Day 1: Arrive Hanoi
Arrive in Hanoi. Airport welcome by NTS guides with signboard. Transfer to hotel in air-conditioned coach while luggage is taken care of by porters and transported separately. Welcome banner on arrival at hotel and welcome cocktail while checking-in. A welcome gift is left in each room. Free time to relax until transferring to the Hanoi Press Club, one of the capital’s top restaurants for dinner. Transfer back to the hotel after dinner. Overnight in Hanoi. (D)

Day 2: Hanoi-Halong-Hanoi
After breakfast at the hotel transfer to Gia Lam Heliport for a 50-minute flight by chartered helicopter to Halong Bay. (Each helicopter can carry from 20 to 24 passengers.) Arrive at Halong Heliport and transfer to a private boat for a five-hour cruise on the magnificent Halong Bay with a seafood lunch. Halong Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with 3,000 spectacular limestone islands rising dramatically from the emerald green waters of the bay. Transfer back to Halong Heliport and board the helicopters for a different but just as spectacular view of the bay. After a 15-minute fly over the bay head back to Hanoi. Transfer to the hotel on arrival at Gia Lam Heliport. Dinner is at the hotel. While guests are enjoying dinner a model helicopter ingeniously made from soft drinks cans is placed in each room. Overnight in Hanoi. (B,L,D)

Day 3: Hanoi 
Leave the hotel by bus after breakfast for a morning of sightseeing around Hanoi which includes the One Pillar Pagoda, Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum, the former Governor of Indochina’s Palace, Ho Chi Minh’s home and Quan Thanh Temple. Lunch is at Seasons of Hanoi. In the afternoon continue exploring the capital city’s sights with a visit to the Lake of the Restored Sword and the 11^th century Temple of Literature. This is followed by a 20-minute tour of the 36 streets of the famous Old Quarter by cyclo, the Vietnamese version of the rickshaw. Transfer back to the hotel. In the evening transfer to Truong Chinh National Theatre for a very special farewell dinner. A troupe of traditional musicians will welcome the group on arrival. Thousands of fairy lights lead the way to the artificial lake where there is a 30-minute performance of Hanoi’s famous water puppets. The show is followed by cocktails and a gala dinner. During dinner guests can enjoy a traditional Vietnamese musical and dance performance. A farewell gift of a traditional oriental marble stamp engraved with the guests’ initials is left in each hotel room. Transfer back to the hotel after dinner. Overnight in Hanoi. (B,L,D)

Day 4: Depart Hanoi
After breakfast a fleet of microbuses and guides will be available outside the hotel for guests who would like to do some last minute shopping. Transfer to Noi Bai Airport for onward flight by air-conditioned coach while luggage is taken care of by porters and transported separately to the airport for check-in. (B)