Tet In HCM City And Beyond

Tet in HCM City for the New Year of the Cat is going to be bigger and better than ever with lots of entertainment venues and festivals to visit. Local tour companies are offering amazing Tet packages.

The HCM City People’s Committee has announced programs for Tet Festival 2011 in the city’s downtown area, including Nguyen Hue Flower Street 2011, Bánh tét (cylindrical glutinous rice cake) festival, fireworks, the lighting city, snapshots of New Year 2011 and doorshows.

HCM City

The annual seventh Nguyen Hue Flower Street 2011 is themed “New Heights” as HCM City sets its sights on a bigger and better city. Sections of the street will be decorated in different spring themes — Hn Vit (Vietnam’s Soul), Tt phng Nam (Southern Tet), Ni vòng tay ln (Get together), Vn lên tm cao mi (Reach New Heights), Xuân an vui (Happy and Peaceful Spring). Other attractions include a flower arrangement booth, a wishing pond to collect money for charity, coffee stalls, folk music and games.

Nguyen Hue Flower Street extending down Nguyen Hue Boulevard from the City Hall to the river opens from 7 p.m., Jan. 31 till 10 p.m., Feb. 6. It will be closed to traffic for the holiday week. In addition, from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Feb. 6, the nearby Le Loi Street from Ben Thanh Market to the Municipal Theater will be for pedestrians only.
The Bánh tét Festival from Jan. 26 to 31 is being jointly organized by all the city’s 24 districts. Activities will include bánh tét cooking contests and a bánh tét Tet gift drive for poor families. Saigontourist Holding Company, in cooperation with the HCM City Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, will give 10,000 bánh tét to disadvantaged children.

The fireworks displays on the Lunar New Year’s Eve (Feb. 2) will take place at seven places around the city while Le Loi, Dong Khoi and Le Duan streets and Chi Lang Park on Dong Khoi Street are decorated with hundreds of lights from Jan. 26 to Feb. 13.

During the last days of the lunar year and the first days of the new lunar year, you can join the Spring Flower Festival at Tao Dan Park and Quoc Te Square, a.k.a. Tortoise Fountain, in the city’s District 1. This year the “Bird Competition” comes back after a long absence.

According to HCM City Greenery and Park Co., the event’s organizer, some highlights of the festival from Jan. 28 to Feb. 8 will be bonsai, flower and fish exhibits by locals and foreigners, an area for souvenirs, games and food at Tao Dan Park. The “Nha Rong – Ho Chi Minh Museum” miniature made from flowers and leaves by a Japanese artisan and orchids from the HCM City Orchid Club. Tortoise Fountain will be turned into a lotus pond with an exhibition titled “HCM City Socio-economic Achievement” and music performances.

Tours around Vietnam

Besides Tet programs in HCM City, tourists can enjoy Tet travel tour promotions around the country.
HCM City-based tour operator Vietravel is introducing the “Spring Travel 2011” program with over 100 tours and lucky prizes till Feb. 28. The spring heritage tour of the North will take you to Hanoi, Halong, Sapa, Trang An, etc. Witness the rich history of the central region by visiting Tet festivals along the Hoai River in Hoi An Town, Danang City, citadels in Hue City and Phong Nha-Ke Bang caves in Quang Binh Province. Waterfalls and thousands of flowers are symbols of the Central Highlands while opera songs for Tet are specialties in the Mekong Delta.
Vietravel is holding a Tet lucky draw with prizes including diamond jewelry, vouchers and 20,000 gifts.

Another local travel giant Saigontourist Travel and Service Co. is offering 100 tour packages to enjoy the New Year of the Cat. There are nearly 20 island tours to Con Dao, Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, Phan Thiet and Danang. A world heritage trip in spring, the legendary Central Highlands and spring in villages in the Central Highlands. Saigontourist has also launched special tours for overseas Vietnamese returning for Tet.

Cholontourist Travel and Service Co. this year has tours to highlands and beaches, including adventure tours.

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Cruise Nha Trang on King Yacht

King Yacht at Bao Dai wharf in the coastal city of Nha Trang. The new cruise takes in beautiful Nha Trang Bay - Photo: Hoang Long

Cruising is the best way to see Nha Trang Bay and what better way to cruise than the new four-star standard King Yacht.

The US$1 million 28m yacht can do speeds of 11 knots. With two decks including restaurant, bar on the lower and four rooms on the upper deck, visitors can indulge themselves on a lavish four-day tour of Saigontourist Travel Service Co. that departs from HCMC to meet The King in Nha Trang.

