Vietnam Tour with Flights: Hanoi, Ha Long, Hoi An and Saigon 12 Days & 11 Nights

Most 12-day Vietnam trips sold in India quote the land part only and leave you to find flights that fit. This one flies you into Hanoi and home from Saigon, so the route never doubles back, and it keeps three nights in Hoi An instead of rushing the old town in an afternoon. For shorter or different routes, see all our Vietnam tour packages.

Rs 1,15,899 per person on twin sharing (was Rs 1,24,623), with return economy flights from Delhi or Mumbai, the Hanoi to Da Nang and Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City flights, 10 hotel nights and the cruise night. Fifteen travellers on 11 to 13-day Vietnam trips booked through TravelTriangle, from 2019 to November 2025, have left reviews further down this page. You can change any day of this itinerary and compare quotes from up to 3 verified agents before you pay, in easy instalments.

12 Days Vietnam Itinerary at a Glance

Day-Wise 11 Nights 12 Days Vietnam Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive in Hanoi, Evening at Hoan Kiem Lake

Your flight from India lands at Noi Bai International Airport, where your driver meets you and takes you to Centre Point Hanoi Hotel on Hang Hanh Street (or similar) by private car, about 45 to 60 minutes. It sits at the edge of the Old Quarter, two streets from Hoan Kiem Lake. Check in and rest off the early start.

In the evening, walk to the lake and cross the red The Huc Bridge to Ngoc Son Temple, lit up after dark. From Friday evening to Sunday night the streets around the lake close to traffic and fill with families. The one-hour water puppet show by the lake is a good first night (tickets extra). Indian restaurants are a short walk away in the Old Quarter if you want a familiar dinner.

Before you fly, fill in the free Digital Arrival Card at prearrival.immigration.gov.vn in the 3 days before you land. It has been compulsory at Tan Son Nhat since 15 April 2026, and since June 2026 immigration has been extending it to Noi Bai, so keep the QR code on your phone.

Day 2: Hanoi City Tour, Mausoleum to the Temple of Literature

After breakfast your guide picks you up for a full day in the capital. The morning starts at Ba Dinh Square with the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, then Uncle Ho's wooden house on stilts and the One Pillar Pagoda next door. The mausoleum opens in the morning only and closes on Mondays, Fridays and for about two months of maintenance each autumn (in 2026, 4 September to early November), so on those days you see it from the square. Next is Tran Quoc Pagoda on a small island in West Lake, the oldest Buddhist temple in the city, and then lunch.

The afternoon is the Temple of Literature, founded in 1070 to honour Confucius. In 1076 the Imperial Academy, Vietnam's first university, opened inside it, and the stone turtles in the courtyard carry the names of its graduates. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays the tour adds the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, a separate museum with full-size stilt and communal houses of the country's 54 ethnic groups. The day ends back at Hoan Kiem Lake and in the Old Quarter's craft streets, where you can shop before returning to the hotel. See more in our Hanoi tour packages.

Day 3: Ninh Binh Full Day, Hoa Lu and the Tam Coc Boat Ride

Your guide and driver collect you after breakfast for the drive south to Ninh Binh, about 2 to 2.5 hours. The first stop is Hoa Lu, Vietnam's capital in the 10th century, where you visit the temples of the Dinh and Le kings set against the limestone hills. Then your driver takes you on to Tam Coc for lunch.

After lunch, a local rower takes you by sampan along the Ngo Dong river at Tam Coc, through three low caves and past rice fields walled in by karst cliffs. Rowers often steer with their feet. If you have energy, cycle for an hour through the villages and paddy roads before the drive back. You reach your Hanoi hotel at around 6 pm. Prefer a longer boat route? Ask your agent to swap Tam Coc for Trang An, the UNESCO-listed route nearby.

Day 4: Ha Long Bay Overnight Cruise, Caves and Kayaking

Check out after breakfast and drive about 2.5 to 3 hours on the expressway to Tuan Chau Marina, where you board the Apricot Cruise (or similar). Lunch is served on board, usually seafood with vegetarian dishes on request, as the boat sails out among the limestone islands of Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In the afternoon you go ashore to one of the large caves in Ha Long Bay, most often Sung Sot, also called Surprise Cave, with its stalactite chambers. Back on the water you can kayak or take the boat's bamboo rowing boat around a floating village. Dinner is early, the evening is yours on deck, and you spend the night at anchor in the bay. More cruise options are in our Ha Long Bay tour packages.

Day 5: Tai Chi on Deck, Back to Hanoi and Fly to Da Nang

The day starts with a tai chi session on the sundeck at sunrise, or a slow breakfast if you would rather sleep in. Many boats make one more short cave or grotto stop before brunch is served and the cruise returns to the marina around late morning.

Your driver takes you back toward Hanoi and straight to Noi Bai Airport for the afternoon flight to Da Nang, about 1 hour 20 minutes and included in the package. You are met and taken to Song Cong Hotel in the Son Tra district (or similar), a few minutes from My Khe Beach. Walk the beach promenade before dinner if you land in time.

