16 days of private trip in Vietnam by motorbike

If it is a truly Vietnamese experience that you are looking for, then this is the tour for you. Routes Vietnam offers you an opportunity to explore this amazing country in a different way. You will stay on a local Vietnamese farm, helping the farmers with their everyday routine, experiencing their way of life. This is a chance to live like a real Vietnamese and discover more than just the culture of the big cities. Also included in this tour is a motorcycle/jeep trip around the Northern regions of Vietnam; Sapa and Ha Giang province. And of course, a visit to Halong Bay, where you will spend the night in the middle of the sublime Cat Ba Island National Park. We combine nature and history in this adventurous trip, where you will discover this amazing country in a unique way that will bring you closer to the people of Vietnam.

DETAILLED ITINERARY

DAY 1: ARRIVE IN HANOI
(Breakfast or Lunch)
At your arrival to Hanoi, you will be greeted at the airport by our driver and transferred to your hotel. You will have the rest of the day off, to recover from your travel and start discovering the city by yourself. Regarding the time you will arrive, you will have either a welcome breakfast or a welcome lunch.
Overnight in Hanoi

DAY 2: HANOI – HALONG BAY
(Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner)
3 days and 2 nights
You will arrive in Hanoi at 5:30 in the morning. We will pick you up at the station and take you to a hotel so you can rest, have breakfast, and shower, if you want to.  After breakfast, at approximately 8:00am, the bus will be waiting for you to take you from Hanoi to Halong Bay (4hrs trip with a 20 minutes stop).
At around 13.00 h we will embark on a cruise with a warm welcoming aboard the Deluxe Dragon Cruise and drink in the spectacular vista during our passage into this magical bay. Cruise briefings and check-in your traditionally styled cabin on Deluxe Dragon Cruise. Vietnamese lunch is served while passing the symbol of Ha Long bay "Fighting Cocks" Rock. Visit Sung Sot Amazing cave with many stalactites in numerous attractive forms and shapes.
There will be plenty of time for kayaking, swimming and sunbathing (weather permitted) as you anchor for a night on the bay. Enjoy a wonderful delectable seafood dinner, Cuttle fishing & Karaoke singing before relaxing in your comfortable cabin.
Overnight in the traditional junk boat

DAY 3: HALONG BAY – CAT BA ISLAND
(Breakfast and Lunch)
Today, after the breakfast, you will cruise south towards Lan Ha bay with transfer boat. We then free and easy for swimming in Lan Ha bay. Short break for lunch. In the afternoon, we will take a bicycle for 5 km through jungles to Whisper of Nature Bungalow, Viet Hai village. Short trek inside Cat Ba National Park. Cycling through 5km back to the harbor. Boarding transfer boat again and then heading to monkey island - the isolate island is now home of wild monkeys. Late in afternoon the bus will take you to your hotel in Cat Ba town.
Overnight in a bungalow

DAY 4: CAT BA ISLAND-HALONG BAY-HANOI
(Breakfast and Lunch)
After breakfast at your hotel, our bus will transfer you to Beo harbor for a boat cruise back to Ha Long bay.  Get changed to our Deluxe Dragon Cruise in Van Gia fishing village. Relax on the top deck for sun-bathing, photo hunting or socializing with other people while going through other parts of Ha Long. Finishing cruise approximate 11:45am, you take a short rest and have a bus drive to a local restaurant for lunch. Say goodbye to Ha Long bay then return to Hanoi. Have a short break 20 minutes half way back in Hai Duong city for refreshments. Arriving in Hanoi approximate 5:30pm.
Overnight in Hanoi

DAY 5: HANOI- HA TAY-THE VIETNAMESE FARM
(Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner)
This day, you will be transferred by private car or by motorbike in a Vietnamese farm of the province of Ha Tay where you will spend time there. Time to relax but mainly time to discover this culture and those inhabitants by helping them out in the everyday life activities. You will have the unique chance to collaborate in the management if a real Vietnamese farm.
Night in the Ha Tay Village

