Hanoi

• Day 1: (late night flight)
• Day 2: airplane travel (time loss)
• Day 3: arrival to hotel noon: Hanoi sightseeing
• Day 4: Hanoi sightseeing daytime (night train to Sapa 9:00pm - 8 hrs 1 hour bus upon arrival)
• Day 5: Sapa trek (overnight homestay in villager home)
• Day 6: Sapa trek (then night train back to Hanoi 8 hrs)
• Day 7 (arrive in Hanoi by night train in early morning) drive to Ha Long Bay (4 hrs) - Pelican overnight boat for New Years Eve (ask for one of the front upstairs rooms (207&208) as it larger and access to front private balcony.)
• Day 8: return from Ha Long Bay (4 hrs drive): Hanoi
• Day 9: Hanoi
• Day 10: Hanoi (Ninh Binh - Tam Coc boat ride & village bicycle ride - 2 hrs awawy - $65 private tour) We ALL really loved this!!!
• Day 11: noon departure

TO DO in HANOI:

• ✔ SF Spa (near Calypso/La-Beaute Hotel) --great!
• ✔ Hanoi Social Club (alley of shops nearby)
• ✔ Dong Xuan Vegetable Market
• ✔ Vincom Tower shopping mall (or huge royal city mall 30 mins outside --neither are great but novelty interesting)
• ✔ Eat: 96 Restaurant (a must) order Cha Ca & Pho Bien cute outdoor street food extravaganza in French Quarter
• ✔ Cooking class @ Orchid or 96 Restaurant
• ✔ Old Quarter = maybe do a tour with Hanoi Kids Volunteers
• ✔ Lake of the Restored Sword (Hoan Kiem Lake)
• ✔ West Lake
• ✔ French Quarter (modern)
• Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
• Temple of Literature
• ✔ Hoa Lo Prison
• Rock Climbing gym
• Botanical Garden
• ✔ St Joseph's Cathedral
• The Water Puppet Theater
• ✔ Hanoi night market (Hang Dao Street to Dong Xuan Market)
• James list

Shops in Hanoi:

• Chie Design Crafts (66 Hang Trong & 70 Hang Gai)
• Around St Joseph's Cathedral some shops
• Hang Gai Street for small boutique crafts
• Hang Da Craft Mall on H Da & Ngo Tram (big shopping complex on corner called Hang Da Mall)
• In Sapa: the craft market

Note:

• Mai Linh - they're distinctive white and green cars and always have honest meters or Taxi Group taxis
• look for bedspreads in SAPA $30 each approx
• average temperature 62 degrees around December
• avoid old ladies with fruit baskets

Breakdown

• 1700 plane
• 550 itinerary via hotel (Hanoi, Sapa, Ha Long Bay, Ninh Binnh)
• 35 optional good morning hanoi ride