The Best of Cambodia, Vietnam & Myanmar

Day 1: Siem Reap Arrival

On arrival at Siem Reap international airport, please go to custom desk as your first point of entry to get visa-on-arrival into the country and pay stamping fees directly by cash to custom office there. Welcomed by our guide and transferred to your hotel for check in and has a rest. The driving distance is approximately 30 minutes.

Day 2: Daytour Around Hanoi - Night Train To Lao Cai
Today, visit to the antique capital of Angkor Thom, built in the 12th century: the South Gate with its huge statues depicting the churning of the ocean of milk, the Bayon Temple, unique for its 54 towers decorated with over 200 smiling faces of Avolokitesvara, the Phimeanakas, the Royal Enclosure, the Elephants Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King.
After a short your rest, you will visit the most famous of all the temples on the plain of Angkor: Angkor Wat. The temple complex covers 81 hectares and is comparable in size to the Imperial Palace in Beijing. Its distinctive five towers are emblazoned on the Cambodian flag. This masterpiece is considered by art historians to be the prime example of classical Khmer art and architecture. Angkor Wat’s five towers symbolize Meru’s five peaks - the enclosed wall represents the mountains at the edge of the world and the surrounding moat, the ocean beyond. End of day take a relaxing stopover at Prasat Chrung visiting Tadev Hole and temple with the best Sunset. Return to your hotel and end of the tour
 
Day 3: Full Day Beng Mealea And Banteay Srei
Morning, start tour at 8:00AM, we’ll visit an ancient Hindu temple at the countryside, BANTEAY SREY (citadel of women, 35Km north of Siem Reap), building began in the year 968- and was competed in the year 1,001 AD. Dedicated to Shiva God. In Cambodia, it is a unique pink sandstone temple which has most beautiful deep carvings.
Afternoon, visit Beng Mealea built in the 12th century, the layout and style of Beng Mealea is very similar to Angkor Wat. It’s current state, however, is dominated by jungle. Trees have grown out of the towers and vines entangle columns. Lintels and others building blocks lay around in a tumble and require visitors to climb up and down as they approach the completely collapsed central towers. Ancient capital of Khmer Empire of Rolouse group such as Lolei, Bakong and Preah Ko temples.
 
Day 4: Siem Reap - Ha Noi By Flighter
Free at leisure until transfer airport for departure flight to Hanoi. After 1 hour & 40 minutes on plane, arrival Hanoi airport, warm welcomed by our guide & driver then transfer to the city.
Arrive at Noi Bai International Airport, transfer with a private vehicle and guide. The driving distance is approximately 45 minutes.
Your visa should be pre-arranged, or be sure that your visa-on-arrival letter is in your carry-on luggage. Please go to custom desk as your first point of entry into the country and present these documents for visa upon arrival.

Day 5: Ha Noi Full Day City Tour

The city tour begins with a visit to the Ho Chi Minh Complex which features the life of Ho Chi Minh, the nation’s founder. At the complex, visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, where the nation’s founder’s body is preserved (closed on Monday, Friday and through October - November), the colonial Presidential Palace, originally the French Governor Office and a fine example of French architecture in Hanoi, and the rural style Ho Chi Minh’s house on stilts where Ho Chi Minh lived and worked. Stop by one of Hanoi’s icons, the One Pillar Pagoda, built in the 11th Century in dedication to Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara or Buddha of Compassion and reminiscent of a lotus blossom rising from a pond. Continue to the Temple of Literature, known as the first university of Vietnam built in 1070 by the Ly Dynasty to honor Confucius, sages and outstanding Vietnamese scholars.
Afternoon, continue the tour to one of the following museums of choice namely the Museum of Fine Arts, the National Museum of Vietnamese History, the Museum of Revolution, the Museum of Military History or the Museum of Ethnology. Next, head for Hoan Kiem Lake, the center point of Hanoi whose name “The Return Sword Lake” originated from a legend of a sacred sword and home to a rare endangered giant turtle species and visit Ngoc Son Temple on the lake. Take a one-hour cycle tour of the Old Quarter of Hanoi with its ancient streets representing traditional trades from the past. Finish the tour at the Thang Long Opera Theatre with a traditional Vietnamese water puppet show.

Day 6: Ha Noi - Ha Long Over Night On Boat
Morning pickup at 8:00 AM from your hotel for transfer to Ha Long Bay, which is about 160 km or 3.5-hour drive away. The transfer is approximately 3 hours. You will see some rural areas of the Red River Delta with plenty of chances to take photos of Vietnamese farmers working in paddy fields and you may stop on the way to admire the local scenery.
Arrive in Ha Long City at 11:30 AM and check in aboard the booked junk when your journey across Ha Long Bay starts. Ha Long Bay meaning Descending Dragon Bay in Vietnamese as legend has it that it was where a holly dragon landed down from sky. The bay, famous as one of the world’s wonders and heritage sites whose formation dates back 500 million years, consists of around 2,000 karst islands and islets scattered over an area of 1,553 km2.
After lunch, take a short trek to a nearby summit for a panoramic view of the bay dotted with golden sails, go swimming on a quiet beach or sunbath on the sundeck. Later in the afternoon, you will visit an interesting fishing village with an opportunity to interact with local people who have been living in the bay for almost three generations. An optional kayaking trip is available weather permitting. Back onboard enjoy a lavish dinner and enjoy the bay view at sunset. Spend a night on board.

