Agriculture & Nature Vietnam tour 9 days

Breakfast at the hotel.
Then we drive to Tay Tuu flower village, about 20 km from the center of Hanoi City. Tay Tuu Flower Village is famous for flower growing, which is the main flower supplier to the capital and surrounding areas. Before the Tet festival, on the full moon day, and the first day every month, Tay Tuu flower village holds a market to serve the need to buy flowers of traders and the Hanoi people.You have the opportunity to talk and listen to the farmers' sharing about how they grow flowers better understand the flowering process there.

Continue on, we transfer to Xuan Phuong vegetable villages.

Upon arrival, you will meet the host at meeting point and she will show you a local market since Le King Dynasty. It is the most famous market in the region where many traditional items for sales. If on market days (two or three times per week, other days market is not too crowded), people from all the surrounding villages would come to trade. People bring dogs, cats, pigs, chickens, ducks, and bamboo baskets to sell. Everyone is excited to meet each other on that day. You will be surprised about bustling and colorful market which is working under the canopy of old tree. You will see the old women chew betel and areca nut and blacksmiths work hard with his bright brazier.

Right next to the market place is nice vegetable farms. We take a tour around vegetable fields growing a variety of produce including: bitter melon, corn, cauliflower, cabbage, tomatoes, green peas, snake peas and corn, as well as fruit gardens with oranges, pomelos, papaya and more (depend on the season to grow different crops)., You will learn more about background of vegetable and you may have chance to help a farmer working on his field. Afterwards, we go to her house for cooking delicious dishes. She will teach you how to cook some Vietnamese dishes by simple and traditional recipes. Enjoy local fresh vegetable, fruit, make traditional cake and talk about Vietnamese family’s custom together. After that we return to Hanoi.

In the morning, drive to Giao Thuy, Nam Dinh province which is about 150km far from Hanoi.

We visit some farms of pig, duck, fish, buffalo, salt and rice fields. Here our guide will share their experience of running the farm in Vietnam. Today, our agriculture expert will introduce the model of VAC (V = garden, A = pond, C = coop for poultry/pig/crocodile).

After the farm, you can visit the Agriculture museum, it take you to come back to the past through models of typical houses, rustic objects, etc with a view of helping you discover the farmers’ lifestyle and culture. Visit the local market to find out local agriculture products made in the region.

Option 2 – Depending on the time of the year
We visit the VIETNAM’S BROWN CHICKEN BREEDS.- http://dabaco.com.vn/en/animal-feed.html

The company specializes mainly on animal feed, castle and poultry breeding and food processing.
(Thôn Hộ Vệ, Xã Lạc Vệ, huyện Tiên Du, tỉnh Bắc Ninh/ (0222) 3723633)

Then we transfer to Ninh Binh.

Overnight in Ninh Binh.

Breakfast at the hotel.
We transfer to Yen Khanh district. Many models of hi-tech agricultural production in Yen Khanh district have opened a new direction in economic development. Thereby, establishing commodity production areas for high productivity, quality and economic efficiency.

Up to now, Yen Khanh district has converted 50 hectares of rice cultivation land into valuable crops and applied high technology in production to earn hundreds of millions of dong / ha, such as models of medicinal plants and vegetables of all kinds. (Khanh Cong commune); models of empress melon and asparagus (Khanh Trung commune); models of cucumber, zucchini, bitter melon and peach (Khanh Thanh commune); spinach planting model (Khanh Mau commune); models of growing melon, baby melon and green onion (Khanh Nhac commune) ...

In particular, the model of high technology application through the construction of a net house with automatic rain spraying to produce green vegetables, tubers and fruits according to VietGap standards in Khanh Hong commune, Yen Khanh district was evaluated to have economic efficiency. It is also important to improve the efficiency of agricultural production.

In the afternoon, get into a rowing boat (around 2.5 hours) to explore the picturesque waterways in Trang An ecological tourist site. Forested limestone mounts contrasting in emerald water, caves, lowland and rivers create a mysterious fairytale-like scene. We then visit a network of 11 caves with beautiful stalactites of all shapes and colors.

Overnight in Ninh Binh.

Breakfast at the hotel.
We depart Ninh Binh for Ha Long Bay, listed as a World Heritage Area of outstanding natural beauty. “Dragon descending to the sea“ as it is known in Vietnamese, picturesque Ha Long bay has more than 1.000 limestone islets rising from the sea, many of them containing beautiful grottoes. On the way, we stop to visit the rice fields or the local farm.

Upon arrival at Ha Long Bay we embark on a boat trip to cruise discovering this magnificent UNESCO World Wonder. This is a great journey among surreal islands rising from a tranquil emerald sea. In the late afternoon, we anchor for the night on the bay and enjoy a delicious seafood dinner on board.

Overnight on a junk boat in Halong Bay.

Early morning coffee and tea will be served on the sundeck followed by a Tai Chi class. After breakfast we take a Sampan boat to explore Luon Cave. Visit the floating farm, or pearl farm on the bay. We may have a chance to see the wild monkeys that gather around waiting for food from the tourists. After that we continue to cruise around the bay. Lunch is served on the boat on our way back to the docks then we transfer to Noi Bai airport for a short flight to Sai Gon.

Depending on the season, we will stop on the way to visit the agriculture farms in Hai Duong province:
1/ From Jun to Sep & From Feb to May: Rice fields in Kinh Mon district
2/ Orion & garlic farm in the winter season in Kinh Mon district.
3/ From April to June: Litchi Farm in Thanh Ha district.

Meet our guide and driver then transfer to Ben Tre, a small town, hidden within the Mekong Delta, has recently stepped out to be a destination in its own right. This peaceful retreat offers many charming surprises besides the lush vegetation, snaking canals, and enchanting smiles.

A day to Ben Tre is a day when you are no longer a tourist but a true resident embarking on a sensory voyage of discovery. Enjoy observing how bricks and grass mats are made with age-old traditional techniques as well as how products are extracted from coconuts. Admire stunning panoramic countryside pictures made of green coconut palms, yellow river streams and colorful local products. Feel the warmth of the tropical breeze and the coolness of water currents whilst exploring the earthy trails. Taste and smell local exotic fruits, “garden-made” cuisine or stop to observe and satisfy your palate with just-made wet rice paper or coco candies married with green tea. Complete your experience listening to the sounds of boat, and certainly the banter and laughter of local people, modest yet hospitable. Enjoy traditional music songs and return to Sai Gon.

Breakfast at the hotel.
In the morning, we drive 70 kilometers North West to explore the underground tunnels in Cu Chi which system had been created long time back, from 1948 to assist Viet Minh in the combat with French. It was continuing built over 25 years later. It was an underground city with living areas, kitchens, storage, weapons factories, field hospitals, command centers. In places, it was housed up to 10,000 people who virtually lived underground for years… getting married, giving birth. During the American War the entire area of Cu Chi was designated a free fire zone and was heavily bombarded. From 1988, two sections of tunnels have been open for visitors. You may even have a chance to crawl through the tunnels yourself. We return to Saigon in the late afternoon.

If possible, we will visit http://sagri.com.vn/ then return to the hotel.

Overnight in Sai Gon.