Vietnam Wellness Tour With Meditation

Welcome to Hanoi, the Capital City of Vietnam!
Our local guide will be welcoming you at Noi Bai airport; it takes us 35 minutes driving to the center of Hanoi. Check in hotel and have a short time to freshen up.
Late afternoon, have an overall view of the capital by a “cyclo” visit, which will go through the fascinating network of narrow alleys and shop houses also known as ‘The 36 Streets’ – each street being named after the merchandise traditionally sold there, ranging from fabrics to crafts and from medicines to tombstones. Drop by at Ngoc Son Temple located on the Hoan Kiem Lake. Welcome dinner at the local restaurant will be followed the sightseeing. Overnight in Hanoi.
Please note: The normal check in time is 14:00pm.
 

Breakfast at hotel.
Today, we will start our city tour from the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, his simple house-on-stilts and the One-Pillar pagoda near Ba Dinh Square, where the most solumn ceremonies of Hanoi take place. Go on to the Temple of Literature, the very first high school of Vietnam Scholars and a temple dedicated Confucious. Lunch at your own arrangement.
In the afternoon, we will move on to the Museum of Ethnology, where you can find an excellent full collection of 54 ethnic groups living in Vietnam and wonderful implications of artifacts and patterns from their traditional handicrafts and clothes. Continue the trip to picturesque West Lake to visit Tran Quoc Pagoda, the oldest pagoda in Hanoi built from 6th Century. End of the day tour by one hour indulge yourselves in a relaxing and rejuvenating time with spa massage treatment, feel your stress and jetlag melt away, recharge your energy for an interesting trip ahead. Your dinner will be served at a vegetarian fine dinning restaurant where you taste the local vegan and healthy dishes and feel the diversity and balance in Viet culinary. Overnight in Hanoi.
 

After breakfast and check out hotel, we transfer to Pu Luong Nature Reserve via a breath taking mountain pass. Enjoy panoramic view of the whole valley along the way. We arrive at Pu Luong Retreat in time for a delicious lunch with local dishes. After lunch, check in the room and have some free time to explore the beautiful retreat, with its captivating views of the surrounding and tranquil setting.
This afternoon, drive to a suspension bridge over Cham River, where we begin our walk passing a stunning water wheels to reach a local fisherman’s house. Have a short rest to gear up for the rafting adventure with the local expert team. Float along the calm river and enjoy the scenic views, learn how to paddle and steer the handcrafted rafts. Arrive at Tan Lap bridge, disembark and drive back to Pu Luong Retreat for dinner. Overnight at Pu Luong Retreat.
 

In the fresh air of the early morning, practice the first Yoga exercise following the instruction of our professional Yogi. After breakfast, take a light trek into the beautiful rice terraces, through small paths to a picturesque village sitting on the foot of a towering mountain. Trek through the villages, wild fields, ponds, rivers, mountains and open land until we reach our lunch spot. We get closer to the village life and interact with locals living upon the hills. After picnic lunch, enjoy free time refreshing at a nearby river. Walk up to our pickup point and drive back to the Retreat. Dinner and overnight at Pu Luong Retreat.

Wake up early for the second Yoga exercise with your master. After breakfast and check out the Retreat to drive for 3 hours to Van Long Nature Reseve, located in a picturesque scene of mountain ranges, fields, and rivers. Upon arrival, have lunch at the local restaurant before check in Emeralda Ninh Binh Resort. Then relax at a luxury spa with multiple choices of spa treatment and therapeutic massage. Later afternoon, take a short walking from your hotel to Van Long wharf to board traditional reed boats that will take us to the edge of the towering cliffs that rise up out of the water. From our vantage point among the reeds and lotus we hope to view the endangered Delacour’s Langur. This monkey clad in black and white is endemic to this region and we hope to observe them as they scamper up and down the limestone pinnacles and cliff faces. Numerous species of waterbirds are also protected at Van Long and we will look for several species of herons, bitterns and perhaps even an eagle or stork. Enjoy your dinner with organic menu featuring Vietnam cuisine at the resort restaurant. Overnight in Ninh Binh.

Breakfast at hotel. The sightseeing today will start with a short drive to Van Lam Village where we will board a rowing boat trip along Ngo Dong River through the paddy fields to visit Tam Coc (Three Grottos). The trip will take 2 hours. We continue walking to Thai Vi temple which is not far from Tam Coc wharf, set in a peaceful place, dedicated to Tran Dynasty. Though the temple looks modest, it contains a great cultural and historical value. Have a short drive to Bich Dong Pagoda which was built on mountain side featured by its unique architecture of perfect combination of ancient pagodas with cross-covered roofs, natural caves and majestic mountains. The Pagoda has three temples – Ha Pagoda, Trung Pagoda, Thuong Pagoda named as their positions from the foot hill to the top of the mountain. Once you reach to Thuong Pagoda, you will be treated with a beautiful scenic view of the surrounding countryside. After lunch at the local restaurant you will pedal along the scenic village roads to explore the rice fields, limestone mountains and have a chance to chat with the local people. Return to Emeralda Ninh Binh for relax and overnight.

This morning, you will join in a talk with our professional who has many years researching and practicing yoga and meditation. He/she will share the tips to improve a healthy living, manage and deal with your stress, balance the work-life and positive thinking through mediation. Enjoy a vegetarian lunch at the restaurant. In the afternoon, you will practice meditaton with the guidance of the master. The course is short, yet you surely can mediate yourself later. Dinner and overnight at Emeralda Ninh Binh.

After breakfast, head East for more than 3 hours to Halong Bay, the pride of the Gulf of Tonkin, a Natural World Heritage as designated by UNESCO in 1994 and 2006. Upon arrival in Halong, check in the overnight cruise to discover the magnificent beauty of this “Descending-dragon” bay, created by thousands odd-shaped limestone rocks and karst grottoes. After a lunch on board, we can visit the Grottos, stop for swimming or kayaking, passing floating houses and approach islets to enjoy their beauty in close distance. Back to the cruise, enjoy cooking demonstration before having dinner. Evening attend activities on the boat or relax at your own leisure. Overnight on the cruise. 
Please note the program may be little varied upon the cruise you choose. 
 

You should wake up early to enjoy the dawn on the sea in the early morning. The Vietnamese call the "East Sea" by a point-oriented name "Eastern Sea", so you may guess how miraculous seeing the sunrise over the islets of the Bay. Practice the Tai Chi Lesson on the Sundeck. After breakfast our boat will continue to cruise in marvelous areas, where almost each islet has its own name, adopting its shape or reminiscent like Sail Island, Fisherman’s head rock, Butterfly rock or Turtle islet etc. Check out your room and have brunch on board while the cruise coming back the pier. Transfer overland to Hanoi. On the way, drive to visit Thay Pagoda where is very famous to the local people as well as the tourist thanks to its impressive myths about the monk, ancient architectures, and  natural beauty of mountains and caves.  Dinner then enjoy the newly launched impressive spectacle show called The Quintessence of Tonkin. The Show draws inspiration from the spiritual history of the nearby Thay Pagoda. With years in the making, hundreds of performers, an interactive stage, state-of-the-art technology, and a stunning setting, this live spectacle is an unmissable highlight of any trip to Vietnam. After the show, return to Hanoi to check in hotel and stay overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Check out and transfer to the airport for the departure flight back to your sweet home or extending some days for beach relax or sightseeing at other cities. 
Please note: The normal check out time is 12:00pm.