Day 7: Ha Long - Ha Noi - Danang - Hoi An By Flight
In the morning, refresh your body and mind with a Tai Chi exercise on the sundeck at the break of dawn. Have tea and coffee onboard and continue exploring Ha Long Bay sailing across its 2000 islets and visiting some of its major highlights. Normally, check out at 09:30, have a buffet brunch while cruising back to shore. Disembark at 11:00 AM to transfer to Hanoi capital.
Free at leisure until meet our guide then transfer to airport for flight to Da Nang. Flight time is approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes
Arrival Da Nang airport, you are transferred to Hoi An ancient town by private car & guide. The transfer from Da Nang to Hoi An is approximately 40 minutes.

Day 8: Hoi An Full Day Ancient Town
In the morning, you will meet your private guide at your hotel who will take you to visit the town. Once a bustling maritime commercial port of Asia between 15th and 19th centuries, Hoi An, recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, is now a peaceful town of exceptionally well-preserved architecture, lifestyles and traditions. The town exemplifies a fascinating fusion of cultures between Vietnam and the outside world including China, Japan, Thailand and the Philippines. Your sightseeing will include the iconic 400-year-old Covered Bridge with a small temple attached to one side as a prominent example of Japanese architecture, the Museum of Trade Ceramics which is an elegant Vietnamese style wooden house built in 1858 showcasing antique ceramic artifacts, the 200-year-old Tan Ky House typifying an ancient Chinese merchant residence, the Ong Temple built in 1653 by Chinese settlers to worship Guan Yu, an ancient Chinese general whose character stands for loyalty, bravery and justice and the local market vibrant with colors and activities.
Afternoon, boat cruise on the Thu Bon River will be made to enjoy the countryside landscapes. Land on Kim Bong village where carpentry has been practiced since the 16th Century as the village’s trademark to visit some old-fashioned boatyards using timber as the main material. Stop at Thanh Ha village to see its traditional ceramic production trade still alive and thriving despite the 500-year passage of time.

Day 9: Hoi An - Da Nang – Ho Chi Minh (Sai Gon) By Flight
Morning, transfer to Da Nang airport for flight to Ho Chi Minh City
Flight time is approximately 1.5 hours.
Meet your driver for an airport transfer with a private vehicle and guide. The transfer distance is approximately 30 minutes
Afternoon, we start the tour with a visit to the War Remnants Museum which features a comprehensive collection of the machinery, weapons, photos, and documentation of Vietnam War with the both the French and Americans and the Reunification Palace which was the former residence of the President of South Vietnam until end of April 1975. Next, visit Sai Gon Post Office, a fine colonial building which was designed and built in the early 20th Century by the famous French architect Gustave Eiffel. Move on to Cho Lon or the city’s China Town where you will visit the Jade Emperor Temple (Phuoc Hai), a rare Taoist structure in Vietnam built in 1909 in dedication to the Lord of Heaven. It’s filled with smoky incense and fantastic carved figurines and still buzzing with worshipers, many lounging in the front gardens

Day 10: Hochiminh Full Day Mekong Delta (My Tho)

Morning, you will be picked up and travel past miles of flat rice fields, along a bustling road to the Mekong Delta, the world’s largest delta and Vietnam's largest rice bowl.

On arrival in My Tho City, board a motorboat and navigate through intricate canals while observing the local daily life up close as well as the landscape of waterways and lush islands. Land on Thoi Son Island where you can listen to Southern traditional music performed by native artists. Next, you will change to a paddle boat to cruise through the narrow canals and visit households with traditional occupations of home-based coconut candy and rice-wine making. Continue travel by motorized boat to another island to visit a bee farm and taste tea with fresh honey from the beehives and enjoy fresh fruits. On the return to My Tho, stop to visit the Vinh Trang Pagoda, a prominent local Buddhist structure built in 1850 with a unique architectural mixture of Vietnamese, Roman, Chinese and Cambodian styles characterized by a highly ornate façade. You might enjoy a lovely lunch at a local Vietnamese restaurant. At the end of the tour, you will find the way back to Ho Chi Minh.