The yacht tour will start from Bao Dai Wharf in Nha Trang city and then cruise to Tre, Mun, Mot, Tam and Mieu islands. Cruise around Mun islet for swimming, coral reef diving and fishing before stopping at Tri Nguyen aquarium. Guests on board the motor yacht can also request stops at sights they choose along the way.

Mun Island’s marine protected area has 1,500 kinds of corals and hundreds of sea creatures making it a prime diving and snorkeling site. Saigontourist’s tour guides and instructors will guide visitors to discover the underwater world. Even people who cannot swim can easily explore the coral reefs, just 10 meters underwater.

The tour also visits sights around Nha Trang and the Thap Ba Hot Spring Mudbath.

The first tour will leave HCMC on January 22, and then head off every Saturday after that. Costs are VND 3.4-5.7 million a ticket. Guests can book by calling 08 3833. 6442 or logging onto http://www.dulichtet.com

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Discover the mysteries of Tet with Saigontourist

Guests watch as banh chung (square glutinous rice cake filled with green bean paste and fat pork) is made on Phu Quoc Island - Photo: Courtesy of Saigontourist

For the Tet holidays next month, Saigontourist Travel Service Company has prepared a selection of cultural discovery tours to the country’s three regions.

Travelers can cruise to the canals of the iconic Mekong Delta, take a journey to experience the history of the Central or admire the landscapes in the North in the chill of winter. In every corner of every street you will sense the festive atmosphere of Tet (Lunar New Year).

Recommended tours include a three-day trip to the Highlands priced at about VND1.7 million, departing on February 4 and 6, a four-day tour to Dalat priced around VND2 million, departing on February 3-10, a three-day tour to Phan Thiet City priced at about VND2.6 million, departing on February 4,5 and 11, a five-day tour to Nha Trang-Dalat priced from VND3.06 million, departing on February 4, a two-day tour to Cai Be-Vinh Long-Can Tho priced from VND1.5 million, departing on February 4 and 6, or a four-day tour to Cai Be-Vinh Long-Can Tho-Ha Tien priced from 2.04 million, departing on January 29.

There are also tours to the northwest regions to visit Sapa, Dong Van Plateau, and trips to Hanoi, Ninh Binh.

The options for ocean lovers
include Vung Tau, Nha Trang, Mui Ne, Phu Quoc, Con Dao and Ha Long. A four-day tour to Nha Trang is priced from VND2.4 million, a two-day tour to Vung Tau for VND1.5 million.

For the highlands, discover the way ethnic people enjoy Tet with gong performances and ruou can parties by the fire. In the Mekong Delta, tourists can enjoy Tet on boats filled with colorful fruits and flowers.

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Local tour guides provide an insight into the real Sa Pa

by Minh Thu

Steps to heaven: The familiar terraced fields in Sa Pa attract many domestic and foreign visitors. — VNS Photos Truong Vi   Gracious guides: Many local women work as souvenir sellers and tour guides to lead tourists to discover their hometown's lifestyle and hidden charm. Bridging the divide: A foreign tourist tries to cross the May (Rattan or Cloud) Bridge in Sa Pa, a destination for adventurous tourists.

It's a strange land that leaves me with different feelings whenever I come to rediscover it.

Sa Pa is an incredibly picturesque town in the Hoang Lien Son Mountain Range near the Chinese border in northwestern Viet Nam, 350km from Ha Noi.

It can be explored almost year-round from March to early December. Vietnamese most like to visit during June and July to escape the summer heat in other parts of the country. Sa Pa is 1,500m above sea level so the weather is quite mild, and cold at night.

The best time to go to Sa Pa is on a weekday, as weekenders tend to flock here. However, the famed "love market" only takes place on Saturday nights, so visitors often extend their tour to Saturday to experience it.

Tourists can see many hill tribe people, their villages and rice terraces. The ethnic minority groups generally retain their lifestyles and traditional costumes.

The area's high mountains, deep ravines and lush vegetation rise to the peak of Mt Fansipan – the highest point in Indochina. The combination of fresh mountain air, relaxed ambience, sweeping panoramas and fascinating hill tribes make Sa Pa a must-see destination.

A trek took us deep into a hill tribe region where tourists are still something of a novelty. Staying in village homes allowed us to experience firsthand a lifestyle that has been little touched by the modern world and a curiosity from our hosts just as great as our own. The trekking is fairly strenuous at times but the spectacular scenery and sense of adventure make it worth the effort.

