Holiday Breakdown

Day 1

Ho Chi Minh City

On your arrival at Ho Chi Minh City airport you will be met by your zoologist escort (subject to availability) and your local guide and transferred to your accommodation, there are no further plans for today, however if you arrive early earl enough you can explore some of this famous city. (No meals included)

Day 2

Cat Tien National Park

Today you will be collected from your hotel and taken directly to Cat Tien National Park which is roughly 150 km drive to the north (5 hours). Cat Tien National Park contains the largest remaining area of lowland tropical forest in southern Vietnam and an incredible diversity of mammals and birds. Cat Tien is home to three of Vietnam’s endangered primates; the Black-shanked douc, Annamese silvered langur and Southern buff-cheeked gibbon. Upon our arrival, we will check in to the lodge and you then have the rest of the evening to settle into your new surroundings. Subject to the availability and the time we arrive we may be able to book on the nocturnal safari drive that is managed by the national park. Cat Tien National Park covers 719km2 of lowland forest and swamp and is home to some of the highest biodiversity in South East Asia. Among the mammal species here are a number of primates such as the endemic southern buff-cheeked gibbon and the red-shanked douc, other mammals that inhabit the park include Asiatic black bears, Asiatic elephants, sun bears and gaur as well as around 100 other species. Over 350 species of birds have been recorded including specialities like Germain’s peacock pheasant, bar-bellied pitta and the rare endemic orange-necked partridge. The range of life found here is incredible with over 120 reptile and amphibian species, over 130 species of freshwater fish, around 460 species of butterflies and to date over 1,610 species of plants have been recorded. Tomorrow we will hope to see as much of this flora and fauna as possible.

Days 3-4

Cat Tien National Park

For the next two days we will start very early in the morning and take a walk into the forest for time to observe the primates as they start their daily routines; our main targets here will be the endangered northern buff-cheeked gibbons. This species make territorial calls in the mornings and could be located this way along with black-shanked douc langurs and Annamese silvered langurs; we will also have a good chance of seeing various squirrel species and the common slender-tailed tree shrew. After seeing as many of these species as possible we will return for breakfast. After breakfast a car will then take us through 9km of lush, green forest towards Crocodile Lake (Bau Sau), we will then walk a little way to reach the shores of the lake. We will then enjoy the beauty of the lake wetland ecosystem stretches and its various bird life. The lake is over 13 hectares which swells to a massive 151 hectares when flooded. This lake plays an important role in the maintenance and conservation of the biodiversity in the region as well as the social and economic life of communities around the Dong Nai River Basin. We will also look out for some of the Siamese crocodiles that inhabit the lake, they were part of a 2000 reintroduction programme and have increased steadily in number since then. There are some small caves around the lake and its trails which we will explore a little as well. In the afternoon, we discover and enjoy the variety of trees and listen to the sounds of jungle as well as explore the forest again, before returning for lunch. In the evening we take part in a night safari. We begin by taking a car along the jungle trails to observe wild animals such as sambar deer, muntjacs, wild boar, Malay crested porcupines, gaur (rare) and yellow-throated martens. We will also hope for various civet species and maybe a pygmy slow loris after dark on the scheduled night safari and also be walking with your guide to areas known to be the habitat of pygmy slow loris. On the morning of day 4 you will return to Ho Chi Minh city and fly to Danang city and overnight here.

Day 5

Danang / Son Tra Reserve

Danang is roughly in the middle of Vietnam and a great stop off as we will explore a couple of forests in this general area over the next couple of days. This morning you will be taken to a known location for watching Red-shanked douc in Son Tra Peninsula Nature Reserve, Da Nang city; full-day trip and end the trip at 5:00pm. After the trip, travel by car to Nui Thanh District , Quang Nam province and stay overnight here at the hotel. The distance between Da Nang and Nui Thanh is 120km and it will take 1.5 hours driving by car. We will have dinner in Hoi An Ancient Town on the way to Nui Thanh and have 1 hour to explore one of most famous city in the world.

