Day 1 – Tuesday
San Francisco: After meeting and greeting your flight leader and the other students joining the Overland Adventure, we’re off to Hong Kong! This is an easy, non-stop ride across the Pacific – and most students find that after dinner and a movie, they’re able to manage dozing off to sleep for a while. So sit back, have a chat with your new friends, and enjoy the flight!
Day 2 – Wednesday
This day is ‘lost’ as you cross the International Date Line. But don’t worry– you’ll get it back when returning home!
Day 3 – Thursday
Arrive at Hong Kong International Airport, where you’ll meet your program leaders and have time for a long awaited stretch. You will have a few hours in the airport before connecting onwards. Next, we’ll grab our bags (preferably small and manageable!) and check-in for our connecting flight to Kunming. The flight takes about 1 ½ hours, and then you will be setting down in mainland China! Arriving into Kunming International Airport, you will meet up with the rest of the staff awaiting your arrival. Hop on a private bus, and make your way over to the Camellia Hotel, where you will be staying tonight. Drop your bags off, grab a quick shower and a change of clothes, enjoy your first traditional Chinese meal, and then you are off to begin exploring. This first afternoon you will head out of the city, and up into the mountains to explore one of Kunming’s most famous sights, the West Dragon’s Gate. This intricate complex of cave’s and monasteries were carved into the cliff face by Taoist monks over 50 years during the 18th century. As you wind your way through the stone passageways, you will see the vast seeping countryside surrounding Kunming spread out below. Take your time walking through this magical place, stop to take in the view, and admire the astounding craftsmanship of this place. Once we reach the summit, hop on a cable car and enjoy the ride as you snake along above the treetops, descending back down the mountain. Once we reach the bottom again, hop back in your private bus, and return to the hotel. Take some time to relax and rest up a bit from the journey, and get yourself situated to “Asia time”. This evening, enjoy a great feast and possibly catch a traditional Yunnanese folk concert to welcome you to this magical land. Welcome to the Overland Adventure!
Day 4 – Friday
Waking up early, enjoy a great breakfast buffet at the Camellia hotel, pack up your bags, and we are off to the Kunming Airport to catch a flight up to the city of Lijiang, your next stop on this incredible journey. This flight is very short, about 45 minutes long, and as you gaze out the window, you will watch the city of Kunming fade away and be replaced with the lush mountains of Northern Yunnan Province. Once we arrive into Lijiang Airport, grab your bags, and hop on a private bus to take you into the city. The drive takes about 25 minutes, and before you know it you will be stepping into the beautiful city of Lijiang! Settle into the hotel, drop off your bags and unpack, and then explore a bit of the city on this first morning. After lunch, we will hike up to the Black Dragon Pool Park, one of the most famous vantage points to view the stunning peaks of Yulong Xueshan, the famous mountain which you will be summiting in a few short days. From Black Dragon Pool, there’s an optional additional hike up Elephant Hill, which provides an even greater vantage to see Yulong Xueshan. The roundtrip hike takes about 1.5 hours, and it’s a great workout to the top! After hiking back down to the city, you will have some time to explore some more of the beautiful streets of Lijiang before a traditional dinner of traditional Yunnan food, a true and rare delicacy in China. After dinner, you will treat yourself to a truly rare occasion, an evening at the Naxi Opera house. This special performance is truly a unique event, as the performers are still the original participants in this show. Many of them in their late 70’s, the musicians have survived the Cultural Revolution and still enjoy performing for visitors each night. After a long day of hiking, exploring the city, some fantastic dining, and a night at the opera, it’s off for a good nights rest.
