Summary:
Always wondered what’s happening in the central coastline of Vietnam? Good beaches and delicious food… That’s what! Our culinary tour and cooking class are designed to lead visitors on an eating binge through the city’s lesser-seen historic side and authentic markets, taking in countless hard-to-find culinary gems and, in between bites, a select number of non-touristy attractions. You will experience Vietnamese culinary culture, learn cooking techniques, have some authentic tasting lunch and have a blast! Come and enjoy by your all feeling.
Details:
Day 1: Arrival at Hanoi
Arriving at Noi Bai International airport in Hanoi, you’ll be met and driven to your hotel. You’ll have time to relax after your journey. You’ll spend the night in Hanoi.
Day 2: Hanoi/Quy Nhon City Arrival
Upon arrival at Phu Cat airport, your guide and a private car will be waiting to take you to your hotel in the city centre. After checking in, you’ll be free for a preliminary wander around the city or get to the beach. Your overnight will be in Quy Nhon City.
Day 3: Quy Nhon City Orientation
After breakfast, you will spend the morning to explore the Cham towers in Qui Nhon City - a kind of special religious architectural Cham people and effected by Hinduism architectural. You will visit Banh It Tower which is located on a picturesque hilltop, includes four towers built in 11th century. Next, you visit the parallel three towers named Duong Long Tower which were built by brick on 12th century with 29m-36m long. Especially you will see the unique architecture of Cham Tower named Twin Towers. They were built in 12th century with two tower stand together like a happy couple. You can also find the body of the God bird Garuda on the corners of the towers.
After lunch at local restaurant, you will continue to visit Quang Trung Museum, which is dedicated to Emperor Quang Trung, a national hero of the 18th century. Visit Quang Trung Museum, you will have a deep understanding about the history and culture of Vietnam during 18th century, including various statues, costumes, documents, artefacts, also the elephant-skin battle drums and gongs from the Bahnar tribe. After that, you’ll enjoy the music and demonstrations of Tay Son martial art, a traditional martial art of Binh Dinh Province. A display of Emperor Quang Trung 9th generation's niece playing the 11 battle drums can also be seen.
After the city tour, you’ll be driven back to your hotel in Quy Nhon city to spend the night there.
Day 4: Quy Nhon - Eating Your Way through Town/Cooking Class
Today you’ll spend the whole day to taste the culinary treasures of this area like the locals do. The tour will start with tasting a small Pancake or Banh Xeo, which is one of a must-try special food of Quy Nhon City. There are two types for you to choose: shrimp and beef. The local name is "banh xeo tom nhay” which means leaping shrimps Pan Cake (fresh and alive shrimps until they are cooked). The shrimp is so fresh and has certain sweetness; the rice pancake is really crispy, can be eaten with the fresh vegetable and Vietnamese herbs.
After that, you will visit the local famous Vespa coffee. As the name suggests, the theme is, unsurprisingly, Vespa and scooters, with creative coffees on the menu and well-presented Vietnamese food. This place offer an arty vibe, it’s very popular with locals.
As a port city, Quy Nhon has a bountiful supply of seafood. Naturally, there are dining establishments that serve the best catch from the sea. For your lunch, in the restaurant named 2000, there’s a great selection of fresh seafood and you’ll have the advantage of a sea view from its outside tables.
After lunch, you’ll join a cooking class at Bamboo Chopsticks Cooking Class. You’ll sign up for an engaging culinary journey of indigenous flavours at this class. Firstly, you’ll visit a local market with your master chef instructor to hand select exotic ingredients. You’ll choose from a collection of traditional Vietnamese cuisine set menus, or create your own menu by selecting from a range of individual recipes. Next, you’ll have your lesson in the integrated show kitchen at the restaurant, beginning with an informative theory session about traditional cooking equipment and the special characteristics of each dish, followed by a step by step cooking lesson. After the class, you’ll savour your creations at a chef hosted meal and leave with unforgettable memories and new culinary skills. You’ll spend the night in Quy Nhon.
