buddhist monastery with its origins dating back to 1601.

Visit the Imperial Citadel of Hue with the Purple Forbidden City.

Day 07: Hue visit – Flight to Saigon (B/-/-)

In the morning, breakfast then transfer to Minh Mang e Khai Dinh Royal Tomb , the Emperor of the Imperial City built his own tomb during his reign and today you will visit one of the most beautiful mausoleums.

Transfer to the airport for the flight to Saigon. Upon arrival, transfer to hotel.

Free day and accomodation in hotel.

Day 08: Sai Gon visit – Cu Chi (B/-/-)

Breakfast at hotel.

At 08:30. Transfer to Cu Chi Tunnel, located about 70km northwest of Sai Gon city. The incredible underground tunnel network of Cu Chi stretches for more than 250 km and becomes legendary during the American War. The entire tunnel architecture has been built by providing it with habitable areas, food storage stores, gun factory, command center and dormitories. During the excursion you will visit a large tunnel section to experience the thrill of the underground life. Return to the city in the afternoon.

In the afternoon visit: Post Office, Catedrale Notre Dame, Chinese Quatiere with Thien Hau Pagoda, War Museum, Dong Xuan Market.

Accomodation in hotel.

Day 09: Saigon – Cai Be – Vinh Long – Can Tho (B/L/-)

After breakfast, transfer along the panoramic path between the countryside and the huge paddles, in the direction of Vinh Long (140km). The program begins with a visit to the colorful Cai Be floating market and local shops where you can see how rice pies, coconut candies and popcorn and pop rice are made. Particularly interesting is the visit to the villages where daily life today as in the past coincides with all its tradition and wisdom in preparing and packaging handicraft products: spring rolls, fish sauce and soy sauce , kitchen facilities and coconut leaves for cottages. Lunch will be served in the shade of fruit on An Binh Island, enjoying the famous Fried Mekong Elephant Ear Fish. After lunch, a rowing boat will take you through the countryside through the smallest canals to open moments of peace. It is interesting to see the traditional houses made with wood and palm leaves and some of the local farmers’ activities, such as catching fish or collecting the fruits ancestrally. Stay at the Nursery Garden where to learn how to pick the best quality fruits followed by Mr.Tiger’s advice and his son who have been very successful in farming in Vietnam. You will taste some of the fruits of your garden and home-made wine, listening to traditional music. With the boat you continue for another floating village where you will be able to catch the fish under the houses. Meeting with the private car at Vinh Long and transfer to Can Tho.

Arrival at Can Tho. Free dinner and accomodation in hotel.

Day 10: Can Tho – Cai Rang Market – Saigon – Flight to Siem Reap (B/-/-)

Early in the morning, after breakfast, you will enjoy a pleasant boat ride to explore one of the tributaries of Low Mekong (the Bassac River), then go to the Cai Rang floating market, which is perhaps the most lively in the region. Have lunch before going to Saigon.

Transfer to the airport for the flight to Siem Reap.

Arrival at Siem Reap. Free dinner and accomodation at hotel.

Day 11: Siem Reap – Angkor Wat – Angkor Thom  (B/-/-)

Breakfast and departure to visit Angkor Thom (large cities) will begin with the South reef and the famous Bayon temple of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, dedicated to Buddhism. The Temple is composed of no less than 54 laps and 216 gigantic faces of Avalokitesvara. Then, you will continue your visit with the terrace of the elephants, along 350m which is at the foot of the Royal Hall and is a place used to organize public ceremonies. Following the terrace of the Leper King, built in the twelfth century, which has several sculptures of apsaras … .and Phimean Akas, Baphuon, Elephant Terrace.
 
You will continue with a visit to the temple Ta Promh before the break for lunch. In the afternoon you will discover the marvelous temple of Angkor Wat, the world’s heritage of ‘humanity that was built in the twelfth century (1112-1152) in honor of Vishnu and covers an area of ​​200 hectares and surrounded by a canal and a wall of 1300m x 1500m. Angkor Wat is the largest temple in the world and famous for its slender laps and its extraordinary bas-reliefs and is’ considered one of the most extraordinary monuments ever conceived by man.