I can't explain why all of the local tour guides are women. All are under 30 and haven't yet married. Thao Thi Ru, a Dao ethnic woman, has guided tourists since she was 12, after starting her career as a souvenir vendor. Sometimes, to get tourists buy her hand-made souvenirs, she has offered herself as a guide for free. Gradually, she has learned English from them, learned to cook dishes to their tastes, and acquired the experience to become a professional tour guide.

"Being local, we have an advantage over tour companies," Ru said. "Foreign tourists prefer us to guide them because we know the ways and easily lead them to villages and local houses. They love to understand the local customs as told by locals like us."

Under Ru's direction, we visit Ta Van, Ta Phin and Ban Ho communes and get a greater understanding of the Mong and Dao people's stone-carving, weaving, jewelry-making, metalwork and embroidery crafts.

Ta Phin Cave, at the far end of Ta Phin village, is an attractive destination which tourists often bypass without a local guide's suggestion.

The cave requires a guide with a flashlight, and the guide will shine the torch on a variety of stalactites.

Some of the locals invite visitors to go to their homes to show how they live and what they have, and tell them about their families. On following them to their houses, tourists find out how simply they live. The tour guides suggest you to buy the merchandise you like from them as repayment for what they have shown for you.

Local tour guides also lead the trips to the forests and mountains because they know thoroughly the terrain.

Before starting a tour, the guides remind tourists to bring food, shoes, sleeping bags and other necessities, said Giang Thi Co, a Mong woman.

"I have learned from the elders folk medicines to treat stomach aches, muscle pains and snake bite," Co said. "Once, a Western woman couldn't walk anymore because her legs were sore, so I picked some leaves to apply to her swollen calves. She felt better and said ‘good, good!' to me."

City lovers may find Sa Pa is not the place for them as its rich ethnic lifestyle is far removed from modern life. If you expect to go shopping in malls, Sa Pa has nothing to offer. The only way to go shopping is to go to the local market where you can find unique handicrafts, jewelry and fabrics with colourful embroidery. While tourists don't know how to bargain or choose the best items, the local guides are ready to help.

Sa Pa is famous for its "love market" where local young people go to show off and find partners. It is held every Saturday night and provides a unique and unforgettable experience.

The love market is a tradition in the culture of the Mong, Tay and Dao. All the people around Sa Pa live in isolated villages and can only get together once a week during the Sunday morning market. The night before, young men and women from all around come to the love market to meet and express their emotions through playing the khen (pan pipe) and singing according to traditional customs of their people.

The experience of Sa Pa trip is not something that everyone can buy, but adventurous people and those who seek to know the hidden charm of Vietnamese hill tribes living in their old traditional mountain villages cannot miss this place. — VNS

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Basket boat racing in Hoi An

Erica Tubbs’ husband takes pictures of her and a fisherwoman in thuyen thung chai (basket boat) - Photo: Minh Duy

If you like boat racing with the excitement but not the danger, join the basket boat race on the Hoi An Eco-tour, organized by Khoa Tran Travel Company.

The family-run tour company in the ancient town of Hoi An operates tours with local farmers and fishermen, for tourists to sample how they live and work and have a bit of fun on the way.

Guests are taken in a tourist boat up the river and invited to get in a fishermen’s basket boat, thuyen thung chai. Each thuyen thung chai can carry three people. The local fisherperson with the oar sits in the middle.

Before the race starts the oarsperson takes a quiet paddle through some canals lined with coconut palms and then the race starts.

American tourist Erica Tubbs, who went on the tour, said the race was lots of fun as there was a lot of screaming from the tourists and as they gripped tightly onto the walls of the basket boats.

She said after the race her and her husband were able to try a bit of fishing for catfish with nets and then ride buffalos.

 “I can see pictures of buffalos and basket boats on the internet, but can’t experience the fear of riding a buffalo or sitting in the boat. The experience was a complete surprise,” says Tubbs.

The travel company has other tours such as the fishermen and the waterways, the sunrise tour and sunset tour. The price varies around US$45 per person for groups of 35 to 40 for a four-hour tour.

For further information, contact the company at Phuoc Hai Fishing Village, Cua Dai District, Hoi An city, Quang Nam province. Tel : 0510 3 928.900 Email : jacktran@hoianecotour.com.vn.

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Tour prices to jump ahead of lunar new year

The price of Tet or Lunar New Year tours are set to jump by up to 10 percent, forecast tour operators.

The operators attribute the prospective increases to growing demand and likely higher transport and accommodation costs.

