Vietnam Discovery

Vietnam is a country that rewards a north-to-south route, and this seven-night itinerary is the version Indian travellers repeatedly rate as the best they've done. You'll open with two nights in Hanoi's atmospheric Old Quarter, spend a night aboard a luxury junk cruising the karst islands of Ha Long Bay, fly down to Hoi An for two nights of lantern-lit alleys and tailor shops, and close with two nights in Ho Chi Minh City for the food and history.

This itinerary is perfect for first-time Vietnam visitors, culture-and-food travellers, and families with children old enough for a boat night. It's also an excellent value-luxury trip — five-star hotels in Vietnam cost 40 per cent of the same category in Japan or Bali. It's not designed for beach holidays; if you want beach time, we add three nights in Da Nang or Phu Quoc as a coda.

The pace is active but not exhausting. Two internal flights (Hanoi → Da Nang, Hoi An → Saigon) save the long overland drive. Each city gets long enough to feel lived-in: a Old Quarter walking tour in Hanoi, a full day on the Ha Long junk, two Hoi An days for the tailor shops and cooking class, and one full day for the Cu Chi tunnels near Saigon. Expect to walk 8–10 km on active days.

The luxury level is quiet-premium. You'll stay at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi (a 120-year-old French colonial classic), the Paradise Elegance junk in Ha Long, Anantara Hoi An Resort on the Thu Bon River, and Reverie Saigon in District 1. All four have Indian-vegetarian menus pre-briefed, English-speaking staff and airport-transfer service. Lower-tier variants use Melia Hanoi, Bhaya Classic junk, Hotel Royal Hoi An and Le Meridien Saigon.

Food is a real reason to visit Vietnam. Expect pho for breakfast, banh mi for lunch, cao lau in Hoi An, bun cha in Hanoi (Obama's Hanoi dinner is still available on the menu), and a rooftop seafood dinner in Saigon. A private street-food walking tour in Hanoi and a Hoi An cooking class in a family home are both included. Vegetarian, Jain and NOG diets are pre-briefed — Buddhist monastery cuisine (com chay) is one of Asia's finest vegetarian traditions.

Culturally, the route runs through 1,000 years of Vietnam. The Temple of Literature and Old Quarter in Hanoi, the water-puppet theatre, Ha Long's karst limestone formations, the UNESCO-protected Hoi An Old Town at lantern-lit night, the Cu Chi tunnels (a Vietnam-war site) outside Saigon, and the War Remnants Museum in the city itself. Shopping is unhurried: Hoi An's tailors will make a bespoke suit in 24 hours, and Ben Thanh Market in Saigon is unbeatable for silk and coffee.

Seasonally, October to April is the best window overall — cool in Hanoi, dry in Hoi An. May and June are hot and humid. July to September is monsoon in the north (Ha Long cruises may be interrupted). Diwali-week travellers do well; Christmas and New Year are peak. The route works year-round but the specialist tunes dates to weather.

Photographically, expect standout frames at the Ha Long sunrise from the top deck of your junk, the lantern-lit lanes of Hoi An after dark, the Long Bien bridge in Hanoi at blue hour, and the neon streets of Saigon's District 1. Ask for a shot-list if photography matters.

This is one of our best-value packages. Every element is customisable — add Sapa in the north for terraced rice fields and hilltribe villages, swap Saigon for Phu Quoc for a beach coda, or extend to Siem Reap in Cambodia for Angkor Wat in a two-country trip.