General Information

Tour Route: Hanoi - Mai Chau - Na Mo Village - Community Project - Cooking Class - Hanoi
Duration: 5 Days/ 4 Nights
Date: No fixed departure dates. You may go whenever you wish.
Start/ End: Hanoi/Hanoi
Tour Customizable: Definitely! (Tell us your specific requirements in the inquiry form)
Accommodation: Listed below or equivalent

Full Itinerary

Day 1: Hanoi Arrival - Mai Chau Valley (D)

Xin Chao! Welcome to Vietnam! Arrival at Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi, students and adults will be welcomed and transferred to Na Mo Village, Na Meo Ward, Mai Chau District, Hoa Binh Province which is 130 KM away from Hanoi (around 4-hour drive). On arrival, we will transfer to Ban Lac Village, check in our private stilt house. In the evening, we enjoy the traditional Vietnamese cuisine (Veg options required). Overnight at stilt-house.

Day 2: Mai Chau Hiking & Community Services (B, L, D)

After breakfast at the homestay, we will take the buggy to Na Mo Village, which is 5 KM away from the homestay. With a rather complicated mountainous terrain, Na Mo village is divided by a system of high hills and mountains, making production and living areas of the people in the commune not concentrated; difficult traffic, complicated irrigation system; The area of agricultural, residential and special-use land is limited by mountainous land.

The first 3 KM will be done by buggy and we will take a short trek up to the village for the last 2 KM. On arrival, we will have a guided tour around the village, meet and interact with the locals. We then stop by a poor family of Mrs. Cuon. The house is in poor condition without toilette. Our today’s project is repaint the house for them. Picnic lunch will be arranged at the village. Today’s project will finish at around 5 PM. Walk down and get back to the homestay by buggy. After dinner in the homestay, students can learn traditional dance form from the locals. Overnight at homestay.

Day 3: Another Day of Community Project (B, L, D)

After breakfast, we take the buggy and hike back to Na Mo Village. Today’s project is building the basic toilette for the family of Mrs. Cuon. Our Leaders will divide in small groups. This will take the form of practical building and some laboring tasks as we construct a house for an impoverished family in this remote region.

Breaking into groups, there will be a variety of tasks to undertake each day of the project from layering bricks, mixing cement, assembling frames, hammering, sawing and transporting of materials… Local tradesmen and tour leaders will be supervising and assisting throughout the project, often identifying students with particular skills to perform the more difficult or skill orientated tasks. Groups will be rotated throughout the project.

The days will be long and the results rewarding as we see our project come to fruition and as curious villages from all around come to watch and assist us. Picnic lunch will be arranged at the village. Today’s project will finish at around 5.30 PM. Walk down and get back to the homestay by buggy. After dinner in the homestay, students will have chance to interact with the local children with some fun activities like dancing, postcard ceremony, fun English teaching….We then enjoy the bonfire with the local villagers. Overnight at homestay.

Day 4: Outdoor Activities - Back to Hanoi (B, L, D)

After breakfast at hotel, we will walk/cycle around the village and then continue to Mai Hich village where we start our fun bamboo rafting. After lunch, we will check out and get in our bus to transfer back to Hanoi. Arrive in Hanoi in the late afternoon, dinner at the restaurant and overnight in the city.

Day 5: Hanoi Cooking Class - City Tour - Departure (B, L)

After breakfast at hotel, we will enjoy a hands-on cooking class at Rose Kitchen. The morning class lasts from 9.00 – 13.30 after finishing lunch in a hidden alley in Hoang Hoa Tham Street.

We start the class with a walk to the local market nearby to get fresh and delicious ingredients for our dishes today. Here, at the market, you will get a fascinating glimpse into the local culture, how a market in Vietnam is operated by hustling locals with buyers negotiating and bargaining. We will then be transferred to the class’s villa with a beautiful garden and lots of trees. Enjoy a refreshing cup of herbal tea before we begin our cooking class and start learning how to cook authentic Vietnamese traditional cuisine under the guidance of a professional cook.

Afterward, sit down to enjoy your own cooking creations as well as other dishes made by your talented instructor. Back to the city center and have a quick visit at Ho Chi Minh complex where we will spend time at Ba Dinh Square, Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum (outside visit only), his former stilt-house and One Pillar Pagoda. Following we visit the Temple of Literature, which was originally built as a temple to Confucius. We then finish our day with 1-hour cyclo tour of the French-inspired "old quarter" and have short time for last-minute shopping. After that, we transfer to the airport in good for the departure flight. Tour ends. See you on the next Vietnam vacation packages!

INCLUSIONS & EXCLUSIONS

Inclusions

4-night accommodation with daily breakfast as per detail itinerary, accommodation plan.
Transfers by private air-conditioned vehicle with experienced driver, vehicle plan.
Meals as specified in the itinerary with mixture of Vietnamese local and Indian food wherever possible or non-pork, non-beef meals where Indian restaurant is not available (B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner), meal plan.
English-speaking tour guide
Entrance fees & permits (if have)
Cycling & Bamboo Rafting
Bonfire at the village
Boat excursions
Bottle of drinking water

Exclusions:

International flights and airport taxes
Early check-in and late check-out at Homestay/Hotel
Cost for Community Services
Vietnam Evisa $30.00 per person
Travel Insurance
Other meals which are not indicated above
Surcharge and Compulsory dinners (if any)
Beverages in the restaurants where meals are included
Tips to guides and drivers (Compulsory) billing at Invoice
Group 5 pax up: US$ 3.00 per person per day
Personal and other expenses such as porter, bar bills and laundry not stated in the itinerary.