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Accueil  >  Ideas of travel  >  Journeys off beaten tracks

15 Days - Vietnam private tour, off the beaten path

This fifteen-day programme takes you through some of the least visited areas of Vietnam. If you want to get away from the crowds among splendid natural scenery, wildlife and fascinating cultures and friendly people, this is for you. Each destination offers distinct ecologies and habitats and Pu Luong and the Central Highlands show contrasting minority lifestyles and tradition. Pu Luong is a striking area of limestone hills, rivers, thick forest, wildlife and small ethnic minority villages. Most travel is on foot to get us close to the remote hill-tribes and overnight stays are in family homes in the villages en-route. Apart from one stretch, the route isn’t particularly strenuous, but you’ll need stamina and a willingness to accept basic accommodation and meals. Vietnam’s Central Highlands are a series of high plateaux, also home to many distinctive ethnic minority groups. Their lifestyles are different to those in Pu Luong. Several communities have unique customs, traditions and architecture such as the ancient ‘gong’ culture, the unique roofs of ‘rong’ houses sweeping high into the sky and curious burial rituals and graves. Here, the focus is upon the area’s unusual cultures and lifestyles. There is some hiking, but most travel will be on roads and tracks. Waterfalls, lakes, primary forest and exotic plants and animals are other attractions. Accommodation will be in ‘communal houses’ and local hotels. The last few days of the tour takes you to another remote destination. Con Dao archipelago, far out in the South China Sea off the foot of Vietnam, is a pristine land and sea nature reserve. The inhabitants of Con Dao are almost exclusively Vietnamese so the cultural interest on the main island is limited to its long history as a penal colony and a lifestyle based on fishing. There are places to hike through the tropical forests, but the main interest is snorkelling and diving off the many reefs and islets and an opportunity to watch turtles on these faraway islands (you’ll be almost certain to see turtles for from April to October). Tourism infrastructure is minimal, but the opportunity to visit Vietnam’s best marine reserve is an opportunity not to be missed. This tour is designed for travellers looking for authenticity in both culture and environment. As such, it may not be suitable for children. However, teenagers interested in widening their knowledge of ecology and keen to experience different cultures would find it invaluable. You’ll have complete freedom to modify the programme as you wish – head straight for the mountains and valleys and relax later at one of South China beaches or vice-versa, extend your tour to take in more of Vietnam’s heritage, or whatever else takes your fancy. If you’re interested in a broader view of Indochina, you can include visits to Cambodia and/or Laos. Dates, durations of stay, activities and so on are up to you - all our vacations are designed to meet your individual requirements.

Day-by-day itinerary:
Day 01:   Arrival at Hanoi
Arriving at Noi Bai airport in Hanoi, you’ll be met and driven to your hotel. You’ll have time to relax after your journey before a welcome dinner at a good restaurant in a colonial building. In the evening, you’ll have tickets for a performance of traditional Water Puppetry (an art form unique to northern Vietnam, and an interesting, light-hearted introduction to its rural culture). Your overnight stay will be in Hanoi.

Day 02:   Hanoi - Mai Chau - Pu Luong (Sai Village)
After breakfast, you’ll drive to Mai Chau, passing through mountainous landscape on the way. When you arrive, you’ll have lunch in a stilt house in Lac village, the home of a Thai ethnic minority group. After lunch, you can wander around the houses to see the daily life of local people. They specialise in weaving brocade products, and are happy to show visitors their skills. The village is operated as a community co-operative, set up by the people themselves. You’ll then drive a further 15km to board a sampan on the Ma River, stopping en-route to visit some ethnic minority villages. Later, you’ll dock and hike to Sai Village where you’ll spend the night in the stilt house.

Day 03:    Pu Luong (hiking to ethnic minority villages in Pu Luong)
After breakfast, you’ll set off for a three-hour hike to Hang Village. It’s a Thai ethnic minority community where you can stroll around to visit local families and meet in their stilt house for a cup of green tea. After a short break, your route will take you to Eo Ken village. You’ll have lunch in prepared by a local family. You might be surprised at how hospitality they are and the way they serve and prepare the food. After lunch, you’ll hike up for about 10 minute before being taken by a land-cruiser for one more hour. You’ll continue your hike down a slope to reach Kho Muong Village where your bathroom will be a natural stream. You’ll spend the night with a local family who will be your host in a traditional house built on stilts.

Day 04:   Pu Luong (hiking continues)
After an early breakfast, you’ll explore a large limestone cave near the village. Care must be taken as the route can be dangerous in some places. Your guide will be on hand to see all goes smoothly - the cave is worth the effort! From there, you’ll continue through the forest, passing thorough villages on the way with a picnic lunch en route. Your dinner and overnight stay will be in a stilt house.

Day 05:   Pu Luong/Thanh Hoa - Hanoi
This morning, you’ll drive through several villages to visit a local market. You’ll see the local people heading to the market and going about their business. From there, your route takes you a small town for lunch. On the way, you’ll see the remarkable water wheels of Muong people. After eating, a ferry crossing over the Ma River and a single kilometre walk takes you to Cam Thuy’s ‘Sacred Fish Stream’. Not only will you see these obliging fish in a shallow stream, but also be able to paddle among them! Then it’s back to Hanoi, arriving in the late afternoon.

Day 06:    Hanoi - Danang - Pleiku - Kon Tum
After breakfast, your car will arrive to take you to the airport for the morning flight to Pleiku, transiting in Danang. On arrival at Pleiku, a car will be waiting for you to take you to Phun, a Ja Rai ethnic minority village. You’ll continue to Kontum and then travel to Konkotu village for dinner and a well-earned night’s sleep in the village Rong house.