Day 12 : Siem Reap – Banteay Srey & Rolouse Group (B/-/D)
During the morning you will visit the temple of Banteay Srei where is kept one of the finest jewels of Khmer art. Built in the tenth century, this small temple of pink sandstone, whose name means “The Citadel of women contains masterpieces of sculpture still in good condition. André Malraux made him famous at the beginning of the twentieth century thanks to the gathering of some “apsara” heads that have been returned to the community in 1923. 
Free lunch.

Visit of the archaeological site of Hariharalaya, the pre-Angkorinese town that was home to the 9th Khmer Kings. In this place, now known as Rolous, we can admire temples built with more rudimentary and primitive techniques than Angkor, but equally loaded with charm. In the 9th century the sandstone was not yet used and both the imposing Preah Ko temple and the little Lolei have towers entirely built in bricks. Rolous’s greatest attraction, however, is the mastodontic Bakong, a “mountain temple” whose steep five-stage pyramid stands at the center of a wide canal that surrounds it.

Dinner at local restaurant and accomodation in hotel.

Day 13: Siem Reap – Tonel Sap – City tour (B/-/-)

Breakfast and stay in a boat ride on the Tonle Sap. Located 10 km from Siem Reap this great lake knows an annual cycle of rains and rains that increase its surface and then decrease it in the dry season by contributing to fertilizing with its silt the great rice fields and supplying the villages with a large amount of fish and molluscs. Boats coming from Phnom Penh and Siem Reap meet at Chong Khneas in the middle of the lake. This walk will allow you to discover the life of Cambodians who have retained the customs, customs and traditions of the past. Due to the low water level (between February and May), this excursion will be replaced by visiting the temples of Ruluos 15 km south which was one of the capitals of the Khmer Kings.

Day 14 : Siem Reap / Phnom Penh  & City tour (B/-/-)

Breakfast and transfer to Phnom Penh. Check – in hotel.

Upon arrival at Phnom Penh, you will visit the classic part of the capital of Cambodia: the Royal Palace with the Hall of the Throne and the contiguous complex of the Silver Pagoda.

Once you check in you will visit the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum (not suitable for children). Toul Sleng was an institute, the Chao Ponhea Yat Institute, which was transformed by the Red Khmer into a Prison S-21. More than 20,000 men, women and children have been questioned, tortured and killed in this area. Toul Sleng was one of the 150 extermination camps of the Red Khmer regime of Pol Pot.

Then there will be a visit to the Choeung Ek extermination camps. In this terrible place there are buried in total tombs, more than 8,000 people, on the collective tombs there is a monument to the memory of the victims.

Free dinner and accomodation in hotel.

Day 15: Phnom Penh / Tonle Bati & Phnom Chiso (B/-/-)

Departing on national road 12 to visit the Khmer Phnom Chisor temple, dates back to the 11th century which was an important place for pilgrimage. We climb the mountain to admire spectacular views of the surrounding countryside and explore the temple.

We head back to Phnom Penh at Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center where we can meet the diversity of Cambodian wildlife. Phnom Tamao is the main Zambian collection in Cambodia and one of the best wildlife rescue centers in Southeast Asia, providing a human habitat for innumerable threatened species. Elephants, tigers, leopards, bears and other big mammals, all rescued from illegal wildlife trade are now housed in large naturalized enclosures within the Phnom Tamao Protected Forest.

After returning to Phnom Penh, we stop at Tonle Bati to visit the beautiful temple of Ta Prohm, Yeay Peov and Wat Tonle Bati, built from the 12th century by King Jayavarman VII, this temple is surrounded by lush flowers and it is a quiet sanctuary.

Day 16: Phnom Penh Departure (B/-/-)

Breakfast and free time until transfer to the airport.