UNIQUE SOUTHERN OF VIETNAM

Upon arrival at Tan Son Nhat airport in Ho Chi Minh City, warmly welcomed by AFS Travel’s tour guide and you will be escorted to your hotel for freshen up and relax after a long journey. In the late afternoon tour guide take you to have dinner on Saigon Indochina Junk Cruise. Enjoying the music and dance performances with dinner while the Cruise go along the colorful river. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City

Breakfast at hotel. After breakfast, joining a cooking class in the morning held at Ho Chi Minh City, begin to visit a local market and learn how to purchase fresh ingredients, followed by an introduction to Vietnamese culinary culture. There is a whole range of menus to choose from and developed specially to give an all-round flavor of Vietnamese cuisine. After cook, have lunch with the dishes you have prepare In the afternoon, explore Ho Chi Minh City. The best and popular route to discover the history and beauty of the city is Reunification Palace former residence of the Indochina Governor General and late President of the Republic of Southern Vietnam until the fall of Saigon in Apr 30, 1975, War Remnants Museum originally opened in September 1975, it displays old military equipment and other related items from Vietnam War, next head to Notre Dame Cathedral and General Post Office. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh City.

Following breakfast, tour guide meet at your hotel lobby. Depart from Saigon River Port, canoe take you enjoy the riverview and lite breakfast which are prepared on boat along the way to Vam Sat Once arriving in the Vam Sat, you will learn about the flora typical of mangrove forests and the other types of seafoods at the local fishing hamlet After 15 minutes on boat you will visit the Reserve Bats Lagoon of the city, owing a small boat through the mangrove forest. Visiting the crab pond and trying crab angling, explore the lives of crabs, how to picking the best crab Canoe continue to bring you into the center of Vam Sat.Visit immense panorama of Vam Sat mangrove forest from the “Tang Bong” tower. Walking along the road through the forest, with a challenge suspen sion bridge, visit the deer herd which are very playful, contact with human, and feed for them Lunch is served at Vam Sat Restaurant and relax in a coconut hut In the afternoon, we will visit the crocodile farm (with the Crocodylus Porosus is listed in the Red Book), learn the process of hatching crocodiles. We also have chance doing the most fearless activities as standing on the cruise boat for angling carnivorous crocodile; Exposure of wild monkeys (long-tailed monkeys characterized by Can Gio); and visiting the area for bird conservation in the wild bird nesting season, more than 10.000 types of bird in 26 different species (from May to October). Transfer back to hotel Overnight in Ho Chi Minh

After breakfast at hotel, transfer to Cai Be. Before going to the central of Cai Be market, the car stops at Cai Be Cao Dai Oratories, which is the religious symbol of local uniqueness. Then take the tourist boats to visit the floating market of rice in An Cu commune, Cai Be district – where is the rice trade largest exporter Southwest region of Vietnam. The next destinations are the ancient village of Dong Hoa Hiep commune and Cai Be floating market. Leaving the floating market, you will take boat to Tan Phong islet and go to the Chin’s house by a rowing boat in the small canal. Here, guests and homeowners drink tea together, chat and learn more about the daily life of the people Tan Phong islet and how to make lotus tea, lotus jam. Then, you will enjoy a lotus tea, lotus jam while hearing some Vietnamese traditional music performed by Mr. Chin. Goodbye Mr. Chin, continue visiting the orchard of Ms. Hang and enjoy the fruits in the garden picked by guests. Here, you can try to pull the fish hooves, experience the foot bridges – the unique feature of the Southern of Vietnam and take a rest on the hammock woven by banana rope. It will be certainly very interesting. Say goodbye to Ms Hang, we arrive to Mekong Ecolodge and participate in cooking and having lunch. After having lunch, you will cycle to Ms Ba’s house to learn how to make the ricepaper used to make the sping roll dishes. Then, continue going to Ms. Sau’s house to see the method to knit the banana hammock from the rope of dry banana leaves. After that, you will visit Ms Muoi- a very old woman- to see the method to make the nipa leaves that can be the roof of Vietnamese house. Say goodbye to Ms Muoi, after that cycle to Thao’s house to know how to knit water hyacinth, guests can also enjoy their first handmade lovely gift with the guidance of Ms. Thao. Finally, tourists come back to Mekong Ecolodge to take a rest and check out. At around 4.30 p.m : you will have an opportunity to experience the Hiep Duc ferry boat with the local people to go through Tien River and the car will pick guests up in the opposite side. Overnight in Ho Chi Minh