Meeting point: see photo below.
FULL ITINERARY
Reach our charming ancient capital, Hanoi. This Hanoi shore excursion includes visits to major iconic landmarks in this 1000-year-old city. The Hanoi day trip is highly recommended for cruises that dock at Halong International Cruise Port for one full day.
Be picked up by our driver and tour guide at the meeting point, then take you to Hanoi. Upon arrival, visit a famous gallery named Nguyen Art Gallery, which houses many original and quality paintings as well as sculptures. The Gallery’s objective is to promote quality arts, particularly from Vietnam. The gallery focuses on young and emerging artists. We are both enjoying Vietnamese tea or coffee then relax at a nice space of Gallery and seeing the paintings…Talk with the owner and enjoy a cup of Vietnamese coffee in the Café Lounge overlooking the Temple of Literature that you visit the morning.
Afterward, we will visit the Temple of Literature, originally built as a Temple of Confucius, before heading to Hoa Lo Prison Museum where the former US presidential candidate John McCain was incarcerated for over 5 years. Next, learn about Vietnam’s 54 ethnic minority people through the extensive display at Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, which is widely acknowledged as the best in the country.
After lunch in the city center, your guide will bring you to visit the iconic Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son Temple before hopping on a cyclo for a one-hour ride around the French-inspired Old Quarter. Stroll through narrow streets in the Old Quarter and browse for fantastic deals on almost everything from souvenirs in small shops to paintings at contemporary art galleries. If time permits, join the crowd for a famous one-hour Water Puppet show. As the sun begins to set in this beautiful town, head back to Halong in good time for your cruise departure. Trip ends. Thanks for traveling with Shore Excursions Asia!
