Luxury Honeymoon in Vietnam

With its thrumming streets, maze-like alleyways and captivating culture, Vietnam’s capital city is one of Southeast Asia’s most bewitching destinations. On this half-day city tour, you can discover the highlights of Hanoi, from its ochre-coloured colonial buildings and wide, Parisian-style boulevards to its scenic lakes and thriving culinary scene. Beginning in Hanoi’s chaotic OId Quarter, you will sit down at a local coffee shop with your guide, who will detail the daily lives of the Hanoians. You’ll then head to the historic Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, an imposing monument of marble and granite which preserves the body of Ho Chi Minh, once Vietnam’s revolutionary leader. Then, you will continue on to the One Pillar Pagoda, a Buddhist temple built in 1049 in the shape of a lotus blossom, considered by many as one of Vietnam’s most iconic pagodas. Afterwards, you’ll visit Ho Chi Minh’s house as well as Hanoi’s Temple of Literature, which was Vietnam’s first national university, built in the late 11th century. This beautiful temple is a fine and well-preserved example of traditional Vietnamese architecture and is featured on the back of the 100,000 Vietnamese dong banknote.

In the afternoon, you’ll head out on a sumptuous, culinary-focused tour on foot, enjoying a leisurely walk through Hanoi’s hectic Old Quarter with a guide. Navigate the bustling streets, whose pavements are lined with food vendors tending bubbling vats of Pho Ga (Vietnamese noodle soup with chicken) and other Vietnamese delicacies. Sample some Pho Ga, Vietnam’s national dish, and then head to a nearby street market, where the buzz of the local Hanoians paired with the alluring aromas of authentic food form the essence of Vietnamese street culture. You’ll sit down at a tiny shop to try Banh Duc (cooked rice powder with Vietnamese spices) and Com cake, a fixture of every Vietnamese person’s childhood. Follow your guide through a small alley to get an impression of a typical tube house before stopping for a tasty Banh Mi sandwich at Banh My Lan Ongand, famous for their bread with pâté. Having sampled various savouries, it’s time for a sweet treat: tuck into some che, a traditional Vietnamese sweet soup, before concluding your epicurean evening with a steaming cup of Vietnamese egg coffee on the way back to your hotel.


Accommodation:
Deluxe Category: Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi (or alternative hotel of equal standard).
Superior Category: Silk Path Luxury Hanoi – Hang Bong (or alternative hotel of equal standard).

Wake up early in the morning to enjoy the ethereal golden light over the bay. After a tea break, the boat continues to cruise quietly through spectacular limestone formations of Halong Bay. Enjoy the tranquillity of the bay and it's unique islands as you return to the harbour.

Disembarking your cruise ship in the late morning, you will meet with your guide and transfer to Hanoi’s airport for your scheduled flight to Da Nang. From Da Nang, you will transfer to the charming port city of Hoi An, awash with eclectic cultural influences and home to a UNESCO-listed ancient town.


Accommodation:
Deluxe Category: Anantara Hoi An Resort (or alternative hotel of equal standard).
< Superior Category: Boutique Hoi An Resort (or alternative hotel of equal standard).

The day is yours to explore or relax as little or as much as you like. Unwind in your hotel, sample some more sumptuous street food or pull up a seat at a riverfront bar and watch the traditional boats glide by.


Accommodation:
Deluxe Category: Anantara Hoi An Resort (or alternative hotel of equal standard).
Superior Category: Boutique Hoi An Resort (or alternative hotel of equal standard).

On this flavoursome culinary experience, you can pick up a few authentic recipes to impress each other and your friends with. This incredible cooking class is held under the guidance of a celebrated culinary expert who is well-known in Vietnam as well as in the UK, France, Belgium and the rest of Europe: Ms. Nhu Huy. Follow her as she guides you through Hue’s local markets to take in the tantalising sights, sounds, smells and flavours of the authentic local produce. Afterwards, she will welcome you into her home for a private, hands-on cooking class showcasing traditional Hue recipes. As you learn, Ms. Nhu Huy will share tales from her life and about how she became one of the country’s most beloved culinary masters, and after you have cooked up some authentic dishes you can enjoy the fruits of your labour and sit down to sample them.

In the afternoon, you’ll be driven to Hue’s impressive Imperial Citadel to explore its extensive grounds. The ancient city of Hue was once the seat of Vietnam’s powerful Nguyen Dynasty between the 17th and 19th centuries, with remnants of this rich dynastic period still strewn across its picturesque streets. The formidable Imperial Citadel, whose moated perimeter and thick walls must have demoralised many a prospective attacker, looms majestically with its ornate pagoda roofs and sprinkling of shrines and gardens. Despite being heavily bombarded during the Vietnam War, the Imperial Citadel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has remained largely intact; a testament to its sturdy, impenetrable build.

As evening falls over Central Vietnam, you will take to the meandering waters of the Perfume River for a royal cruise that cuts straight through the romantic ambience of Hue. As your vessel, inspired by Hue’s royal boats, glides along the gentle waters in the fiery glow of sunset, you’ll be able to admire several of Hue’s most important heritage sites, including the Trang Tien Bridge, Thien Mu Pagoda, Van Thanh Temple and the Imperial Citadel, which looms formidably beyond the tree-lined riverbank. Oozing with romance, this wonderful cruise down the Perfume River highlights Hue’s myriad of simple yet poetic landscapes and features.


Accommodation:
Deluxe Category: Ancient Hue Garden Houses (or alternative hotel of equal standard).
Superior Category: Silk Path Grand Hue Hotel (or alternative hotel of equal standard).

Uncover the myriad historical wonders of Ho Chi Minh City during a fascinating city highlights tour. Despite its growing modernity and emergence as a metropolis for the contemporary era, Ho Chi Minh City maintains strong ties to its past, and this immersive walking tour will take you to some of its most significant historical sites. You will transfer to Dong Khoi Street in the city’s downtown district, where elaborate buildings erected by French colonial settlers have stood since the late 19th century. Here you can marvel at the meticulously restored exteriors of the grand Saigon Opera House and Notre Dame Cathedral, whose red brick, twin-spired edifice was constructed using materials imported all the way from France. You will then traverse the wide-open square to the Central Post Office with its vivid yellow façade, completion of which took place in 1891. A short drive away stands the former Presidential Palace, headquarters of the Saigon government during the Vietnam War. From here, you will continue to the elegant City Hall (formerly the Hotel de Ville), which is one of Ho Chi Minh City’s most stunning colonial-era monuments, particularly when floodlit at night.

Enjoy an intermission during which you can experience Ho Chi Minh City’s famous street coffee culture as your guide provides insight into the daily lives of the Saigonese. Then, you will head to the War Remnants Museum, which delivers a vivid perspective of the Vietnam War through the eyes of the Vietnamese. You will then drive to Chinatown to explore the beautiful Thien Hau Pagoda, built by Saigon’s thriving Cantonese community in the early 19th century to honour the Goddess of the Sea. Here you can take some time to make a wish, write it down on a small card and attach it to one of the incense coils, as local custom commands. Then you will continue to FITO, the first museum of traditional medicine in Vietnam, which delves into the history and application of traditional medicine in day-to-day life.


Accommodation:
Deluxe Category: Hotel des Arts Saigon – MGallery (or alternative hotel of equal standard).
Superior Category: Liberty Central Saigon CityPoint Hotel (or alternative hotel of equal standard).