Day 1 – Dublin to Vietnam

Depart Dublin for Vietnam with 1 stop en route.

Day 2 – Ho Chi Minh City

Arrive at Ho Chi Minh Airport and meet your Tour Manager for transfer by executive coach to your hotel. Evening meal at your hotel included. Overnight at your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City

Day 3 – Ho Chi Minh City

Breakfast at your hotel. Today enjoy a sightseeing tour of Ho Chi Minh. Visit Rue Catinat, the heart of old colonial Saigon. Afterwards, tour the Reunification Palace and the War Remnants Museum. Lunch in a local restaurant is included. Following lunch, explore the fascinating and vibrant area known as Chinatown, Thien Hau Pagoda and the Ben Thanh Markets. Evening meal at own expense. Overnight at your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City

Day 4 – Cu Chi Tunnels

Breakfast at your hotel. This morning we will leave the city by private vehicle to visit the amazing tunnel network of Cu Chi. This incredible system, covering almost 250km in length was shelter to over 16,000 Vietcong guerrillas during the wars. Initially started in 1948 to provide shelter against the French air and ground sweeps, the network went on to serve as communication routes, storage facilities, hospitals and living quarters for Vietnamese fighters throughout the American war. If you are interested (and game) you can even descend into the tunnels to learn more about the harsh conditions faced by Vietcong guerrillas who lived there. Lunch in a local restaurant is included. After lunch, transfer back to your hotel in Ho Chi Minh and free at your leisure in the afternoon. Evening meal at own expense. Overnight at your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City

Day 5 – Ho Chi Minh City – Cai Be – Can Tho

Breakfast at your hotel and check-out. Travel from Ho Chi Minh to Cai Be where you will board a traditional wooden boat, stylishly fitted out with bamboo chairs and lounging cushions to tour the colourful floating market of Cai Be, afterwards visiting a historic Mandarin house dating from the 19th century. Lunch in a local restaurant is included. After lunch, continue to Can Tho, arriving mid-afternoon and board the Victoria Mekong Cruise Ship. As the ship cruises towards Tiger Island, watch the sunset over the Hau River, sundowner in hand. As day turns into night, sit down to a gala dinner to officially welcome you aboard your Victoria Mekong Cruise, accompanied by a traditional Southern Vietnamese folk music performance known as don ca tai tu. Evening meal & overnight on the cruise.

Day 6 – Tiger Island – Long Xuyen – Vam Nao

After breakfast head ashore and explore Tiger Island by electric bicycle or by sampan, visiting cottage industries such as net weaving and incense shops. At a pagoda locally known as “Mr. Tiger’s Temple”, learn the art of making two Mekong Delta specialties: incense and banh in, a local rice cake. Return to the ship and enjoy lunch while cruising towards the provincial capital of Long Xuyen in the Mekong Delta. Tender ashore to visit the colourful Long Xuyen Floating Market and the An Giang Traditions Museum, with fascinating exhibits on Vietnamese, Chinese, Khmer and Cham cultures in the region. Return on board in time for dinner and the evening’s entertainment as the ship continues cruising to Vam Nao where we overnight.

Day 7 – Vam Nao – Tan Chau

Enjoy breakfast as the ship makes its way to the border town of Tan Chau where you will visit a temple dedicated to the uniquely Vietnamese religion of Caodaism. Travel by local rickshaw to a silk village to witness all the labor-intensive steps to producing this fine textile, including the use of natural dyes made from tree bark, leaves and fruit. After lunch on board, visit more Mekong Delta attractions, including a scenic island and some of the area’s floating fish farms. There is also an option to travel by speedboat to Chau Doc to see the submerged forest of Tra Su, known for its abundant birdlife and picturesque mangroves. Return to the ship in time for a traditional Vietnamese lion dance, followed by dinner and the evening’s entertainment. Overnight on the cruise.

Day 8 – Tan Chau – Phnom Penh

As the ship begins cruising towards the Vietnam-Cambodia border, enjoy a leisurely breakfast in the restaurant. After, select from the many on-board activities including a ship’s tour, cocktail competition and cultural lecture. We arrive late afternoon in the charming capital of Phnom Penh, once known as the “Pearl of the Orient” for its French colonial buildings, tree-lined boulevards and scenic riverwalk. Before the farewell gala dinner, take in a performance of Khmer Apsara dancing by a troupe of disadvantaged children with the opportunity to meet them afterward. Overnight on the cruise.

Day 9 – Phnom Penh disembarkation

Enjoy a final breakfast on board before disembarking at Sisowath Quay, Phnom Penh’s downtown riverside promenade. Then travel to your hotel by private vehicle to check in. Overnight at your hotel.

Day 10 – Phnom Penh Sightseeing

Breakfast at your hotel. Enjoy a guided tour of Phnom Penh including the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda, the official residence of King Norodom Sihamoni. Learn about a chapter from Cambodia’s more recent past at the Museum of Genocide, a memorial to the thousands of victims that passed through these doors. Lunch is included today. Following lunch, travel outside Phnom Penh to the Killing Fields of Pol Pot’s regime. If time allows you will visit the Central market. Evening meal at own expense. Overnight at your hotel.

Day 11 – Phnom Penh – Siem Reap – Rolous Temples

Breakfast at your hotel and check-out. Fly from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. Lunch at your own expense. Transfer by coach to the wonderful Roluos Group Temples. These Temples comprise of the three oldest temples during the 600-year Angkorian Period: Preah Ko, Bakong, Lolei. The three temples share similar architectural features – they are made up of square-shaped brick towers, and have arched gateways built as entrances to courtyards. Evening meal at the famous Chanrey Tree Restaurant. Overnight at your hotel.

Day 12 – Angkor Thom & Angkor Wat

Breakfast at your hotel. Visit the ancient fortified city of Angkor Thom, covering an area of 10 square km and enclosed by a wall and wide moate. This area includes the Terrace of the Elephants, the Terrace of the Leper Kings, the Royal Enclosure, and mysterious Bayon Temple before exploring the crowning jewel of Khmer architecture, Angkor Wat. The largest, best preserved, and most religiously significant of the Angkor temples, Angkor impresses visitors both by its sheer scale and beautifully proportioned layout, as well as the delicate artistry of its carvings. Lunch and Evening meal at own expense. Overnight at your hotel in Siem Reap.

Day 13 – Free Day

Breakfast at your hotel. Spend the day free at leisure. Lunch & evening meal at own expense. Overnight at your hotel in Siem Reap.

Day 14 – Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh

At a good time, travel to the airport for your flight to Ho Chi Minh City. Upon arrival, being welcomed by our local guide and driver then travel to your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City for check in.

Day 15 – Ho Chi Minh

Breakfast at your hotel. Spend the day free at leisure. Lunch & evening meal at own expense. Overnight at your hotel.

Day 16 – Departure

Free day at leisure until your transfer to the airport for your departure flight.

Day 17 – Dublin

Arrive in Dublin.