DAY 6: THE VIETNAMESE FARM
(Breakfast, Lunch and dinner)
Today, you can spend your day as you want in the farm and in the surroundings.  
Night in the Ha Tay Village

DAY 7: HA TAY-HANOI- NIGHT BUS TO HA GIANG
(Breakfast)
In the morning, after breakfast, we will pick you up and get you back to Hanoi where you will take a night bus to Ha Giang. You will have time to relax and stroll through Hanoi before taking your night bus. The bus will leave at 20:30 to arrive in ha giang to 5:30, the day after.
Night in the sleeping-bus

DAY 8: HA GIANG- QUAN BA- BY MOTORBIKE
(Breakfast)
Upon arrival, our correspondents in the north of Vietnam will be waiting with your bike. To start, you will first have a breakfast in a hotel in the area and you will see the local markets. You will arrive at Quan Ba and see the charms of this city on the Chinese border. Our staff will show you the local schools that you can visit and the border guard military center, half Chinese half-Vietnamese. This atmosphere, very different from what you saw before, will give you a special impression, revealing also the situation in this part of the country. If you wish, you can bring things to offer children in these schools and / or the military center.
Overnight in Quan Ban

DAY 9: QUAN BA-YEN MINH-DONG VAN-BY MOTORBIKE
(Breakfast)
After having breakfast and after a good night, you will ride through Yen Minh. Before leaving, you will have the chance to see the very colorful Quan Ba market. You will cross very amazing landscapes and countrysides till you arrive at the Chinese border. You will stop at Dong Van.
Overnight in Dong Van  

DAY 10: DONG VAN-SAPA- BY MOTORBIKE
(Breakfast)
Today, you will go from Dong Van to Sapa. You will discover with pleasure this surprising region. You will visit Linh Ho, Lao Chai and Ta Van villages. During your motorbike trip, you will stop from place to place, to observe rice fields and valleys. You will decide yourself when and where you want to stop. A guide will be at your disposal. You will arrive in Sapa in the early evening.   
Overnight in Sapa

DAY 11: SAPA-PHONG THO- BY MOTORBIKE
(Breakfast)
This day is a perfect day for a great tour on motorbike. The roads are not busy, the asphalt is perfect (except for some muddy moments), and roads are crossing the mountains. It is also possible to do this tour in a private car, which as with the bike gives you the opportunity to design the tour at your rhythm. The trip will be 3 hours and a half long to Phong Tho. In Phong Tho, you will visit a local market.
Overnight in Phong Tho
 
DAY 12:  PHONG THO-DIEN BIEN PHU-BY MOTORBIKE
(Breakfast)
Today, you will go to the infamous town of Dien Bien Phu (travel about 5 hours). The landscape you will see on the road is beautiful. Upon arrival at Dien Bien Phu, you will drive to the hotel and after you will have time to relax a little. Dien Bien Phu is a key point in the history of Vietnam. We will provide you the information about the area and the history if you want.
Overnight in Dien Bien Phu

DAY 13: DIEN BIEN PHU-HANOI-NIGHT TRAIN TO HUE
(Breakfast)
As we saw before, Dien Bien Phu is a key point in the history of Vietnam. For those who love history, you can visit museum of history of the battle of Dien Bien Phu, trenches, hills, tunnels of this mythical valley ... but for those who are not so interested in these topics, we can organize a bike ride in the area. After lunch, you will go to the airport to take a flight to Hanoi (flight at 14:50 - arrival in Hanoi at 15:50). Upon arrival in Hanoi, our correspondent will takes you into the city center. You will have time to stroll around the city before being drop off to the station to catch your train at night, towards Hue.
Night train in a 4-beds compartment

