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9 - 13 Feb 08 5 days Hanoi Halong Bay (Part 1)
Cost RM1300 (8 pax group), RM1200 (10 pax group), RM980 ( 15 pax and above)
12 - 16 Feb 08 5 days Hanoi Sapa Trek (Part 2)
Cost RM1280 (8 pax group), RM1180 (10 pax group), RM980 ( 15 pax and above)
9 - 16 Feb 08 8days Hanoi Halong Bay & Sapa Treks (Combination Part 1 & Part 2)
Cost RM1980 (8 pax group), RM1780 (10 pax group), RM1580 ( 15 pax and above)
Update 07 Jan 08 - Please confirm quickly, so that everyone can get the lower fare. Flight details as below:-
Depart:
9/2/08 - Air Asia AK760 KL (LCCT) to Hanoi, Depart 0630 hr, Arrive 0845 hr;
12/2/08
- Air Asia AK762 KL (LCCT) to Hanoi, Depart 1500 hr, Arrive 1725 hr
Return :
13/02/08 - Air Asia 761 Hanoi to LCCT(KL), Depart 0915 hr Arrive 1330 hr;
16/02/08- Air Asia AK 763 Hanoi to KL (LCCT) Depart 1805 hr Arrive 2230 hr
Please direct all enquires to Rachel 012 352 0868 rachelheng123@gmail.com or Leemin 016 220 9033 or yongo@streamyx.com
Bac Ha Market / Village Trekking Sapa
IMPORTANT NOTICE : This is meant to be a "free and easy" budget trip. Participants should be relatively fit, with a good sense of humour, and above all, have the right attitude for close travel with others through possibly some trying times. Most definitely, this is not a trip for prudes, whiners, fuss-pots, and other similarly assorted types! Although every effort will be made to stick to the given itinerary, ground conditions may change and cause some disruption and/or deviation from the norm. Otherwise, have fun!
Let us explore and 'experience' the Vietnamese celebrate Tet Lunar New Year!! Tet, Vietnam's Lunar New Year, was the most important time on the Vietnamese calendar. Vietnamese people pay it a courteous homage but reserve their heart and soul for the traditional Tet. For Vietnamese, it was like Thanksgiving,Christmas, New Year's, and everybody's birthday combined. Tet is the festival which epitomizes the identity of Vietnamese culture.
Tet Lunar New Year
Day 1 - 09 Feb HANOI ARRIVAL -Welcome to Hanoi! The tour guide will be welcoming you at Noi Bai airport. It takes you 35 minutes to drive to the centre of Hanoi to check-in the hotel. Let's start our city tour from Ba Dinh Square – the biggest square in Hanoi where all biggest cultural, political events of the cities, especially demonstrations, take place. Visit the Complex of Ho Chi Minh located by this square. Have a visit to Ho Chi Minh's house-on-stilts, his fish pond and the One-Pillar Pagoda before strolling around the Old Quarter of Hanoi by pedicabs. Afternoon continue to visit the city with stops at Ngoc Son Temple, the Sword Lake, which is considered the centre and the soul of the city. Visit the Temple of Literature, the very first High School of Vietnam. You will have chance to enjoy our asmotphere of the Tet Lunar New Year thru activities: cock flighting, nightingale fighting, calligraphy etc. Evening enjoy a show of Water Puppetry, a unique stage art created by the Vietnamese peasants. Free at your time in the evening at Hanoi Old Quarter. Dinner at your own arrangement for flexibility.
Day 2 - 10 Feb HANOI - TAM COC - HOA LU (B/L) - A 90km drive south of Hanoi will lead you to Ninh Binh, the site of the one capital city of ancient Vietnam before Hanoi took its leading role in 11th century. The area is featured by lots of well-known sceneries, which include Tam Coc Caves and Hoa Lu ancient capital with the old temples dedicated to King Dinh & King Le reigned in 10th century. The visit in Ninh Binh starts by a boat trip in Tam Coc where spectacular limestone karsts jut out from the green paddy fields reminding about Guilin (China) and Halong Bay of Vietnam, which gives this scenery the name “Halong-bay-on-land”. Further discovery in Ninh Binh will be continued in the site that used to be the kings' palace in 10th century and now famous for the wooden relieves of the shady Dinh and Le temples. Late afternoon back to Hanoi to overnight. Dinner at your own arrangement for flexibility. Overnight in Hanoi.
DAY 3 - 11 Feb HANOI TRADITIONAL VILLAGES (B/L) - After breakfast, head to the suburb of Hanoi to visit Bat Trang ceramic village, the home of pottery artisans who have been wellknown since 15th century for their superb crackle, celadon and other types of porcelain. 40km from Bat Trang is Dong Ky wooden furniture village, where you can view hundreds of talented carpenters making wooden products from precious ebony, rose wood, sandal and pine wood with mother-of-pearl and marble inlays. Back to Hanoi for lunch before arriving in Van Phuc Silk village and visit some families feeding worms and making famous traditional silk. Back to Hanoi late afternoon for overnight.