Day 6: Ba Na Hills and the Golden Bridge, Then Hoi An

After breakfast you drive about 40 minutes to Ba Na Hills, a French hill station from the 1920s at 1,487 m. The cable car lifts you over the forest to the top, and the ride alone is worth the trip. The first stop is the Golden Bridge (Cau Vang), the curved gold walkway held up by two giant stone hands, the photo most visitors come to Ba Na for. Go early, because the bridge fills with tour groups by late morning.

Then explore the French Village and the gardens on Nui Chua peak, and visit Linh Ung Pagoda with its tall seated Shakyamuni Buddha. The Ba Na Hills ticket, which includes the cable car and the Golden Bridge, costs 1,000,000 dong (about Rs 3,700) for adults in 2026. In the afternoon you return to Da Nang, pick up your luggage and drive about 45 minutes to Hoi An. Ask the driver to stop at the Marble Mountains on the way if there is light left. Our places to visit in Da Nang guide has more.

Day 7: Cam Thanh Basket Boats, Fishing and Hoi An Ancient Town

This morning is the fishing trip. You head to the Cam Thanh water-coconut forest, about 15 minutes from town, and climb into a round bamboo basket boat. Local fishermen show you how they cast the throw net and lower crab traps along the river, and you try it yourself. Whatever you catch goes to the kitchen for lunch.

The afternoon and evening are for Hoi An Ancient Town, the 15th to 19th-century trading port on the Thu Bon river. Walk to the Japanese Covered Bridge, the Chinese assembly halls and the old merchant houses. The town ticket costs 120,000 dong (about Rs 440) for foreign visitors and is valid for your whole stay. After dark, the lanterns come on and boatwomen sell paper lanterns to float on the river. Visit a tailor today if you want clothes made. Our Hoi An night market guide covers the evening stalls.

Day 8: Cham Island or My Son Sanctuary

From about March to September, the day starts at 8 am with a pick-up for Cua Dai harbour and a speedboat to Cham Island, about 30 to 45 minutes away. You reach Bai Lang village and the beach by about 10 am, then swim and snorkel over the coral in the protected marine park. A seafood lunch is served on the island, with vegetarian options on request, and you leave by 2 pm, back in Hoi An an hour later.

From October to February rough seas usually stop the Cham Island boats, and the harbour can also stop sailings at short notice in summer storms. On those days your agent switches you to My Son Sanctuary, the red-brick Cham temple ruins in a jungle valley about an hour inland, a UNESCO World Heritage Site built between the 4th and 13th centuries (ticket about 150,000 dong). Your agent confirms which plan you are on the evening before. More ideas are in our places to visit in Hoi An.

Day 9: Fly from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City, Evening in District 1

Your morning in Hoi An is free for a last walk by the river or a final tailor fitting. After check-out you drive about 45 minutes to Da Nang International Airport for the flight to Ho Chi Minh City, about 1 hour 25 minutes and included in the package. Your driver meets you at Tan Son Nhat and takes you to Liberty Hotel Saigon Parkview on Pham Ngu Lao Street in District 1 (or similar).

Spend the evening on foot. Nguyen Hue Walking Street fills with families after dark in front of the old City Hall, the Saigon Central Post Office from the 1880s is a few minutes away, and the food stalls by Ben Thanh Market stay open into the evening. Bui Vien Street, the late-night strip, is two blocks from the hotel. Our Ho Chi Minh City tour packages cover longer stays.

Day 10: Independence Palace and the Cu Chi Tunnels

After breakfast your guide takes you to the Independence Palace, also called the Reunification Palace, where a North Vietnamese tank broke through the gates on 30 April 1975. It is open from 7 am to 6 pm every day and the basement bunker and war rooms are part of the visit. Lunch is at a local restaurant.

In the afternoon you drive about 1.5 to 2 hours to the Cu Chi Tunnels. A short briefing and film explain how villagers and soldiers dug more than 200 km of tunnels and lived inside them. Then you see the kitchens, meeting rooms and the booby traps laid in the maze, and crawl a stretch widened for visitors if you are comfortable in tight spaces. Tea and boiled cassava, the wartime food, are served at the end. You are back in District 1 by early evening. Our places to visit in Ho Chi Minh City list has more for your free hours.

Day 11: Mekong Delta Day Trip, My Tho and Thoi Son Island

After breakfast, drive about 2 hours south to My Tho, the market town on the Mekong River. A boat takes you across to Thoi Son island, where you switch to a hand-rowed sampan for the narrow canal under the water-coconut palms. Along the way you stop at a family business, a honey-bee farm with honey tea, and a workshop where coconut candy is made by hand.

After lunch you can cycle around Tan Thach village or sit back in the breeze with tropical fruit. The drive back to Ho Chi Minh City puts you at the hotel by early evening. It is your last night in Vietnam, so try com tam, broken rice with grilled pork, or a vegetarian pho at one of the chay restaurants near the hotel.