The length of the break - seven days - and the arrival of overseas
Vietnamese and international visitors are the major reasons for higher
price, explained Vietravel Communication Department director Nguyen Minh
Man.

"Customers for the 2011 Lunar New Year - from February 1 - will increase by 30 percent," Man said.

"High demand will see accommodation and transport costs soar, so tour prices will jump by 7-10 percent", he added.

A representative of the Lua Viet Tours Company agreed that tour prices
will increase by Tet holiday because of higher air travel costs.

The company says the prices for air tickets out of V ietnam have increased between 50 USD and 150 USD.

Despite higher costs, tour operators are trying to keep prices down.

"More expensive air tickets are beyond our control. However, we've
still managed to keep our tour prices low to avoid sudden changes in
price," said Man.

Outbound tours to Hong Kong, mainland China , the Republic of Korea and Japan remain favourite destinations.

Tours to neighbouring countries remain popular due to their price of
just 10 million VND (476 USD). Moreover, these tours have not been
affected by the dong's devaluation, said Director of Lua Viet Travel
Company Nguyen Van My.

The Vietnam Railway Corporation is set to increase its prices by 20-25 percent on peak days over the Lunar New Year Festival./.

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Electric cars ferry tourists around city's Old Quarter

by Nguyen Le Hung

Eastern promise: The O Quan Chuong (Quan Chuong Gate) has long been an inspiration for artists and is one of the stops along the electric car tour. — VNA/VNS Photo Phuong Hoa

Environmentally friendly battery-powered cars have begun offering tourists a new way to take in the sights in Ha Noi's Old Quarter.

Each car carries seven passengers, and the 30-minute tours begin every fifteen minutes between 7am to 9.30pm daily. Passengers can board at two terminals: across the street from the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre on Dinh Tien Hoang Street and in front of Dong Xuan Market. Tickets cost VND15,000 (US$0.75).

The cars are operated by Dong Xuan Joint Stock Co, which began offering two tours in July. But, after two months, the cars now follow only one route, making brief stops at 13 iconic cultural and historical spots in the Old Quarter.

"It's fun, it's cheap and it is a very quick way to browse through all of the many streets of the Old Quarter," said Mark Geller, an Australian tourist.

You are here: Bach Ma Temple on Hang Buom Street is another stop on the tour. The temple's festival takes place in the second lunar month. — VNA/VNS Photo Anh Tuan E-ticket: Tourists enjoy Ha Noi via battery-operated cars. — VNS Photo Le Hung

"Foreign travellers, who were the target customers for the tours, have only accounted for 20 per cent of ticket sales," said Pham Tuan Long, an official of the Old Quarter management department.

"This tour not only gives us a quick view of all the major streets and cultural spots in the Old Quarter but also an experience with greener technology," said Pham Thanh Thuy, 27, a tourist from HCM City. "I really like this car – it runs very quietly. It's the perfect way to travel around the Old Quarter."

"I very much adore this," says Tran Van Hung, 67, a Hang Buom Street resident. "I get on these cars three or four times a week. I love to take my grandchildren with me."

Among the stops on the tour on the house in which President Ho Chi Minh wrote the nation's Declaration of Independence, now a museum in which visitors can learn about the history of Viet Nam; Cau Dong Pagoda, which was originally built during the Ly dynasty beside a stone bridge that spanned To Lich River; and Hang Luoc Street, which follows what used to be the banks of the river. Early in the 19th century, the river was filled in to broaden the street. Hang Luoc Street is also the location of the annual Tet flower market, an annual tradition that has been going on for centuries. Each year, the best blossoms from all over the country are gathered here for the nation's biggest holiday.

The tour also visits O Quan Chuong (Quan Chuong Gate), which has long been an inspiration for artists, representing the spirit of Ha Noi's historic architecture. The gate was first built out of clay in 1749 but was rebuilt in brick in 1881. The gate used to lie near the Red River, but the city gradually encroached on the river as it expanded.

The tour moves on to Dong Xuan Market, the mother of all Ha Noi markets. It has absolutely everything you might need, from jewelry, clothing and footwear, to household appliances and dried and fresh food. Surrounding the market are many restaurants, which have been famous for their delicious treats for years. Many of these eateries have received rave reviews from gastronomic writers such as Nguyen Tuan or Vu Bang.

Nguyen Thu Huong, deputy head of business planning for the Dong Xuan Joint Stock Co, says the company has been very pleased with the success of the battery car services.

