Pick up at 8:30 am at the lobby of your hotel. We leave Hanoi and head south for a 2-hour drive along The Highway One or former Road Mandarin. We spend one hour visiting the Dinh and Le temples of the Ancient Capital Hoa Lu and then we move on to Tam Coc for a 3-hour boat trip along the Boi river. Along the way we will see caves and ancient temples, green rice fields and the life of farmers in the Red River Delta. After lunch we visit Bich Dong Pagoda. Overnight at Van Long Resort.

Breakfast at the hotel. Then drive to the cathedral Phat Diem, which was designed by Father Sau. It is a fine example of a European cathedral and a Vietnamese communal house, a masterpiece made of wood and stone. We return to Ninh BInh for lunch and drive to Kenh Ga floating village for a very nice boat trip on Hoang Long River. This is a tributary of the Red River where you can admire rice fields, floating fishing villages, limestone mountains and the rural life of the locals before returning to Hanoi. We arrive at 6:00 p.m. Drop-off at your hotel in Hanoi.