Day 12: Ben Thanh Market and Fly Home

Have breakfast and check out by noon. Your bags can stay at the desk. Ben Thanh Market, a short walk away, opens around 7 am and is the place for coffee, cashews, lacquerware and conical hats. If your flight is in the evening, the War Remnants Museum is 15 minutes away and takes about 90 minutes. It is the hardest hour of the trip, with the Agent Orange rooms, and most people come out quiet.

Your driver takes you to Tan Son Nhat International Airport, about 30 minutes from District 1. The nonstops to India leave Saigon in the evening or close to midnight, so be at the airport 3 hours before departure. Keep your passport and e-visa approval handy for exit immigration and spend your leftover dong before you go, because it is hard to change back in India. Your services end at check-in.

Hotels and Your Ha Long Bay Cruise

Our agents book these hotels or similar ones, depending on availability.

Want 4-star hotels or a balcony cabin on the cruise? The same itinerary is quoted at every hotel level.

Inclusions and Exclusions

12 Days Vietnam Trip Cost from India

A 12-day Vietnam trip on this itinerary costs about Rs 1.40 lakh to Rs 1.56 lakh per person from India, flights included. The package covers the hard parts to arrange: four flights, eleven nights, the cruise, every transfer and the guided sightseeing. What remains is food, the visa and what you choose to add.

Your departure city and travel month move the total most. Flying from Bengaluru, Hyderabad or Kolkata, or travelling at Christmas, New Year or Tet (6 February 2027), can add a few thousand rupees, so ask for two dates side by side and check that GST and TCS are shown in your quote. For a land-only 4-star version of a similar route, compare the 11 nights 12 days Vietnam family holiday.

Flights from India and the Vietnam e-Visa

Your ticket is open-jaw. You fly into Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport (HAN) and home from Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Son Nhat (SGN), so the only flights inside Vietnam are the two short hops on Days 5 and 9. Vietnam is 1 hour 30 minutes ahead of India.

The package price is based on Delhi or Mumbai. Flying from elsewhere? See our Vietnam tour packages from Delhi, from Mumbai, from Kolkata or every route in how to reach Vietnam.

Indian passport holders need an e-visa from Vietnam's official portal, evisa.gov.vn. A single entry costs US$25 and a multiple entry US$50, both valid for up to 90 days, and approval usually takes 3 to 5 working days. Your passport must be valid for 6 months from arrival. Name Noi Bai as your entry airport and Tan Son Nhat as your exit, and print the approval for the airline counter in India. Our Vietnam visa guide for Indians explains each step.

Best Time for a North-to-South Vietnam Trip

February to April is the best time for this route, because it is the only stretch when Hanoi, Hoi An and Saigon are all reliably dry. Vietnam has three climates along this trip, and each region has its own rainy months.

March and April give you the whole route dry plus Cham Island. December and January suit the north and south but bring rain to Hoi An early in the season and keep the island boats in harbour. Month-by-month detail is in our best time to visit Vietnam guide.

12, 10 or 7 Days? Choosing Your Vietnam Trip

Twelve days is the shortest trip that covers the north, the centre and the south without rushing. If you have less time or want a different mix, this is how our longer Vietnam packages compare.

Want land only in 4-star hotels? Pick the 11 nights 12 days Vietnam family holiday. Prefer a beach island to Hoi An? The 10 days Vietnam tour with flights flies on to Phu Quoc. For Angkor Wat, the 10 days Vietnam and Cambodia tour adds Siem Reap. Shorter on leave? The 7 nights 8 days Vietnam tour or the 7 day Vietnam itinerary keep to two regions.

Twelve days will not cover everything. Sapa's rice terraces need two extra days from Hanoi (see our Sapa tour packages), Hue is a day trip from Da Nang if you add a night, and Phu Quoc needs its own flight and two nights (Phu Quoc tour packages). Adding Cambodia works better as a separate Vietnam and Cambodia package.

Who This Trip Suits, and Vegetarian Food on the Way

This route is built for a first full trip to Vietnam. Families with teenagers, couples and parents travelling with grown-up children get the most from it, because the long legs are flights and Hoi An's three nights give everyone a breather. Our Vietnam family packages have more family-paced options. It is not the trip for a pure beach holiday or a tight budget. A shorter two-region trip costs less.

Vegetarian travellers manage well if they say so at booking. "Our family is vegetarian and we had no issues with food options during our trip," wrote Smruti Rao from Hyderabad after a 12-day Vietnam trip in March 2023, and Sacheen Pathak from Mumbai found vegetarian hotel breakfasts at every hotel in March 2025. Ask for chay (vegetarian) and no fish sauce, and for Jain meals add no onion or garlic. Our Indian restaurants in Vietnam list has names and addresses.

How Payment Works

You see quotes from up to 3 verified agents before you pay anything, and you pay in easy instalments as your agent sets out. Your written quote lists exactly what the price covers, including the return flights from India and the two flights inside Vietnam, so read it before paying an advance.

Ready to compare quotes? Customise this trip above, or browse all our Vietnam tour packages.

Edited by TravelTriangle