DAY 4 - 12 Feb HANOI - HALONG - HANOI (B/L) - Early departure for Halong Bay, a World Heritage with thousands of limestone and dolomite island and islets. Stop on the way to visit Hai Duong “Green bean cake town”, or the Ceramic town at Dong Trieu. Upon arrival in Halong take a sailing boat to cruise the bay to visit its breathtaking seascape created by rocky islands and emerald serene water, with stopovers to discover grottoes inside islands and swim. A Lunch of fresh seafoods will be arranged onboard. Late afternoon back to Hanoi and if your time is not limited, have a break at the Hong Ngoc Charity Centre where children present their plenty pretty products of stone and embroidery. Overnights in Hanoi. Dinner at your own arrangement for flexibility.
DAY 5 - 13 Feb HANOI DEPARTURE (B) Transfer to the Noi Bai airport for your onward flight. (Part 1 of Trip finish)
Meals at local stalls / Inside boat on Halong Bay Cruise
If there are some more people can extend the trip in some days, hereunder is our proposed program:
We recommed they leave Hanoi on the day coming back from Halong Bay, so that they can enjoy one of the market in Sapa.
Some of people will overnight in Hanoi for depart to the airport in the next morning and people who can travel to Sapa will go to Hanoi Railway Station for night train to Sapa:
Day 4 - 12 Feb HANOI - NIGHT TRAIN TO LAO CAI - Free time till transfer to Hanoi Railway Station for night train to Lao Cai at 21.30 pm by your tourguide who will take the same train with you to Lao Cai Station (310km northwest of Hanoi) . O/N on the train.
Day 5 - 13 Feb SAPA - BAC HA COC LY MARKET (B/L) - Arrive at Lao Cai Station at 06.00. Have a breakfast of local foods before departing to Sapa ( about 40 km from Lao Cai ) then drive to Coc Ly market. Today is Tuesday, nothing will be better than driving overland to a market of the hill tribal people, mainly from Flower H'Mong ethnical group. With a dozen of tribes living in the surroundings, including Flower H'Mong, Chinese, Nhang, Dzao, Nung, Phu La, Thai and King (or Viet), the market is extremely exciting esp. in the early morning. The winding road to Bac Ha helps maintain the colours (in both literal and figurative sense) of the area. In all these markets, we can meet hundreds of beautiful women from Flower H'Mong tribe, who are famous for their wonderful craft and hand-made flowering clothes and textile fabrics, or intermingle with people from Black H'Mong, Dzay, Dzao and other ethnic groups coming to the market not for purchasing stuffs, but for meeting and chatting – just once a week - like in a real cultural center. After lunchtime, we can hike around, following the mountain people to their villages for a visit, or take our car heading to further hamlets in Ban Pho, Trieu Cai, or Na Hoi. If we meet Coc Ly (the market on Tues) not in high water season, we can take a boat trip along Chay River, enjoying marvelous limestone range along the river and drop off to visit a big cave or a village of H'Mong or Dzay people. O/N in Sapa.
Day 6 - 14 Feb SAPA - CAT CAT - TA VAN (B/L/D) - After breakfast at hotel in Sapa you will hike downhill 4km to Cat Cat stream and waterfall, visit Cat Cat village of the Black H'Mong to explore their routine life, walk around the village to enjoy the scenery of forests and continue trekking to Lao Chai (H'mong ethnic group) and Ta Van (Zay people) villages. O/N at homestay in Ta Van village.
Day 7 - 15 Feb SAPA TREKKING (B/L/D) - After having breakfast, trekking to visit the Red Dzao in Giang Ta Chai village, visiting waterfall and suspension bridge. Transport back to Sapa. Back to Lao Cai Station later afternoon for dinner and take the night train from Lao Cai to Hanoi.
Day 8 - 16 Feb HANOI KUL depart - Arrive in Hanoi early morning. It is your own time today. At leisure for relaxation or shopping until your guide come and transfer you to the airport for flight leaving Vietnam.
Black Hmong Children/ Sapa Market
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
- Cost cover accomodation, land transport and some meals as stated above.
- Accommodation will be in budget hotels and guesthouses.
- Not covered are airfares (Air Asia), airport taxes & fuel surcharges, activities and meals (except for those mentioned above).
- Not covered are guide tips. Yongo encourages group members to be generous but should commensurate with services rendered.
- A deposit of Rm800 is payable to confirm your place.
- Cost is subject to change if there's a significant changes in foreign exchange rates and airfares.
Email: rachelheng123@gmail.com or yongo@streamyx.com
Phone Rachel 012 352 0868
Phone Yong Lee Min 016-220 9033 or 603-4023 8210
Mail: 19 Lorong Air Bersih Tiga, Air Panas, 53200 Kuala Lumpur