Day 5: Quy Nhon/Tuy Hoa/Da Bia Mountain/Vung Ro Bay/Dai Lanh Lighthouse
In the early morning, you will head to Tuy Hoa (Phu Yen Province) from Quy Nhon. Upon arrival in Tuy Hoa, you will visit south of Phu Yen Province, start along 1A highway toward South and go straight to Da Bia Mountain in Ca pass. The mountain is very famous because of a gigantic stele on the peak which you can see from far away. You will have to trek about 1.5 or 2 hours to get to the stele. From there, you can see the panorama view of Vung Ro Bay and Phong Van Bay (of Khanh Hoa province), a very impressive scene. Vung Ro Bay used to be the stop of “Non- registered Ship” on Ho Chi Minh legendary sea trail. (Alternative, if you don’t like trek, you can spend the time to visit coastal area of Vung Ro Bay)
This stele was built by Le Thanh Tong king at 1471, after the war attacking Champa kingdom. The king ordered to build this stele as boundary between the two countries.
You will enjoy the specialty Dai Lanh squid at the foot of Ca pass. Dai Lanh squid is very famous; they’re very small, just a bit bigger than finger and very fresh and tasty. After lunch, your next destination is Dai Lanh lighthouse. The lighthouse is in Dai Lanh cape which is nearly the easternmost of Vietnam. You park vehicles at the foot of lighthouse then climb up. You will spend the night in Tuy Hoa.
Day 6: Tuy Hoa Sightseeing
After breakfast, you’ll start your sightseeing to Thanh Luong pagoda where you learn about the 200 year old made of valuable wood statue of Quan Am Bo Tat. Then, you’ll visit Da Dia cliffs, an amazing natural creature. They are structured with a surprising geology, including bountiful rocks in disparate shapes: circular, pentagonal, hexagonal or other polygonal looks. They are stacked together in a heap or fixed in pillars like plates overlapped each other. From a far corner, the whole area looks like a giant beehive.
After that, you’ll head to Mang Lang church regarded as the 3rd oldest in the world, which is said to be Phu Yen gem. The church was built 130 years ago by French priest Joseph de la Cassagne who started erecting it in a paddy field in 1892. The Gothic architecture of the church front side evokes imagination of an artistic-full church in France or Roman. The first book written in Romanised Vietnamese is kept in the church. You will visit Tuy An District for the lunch. An Dinh Commune of Tuy An District is well-known for its tasty and healthy dish of steamed glutinous rice cooked with young dove meat.
In the afternoon, you will visit Bao Lam Pagoda. The Pogoda is located by the Chop Chai mountainside, 3,5km away from the city centre to the North. It was founded To Huy Dao Trung who belonged to the 38th Lam Te faction. Here you can witness a statue of Thich Ca Buddha standing on a purely white lotus shaped lamp support. The landscape here is so peacefully poetic and elegant white, the pagoda bell is echoing, which seem to bring you into a fairy land, melt all their depressions themselves to the universe. You’ll spend the night in Tuy Hoa.
Day 7: Tuy Hoa Culinary Tour
People who have visited Phu Yen and enjoyed the pork meat rolled with Hoa Da rice cake cannot forget its delicious taste. Phu Yen has a number of rice cake making villages. However, one of the famous one the rice cakes made in An My Commune village in Tuy An District, their rice cake making has been passed down through the generations. About 30 per cent of households here live by making girdle cakes. Making rice cake requires just several steps, requires extremely sophisticated and skilful hands to choose firewood, dry and package cakes.
You’ll head to O Loan lagoon to have lunch with fresh seafood: Mai fish salad, oyster, shellfish, and grilled blood clam. After that, you’ll be back to Tuy Hoa town, enjoy steamed Chem fish with spring onions and specialty tuna at Mrs. Tam restaurant in Le Duan street.
The special Mai fish is made into a salad with lemon, roasted peanuts, basil, coriander, green tomatoes, green banana, star fruit and spices. All along the beach of Tuy Hoa are rustic cafes serving fresh seafood and beer, while more restaurants are found along the main highway and Tran Hung Dao Street.
In the afternoon, you’ll visit Tuy Hoa Market, where you can find both local and imported fruits and vegetables or seafood. Every early morning, the fishermen gather there to sell fresh fish, oyster, crabs and other kinds of species netted overnight. Fishermen at the time also were netting flying fish and salting them on board for the dry salted fish and sold in the market.
Day 8: Tuy Hoa Free
The day will be free for your leisure, for strolling in the town or lazing on the beach. You’ll spend the night in Tuy Hoa.
Day 9: Tuy Hoa/Ho Chi Minh City Departure
You’ll be free until your driver arrives to take you to the Dong Tac airport to Ho Chi Minh City. You’ll arrive in Ho Chi Minh City in a good time to connect with your international departure flight. Tour ends!