Day 5 – Saturday
Wake up early, grab a great breakfast in the city, pack a day bag, hop on a mountain bike, and we are off to explore the nearby village of Baisha. The village lies about a 40 minute ride outside the city, and is one of the most famous sights located around Lijiang. The bike ride out of Lijiang and into the countryside holds some truly magnificent scenery, and the mountains towering in the backdrop just add to the majesty of the place. Originally the Naxi capital during the 10th and 11th centuries, Baisha is one of the last remaining glimpses into the traditional Naxi culture. Enjoy exploring the village, meeting some of the locals, dining in a local Naxi restaurant, and exploring some age old temples located around the village. Hop back on your bikes and return to Lijiang for a late lunch. Then head back to the hotel, pack your bags, and hop on the bus for the 4 hour drive to the village of Shaxi. Tonight you will be dining in this picturesque village, and sleeping in a 300 year old monastery, which has been converted into a guest house for Rustic Pathways students.
Day 6 – Sunday
Waking up in the monastery, enjoy a home cooked Yunnan breakfast. Spend the morning wandering the peaceful streets and pathways through the Shaxi village, which is one of the most beautiful sights in all of China. Spend a leisurely morning capturing the images of the special part of the world. Enjoy a traditional Chinese lunch, and then spend the afternoon exploring some of the other 12 villages locate in this beautiful valley, take a stroll through the countryside, and visit some truly magnificent Buddhist monasteries. Settle back in for a huge feast in the monastery, and after dinner perhaps help with a traditional performance in the ancient Chinese theater with some of the locals. As you drift off to sleep tonight in this quiet corner of the world, you will truly appreciate the beauty of Shaxi.
Day 7 – Monday
Enjoy another home cooked breakfast, then pack your bags, say goodbye to the villagers, and hop in the bus for the 4 hour ride to the city of Old Dali – the countryside along the way is truly breathtaking. Once arriving into Dali, drop your bags off in the guest house, and take a cable car up into the Jade Mountains. From the top the views of Old Dali & Erhai Lake below are stunning. There’s an easy hike along the ridgeline, and on the way take a dip into the clean cool water of the glacial pools, before taking another cable car back down to the city. Enjoy a traditional Dali dinner of hill tribe dishes, and then explore the city streets before heading off to sleep.
Day 8 – Tuesday
Waking up early, it’s time to head out of the mountains, and back down to the city of Kunming. Stop off for a great lunch in Kunming, and then it’s time to make the journey down to Haiku, your point of entry into Vietnam. Arriving in the evening into Haiku, you will enjoy one last night in China, a final dinner of local delicacies, and then get some rest – tomorrow morning you leave China & enter Vietnam!
Day 9 – Wednesday
Wake up early and cross over the bridge into Vietnam, where you will transfer busses and make the 1 hour journey up into the mountain city of Sa Pa. Arriving into Sa Pa, check into the hotel, drop your bags off, and head out into the city for the morning to explore. Enjoy your first Vietnamese lunch in Sa Pa, and then head off into the mountains for an afternoon hiking exploration. Located outside Sa Pa, down in the valleys, are scattered hill tribe villages of the Black Hmong, and this afternoon you’ll have the chance to explore a few of these, plus view two amazing suspension bridges built by the French. Head back up to Sa Pa in the evening, grab a great dinner in the town, and then relax for the evening.
Day 10 – Thursday
Take a little time to relax this morning and grab a leisurely breakfast. Take the day today to explore the markets of Sa Pa, hang out with the local hill tribe folk, and enjoy a great traditional lunch. In the afternoon hop on the bus and drive down to Lau Cai. Grab a great dinner in Lao Cai, and then head for the train station. Arriving in the evening at the train station, it’s time to hop aboard and take the overnight express to Hanoi.
Day 11 – Friday
Arriving into Hanoi early in the morning, collect your things and hop off the train to head over to the hotel. Take some time to shower up, grab breakfast at the hotel, and rest up for a bit. Head out later in the morning to explore the Old Quarter of Hanoi. Walk down the multitude of small market streets, do some antique shopping, and enjoy a leisurely stroll around Huan Kiem Lake. In the late afternoon, hop on a traditional Vietnamese ‘cyclo’ for a slow ride around the smaller streets of the Old Quarter, truly a great way to soak up the sights! In the evening, sit down for a great feast at the world famous Little Hanoi Restaurant. From here it’s back to the hotel to rest up from a long day.
