Bite Sized North Vietnam

Hanoi tours departing daily

Hanoi sits on the banks of the Song Hong, otherwise known as the Red River. It is a beautiful and bustling city with over one million inhabitants. Colonial French influences can be seen everywhere and many people continue to refer to Hanoi as the Paris of the Orient. The city is very stately, with elegant embassies, sparkling lakes, wide boulevards and, of course, the Mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh. It has an undeniably European atmosphere, especially in springtime when the trees lining the boulevards are covered with pink blossom.

However, there are also many wonderful experiences to be found just beyond the city perimeters. The Hanoi tours described below will give you the opportunity to explore some interesting areas surrounding Hanoi in just one day. You can paddle through rice paddies, soak up floating village culture and visit several pagodas, marvel at the natural sights of Cuc Phuong National Park and, if you're lucky, spot different kinds of monkeys and finally, visit several traditional Vietnamese villages.

Hanoi Tours: Rowing Through Rice

Duration:	1 day offered daily from Hanoi	Accommodation:	not applicable
Price:	from $65 per person - based on 2 people travelling	Includes:	transport, lunch, English-speaking guide
Transport:	air-conditioned minibus	Excludes:	entrance fees

This Hanoi tour begins with a visit to the village of Hoa Lu, the capital of Vietnam during the 10th century. King Dinh chose this spot as capital for its strategic location and today there are two temples dedicated to the King and his successor Le (the King Dinh and King Le Temples). These were built in the 11th century but destroyed in the wars that have ravaged Vietnam over the years. The temples were reconstructed in the 17th century, and still retain their original features. On the top of a mountain nearby stands the grave of King Dinh. Our Hanoi tours allow you to take in the spectacular view over the surrounding countryside from the summit. At the end of the morning you'll take a short drive to Tam Coc, where your lunch will be waiting for you.

Hanoi Tours - Limestone rocks encircling Kenh Ga

Once you reach Tam Coc, also known as Ninh Binh, you'll be rowing through rice! A row boat will take you through the area also known as inland Halong Bay. Since this area was once a landlocked sea, you'll also find towering limestone rocks shooting straight up into the skies from the rice paddies below. A very narrow boating lane will take you through submerged rice paddies and along the way you'll see fishermen in action and you'll see the locals peddling their boats with their feet. You'll visit three hidden caves during this boat ride and eventually you'll reach a pagoda at the top of a mountain. Our Hanoi tours to Ninh Binh finish up at around 5:00 pm and you'll be driven back to your hotel.

Hanoi Tours: Perfume Pagoda

Duration:	1 day departure from Hanoi	Accommodation:	not applicable
Price:	$59 per person - based on 2 people travelling	Includes:	transport, lunch, excursion with guide
Transport:	air-conditioned minibus	Excludes:	entrance fees

This Hanoi tour is ideal for anybody seeking a combination of scenery and activity. Your air-conditioned minibus will leave at 7.30am (approx. 1-2 hours). After the drive, you'll travel further by rowing boat on the Yen River until you reach Thien Tru harbour. The rest of the journey will be on foot, and it will take perhaps another 1½ hours (uphill) to reach the pagoda. The majestic Perfume Pagoda stands in a huge cave at the top of the mountain with commanding views of the landscape below. The altars are secluded among the amazing stalactites and stalagmites. The Pagoda is regarded as the centre of Buddhism in the north and it is impossible not to feel the spiritual atmosphere of the caves during these Hanoi tours.

Every spring, a Perfume Pagoda Festival is held and thousands of pilgrims flock to the incredible caves. The festival lasts for three months. Many writers and poets have also been attracted to this region, drawn by both its spectacular landscape and its religious significance. They have written of the spiritual ambience that engulfs the Pagoda and the enlightening atmosphere of the festival. After walking back down the hillside, you will visit the Thien Tru Pagoda, dubbed 'The pagoda that leads to heaven'. Our Hanoi tours to Perfume Pagoda will leave you tired but happy and at the end you'll hop on a boat to Ben Huc where the minibus will be waiting to take you back to your hotel.

Hanoi Tours: Forest Giants and Apes

Duration:	1 day offered daily from Hanoi	Accommodation:	not applicable
Price:	$129 per person - based on 2 people travelling	Includes:	transport, lunch, excursion with guide
Transport:	air-conditioned minibus	Excludes:	entrance fees

Early in the morning you will head out of Hanoi for Cuc Phuong National Park. The tropical forest here was discovered in 1960 and, soon afterwards, was given national park status, becoming Vietnam’s first national park. Cuc Phuong lies approximately 100km south of Hanoi and is home to a staggering diversity of tree, plant, animal, and bird species. With a little luck, during our Hanoi tours to Cuc Phuong, you can spot elephants, tigers, deer, squirrels, lizards and snakes. There are also numerous caves in the region, inhabited by around forty species of bats. You'll also visit the 'Old Man’s Cave', in which stone tools and objects made by prehistoric man have been discovered.

After your visit to the caves, you'll take a short 5km hike to the oldest tree in the region, roughly 1000 years old. You'll follow this trek with a tasty picnic lunch in the overgrown forest. In the afternoon, during our Hanoi tours to Cuc Phuong, you will visit the amazing Endangered Primate Rescue Centre. At the centre, a group of dedicated biologists care for various (often endangered) indigenous primates, such as gibbons, loris and langurs. Many of these apes have been found in people's homes, while some have been intercepted during illegal transport to other countries, where they are worth a lot of money for their uses in native medicine. At the Centre, the rescued apes are nursed back to health, studied, and encouraged to breed in order to keep their species alive. They stay until they can be reintroduced into their normal environment.

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