Day 07:    Kontum hiking and rafting
In the morning, you’ll have a gentle six-kilometre hike through the forest to Jolong village and the source of the DakBla River, crossing the KonBa hanging bridge en-route. Next, you’ll climb into an inflatable dingy to ‘raft’ down the DakBla River, stopping on the way for a riverside picnic lunch. After lunch, you’ll carry on down the river for a couple of hours, eventually returning to Konkotu village where you’ll be met and driven to Kon Tum City for an overnight stay in hotel.

Day 08:   Kontum city tour
After breakfast, your time will be your own at leisure. In the afternoon, your guide will take you to visit a charming wooden Church and, if convenient, drop in at a nearby orphanage. From there, you’ll ride on the back of a motorbike the outskirts of Kon Tum to visit some ethnic villages before the sunset when the villagers return from their farm/plantation. You’ll spend the night in a hotel in Kon Tum.

Day 09:    Kon Tum - Buon Ma Thuot
In the morning, your vehicle will take you to Buon Ma Thuot. Upon arrival and after checking in and lunch, you’ll visit Gia Long waterfall. You’ll cross the river on a simple raft, and stroll through primitive forest. After clambering down a slope, you’ll be able to bathe in the ‘Fairy Pool’, a small natural lake with a sandy bottom. You’ll return to Buon Ma Thuot for an overnight stay.

Day 10:    Buon Ma Thuo - Lak Lake
This morning, you should get up early and leave your hotel for Buon Juin, a M’Nong ethnic minority village where you can witness the local lifestyle. When you arrive, your guide will show you around the village while the local people are preparing their breakfast and feeding the pigs. Your breakfast will be served in a small local restaurant in the middle of the village. You’ll then take a dugout canoe to cross Lak Lake to the M’lieng village for short visit. You’ll return to Buon Ma Thuot for lunch. In the afternoon, your time will be your own! You’ll stay overnight in Buon Ma Thuot.

Day 11:    Buon Ma Thuot/Ho Chi Minh City
You’ll be free in the morning until your car and driver arrive to take you to Buon Ma Thuot airport for your flight to Ho Chi Minh City. When you arrive, a private car will be waiting to take you to your hotel in the city centre. After checking in, you’ll be free for a preliminary wander around District 1. Your overnight will be in Ho Chi Minh City.

Day 12:    Ho Chi Minh - Con Dao
In the morning, you’ll take a flight to Con Dao. On arrival, you’ll be driven to your hotel. You’ll have time to relax, explore the nearby beach or wander in the quiet town. You’ll stay overnight on the island.

Day 13:   Con Dao
In the early morning, the motorbike will take you to the Sharp Cape for sunrise, weather permitting. If you’re lucky, you’ll catch the striking island sunrises and the departing fishing boats - good photographic opportunities! You’ll board the boat to Hon Bay Canh Island – one of the major sea turtle nesting sites with a picnic lunch onboard. You’ll hike through the jungle on the island for about three hours. In the evening, you’ll watch mother turtles coming ashore to lay eggs. You’ll return to the town for an overnight stay.
Day 14:   Con Dao
You’ll then visit the town on the back of a motorbike. The main element will be the island’s large prison complex, which was in use for over a hundred years. You’ll see the infamous ‘tiger cages’ used by the French, American and South Vietnamese Army in turn. After a seafood lunch at a local restaurant, it’ll take about an hour and a half to hike up the Thanh Gia Mountain for a striking view over the island. You’ll be free in the later afternoon for a swim, or just relax.

Day 15:   Con Dao/Ho Chi Minh City Departure
After breakfast, you’ll be picked up to the airport for a flight to Ho Chi Minh City in good time to connect with your international departure flight.

Best time to go: Best months to visit are from January to May and late September to December thereby avoiding the rainy season from June to early September in Northern and Central Vietnam.

Responsible travel: Vietnam holiday, off the beaten path
Wherever possible, we generate income for people living in poor areas by using local materials, transport, food and guides and paying directly to the individuals concerned rather than intermediaries. Our members of staff visit the destinations from time to time to look for new opportunities to benefit families and communities. We contract local indigenous suppliers and assist them to improve the quality of their services. By booking this tour, you’ll be helping us to support Vietnamese service providers, small businesses, boat owners, national park rangers and other poor people in communities throughout the three destinations.

We use local freelance guides with wide experience and knowledge of local traditions and the natural environment as well as an ability to interpret the cultural heritage of the people in the places visited. For this tour, you’ll have several different guides from the provinces you’ll visit. Each will be an expert in each area. We also work closely with small projects in Vietnam. For example, we assisted Fauna and Flora International (FFI – a highly regarded international conservation organisation) in setting up the Pu Luong trails. At present, we’re trying to help an important project to save a critically endangered species of large primate, now reduced to less than sixty individuals worldwide. We are working on plans to encourage our clients to help us by offering to match their donations. This tour fits our philosophy admirably. It’s a means of alleviating poverty, conserving our indigenous culture, protecting the natural environment and, at the same time, providing our customers with an unforgettable holiday.

The story of the provider of Vietnam holiday, off the beaten path
Founded in 2001 by an experienced Vietnamese tour operator and a retired french school principal working in Vietnam as a consultant for UNESCO, our company draws on their deep knowledge to provide carefully tailored and informative tours. We look for unspoiled landscapes, doing the legwork to ensure you can travel lightly and keep them unspoiled. We value the unusual, aiming to put you in touch with the incredible diversity of cultures on our precious planet. We provide true personal service; luxury at an affordable price. We live in a beautiful and endlessly surprising world – enjoy it, preserve it.”

Private Holidays off beaten paths in Vietnam

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