9 Days Secrets of the Mekong

Day 1

Welcome to Vietnam’s modern metropolis: Saigon then enjoy an orientation tour through Ho Chi Minh City’s bustling streets en route to the hotel. Your driver and guide will greet you outside the baggage claim at Tan Son Nhat Airport and transfer you to your hotel in the city center. In the afternoon, start a half day city tour at the War Remnants Museum, one of the most famous historical attractions in Saigon. Coming to the War Remnants Museum, you can learn a part of how Vietnamese had struggled and fought for their independence, freedom, and peace of the nation and the locals' perspective of the Vietnam War. The exhibits, such as weapons, documents, and photographs, display in the museum are firm evidence of war crimes in Vietnam and speak for the heroic actions of the former Vietnamese generation.

We then visit the Reunification Palace, the witness of the fierce Vietnam War ended in 1975. The grand building today is a Museum and Hall of official receptions. Nearby the Palace are the Notre Dame Cathedral (view from outside only), built between 1877 and 1883 and colonial-styled Central Post Office, one of the city’s major landmarks.

Last but not least, visit Ben Thanh Market, a lively market in central District 1, where your guide can help you barter for goods.

The rest of the day is free time.

Accommodation at hotel in Hanoi

Meals included:

None

Day 2

Breakfast will be at the hotel.

We travel by road to Tay Ninh to see the ornate temple of Cao Dai and attend the fantastic mid-day ceremony when the followers fill the hall wearing colored robes, a symbol of the curious combination of the Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism.

Afterwards we continue to the famous Cu Chi Tunnels, which were an incredible underground network constructed by Vietnamese fighters during the long struggle for independence. Watch a short introductory video showing how the tunnels were constructed. Also on displaying are various mantraps and the remains of an American tank as well as numerous bomb craters made by 500 pound bombs dropped by B52 bombers.

We then spend the next hour exploring the maze of tunnels to see the first hand how the Vietcong communists were able to survive in this underground network. Return to your hotel in Saigon late afternoon.

Accommodation at hotel in Saigon

Meals included:

Breakfast at the hotel

Lunch at a local restaurant

Day 3

Breakfast at the hotel.

After breakfast, leave HCMC and travel to the Mekong River Delta. Arrive in Cai Be at around 11:00 AM and start your tour of the delta with a private cruise to visit Cai Be floating market, passing by a beautiful cathedral. Proceed to local cottage industries, home factories to see how rice paste, rice cookies and coconut candies are made, along with the longan fruit drying process. Sail along some of the Mekong’s innumerable branches and creeks and visit local orchards and traditional houses made of wood and palm tree leaves. Then cross Tien Giang River, one of the two large "arms" of the Mekong, by motorized boat to visit some fluvial islands and explore the countryside by bicycle. Your driver will be waiting for you on the other side of the river to take you on a 45 minute journey to the largest city in the Mekong: Can Tho, a buzzing town with a lively waterfront and a colorful mix of narrow back streets that make for some rewarding exploration.

Rest of the day, you are at leisure.

Accommodation at a hotel in Can Tho.

Meals included:

Breakfast at hotel

Lunch at local restaurant

Day 4

Breakfast at the hotel

Wake early and leave the hotel to visit the famous Cai Rang floating market by motor boat. Experience the daily life of the Mekong River Delta as vendors from around the region gather to sell fresh fruits, local delicacies and handmade goods. Proceed your discovery of the region with a tour of the cottage industries to see people making coconut candies and rice paper. Continue to Chau Doc where a sunset journey up Sam Mountain provides sweeping views of the surrounding countryside. You also visit Lady Xu and Thoai Ngoc Hau Temple if time permits.

Accommodation at your hotel in Chau Doc.

Meals included:

Breakfast at hotel

Day 5

Breakfast at the hotel.

After breakfast, check-out the hotel then travel by speedboat up the Mekong to Cambodia’s capital: Phnom Penh. The total trip takes about four and a half hours (including visa formalities). Visas are easily obtained at the border between Vietnam and Cambodia and cost (including the processing fee). Your guide will meet you at the dock in Phnom Penh and take you to the hotel. After lunnch, head to Independence Monument was inaugurated in November 9, 1962 to celebrate Cambodia’s independence from foreign rule. And continue to the National Garden Park. Late afternoon, Enjoy a 1 hour boat cruise on the Mekong River and runs up the Tonlesap River along the central riverfront area providing a picturesque view of the Royal Palace, National Museum, park and Phnom Penh skyline, and then across the Tonlesap and up the Mekong River to view floating fishing village.

Accommodation at your hotel in Phnom Penh.

Meals included:

Breakfast at the hotel

Day 6

Breakfast will be at hotel.

In the morning, we will visit Royal Place, built by King Norodom in 1866 on the site of

the old town, and the Silver Pagoda, Raung Damrei Museum. The Palace building and Silver Pagoda are located with in the same walled ground. The Silver Pagoda is so named because of its floor, which is made up of 5000 silver tiles. The treasures include a solid gold Buddha encrusted and weighing 90 kilos and a small 17th century emerald and baccarat crystal Buddha. And then move to National Museum of Fine Arts, next to the Royal Palce was dedicated by king Sisowath in 1920. Over 5000 objects are on display including Angkorian era statues, lingas and other artifacts, most notabley the legentary statue of the “Leper King” Though the emphasis is on Angkorian artifacts, there is also a good collection of pieces from later periods, including a special exhibition pf post-Angkorian Buddha figures. Then visit Wat Phnom, a small hill crowned by an active wat (pagoda) marks the legendary founding place of the Phnom Penh.

