The day is given to Hanoi. Hoan Kiem Lake sits at the centre of the city and is where you start, followed by Dong Xuan market. From there you reach the Ho Chi Minh complex: Ba Dinh Square, a photo stop outside the Presidential Palace, the residence he used between 1954 and 1969, and the One Pillar Pagoda of 1049.
Lunch is at a local restaurant, then the Temple of Literature, which served as the country’s first university. Hoa Lo Prison follows – the Hanoi Hilton to the American pilots held there – along with St Joseph’s Cathedral and the Opera House, and the day closes over afternoon tea.

Leaving Hanoi, the drive to Halong City, gateway for Halong Bay, runs past villages and paddy fields going about their day. At the pier you step aboard a junk boat and set off among a share of the bay's 3,000 limestone karsts, with lunch served as the clear turquoise water slides past.

A walking tour introduces Hoi An, the old trading town beside the river, where Chinese, Japanese and French building styles sit side by side along the same lanes. You go inside one of the traditional ancient houses, a Chinese Assembly Hall, and cross the Japanese Covered Bridge. Afternoon hours belong to you: wander the old town at your own pace, order a whole new wardrobe from one of the tailors, or ride a bicycle out to An Bang Beach

More time to yourself in Hoi An this morning, then a flight to Saigon. A car takes you to the hotel, and the rest of the day is unplanned.

A morning run out to Cu Chi puts you inside the underground tunnel network and explains what it meant during the war, then it is back into Saigon. Lunch first, then a guided walk through the history of this lively city, taking in the former Presidential Palace, the Catholic cathedral of Notre Dame, the Post Office, the Opera House and Ben Thanh market.

Travel across to Can Tho and step onto your boat for the Mekong Delta. Palms and fruit trees line the canals and waterways, with rice and sugar cane growing on either bank. Mid afternoon you go ashore for a look at the quiet rhythm of countryside life, with cycling offered to those who want it. A drink waits when you climb back on board, and the sun goes down over the fields.

Breakfast is early and taken under way, before a small local boat carries you into the Cai Rang floating market. Back at Can Tho, drive on to Binh Thuy ancient house, where eastern and western taste were brought together under Feng Shui rules; inside, the luxurious French styling has been kept in fine order.

The road to Chau Doc follows breakfast. First stop once you arrive is a fine Khmer Temple, then a floating house that works as a catfish farm as well as a home, before you check in at the hotel.

A speedboat runs you to the Cambodian Border once breakfast is done. Formalities done, the run carries on along the Mekong River into Phnom Penh. Once checked in you visit the Tuol Sleng Museum and the Killing Fields memorial at Choeng Ek. The day closes with drinks at the Foreign Correspondent Club or Le Moon Bar as the sun drops behind the Mekong.

The morning is spent in a cyclo, rolling through the back lanes of Phnom Penh. You call at Wat Phnom, where the capital began, then the Royal Palace with its celebrated Silver Pagoda, and the National Museum and its remarkable collection of Khmer art. A flight follows to Siem Reap.

A short bus ride gets you to Angkor Wat while it is still dark, in time to watch the central spires come out in silhouette at first light. Next is the Angkor Thom complex and Bayon temple, then lunch back in town, with Banteay Srei temple and Ta Prohm temple to follow. Dinner tonight is a farewell with the group.

The trip ends here, though the stories are yours to take home with you. A transfer will run you out to the airport in good time for your onward travels.