Vietnam in Depth

Arrive into Hanoi, where your driver and guide will be waiting to welcome you into the city in comfort. Settle in and get your first taste of the city's energy before the journey begins in earnest tomorrow.

Hanoi rewards a slow look: centuries-old temples sit blocks from motorbike-thronged boulevards, and quiet lakeside mornings give way to markets that never quite stop moving. Spend a full day uncovering its layers with a private guide, beginning at the sixth-century Tran Quoc Pagoda on the shores of tranquil West Lake, then the Temple of Literature, Vietnam's first university, founded in 1076 to educate the country's royalty and elite for eight centuries. Choose between the Vietnam Women's Museum, celebrating the role women have played in Vietnamese society, or the Museum of Ethnology, home to a rich collection charting the country's 54 ethnic groups, before a break for lunch. In the afternoon, visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex, the stilt house where Ho Chi Minh lived from 1958 to 1969, and the eleventh-century One Pillar Pagoda, before losing yourself in the tangled lanes of the Old Quarter, where the trades of Hanoi's historic 36 guilds still echo through the shopfronts. The day closes with a performance of the ancient art of water puppetry at the famed Water Puppet Theatre, a tradition dating back to the eleventh century.

Leave the city behind this morning for a half-day cycle through Hanoi's rural outskirts. After a safety briefing, pedal through the quiet lanes of Bac Bien Village before crossing the Duong River by local ferry, then continue by bike through a string of villages, passing traditional houses, ancient pagodas, lively markets and gardens along the way. Stop at a local family's home to share tea and hear a little about daily life here, before cycling back into town. The rest of the afternoon is free to rest up, with a late hotel checkout arranged. This evening, your guide will see you off at Hanoi Railway Station for the overnight train north to Lao Cai.

Arrive into Lao Cai early in the morning and head to a local restaurant for breakfast, before continuing to one of the region's hill tribe markets: Coc Ly on Tuesdays, Can Cau on Saturdays, or Bac Ha on Sundays, depending on the day you travel. Alongside the Flower Hmong, you may also spot Phu La, Black Dao, Tay and Nung communities trading everything from local produce to livestock. From here, a short walk leads to a hill-tribe village, with the chance to visit a local home and learn a little about daily life, before transferring on to Sapa. Alternatively, spend the morning on a scenic downhill walk instead of the market, crossing a stream into Suoi Ho village and following a stone-paved path through Ma Tra village, with lovely views over the valley's terraced rice fields, before transferring to Sapa for the rest of the day at leisure.

This morning, set off with your guide on a half-day trek to Hang Da and Sau Chua, two villages around eight kilometres east of Sapa where the Black H'mong maintain much of their traditional way of life despite the town's rapid growth. Follow quiet paths through the countryside, past the modest, scattered homes of local families, with the route easily adjusted to suit fitness and weather. Return to the hotel by midday to check out, with the rest of the afternoon free to explore Sapa town at your own pace.

Spend the morning at leisure in Sapa before being collected for the drive back to Hanoi around midday. The evening is yours to relax.

Drive from Hanoi to Halong City to board your boat, the perfect way to see the UNESCO World Heritage waters of Halong and Lan Ha Bay. Here, close to two thousand islands and islets crowd the bay, their limestone peaks rising steeply from the water and topped with pockets of forest, a landscape that feels like nowhere else in Vietnam. Settle into your cabin as lunch is served, with the afternoon free for onboard activities before the boat anchors for the night among the karsts. Round off the day with sunset on deck and dinner as evening settles quietly over the bay.

Wake to the still waters of the bay for a final breakfast onboard before disembarking and transferring to the airport for the flight south to Danang. From there, it's a scenic drive to Hoi An, one of Vietnam's most beautifully preserved towns, its lantern-strung streets and ochre-walled houses tracing its history as a major trading port in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The rest of the afternoon is yours to explore at leisure.

Head inland for about an hour to My Son, a cluster of ancient temple towers that once served as the spiritual heart of the Champa Kingdom between the fourth and thirteenth centuries and now holds UNESCO World Heritage status. Wander among the crumbling ruins with your guide, learning about Cham culture and its rulers, and take a quiet moment to picture the site in its heyday. Return to Hoi An for lunch and a taste of the town's best-known dishes, then spend the afternoon exploring its old quarter on foot. Start at the Japanese Bridge, built over 400 years ago to link the town's Japanese and Chinese communities, admiring the carvings inside before continuing to a Chinese communal hall with its bright gates and dragon statues, and threading through the smaller laneways and neighbourhoods that give Hoi An its charm.

Fly from Danang to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam's commercial capital, still known to locals as Saigon. Once called the Pearl of Indochina, the city wears its colourful history in layers, from pagodas, museums and grand colonial architecture to a fast-growing skyline of glass and steel. Check into your hotel on arrival, with the afternoon free before an evening out. As dusk falls, hop on the back of a vintage Vespa for a taste of Saigon after dark. Start at a rooftop bar for skyline views and a cocktail, then wind through the city's busy streets on two wheels, stopping at a lively seafood spot where locals gather to unwind over dinner and beer. Continue to a beloved local institution for bánh xèo, Vietnam's crispy savoury pancake, before finishing the night at a live music venue and riding back to your hotel.

Set off early to beat the crowds at Cu Chi, driving out through the city's outer districts. Spend a couple of hours exploring the tunnel network with a local guide, an extraordinary feat of engineering built during Vietnam's recent wars, with the option to crawl through a section yourself and see the tiny underground chambers firsthand. Above ground, look out for the ingenious traps and camouflaged pits once used to defend the area, and hear from your guide how the war shaped this community and the country as a whole. Return to Ho Chi Minh City for lunch, then spend the afternoon taking in the city's landmarks: Reunification Palace, its war rooms preserved as they were, leafy 30 April Park, the Central Post Office and the former CIA building, before finishing at the bustling Ben Thanh Market, still a working neighbourhood market at its heart.

Leave Ho Chi Minh City behind and head south to Ben Tre, known as the land of coconut in the heart of the Mekong Delta. Board a local boat to wind through a maze of canals, sipping a freshly picked coconut as the scenery slips by, before stopping at a traditional brick kiln and a coconut workshop to see every part of the fruit put to good use. Meet local families still making coconut candy by hand, then relax over lush tropical fruit and honey tea in a garden setting. Explore the riverside lanes by bicycle or aboard a motor-tricycle, once the iconic vehicle of southern Vietnam, before a riverside lunch of Mekong Delta specialties. Finish with a sampan ride through a hidden maze of narrow, palm-draped canals, for a last, unhurried look at delta life, before continuing on to Can Tho as the afternoon light softens.

Start the day early with a boat trip to Cai Rang, once the largest floating market in the Mekong Delta. Drift among the boats, some laden with fruit and vegetables, others belonging to floating coffee and noodle soup vendors, as traders jostle for position on the water. Check out and transfer to the airport for the flight to Phu Quoc, Vietnam's island getaway. On arrival, transfer to your resort and spend the rest of the day unwinding by the pool or on the beach.

A full day at leisure, spent however you like: by the resort pool, out on the sand, or exploring the island at your own pace.

Another full day free to relax, whether that means the beach, the pool, or simply doing nothing at all.

Spend the morning at leisure before checking out and transferring to the airport for your flight to Ho Chi Minh City and onward journey home.