In the afternoon, we will visit Notorious Tuol Sleng Museum. In 1975 Tuol Svay Prey

High School was taken over by Pol Pot’s security forces and turned into a prison known

as Security Prison 21 (S-21). It soon became the largest such center of detention and

torture in the country. More than 17.000 people held at S-21 were taken to the

extermination camp at Choeung Ek to be executed; detainees who died during torture

were buried in mass graves in the prison ground. The museum displays include room after room of these photographs of men, women and children covering the walls from floor to ceiling; virtually all the people pictured were later killed.

Continue to visit Kiling Field of Cheung Ek is situated 15 kilometers south-west of Phnom Penh and made famous by the film of the same name "Killing Field". it was a place where more than 17,000 civilians were killed and buried in mass graves; many of them transported here after detention and torture in Toul Sleng. This place is a chilling reminder of the brutalities of the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime. In the center of the area is a 17 story glass stupa which houses 8000 skulls exhumed from mass graves.

Accommodation at your hotel in Phnom Penh.

Meals included:

Breakfast at the hotel

Day 7

Breakfast will be at hotel.

This morning, we drive to Siem Reap by National Road No. 6 via Kandal Province,

Kampong Cham Province and Kampong Thom Province with 314 km distance and we will take around 5 to 6 hrs.

En route will stop at a part of Kompong Cham Province called Skun " Spider Village "

The town well-known for selling deep-fride spiders to traveler who stop by on their way. And then you will pass Kompong Thom Province, you will see a Village called Samnak Village’s stone sculptors carving out their giant Buddhas. The craftsmen use rocks from Phnom Santuk’s foothills to craft spectacular statues of all shapes and sizes. Lunch will be en route. After lunch we will continue to Siem Reap. Before reach Siem Reap we will see Spean Preah Toeus or Kampong Kdei Ancient Bridge

Kampong Kdei Bridge with its original name as Spean Preah Toeus (ស្ពា នព្រះទិស – The bridge of Indication) is the best laterite-built bridge of Angkor era which is survived until today. The bridge is located on the main highway of national road no.6 from Kampong Thom to Siem Reap and it used to carry all kinds of transportation of the main highway. In 1965, the bridge has been restored by Bernard Philippe Groslier. Nowadays, Kampong Kdei Bridge is still in good condition, however, the main highway has been diverted since a 1.3 km bypass and a new bridge has been built. Now it’s crossing by villagers who travel by motorbikes and bicycles only. Arrive Siem Reap transfer to hotel for check in.

In the afternoon, we will visit Les Artisans D’ Angkor and see their stone and wood

carving workshops where the artisans are taught to use traditional Khmer techniques. In line with its mission to produce fine Arts & Crafts objects, Artisans d’Angkor has set up a silver plated workshop in order to demonstrate this know-how and encourage the revival of this Cambodian heritage. Wood and stone carving, The art of stone carving goes back to the glorious epoch of the Khmer empire and its monumental constructions that gave rise to the Angkor temples. Like the work of craftsmen from previous centuries, stone carving is done on sandstone. Artisans d’Angkor mainly uses sandstone from Siem Reap province. Next visit the Old Market where you can see the fresh local produce being sold as well as browse the souvenir stalls.

Accommodation at your hotel in Siem Reap.

Meals included:

Breakfast at the hotel

Lunch at a local restaurant

Day 8

Breakfast will be at hotel.

In the morning, we will visit the South Gate (with its huge statues depicting the churning of the ocean of milk) the ancient capital of Angkor Thom (12th century) and visit Bayon Temple (unique for its 54 towers decorated with over 200 smiling faces of Avolokitesvara),the Royal Enclosure, Phimeanakas, the Elephants Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King and visit the fabulous Ta Prohm Temple, embraced by the roots of enormous fig trees. Ta Prohm (pronunciation: prasat taprohm) is the modern name of the temple at Angkor, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia, built in the Bayon style largely in the late 12th and early 13th centuries and originally called Rajavihara. Located approximately one kilometre east of Angkor Thom and on the southern edge of the East Baray, it was founded by the Khmer King Jayavarman VII as a Mahayana Buddhist monastery and university.

Unlike most Angkorian temples, Ta Prohm is in much the same condition in which it was found: the photogenic and atmospheric combination of trees growing out of the ruins and the jungle surroundings have made it one of Angkor's most popular temples with visitors.

UNESCO inscribed Ta Prohm on the World Heritage List in 1992. Today, it is one of the

most visited complexes in Cambodia’s Angkor region. The conservation and restoration of

Ta Prohm is a partnership project of the Archaeological Survey of India and the APSARA (Authority for the Protection and Management of Angkor and the Region of Siem Reap). 

Lunch will be at local restaurant.

In the afternoon, Wat Thmei (New Wat) The wat contains a unique glass-walled stupa

containing the bones of victims of the Khmer Rouge. Some of the bones were recovered from a nearby well while others are the remains of soldiers who died on a nearby battlefield. 500m west of the road to Angkor about 1.5km north of town. Then continue to visit the 7th world heritage, Angkor Wat a unique and stunning blend of spirituality and symmetry, an enduring example of man's devotion to his Gods. It is the largest and undoubtedly the most breath taking of the monuments of Angkor and it is widely believed that it is the largest religious structure in the world until sunset.

Accommodation at your hotel in Siem Reap.

Meals included:

Breakfast at the hotel

Lunch at a local restaurant

Day 9

Breakfast will be at hotel.

Free day leisure.

Transfer to Siem Reap Angkor International Airport for your flight back

Meals included:

Breakfast at the hotel

9 DAYS secrets of mekong

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Package price for 4–star 

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