Michal's
​North and Central VIETNAM Holiday

Hanoi – Ha Long Bay – Ninh Binh – Sapa – Bac Ha – Hoi An
12 Days
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-- Michal and her children at Tam Coc Pier in Ninh Binh, outside Hanoi.  August 2018

​We like to share some of our recent clients' custom itineraries in hopes that they spark ideas in designing your own custom itinerary.

This past August, Michal asked Little Vietnam Tours to plan her two week birthday holiday for her and her two children, Guy and Maayan.  Michal was coming from Israel and wanted an active holiday for her children, with relaxation time for her.  She asked to stay in very nice accommodations so she could relax in comfort while exploring the beauty of Vietnam.

So we put together a tour of some of the most beautiful places in Northern Vietnam, limiting their travel distances so they could spend more time relaxing or exploring, and booking them at a couple of luxury resorts at the beginning and end of their trip.  You can check out the itinerary we put together for them below and read their TripAdvisor review of Little Vietnam Tours here!
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arriving in a new country

Michal and her family arrived on a warm and humid Sunday evening in August at the newly built terminal at No Bai airport in Hanoi.   As soon as they passed through customs, they saw their guide waiting for them holding their name.  From then until we returned them to the airport for their departure, we made sure they had a seamless and worry-free time each day, taking care of all their transportation and details in-between.
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12 Days of Exploring - active and relaxing

Over the next 12 days, we took them to some of the most beautiful areas of Northern Vietnam.   Their first destination was Ha Long Bay, where we booked an overnight trip for them with Orchid Cruise to wander among the amazing karst formations.  The overnight trip is much more relaxing than a day trip and we chose Orchid Cruise because their 5-star service and comfort is just what Mihal needed to start her birthday holiday!
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We took them to Ninh Binh next where they explored the natural beauty of Ninh Binh's mountains, rivers and pagodas.  We took them biking through rice fields, climbing Buddha's Palm Mountain, and rowing along Trang An canal through 9 beautiful natural grottos.   It's a beautiful area only 2 hours from Hanoi.  We booked them at the Emerald Ninh Binh 5-star resort for some more pampering and relaxation.

Sapa and its surrounding villages are one of the more well known and visited areas in Vietnam.  And for good reason, it is the most picturesque valley to trek in the country, with its endless green carpets of growing rice.  So we took them there for a couple of days of trekking through rice paddies, traversing the sides of Sapa's hills and valleys, visiting the minority hill tribe villages of the Red Dzao, Black H'mong, and Dzay ethnic people, cooling off at the Silver and Love waterfall, and riding a cable car to the  top of Fanxipan mountain, the highest peak in all of SE Asia. 
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A lot of visitors come to Sapa, but we spent an extra day taking them to the more remote village of Bac Ha where they stayed overnight at a homestay with a local family.   The outdoor market here is a draw for locals and visitors alike, home to 3 more ethnic minority groups.
Hanoi's charming old quarter is both a preserved and current way of life for the Northern Vietnamese.  We made sure they had time to explore the old quarter by foot and by cyclo while also taking them to visit the historical sights of Vietnam's second largest city.  The shops, cafes and just wandering with the locals going about their day make Hanoi a memorable experience.   Hotels in Sapa and Hanoi were 4-star--clean and comfortable in-between the more luxurious trip-starting and ending resorts.

Mihal also wanted to spend a couple days in Hoi An for her birthday trip, Vietnam's most romantic and relaxing city.   We took care of all the transportation details for their flight to Danang /Hoi An and booked them in the 5-star Palm Garden Resort for their last three nights.  A cooking class, tour of the Ancient Town, motorbike ride into the beautiful rural countryside, and meeting local families satisfied her kids' desire to be active, while she could rest at their resort and enjoy a free day to relax and explore the town on their own.
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what did they think?

You can read their 5-star review on TripAdvisor here.  It was a pleasure to plan her birthday trip and we are honored she chose and trusted Little Vietnam Tours!

do you like Mihal's itinerary?

We planned this itinerary custom for her and her family and we can do the same for you.  Pick and choose what you like from different itineraries on our website and we'll put them together for you.  Or just tell us what type of trip you're looking for and we'll recommend where to go and what to do and see.  Then we'll plan all the details for you and be waiting for you when you arrive!

Start planning your trip now.
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