Day 11: Ho Chi Minh - Yangon By Flight
Meet your driver for an airport transfer with a private vehicle and guide.
Fly from Ho Chi Minh City to Yangon, Myanmar (Schedule flight isn’t daily operated but on Tuesday, Thursday & Sunday only). Flight time is approximately 2 hours.
On arrival at the Yangon international airport, welcomed by our guide and transferred to your hotel for check in and has a rest (Check in time is 14:00 and early check in is subject to availability).

Day 12: Yangon Full Day City Tour
This full day tour today we will show you the different faces of Yangon. We start from the bottom of the hill and passing the workshops, small downtown area including several markets, colonial buildings and monasteries, which will be useful or even essential to understand more of the country during the rest of your journey. Visit the 2,600 years old Shwedagon Pagoda, the most sacred Buddhist pagoda for the Burmese can be seen from almost anywhere in Yangon. Witness the colors transform on the 100-meter pagoda which is literally covered with over 60 tons of gold leaf. So what’s behind the golden façade of the Shwedagon Pagoda? You will learn about the full history of the pagoda, the daily life of all people living in its immediate surroundings and a deeper insight in the Buddhist religion and how the spiritual belief is mixed with the belief in nats – the Myanmar spirits.
Return to the hotel for relax
 
Day 13: Yangon - Mandalay
Morning, transfer to airport for domestic flight to Mandalay. Flight time is approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. Meet your driver for an airport transfer with a private vehicle. The distance is almost 1 hour driving.
Mandalay is the last capital of Myanmar Kingdom before the annexation of British in 1885, the period of kingdom was very short, but the name Mandalay becomes well known by “Rudyard Kipling”. King Thibaw and Queen Supayalat were the last royalties of Burma until being sent to exile.
This afternoon, your guide brings you to visit the rebuilt palace designed by king Mindon. The royal palace wall surrounded by the moat is one of the great things to visit and it has been re-created after 1945, by 2nd War World. We enter the palace main gate and from here we continue to visit the most beautiful part which is the wood-carved Shwenandaw monastery just outside the palace in which king Mindon lived and died. King Thibaw later used this building for meditation. We continue to the lesser-known Setkyathiha pagoda with a bronze Buddha statue, brought to Mandalay by king Thibaw just before the beginning of the war. The royal family collected many religious artefacts and we witness the process of making gold leaves, woodcarvings and silver or gold threaded kalagas (tapestry).
We have a visit to a viewpoint near the Ayeyarwaddy River for a cold Mandalay beer during sunset. Continue to the busy Yadanar night market to have some traditional snacks and a walk around before heading to one of the most famous beer stations and BBQ restaurants in Mandalay. Your guide will order the food and be sure you’re satisfied. We continue before 8:30 PM to the excellent Mandalay marionettes theater for a show performed by a mix of traditional musicians, puppeteers and dancers.

Day 14: Mandalay - Heho - Inle Lake
Today, from the jetty in Mandalay we relax on a leisurely boat cruise for about 2 hours downstream to Sagaing passing the temple dotted hills where we stop and visit the Setkyar Thida nunnery. Afterward, we continue by boat to Ava, horse carts are ready to take us around this magnificent site past ancient temple ruins that used to be majestic buildings. Lunch will be taken in Ava before we go to Amarapura by car. The old capital of Amarapura is a very quiet village nowadays where you only hear the sound of the weaving machines. Visit one of the small weaving factories and walk slowly over U-Bein Bridge. It’s an ideal excursion if you don’t take the boat from Mandalay to Bagan since the most interesting part of the long boat ride is covered in this shorter cruise

Day 15: Mandalay - Heho - Inle Lake
Morning, transfer to Mandalay airport for domestic flight to Heho. Flight time is approximately 1hour. Meet your driver for an airport transfer to Inle Lake to check in hotel

Day 16: A Day On The Lake
Inle Lake in southern Shan State is a vast natural lake surrounded by traditional Shan villages that certainly is worth a visit. Surrounding and on the lake itself the Intha people have been living for many centuries in villages built entirely on stilts. Embark on a private motorboat around the lake to discover its natural beauty, visit the floating gardens, see some of the famous leg rowers, and have a cup of tea at a local family’s house. On and around the lake, traditional markets are held in different villages according to a 5-day rotating schedule. You will be taken to visit one of these colorful markets frequented by Shan and PaO people. You certainly also visit a local cheroot factory (where the Burmese cigars are made), Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda, Intha Heritage house - where the Burmese cats are bred, a weaving factory and floating tomato gardens before heading back to hotel

Day 17: Inle - Yangon - Departure
After breakfast, you are transferd to airport for flight to Yangon city. Connect your flight return home

INCLUSION

• Air-conditioned vehicles with experienced driver
• English speaking licensed guide
• All admission fees as mentioned in the program
• VAT 7% and all Government taxes (no service charge)
• Accomodation based on twin/double/Triple sharing room

EXCLUSIONS

• Lunch meal
• Food and drinks
• Travel insurances
• Gratuities
• Sinlge Suplement