Upon arrival at Hanoi airport your guide will accompany you to your hotel and assist with your check-in procedures. Whilst there are no activities planned for today, your guide will be on hand to offer any advice and assistance regarding your free time, and this evening will take you out to dinner at one of Hanoi’s superb restaurants.

Today we have a tour of the city's highlights including the Temple of Literature, site of Vietnam's first university, dating back to the 11th century. The temple is dedicated to one of the world's most famous scholars, Confucius. Inside the temple grounds huge stone stele rest on the backs of even larger stone turtles (in Vietnamese culture the turtle represents longevity). The stele recorded the names of the successful candidates who would later go on to become mandarins in the Emperor's court. We also visit The Ngoc Son Temple on Hoan Kiem Lake and the vibrant Old Quarter. The Old Quarter's bustling streets are home to hundreds of small thriving businesses, each one identified by its name, such as Tin Street or Fish Street. Following lunch we visit the Museum of Ethnology, dedicated to the country's 54 ethnic minorities. This is a must for us as tomorrow we embark on a trek into the homeland of several minority peoples. The remainder of the day is free.

With an early departure from Hanoi we journey towards Ba Be Lake. The drive of 270 km takes approximately seven hours as we travel through the flatlands of the Red River Delta and up into the mountain areas north of the capital. The further north we progress, the more picturesque the scenery becomes. Our scheduled lunch stop will be at Bac Can town. From here it is only around 2½ hours to our destination. Arriving in Ba Be town by mid to late afternoon we will check into our guesthouse and then head out for a bit of an exploration before sunset.

After breakfast we board our private boat for a cruise on the lake. Weather permitting you will have the opportunity for a swim in the crystal clear waters before having lunch on board. Following lunch we will work off our feast with a three-hour trek to a Dzao village. Here we will see firsthand how life in these remote areas has remained unchanged. Arriving back at the jetty we transfer back to our hotel. Tonight we spend our second night in Ba Be.

This morning we take to the road again for the 90km drive (2.5 hours) to Cao Bang. Here the H'mong, Zao, Tho and Nung ethnic minority people live together in harmony. We will arrive at Cao Bang slightly before lunchtime and spend a little time learning more about the people and their culture. This afternoon we take a short 1 hour drive to visit a traditional smith village befor returning to Cao Bang.

This morning we enjoy breakfast before departing Cao Bang for the 1½ hour drive to Pac Po, the hideout used by Ho Chi Minh when he came back to Vietnam after 30 years of self imposed exile. It was here that he organized his resistance army against the French. We embark on an 8-day trek covering a distance of over 140km through mountainous rain forest. We will be sleeping and eating in villages of various ethnic minorities and generally living as the locals do. Some of the hiking is quite arduous as we follow ill-defined buffalo paths and trails. There will also be some steep climbs over the mountain ranges. We will be rewarded with some beautiful scenery that the majority of travellers to Vietnam never get the chance to experience. As we trek we will witness the hardships and joys of people whose way of life has been virtually untouched by modern times and despite their extreme poverty, the people we meet are some of the friendliest and hospitable in Vietnam. Please note that to respect the traditional customs of local hill tribe people, men and women are not allowed to share the same bed, even if you are married, when we are at the home stays. From Pac Po we trek 12 km to Nam Nhung village inhabited by the Nung minority people.

Today is our first day of full trekking and we will cover 20 km. Most of the walking is along dirt roads, passing many villages of Tay and Nung people along the way. After approximately 3 hours we arrive at our accommodation for this evening at Tong Cot village. There are few vehicles here and most travel as we do, by foot

The terrain today is very similar to yesterday, following dirt roads and passing many villages of different minority groups, a great opportunity to experience the different cultures living in the area. Na Ma village, our home for the evening, is one of the smallest villages in the North of Vietnam and consists of only two families.

This is the longest day of the trek at 26km, however the terrain is not too arduous and the scenery is diverse.

This morning we have a 30 minute drive in our support vehicle before we continue trekking to Tha Meng Village. Once we arrive at Tha meng Village we can cool down and refresh our bodies by swimming in the nearby river.

Today we continue our trek along a river to Ta Lung, a small border town. We expect to arrive by early afternoon.

Today is more challenging than the previous trekking days as the terrain becomes more undulating with some steep sections. Our trail winds through primary forest and is a beautiful part of Northern Vietnam. This is where your pre-trip training comes in handy. This afternoon we have a well deserved rest at La village.

The trek concludes today as we bid farewell to our porters and camp crew. From here we drive to the border-trading city of Lang Son. We enjoy lunch and a visit to the local markets at Lang Son before our afternoon drive back to Hanoi. On arrival we can freshen up at our hotel before embarking for a celebratory meal at a Hanoi restaurant. Overnight in Hanoi hotel.

Today is free for further exploration of this fascinating city and to do some last minute shopping.

Group arrangements conclude after breakfast. If you are departing Vietnam today, a transfer will be provided to the airport.