You will be picked up from your centrally located hotel in Hanoi and taken on a sightseeing tour of pagodas and villages outside Hanoi. An English-speaking guide will accompany you on this tour.
Your journey begins with a one-hour drive from the hectic capital of Hanoi to the Bat Trang ceramic village. On reaching, take a guided tour through the production process in the village. You will have a chance to visit the workshops and have a look at the kilns used for firing the ceramic pottery.
Continuing your tour, the next stop will be an approximately 45-minute visit to the community house of Dinh Bang. Traditionally all villages in Vietnam had a ‘community house’ in the centre of the village; it was where all decisions regarding the village were made, it connected everyone to the village and was the core of Vietnamese culture. With few ‘communal houses’ remaining in Vietnam today, the Dinh Bang communal house provides us with an interesting insight into Vietnam's past.
Not far from the communal house lives a family which makes lacquer ware. Your guide will assist you in learning more about the process and translate for those of you who may have questions for the family.
Your next stop is the Do Temple. Do Temple or Den Do Temple honors the eight Ly emperors of the Ly Dynasty. During their reign Vietnam experienced an era of prosperity and independence. In the middle of a lake situated at the front of the temple there is a two story, eight roofed house which floats on water and is used as a stage for water puppet shows. On March 15th each year there is a festival honoring the 8 emperors of the Ly dynasty.
After this visit, head the small township of Tu Son for lunch. The restaurant has simple dishes of genuine local food.
Following lunch there will be a visit to the village of Dong Ky, a traditional wood-carving village. Your trip there takes you through a beautiful rural setting of rice paddies with plenty of photo opportunities. Walk with your local guide through the village to meet the people, learn about their craft and lifestyles.
At the end of the tour, you will be dropped at your hotel in Hanoi.