Day trips & Excursions, departure from Sai Gon

Program 1 : Sai Gon City Tour/ 1 Day
(Trip of 1 day in Saigon)

Morning private city touring of Saigon. Saigon is the largest and busiest city in Vietnam with a population of 8 million people. Much of the daily life takes place on the streets, which are lined with shops, stalls and vendors with their wares spread out on the footpath. The full day city tour will take you around the city, from downtown Saigon to Chinatown, in order to get a general view of a developing city. See places of interests such as Notre Dame Cathedral, The Central Post Office, Reunification Hall and the history museum. Visit the Jade Emperor Pagoda and the bustling Chinese district and then get ready for shopping at the bustling Ben Thanh market.
Lunch & dinner at local restaurant. End of service.

Notre Dame Cathedral is one of the landmarks among the impressive avenues and open spaces north of Dong Khoi. The huge red-brick edifice with twin spires is placed between two streams of traffic and is a clear reminder that the French once ruled this city. Inside, the decor is relatively austere, but the church gets very full and very lively during services. This peaceful place is perfect for quiet contemplation. Sunday Mass is held at 9.30am.

Old Saigon Post Office is the largest of Vietnam's post offices; it was built from 1886 to 1891 by the great architect Gustave Eiffel. The same architect who gave his name to the Eiffel tower in Paris. The post office is large, open, and with a big picture of Ho Chi Minh overlooking the proceedings. This unique place will remind you of being in a train station.

The former Presidential Palace is now renamed the Reunification Hall. It is one of the most interesting places to visit in Ho Chi Minh City. This building remains almost exactly as it was on the morning of 30th April 1975 when the Saigon regime surrendered to the victorious liberation forces and the country was reunified for the first time since 1945. Included on the tour are visits to conference rooms, the Presidential Receiving Room, basement tunnels and war room, telecommunications center and the residential area of the former president.

Price
Price net per person in US$
Valid till December 31 2011

Program 2 : Sai Gon City Tour/ 2 Days
(Trip of 2 days & 1 night in Saigon)

Day 1 : ARRIVING AT TAN SON NHAT AIRPORT. TRANSFER TO SAIGON/ HALF DAY CITY TOUR
You visit Saigon. Saigon is the largest and busiest city in Vietnam with a population of 8 million people. Much of the daily life takes place on the streets, which are lined with shops, stalls and vendors with their wares spread out on the footpath. The full day city tour will take you around the city, from downtown Saigon to Chinatown, in order to get a general view of a developing city. See places of interests such as Notre Dame Cathedral, The Central Post Office, Reunification Hall. Visit the Thien Hau pagoda and the bustling Chinese district and then get ready for shopping at the bustling Ben Thanh market.
Lunch & dinner at local restaurant. Overnight in Saigon.

Day 2 : SAIGON– CU CHI- SAI GON
We drive to visit Cu Chi tunnel, which is located about 75 km northwest of Saigon. The tunnels were part of an underground network that was built by the Vietcong during the American War. It reached from the southern tip of the Ho Chi Minh trail near the Cambodian border to the Saigon River. You will have the opportunity to creep into a tunnel to experience how the Vietcong lived and fought during this time. Return Saigon.
In the afternoon, we visit History Museum & the Jade Emperor Pagoda.
Lunch & dinner at local restaurant. End of service.

Notre Dame Cathedral is one of the landmarks among the impressive avenues and open spaces north of Dong Khoi. The huge red-brick edifice with twin spires is placed between two streams of traffic and is a clear reminder that the French once ruled this city. Inside, the decor is relatively austere, but the church gets very full and very lively during services. This peaceful place is perfect for quiet contemplation. Sunday Mass is held at 9.30am.

Old Saigon Post Office is the largest of Vietnam's post offices; it was built from 1886 to 1891 by the great architect Gustave Eiffel. The same architect who gave his name to the Eiffel tower in Paris. The post office is large, open, and with a big picture of Ho Chi Minh overlooking the proceedings. This unique place will remind you of being in a train station.

The former Presidential Palace is now renamed the Reunification Hall. It is one of the most interesting places to visit in Ho Chi Minh City. This building remains almost exactly as it was on the morning of 30th April 1975 when the Saigon regime surrendered to the victorious liberation forces and the country was reunified for the first time since 1945. Included on the tour are visits to conference rooms, the Presidential Receiving Room, basement tunnels and war room, telecommunications center and the residential area of the former president.

Price
Price net per person in US$
Valid till December 31 2011

Note : Surcharge of 25% will be added on December 24 & 31 and Lunar New Year Eve.

Program 3 : Cao Dai Temples & Cu Chi Tunnels
(Trip of 1 days from Saigon)

SAIGON– TAY NINH- CU CHI- SAI GON
8 Am. Pick-up at the hotel; this morning we drive to Cao Dai Temples in Tay. Tay Ninh, near the Cambodian border, is home to the unique Cao Dai sect, whose patron saints include Jane d’Arc, Victor Hugo and Winston Churchill to name a few. The religion is a hybrid of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and Christianity. The Cao Dai Temple at Tay Ninh has been described as a Walt Disney fantasia of the East. The temple's exterior is decorated with multi-colored dragons of all shapes and sizes competing for space with a number of religious symbols. Above the main entrance is the all-seeing holy eye, the symbol of the Cao Dai sect. The interior is just as engaging as statues of Jesus Christ, Buddha and the Hindu god, Brahma, stand side by side. Lunch at local restaurant.

The trip to Tay Ninh is combined with a visit to the Cu Chi Tunnels. The tunnels were part of an underground network that was built by the Vietcong during the American War. It reached from the southern tip of the Ho Chi Minh trail near the Cambodian border to the Saigon River. You will have the opportunity to creep into a tunnel to experience how the Vietcong lived and fought during this time. Return to Saigon. End of service.

Price
Price net per person in US$
Valid till December 31 2011

Program 4 : Cooking class with the Saigon Culinary Art Center
 (Trip of 1 day in Saigon)

Highly appreciated by all over the world, Vietnam is proud of its stronomy by its inventive  tastes, its delicacies and its dietary virtues. The Saigon Culinary Art Center brings to Tourists as well as to Foreign Professional Chefs, an exciting discovery of the excellence and the variety of food of each region.

Hands-on Cooking Course with meals from their own creation : from 3 to 5 hours depending on the group size.
With a wide range from selective dishes from the three regions of Vietnam, in a few hours, tourists will learn how to cook the traditional dishes, to recognise different ingredients, to master the chopstick, to eat in Vietnamese style, and they enjoy what they have cooked.

An option of "Market Visit" with Chefs will help participants to understand more Vietnamese ingredients and its substitution. Remittance of "Certificate of Recognition", a handbook with all recipes and Souvenir Gift from "The Saigon Culinary Art Center" will crown the cooking session in warm and friendly ambiance. Back home, with full of emotion, a handbook with recipes will help you to reproduce the dishes to make surprise to your family, your friends!

Price
Price net per person in US$
Valid till December 31 2011