Southern Highlights of Vietnam

Return to Ho Chi Minh City in the afternoon for a tour of the city highlights, including the major temples, Thien Hau and Quan Am, the Reunification Palace, Binh Tay market, and Chinatown.

UNESCO-protected Cat Tien is undoubtedly the best nature reserve in Southern Vietnam, comprising 70,000ha+ of untrammelled lowland rainforest. It's not big game viewing territory (leopard, tiger and bear are thought to occur in the park, but you’re highly unlikely to see them; though you may see elephant or wild gibbon), but it offers beautiful forest trails and excellent birding.

This afternoon, enjoy a relaxed trek into the rainforest followed by a night game drive to track nocturnal species. Overnight in the forest.

After a late lunch at the lodge, drive to Nui Tuong Forest for a guided birding tour, returning to the lodge in the evening.

The Dao Tien centre houses a small number of gibbon and slow loris at any given time, all rescued from the illegal wildlife trade, which it aims to reintegrate into the wild. You can visit with the gibbons and lorises, and learn more about the work the centre carries out, before heading back to the lodge.

In the afternoon, bid farewell to Cat Tien and set off for Da Lat (4 hours) in the central highlands. Arrive late afternoon.

Da Lat is a former French colonial town situated amid some of the most beautiful countryside and hill country in all of Vietnam. You’ll quickly appreciate the cooler climate here, a marked contrast from the heat of the lowlands.

This afternoon is free for you to explore Da Lat at leisure. There’s so much to do: shop at the market, take the cable car, or follow one of the walking trails out of town. Ask your guide in advance if you’d like to arrange any additional activities; otherwise, take the afternoon at your own pace.

Arrive Ho Chi Minh City late afternoon.

Evening at leisure.

On reaching Cai Thia Village, ditch the car in favour of two wheels and follow a marvellous cycling route through paddy fields and village trails, stopping along the way to visit a local Buddhist temple, fruit orchard, and rice paper workshop.

In the afternoon, take a boat ride on the Tien River to a local homestay for a delicious, home-cooked lunch. Afterwards, explore the winding canals and narrow creeks of the Delta in a traditional Vietnamese pole-driven boat, or sampan, before cruising to Vinh Long, where you re-join your driver. From Vinh Long, transfer 1 hour to Can Tho, the capital of the Mekong Delta.

Arrive late afternoon and check in at your hotel.

Continue down the Ba Long canal, stopping to visit a fruit orchard and nearby village, which you can explore on foot or by bicycle. For lunch, visit a local homestay for another home-cooked meal.

Continue by car to Chau Doc, a lively town on the border with Cambodia. Chau Doc is a hugely diverse place, where mosques sit alongside Buddhist monasteries and Christian churches, and where Khmer, Cham and Vietnamese trade with another in the bustling market.

The Cham once ruled much of Vietnam, before being expelled from the central Vietnamese heartlands in the 18th-century and pushed to the southern coast and further into Cambodia. Traditionally Hindu (though many are converts to Islam), their culture is far removed from that of most Vietnamese, and today you'll have the chance to learn a bit more about their way of life.

In the afternoon, visit Tra Su Cajuput, a beautiful submerged forest just off the border with Cambodia. It's a small reserve of 850ha, notable for its dramatic mangrove forests. Enjoy lunch within the reserve before returning to your hotel in Chau Doc.

Make the most of your last night in Saigon—the city has a busy nightlife, lots of great places to eat out, and a lively night market.