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TOUR FINISHED.... TO SEE PHOTO PLEASE CLICK HERE |
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Join Robert & Morrison in Hanoi as we explore the hidden food treasures of northern Vietnam. |
| We'll be re-united with our guide Vu Minh Tho, plus celebrity chef Didier Corlou. Our Globetrotting Gourmet® tour includes deluxe sleeper overnight trains to the highland markets around Sapa, on the Chinese border, plus two nights on our private boat sailing picturesque Ha Long Bay. |
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| Great hotels, delicious food, wonderful company. That's our Globetrotting Gourmet® winning recipe. |
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Cuisine is made for travelling and for a simple pleasure, which is what I would define as “gastronomy.”
-- chef Didier Corlou |
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Sunday July 12, Day 1 |
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O/Night Hanoi |
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| You will be personally met at the airport then transported to our the 5-star hotel Hotel InterContinental, along picturesque West Lake. This hotel just made Conde Nast's HOT List, and we couldn't agree more! You will delight in its architecture and structures built directly atop the lake. Hanoi is the country's second largest city and administrative capital, yet it maintains a distinct charm of yesteryear. The Old Town's trade streets reflect a medieval character of specialization, from paper street, silk street, tin street, and the like. Our strong advice is to see Hanoi NOW, rather than later. Each year brings more modernization, and higher buildings. |
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Optional dinner tonight:
If your flight arrives early, join Robert and Morrison at Sen Nam Thanh restaurant tonight for a no-host buffet dinner. It is a wide and varied introduction to Vietnamese dishes, and attracts a well-heeled local clientele. $USD20 per person, payable direct to us, and we’ll cover the taxis, tax and tip. We depart hotel promptly at 17:30 for Hanoi’s rush hour traffic. |
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Monday July 13 , Day 2 |
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O/Night Hanoi |
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| As this is our first full day of the tour, we've planned a very special foodie introduction to Hanoi! This morning meet celebrity chef Didier Corlou who takes us marketing for his restaurant's daily shopping list. Didier runs Verticale, arguably the city's best, and is former executive chef at Hanoi's famed Metropole hotel. Watch him choose speciality items from the best of fish, game and poultry, and barter with the merchants for the cheapest price. We’ll also have a chance to sit for morning market coffee and typical breakfast fare. Afterwards a cooking demonstration focusing on Cuisine du Spice, followed by a light lunch. |
Afternoon free, so don't miss the Opera House and Hoan Kiem lake. We’ll be exploring Hanoi’s Old Quarter tomorrow.
Taxis on return to hotel; transport not included. |
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Tuesday July 14, Day 3 |
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O/Night Hanoi |
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| Save room during breakfast today, as we ride off to a progression of pho restaurants-- the ubiquitous noodle soup and arguably Hanoi’s and Vietnam's most celebrated dish. Chef Didier Corlou calls it “the best soup in the world.” We contend you can't learn the difference between a good, fair and poor pho until you taste them back to back -- which is what we do! |
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| This morning also includes Hanoi's Old Quarter, plus stops for a vertical tasting of Vietnam's fiery rice spirit, and a stroll through delightful Pho Giu market. After a light street fare lunch of nom bo kho green papaya salad, which Vietnamese serve with grilled dried beef, we finish with a cup of authentic ca-phe phin, brewed on the street from a tiny filter -- better yet, we've located one of Hanoi's best! Afterwards, re-group for the award-winning Thang Long water puppet theatre (admission included). In the afternoon you will have a chance to explore on your own the city's 36 trade streets, each specializing in an individual craft. |
| In the early evening we've scheduled an introduction to partnering wine and Vietnamese food, held at Hanoi's leading wine bar, Vine, including generous tastings. |
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Wednesday July 15, Day 4 |
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O/Night Hanoi |
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| Today, tour Hanoi environs along the Red River delta. After check-out, visit Dong Ho village, famous for its paper and magnificent prints, plus tranquil But Thap Pagoda. We've scheduled a special lunch of rural fare, and time permitting, a tea break to sample Hai Duong village's specialty green bean cake. We end in Haiphong, Vietnam's principal seaport and third largest city. Better yet, it has the laid-back feel of Hanoi in the 1990s, yet scantly visited by overseas tourists. Dinner is at a popular bia hoi eatery, adjoined to the brewery. Bia hoi is Vietnam's famous 'fresh beer' made without preservatives. it must be drunk within a day, lest it sour. Typical "pub fare" include boiled sweetened peanuts, fried corn and tofu, cured pork, boiled chicken and local prawns. It's all great fun, and very authentic. Better yet -- we'll host you side-by-side tastings of bia hoi and bia tuoi, or standard draft beer. Our hotel tonight is the town's most central, but while it's officially 4-star, we rate it 3 ½ because of its small bathrooms. All deluxe rooms are recently renovated. From this great location, its easy to explore Haiphong by night. |
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Thursday/Friday July 16 + 17, Day 5 + 6 |
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O/Night Haiphong & Ha Long Bay |
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This morning walk through Haiphong's colonial streets and markets. Although hotel breakfast is included today, save room this morning for our movable feast. First stop: Banh da Cua crab and noodle soup. Embellished with thick rice noodles, fish cakes and pork dumpling, this local specialty is a hearty meal in itself, especially when accompanied by strong ca-phe phin. From here, walk through Haiphong's central market, and finally Cua Dat Street, and its array of pastries and fancy cakes.