"It's been so successful that we are thinking of expanding the tours to other tourist spots in Ha Noi, such as West Lake," Huong said. — VNS

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Ha Noi comes alive in autumn

by Cong Thanh

Peaceful: Hoan Kiem (Returned Sword) Lake is the most visited destination in Ha Noi. — VNA/VNS Photo Trong Dat

Ha Noi will celebrate its 1,000th anniversary and 56th Liberation Day on October 10, making it an ideal time for tourists to explore the city.

Sai Gon Tourist Company is offering typical tours to favourite destinations in the north including the Ha Noi-Autumn season, Ancient citadels of Viet Nam, Sa Pa and Ha Long in Autumn.

Annually, the HCM City-based travel agency organises seasonal tours – Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter – to tourism sites throughout the northern provinces.

But this year, the Ha Noi-Autumn season is seen as the most attractive programme as it coincides with the city's millennium celebrations.

"We hope tourists will have more chances to witness numerous cultural festivities in Ha Noi during autumn. It's a special time," said a marketing staff of the company, Hoang Thuy Linh.

"The Ha Noi-Autumn programme has hosted around 12,000 tourists since early this year and hundreds of foreigners have flocked to the city this season," Linh added.

She also said the capital had lured tourists with the season of fruits, com (young sticky rice) flake and cool weather.

Autumn tour

Old style: Touring Ha Noi's Old Quarter by xich lo (a peddle-powered vehicle) is a relaxing way to spend the day during the autumn, a time that many Hanoians say is the most beautiful season of the year. — VNA/VNS Photo Anh Tuan

The travel agency began preparing the tour last year to meet the increasing demand to visit Ha Noi.

The four days and three nights tour will depart from HCM City and wind through the Trang An tourism site in Ninh Binh Province, Ha Noi and Ha Long Bay.

It costs VND4.2 million (US$215) per person.

After arriving in the capital, tourists will visit the four historic temples of Bach Ma (White Horse); Linh Lang, or Voi Phuc (Crouching Elephant); Tran Vu and Kim Lien – the homes of the four gods of the former royal capital – before touring part of the Royal Thang Long Citadel and the Temple of Literature.

A pedestrian route from the Quan Chuong Gate and exploring the city's Old Quarter will close the first tour day.

"Tourists will go shopping at the biggest whole sale market of Dong Xuan in the middle of the Old Quarter, which is a symbol of the ancient capital," said head of the agency's Ha Noi office Nguyet Nga.

The centre of Ha Noi will be the main visit for the tour second day with a visit to sites around Hoan Kiem (Returned Sword) Lake such as Ngoc Son Temple and turtle tower.

"The lake is also the heart of Ha Noi and visitors can experience a quiet moment as they walk around the lake and see the trees in the autumn.

The most visited places during the day are buildings dating back to the French colonial times including 1902-built Long Bien Bridge; the Opera House built in 1911 and 1931-constructed Museum of Vietnamese history.

The existence of buildings provides real samples of the capital's varied history.

Travellers can ask tour guides to take them to the night market, which opens at 7pm and closes at midnight in Hang Ngang and Hang Dao streets, which were the former silk trading centre of ancient town.

The third day will start with a two-hour visit to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and One Pillar Pagoda before going to Ha Long Bay – the World Natural Heritage Site.

Ancient capitals

The seasonal programme also includes the vestiges of ancient imperial cities in a trip to the ancient capitals.

According Sai Gon Tourist's marketing section, Doan Thi Thanh Tra, the tour offers visits to the former capitals of Hue, Hoa Lu in Ninh Binh, Co Loa and the UNESCO recognised Thang Long Royal citadel in Ha Noi.

"We have intentionally arranged destinations in a combined tour, to help tourists gain a deeper understanding of Vietnamese history," Tra explained.

"The destinations are quite well-known to Vietnamese people, but we link a string of citadels that were built from the country's foundation to the current capital."

Arriving in Ha Noi on the morning flight, tourists will take a visit to Co Loa spiral Citadel, which was built in the third century BC.

From Thang Long Royal Citadel in Ha Noi, visitors will return to country's former capital of Hoa Lu in Ninh Binh Province – 100km south of Ha Noi – in 968-1010.

"Hoa Lu was a capital nearly half century before it was moved to Ha Noi by King Ly Thai To. The route will provide a real historical story of the former capital at Hoa Lu and Ha Noi today," Tra explained.

The former imperial capital of Hue will be the last place visited on the fourth day.

A night cruise on the Huong River with folk music will help people relax prior to their departure for peaceful mind for HCM City.

Visit www.saigontourist.net for more information. — VNS

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