Blessed with an open, welcoming, and engaging society, Vietnam is a nation balanced between deeply held traditions and an exploding modernity that make it a uniquely wonderful travel destination. The war is a distant memory and Americans are now appreciated as partners in economic opportunity. Vietnam is more about experiences than checklists. Being paddled on a river by a rower who uses her feet, taking a cooking class, having a dress or suit tailor-made in a day, relaxing in a hammock in the Mekong Delta, or drifting quietly along in a sampan – these are the activities you’ll cherish from this outing. There are, of course, great sights to be enjoyed, including the Temple of Literature, Halong Bay, the ruins of My Son, and Hue’s Citadel. Add in the best food in Southeast Asia and you have a formula for travel memories to last a lifetime.

Note:  While the Vietnam tour is not particularly physically demanding in the typical way, the country is hot and humid, which has an enervating effect. Additionally, at certain times during the tour we’ll be climbing in and out of a variety of boats, sometimes without a pier or dock, climbing up to and through caves, navigating the Cu Chi tunnels, etc. Those activities require a reasonable level of strength and dexterity - and an adventurous spirit.