DAY 1-2: HO CHI MINH CITY
Ho Chi Minh City offers an amazing array of food for visitors. You will discover that there is a lot more to Vietnamese food than just Pho and Banh Mi, and experience the complexity of flavours that can come from the use of fresh, simple ingredients. With vendors selling specialty dishes daily on every street corner, you don’t stay hungry for long in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City.
HIGHLIGHTS:
1. Have dinner at a colonial mansion.
2. Join in a cooking class at the studio of a talented celebrity chef, Luke Nguyen.
3. Visit Opera House, HCMC People’s Committee (former Hotel de Ville), Notre Dame Cathedral, Central Post Office, Reunification Palace, Thien Hau Temple in Cho Lon (aka. China Town) and FITO Museum (of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine and Pharmacy).
4. Ride a Vespa scooter through the bustling streets.
DAY 3-4: HO CHI MINH CITY — HOI AN
The best Hoi An dishes are exclusively available within the UNESCO World Heritage Site which is this remarkable city, utilising fresh greens, herbs, fish, meat, and even water from the neighbouring Tra Que Vegetable Village. Once a prominent Vietnamese trading port, Hoi An’s specialities are the result of Chinese, French and Japanese influences.
HIGHLIGHTS:
1. Visit a lacquer-ware workshop in HCMC.
2. Discover Hoi An Ancient Town.
3. Have dinner with flavour traditional food.
4. Get on a boat along beautiful Hoai River.
DAY 5-6: DANANG — HUE
Unlike food in the North which is usually mild, food in the Central is characterized by its hot and spicy flavors. Hue, the former imperial capital of Vietnam, possesses culinary tradition features reflecting the influence of ancient Vietnamese royal cuisine. Danang, the famous tourist attraction, offers a lot of special and delicious dishes. Danang cuisine is different from other regions in Vietnam and each dish has a special and unique taste.
HIGHLIGHTS:
1. Join in a private cooking class at Professor Nhu Huy’s home.
2. Visit Cham Museum, the Residence of a restored royal garden home in Hue.
3. Take a cyclo ride to the Imperial Citadel.
4. Explore Tomb of Khai Dinh and Thien Mu Pagoda.
DAY 7-9: HANOI
Compared to other cities in Vietnam, Hanoi food tends to be on the sweeter side and utilises freshwater ingredients such as prawns, squids, shrimps, crabs, clams, and mussels. You can also find familiar Vietnamese street food such as pho, spring rolls, rolled cakes, and skewered meat.
HIGHLIGHTS:
1. Have lunch with famous ‘Bun Cha’ Le Van Huu.
2. Enjoy traditional Vietnamese dinner.
3. Watch Dao Thuc Village water puppet show.
4. Visit Ho Chi Minh mausoleum and his stilt house, Temple of Literature, Hoa Lo Prison and Museum of Ethnology.
5. Take a cyclo tour around Hanoi and stroll around the Old Quarter.