We'll stop for tea and pastry, including the best moon we've ever tasted! You'll be surprised by its delicious combination of candied fruit and sweetened pork mince. Shop windows to pastry kitchens allow you unhindered viewing of extravagant cake decorating. Drive by the city's grandiose opera house and finally the traditional architecture of Hang Kenh communal house. Time permitting only, we'll include Du Hang pagoda, before arriving in Ha Long. |
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| No visit to northern Vietnam is complete without viewing the spectacle and grandeur of Ha Long Bay. Pinnacles of stone rise majestically from its emerald green waters, well warranting their Unesco heritage status. This afternoon, we board our private junk for the next two nights, sailing to less frequented outlying islands. All rooms have private toilet and shower, comfy beds, and delicious food. Pure heaven. All meals included, plus a specially-arranged cooking demonstration on our second day sailing. Be sure to pack your swimming suits. |
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Saturday July 18, Day 7 |
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O/Night Train to Sapa |
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Late brunch on board, as we continue cruising along this beautiful harbor all morning, before heading back to Hanoi and our overnight train up to Sapa. Back on land, we'll walk through Ha Long City's wonderful fish market, and taste the city's specialty jai squid fritters. Bieu Nghi looks little more than a roadside stop, but the area is famous for growing sweet Dua variety miniature pineapples, the size of a tennis ball. We'll also stop at two very different villages specializing in ceramics -- made the same way for hundreds of years. Bat Trang and Dong Trieu are both renowned for their pottery crafts, and time permitting, we'll visit both. In Hanoi, a delicious dinner before catching our train. We've booked private compartments per couple with plenty of room for baggage.
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Sunday/Monday July 19 + 20, Day 8 + 9 |
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O/Night Sapa |
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| We've planned an exclusive series of outings to the high country, including accommodation in upgraded deluxe rooms with views. As we arrive early in the morning, we've arranged rooms in town for you to shower and freshen up, then a warm noodle breakfast in Lao Cai’s most popular eatery, followed by a ca-phe fin while viewing the nearby Chinese frontier and border crossing. |
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We then head to the famous Bac Ha morning market, probably the most authentic in the region.
Goat meat is reserved for special meal celebrations such as weddings, and today’s lunch is at Bac Ha’s most popular such eatery, plus tastes of fried free range chicken, mountain corn and steamed vegetables. Afterwards, a visit to the town’s “castle” -- built in the early 20th century by a Hmong warlord, and co-designed by French and Japanese architects. We return in the late afternoon to Sapa for hotel check in and town orientation. As it has been a long day, the evening is on your own -- there is an extremely wide choice of nearby restaurants -- and dinner not included. |
| Day 2: After breakfast we’ll roam through Sapa’s daily market, including stops to discuss the local mushrooms and traditional medicines, plus local foods. Then for those eager, climb up through the orchid gardens to the radio tower for the town’s vest viewing. We’ve scheduled a special lunch in town today, where you’ll have a chance to meet young up-and-coming chef Nguyen Minh Hai. Aftewards, we’ve scheduled an easy down hill trek through the region’s most picturesque countryside. The walk is about 1 ½ hours, or alternatively, continue on the coach down to the hill tribe village of Tavan. We then drive back to Lao Cai by coach, group dinner in town, then return by overnight train to Hanoi. Time permitting, we’ll have a closer look at the Chinese border crossing, and also a visit to the town’s market. Dinner included before boarding train. |
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Tuesday July 21, Day 10 |
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O/Night Hanoi |
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We arrive early this morning into Hanoi, but have confirmed early morning check in for those still groggy from the overnight train, with breakfast included. Enroute, stop at Hanoi's colourful flower market -- early mornings are best to see this -- then to our hotel. Today we've left your schedule free for any last minute shopping, visiting, touring (ask us if you require a private guide for the day), and in the evening a very special gala dinner in the heart of the Old Quarter.
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| Optional cooking class: Chef Eric Fettke at the InterContinental is keen to prepare a mid-morning Vietnamese cooking class for our group. Surcharge $50, including light lunch. Please advise prior to arrival if this is of interest. |
The menu is tantalizing:
Soft shell crab spring rolls, Jicama salad and garlic-saffron aioli
Roast beef and jellied soba noodles, Sweet tomato mirin broth
Roast black cod, crispy fried sticky rice cake, green beans, confit tomatoes and vanilla-lemongrass sauce
Caramelized Jasmine rice cake, Coconut ice cream and lime syrup |
Bonus: We’ve also invited a rice wine distiller to lead us in a discussion of Vietnam’s fiery spirits during today’s workshop.
He will also bring along some essential oils for food that he is working on, and already supplying to, the likes of Pierre Gagnier 3rd Best Restaurant on the 2008 St. Pellagrino list just behind Adria and Blumenthal.
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Wednesday July 22, Day 11 |
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| After hotel breakfast we will arrange your airport transfers back home. For those interested in staying longer in Hanoi, ask us about our special add on hotel rates -- from just $175, and quite a discount from the hotels normal price. If visiting other areas of Vietnam, ask us AsiaTopTravel to arrange your trip south -- including flights, accommodation and guides to Hue, Hoi An, Danang, Nha Trang and Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City, or other highlights, such as Dalat, the Mekong Delta and Phu Quoc island. Just ask! |
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 Tour price includes airport transfers, deluxe hotel accommodation, internal transportation, daily breakfast and most meals, cooking demonstrations and market tours. Exclusive of airfares to and from Asia. |
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| www.asianfoodtours.com |
