Vietnam is a peaceful country now. In spite of that, Vietnam war happened, which created terrible time for the Vietnamese people, and bad memories for many veterans. Vietnam Drive suggests veteran travel to help some veterans and someones who like to look back the history; then, they know more the value of the present peaceful life to live better.
Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) – Hue City
You are welcome at the Tan Son Nhat airport in Ho Chi Minh city to transfer to the hotel in Saigon; Saigon is the old name of Ho Chi Minh City still called Saigon by some local people. The rest of the day is at your leisure.
Overnight in Sai Gon.
You will explore the war relics and famous sites in Ho Chi Minh: Drive through the Saigon street in the morning to the Cu Chi tunnels – the top of the battlefield in Vietnam – to discover the big tunnel system, you will get a chance to crawl in the small tunnels to understand the life of the people here and Viet Cong during the war.
Return the centre of Ho Chi Minh city to visit the Reunification Palace, in which the former President of Southern Vietnam had lived until the 30th April 1975. Continue to take pictures at the old Sai Gon post office and the Notre Dame Cathedral – both are the old French colonial buildings left.
Back the hotel to relax. Enjoy Saigon night life by yourself.
Overnight in Saigon.
You will take the flight to Da Nang. We will pick you up at the airport to drive to the “R and R” beach and to the Salt Water air base in Da Nang to take pictures of the hangers left. Continue climbing up the Marble Mountains which have a lot of caves and the temples with the good view from the top. Never forget to go into the Huyen Khong cave where the VC-Viet Cong used to use as the secret residence.
After that, drive 20km left to Hoi An for checking the hotel; the rest of the day is your own leisure to stroll in the Hoi An ancient town or enjoy the lovely Cua Dai beach.
Overnight in Hoi An.
Full day to visit the Chu Lai air base which was used by the US Marines; big air-crafts including B-52s took off and landed here.
Continue driving to Quang Ngai to visit the My Lai or Son My Memorial, where on March 16th, 1968 the massacre happened and 504 common people were killed by an American Division.
Back Hoi An to relax. Overnight in Hoi An.
The fee in the morning to go shopping in Hoi An town. At12:00 am, get the beautiful drive from Hoi An to Hue will go through the lovely beaches, the mountains, the peaceful villages and Monkey mountain. Stop to look back the day when the US marines landed at the Red Beach. After this, go to the top of Hai Van Pass to enjoy the lovely view on a clear day and take pictures of the war bunkers left. After enjoying the attractive beauty of Lang Co bay – one of the best thirty bays in the world, continue driving to Hue city via stopping at some small war relics left to learn about some fighting during the war.
Overnight in Hue.
At 8:00 pick you up at your hotel to drive to visit DMZ- Demilitarized Zone. The DMZ was the demarcation line between North and South Vietnam during Vietnam-American War. You can go back to the war sites, including the Ben Hai River chosen as a demarcation line, Hien Luong Bridge- historical bridge crossing the Ben Hai River, Cua Tung Beach- a wild beach and Vinh Moc Tunnel- an amazing village under ground; then, continue driving on Ho Chi Minh Trails to visit Rock Pile- a famous base in the forest, Khe Sanh Combat Base and Camp Carol base.
Back Hue city. Overnight in Hue.
You will get half-day Hue tour with a boat trip on the Perfume River to enjoy the peaceful life on the river and the lovely sightseeing. Stop to visit the oldest pagoda in Hue – Thien Mu pagoda located at the nice site. Come back to see the Citadel and the ruins of the forbidden purple city which were the result of the fighting at the Tet Offensive 1968. After that, get a chance to explore the daily trading activities of the local at the colourful market Dong Ba.
Back the hotel to relax. Overnight in Hue.
Transfer to Hue airport or Hue train station for your departure.
