Your tour begins with hotel pickup in the morning for the drive to your first stop, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. With your guide, discover the historical and architectural details of this final resting place of Vietnam's former leader, and see his house on stilts, which sits next door.
Next, check out One Pillar Pagoda, founded in 1049; visit Tran Quoc Pagoda at West Lake for a look at one of the country's oldest Buddhist pagodas; and see local pottery at Bat Trang village (Mon, Wed, and Fri only). After this, visit a restaurant for your set-menu lunch, and then continue your tour at the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology (except Mon, Wed, and Fri), followed by a stop by the Temple of Literature and National University, Vietnam's first university, dating back to 1070. Admire its architecture and gardens before you're taken past the Lake of the Restored Sword (Hoan Kiem Lake) to admire its pretty setting and Ngoc Son (Temple of the Jade Mountain).
Your last destination is the Old Quarter, where the streets are named for historical trades. Enjoy some free time to shop and explore before your Hanoi tour ends in the late afternoon with hotel drop-off.
Optional:
If you wish, you have the option to add on a 1-hour bike tour or to see a traditional water puppet show before hotel drop-off; payable directly at your own expense.