Day 6

Nui Thanh Reserve

Day 7

Bach Ma National Park

Today is a full day in Bach Ma National Park including trekking and night walks looking for wildlife. Whilst here we will try and search out the rare southern white-cheeked gibbon (one of the hardest species on this trip) as well as some of the terrestrial mammals such as Owston’s civet, large-antlered muntjac, Annamite muntjac and serow. If we are allowed (as the rules change so quickly) we will spotlight after dark and look for the pygmy slow loris and other nocturnal mammals.

Day 8

Phong Nha National Park

This morning will be our last in Bach Ma National Park to look for any species that we have missed or if you wish we can have a relaxed morning. After breakfast we will depart and drive north to Phong Nha National Park and World Biosphere Reserve (5 hours), Phong Nha is regarded as one of the most beautiful parks in the region with a river that is bluer than blue and muddle of limestone karsts covered in very thick evergreen forest. In a country as agricultural as Vietnam is amazing that a place so wild and rugged still exists. There are some of the same primates here but also some new species such as Indochinese black langur, but we would look hard for these tomorrow morning. We would today check into our new hotel and then if we have time go into the forest in the afternoon.

Days 9-10

Phong Nha National Park

The next 2 days will be spent around the wonderful limestone karsts of Phong Nha National Park, our main target here is the range restricted Ha Tinh langur. Also found here are red shanked douc, southern white-cheeked gibbons and the rare Indochinese black langurs. We will of course be on the look out for all of these species with the Ha Tinh langur and Indochinese langur the higher priorities here. There are also some caves around the forest here which we could explore, bat species that are known from here include Leschenault’s rousette, trident roundleaf bats and many more. The largest cave here is the Phong Nha cave and we can take a small boat ride through the cave and see the stunning rock formations and reflections on the water. Again it is not always possible to spotlight here because of the park rangers lack of interest or just bad attitudes, but we will see if it is possible and if so the chances of Owston’s civet and pygmy slow loris would increase. In between our safari activities we will return to the accommodation for our meals.

Day 11

Ninh Binh

This morning we will have a little free time before our guide will collect us from the guest house and drive us to the small town of Hue, from here we will fly to Hanoi. On arrival in Hanoi we will be collected from the airport and driven the 2 hours or so to Ninh Binh.

Ninh Binh is a large province in the north west of Vietnam. It is known for its lush green valleys and many limestone karsts. It is the limestone karsts that have become the home to our second to last endangered langur we hope to see. But this is for tomorrow, today we will arrive at the hotel and check in and have the rest of the afternoon to rest and relax before our last day searching for Vietnam’s rare primates.

Day 12-13

Van Long Reserve

We will have 2 days to explore the regions around here such as Cuc Phong National Park as well as Van Long Reserve. Van Long is also known as “Cat Scratch” mountain – the only home of the critically endangered Delacour’s langur (Voọc in Vietnamese) these are some of the most critically endangered animals in the world with only 250 remaining in the wild. In order to see them we will travel to Van Long Wharf where we will take a boat trip along the reservoir of Van Long Nature Reserve. This is the largest wetland of Northern Vietnam and the mountain in the reserve is around 1km boat trip and it is these limestone cliffs that are the best (if not only) place in the world to see the Delacour’s langur. In the mornings and late afternoons these primates aggregate here and are quite easy to see despite their very low numbers. From here we will then depart back to the hotel for the night.

Cuc Phong National Park is home to abundant wildlife but also the Endangered Primate Rescue Center and Small Carnivores Rescue Center which we will be able to visit.

Day 14

Hanoi

Day 15

Home

After breakfast you will be transferred to the airport in time to catch your return flight home.

Please note that the itinerary stated above is correct as our planned intentions for the tour. However adverse weather conditions and other local considerations can necessitate some modifications of the itinerary during the course of the tour; any changes will be made to make the best of the time and weather conditions available to us.

This tour is available on different date (subject to availability) please contact us for more details about running this tour on a date which suits you more.