Day 12 – Saturday
Waking up early and grabbing breakfast at the hotel, it’s time to pack an overnight bag and head out of the city. You’ll be taking the journey out of the city to the village of Mai Chau, home to the hill tribe people known as XXX. Arriving into the village in the early afternoon, enjoy exploring the special part of Vietnam. The small village of Mai Chau is truly a breathtaking place, and the time spent here will be one of your highlights of the trip! Tonight you will have the honored opportunity to homestay in the village. The families in Mai Chau have been kind enough to open their doors to Rustic Pathways for this special occasion, and this rare window into their daily lives will be something you remember forever!
Day 13 – Sunday
Waking in the village, enjoy a breakfast with the people of Mai Chau, and then bid farewell to your welcoming hosts. Hop back on the bus and head onwards to the famous river of Tam Coc. Known as the ‘inland Ha Long Bay’ the limestone peaks that rise about the calm river waters are truly a sigh to be seen, and as you row your way through these waters and the natural cave formations, you will feel as though you have entered another world. Stepping back on dry land, sit down for a Vietnamese feast for lunch. Hoa Lu temple, originally the Vietnamese capital during the 10th century, and now converted into a Buddhist monastery, is the next stop on today’s journey. Rising behind the temple grounds, and stretching all the way into China, the unique razor peaks of the mountains are unique to this part of the world. Hiking up to the top, the views from up here are spectacular, and the strange and beautiful landscape stretches as far as the eye can see. From here it is time to head back to Hanoi, and arriving in the evening, head back to the hotel, grab a quick shower, and then head off to dinner in the city before bringing today’s adventures to a close.
Day 14 – Monday
Today it’s off to the coast! Grab breakfast in the city, and then take the 3 hour trip out to the ocean city of Ha Long. Hop off the bus, and onto your own private teak wood sailboat – your home for tonight. Enjoy freshly caught seafood, sea kayaking in the crystal waters, swimming in the warm ocean, hiking up to the peak of one of the limestone islands, exploring the caves in these islands, and sailing between the 1000’s of limestone peaks that jut out of the bay. As you drift to sleep tonight, rocking with the waves, thousands of stars overhead, you will truly appreciate the beauty of Ha Long Bay!
Day 15 – Tuesday
Waking at sea, enjoy a breakfast on the ship, take one last dip in the ocean & sea kayak through the islands, and then it’s time to set sail for the mainland. Arriving back into Ha Long mainland in the afternoon, say goodbye to your ship and make the trek back to Hanoi. Arriving into Hanoi in the afternoon, take a stroll around Huan Kiem Lake and do a bit of shopping in the Old Quarter. This evening treat yourself to a traditional Vietnamese Water Puppet Show - a must see in Hanoi! After a great dinner, head back to the hotel to rest up.
Day 16 – Wednesday
Getting up very early today, it’s time to head across the city to visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. The final resting place of “Uncle Ho”, this place is revered by all Vietnamese, and the opportunity to walk through the mausoleum is truly a once-in-a-lifetime chance! This afternoon is your final time in Vietnam, so spend it doing any last minute shopping for gifts, eating a few final Vietnamese meals, and soaking in a few final glances of this beautiful country. In the evening, it’s off to the Hanoi Airport to catch a flight to Bangkok, Thailand. Arriving into Bangkok late in the night, head over to the Regency Park Hotel to spend your final night in Asia.
Day 17 – Thursday
Enjoy a great Western breakfast buffet at the Regency Park, and then pack up your things for the journey onward. Head over to the Bangkok International Airport after breakfast, bringing a close to this great journey. Say goodbye to the friends you have made and the places you have visited along the way, and bid farewell to this great Overland Adventure!
An Important Note about Schedule Changes: Rustic Pathways reserves the right to change, alter, or amend the daily itinerary for this trip at any time. Changes can be made for various reasons including changes in flight or program schedules, changes in the schedules of various external tours incorporated in our trips, the addition of new activities into a trip, or the substitution of an old activity for a new activity. The itinerary shown here provides a good outline of the anticipated daily schedule for this program. As with any travel program, some changes may occur.
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