DAY 14: HUE-QUANG TRI-KHE SANH-DONG HOI-BY MOTORBIKE
(Breakfast)
Upon arrival in Hue, our correspondent will pick you up to take you to a hotel, the time for you to refresh and breakfast.
HUE-QUANG TRI-KHE SANH (option: by car or motorbike)
Demilitarized Zone
At 9.00 in the morning, our guide will pick you up at your hotel to take you to the village of Dong Ha by the national road. Dong Ha, you continue on the famous route from Ho Chi Minh City, formerly used by the Hanoi government to send supplies to its forces in South Vietnam. You will pass by the Dakrong Bridge, one of the highlights of this route. You will go to Hamburger Hill near Luoi. This place is best known due to one of the U.S. military operations that cost the lives of 250 U.S. soldiers in less than one week. You cross the river Thanh, near which the minority people Tu Ka, Van Kieu and Paco are living. The Ho Chi Minh trail was not, in fact, one way, but rather a network of trails that roamed the mountains of western Vietnam. The Americans have to multiply their surveillance to avoid what proved inevitable. The U.S. base at Khe Sanh occupies a prominent place.  It suffered the most brutal siege of the war, with thousands of marine literally surrended by the North Vietnamese army and a number of tragic deaths on both sides. A museum recalls the battles that have been living on this green esplanade enclosed between hills and coffee plantations, in January 1968.
You will have lunch at local restaurant Dong Hapor. In the afternoon, visit the demilitarized zone takes you to Loung Hien bridge spanning the Ben Hai He River. This is where was the border between the North and the South from 1954 to 1972, called the 17th parallel. We will visit the Vinh Moc tunnels Vinh, north of the 'dm', which was one of the most bombed in the world between 1966 and 1972 locations. To prevent the depopulation of the region, Viet Cong began the widespread use of a network of tunnels or underground life continues in all directions: up to 17 births were recorded in the bathroom delivery. The system of tunnels, three levels deep (12, 15 and 23 meters), was nearly three kilometers of road. It housed Vietnamese soldiers and families of farmers and had twelve mouths outputs, seven of them led to the beaches near the sea
By late afternoon, you will arrive at your home base in Dong Hoi.
Overnight in Dong Hoi

DAY 15: DONG HOI–PHONG NHA-HUE
(Breakfast)
This morning at 9 am, our guide will pick you up to visit the outskirts of phong Nha, declared natural heritage by Unesco. You will see the caves of Phong Nha cave Cung Dinh, Tien and Bi Ky. You will have lunch in a local restaurant. After regaining strength, you will go to the national park. Along the way you will visit the citadel of Quang tri. You will return to hue in the late afternoon.
Overnight in Hue

DAY 16: HUE-HANOI-DEPARTURE FROM VIETNAM
(Breakfast)
Today is your last day in Vietnam. From Hue, you will take a flight back to Hanoi. From there, you will catch your international flight back to home.
Please, be advised that the Hue airport will be close until the end of October 2013 so if you are travelling before this date, you will be transferred to the Da Nang airport or you will take a night train.
Anyway, we will arrange your trip to your international flights.

Included:

• All the transfers mentioned in this itinerary
• Domestic flights from Dien Bien Phu to Hanoi and from Hue to Hanoi
• Night train in 4 beds compartment
• Cruise on the Halong Bay
• Motorbike tour with gaz and a mechanical-guide
• Entrance fees on the different sites
• Meals as mentioned in this itinerary
• Accommodation in  3, 4 and 4 stars hotels
• Visa arrangements
• Mobile phone and credits to join us when you want

Excluded:

• The international flight. If you need it, we will help you find the best flight
• An international insurance. We recommend you to check out on Intermundial/Travel insurance/ADVENTURE +
• The price of the visa upon arrival (at the Vietnamese airport: 45 USD per person)

Accomodation Routes Vietnam

Contact us for a quote

This trip is available throughout the year. If you wish to book this trip please contact us. If you want us to send you more information on this tour or tailor this tour to your requirements (dates, tastes ...) you only have to ask.

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