The Indochina Wars (the First and the Second?) have left several of us perplexed with the unanswered question: Why Vietnam? Paradissa’s historical tour and battlefield tour brings you back in time to visit the simmering cauldron named Vietnam in 1945 and visit the grounds the ensuing battles in 1946-1950. The tour length is 7 days/6 nights.

Historical Tour of Indochina War Prelude Overview

So, it was the Indochina War or they should be called the Indochina Wars after all? And is it possible that what historians and scholars refer to as the First Indochina War (1946-1954) and the Second Indochina War (1954-1975) is only the different phases of one single war? Was there a Third Indochina War also?

You are more likely to come up with your own answer after the trip. One thing is for certain that the Vietnamese fought the battles from 1945 to 1975 for their country’s independence. Let’s not forget that there had been successive battles by the Vietnamese before this period for decades, and that the Vietnamese had to keep on fighting to maintain their independence from 1975 up to 1991. Were there any longer wars in the world in the 20th century?

On the journey, we’ll visit different sites where the critical events took place. Our knowledgeable and unbiased tour guides will assist you to recall the events and help you to put your analysis to work. The objects of the trip are:
- Understanding the prelude to the Indochina Wars;
- Recalling and analyzing the important military operations by the French troops and the Viet Minh’s troops in 1945-1950.

Paradissa’s specialist tour guide provides you with the facts and figures and probably suggesting different lines of thought while withholding the possible conclusions. It is our travelers who are to pass judgments and make conclusions yourselves. We trust this is the best way to true cognition and objective thinking.

Day-to-day itinerary

Day1 Arrive at Hanoi/Free time (with guide, no included meals)
Day2 Hanoi – Tan Trao – ATK – Bac Kan City (220km, with guide) (B)
Day3 Bac Kan – Cao Bang – Pac Bo – Cao Bang (220km, with guide) (B)
Day4 Visit Cao Bang Fortress/Cao Bang – Dong Khe Battlefield – Lang Son (130km, with guide) (B)
Day5 Visit Lang Son/Lang Son – Hanoi (150km, with guide) (B)
Day6 Morning Historical Tour of Hanoi (with guide)/Free afternoon (B)
Day7 Depart Hanoi (B)

{Inclusions
English-speaking guide as per itinerary;
Single accommodation as indicated in the program;
Private car for all airport transfers and tours as indicated in the program;
Meals as indicated in the program ( B=Breakfast);
All admission fees during guided times in the program;
}
{Exclusions
Insurance of any types;
Early check-ins and late check-outs: check-in time: 14:00 PM and check-out time is 11:00 A.M unless otherwise indicated by each hotel;
International airfares and airport taxes other than those mentioned as included above;
Drinks, laundry, bar or other personal expenses;
Others not clearly specified clearly in the inclusions;
}

Detailed itinerary

Day1 Arrive at Hanoi/Free time (with guide, no included meals)

Arriving at Hanoi Airport, welcomed by our team and transferred to the hotel.
Free time.
Overnight in Hanoi.

Day2 Hanoi – Tan Trao(Tuyen Quang) – ATK – Bac Kan City (220km, with guide) (B)

Breakfast at the hotel.
0800 A.M Our team picks you up from the hotel for a transfer to Tan Trao Tuyen Quang visit the site where the gathering of the First National Assembly of Vietnam took place 1945. It was at this meeting that the People Liberation Committee, an interim government, was established. Have brief introduction to the joint operation between the Viet Minh and the OSS (Office of Strategic Services or CIA later) in 1945.

Then, move onto ATK Dinh Hoa (Thai Nguyen Province) which was where different governmental bodies of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam were located. Recall the operation by the French to capture the Headquarters of the Viet Minh (Operation Lea) and the counter-attacks by General Giap’s soldiers.

Travel further along the route once the battles of the operation took place to Bac Kan City. Back in 1947, the French misperceived that the headquarters of the Viet Minh was in Bac Kan Town while in fact different governmental bodies were scattered in the jungles in the ATK in Thai Nguyen and Tuyen Quang Provinces.

The first range of attacks by French paratroopers at Bac Kan Town did not cause the Viet Minh by surprise. The Viet Minh had time to exercise amazing tactics to avoid frontal battles against the French which helped the French failure in much of the operation and Operation Cloclo which was supposed to be the move next to the success of Operation Lea was never started.
Overnight at Bac Kan City.

Day3 Bac Kan – Cao Bang – Pac Bo – Cao Bang (220km, with guide) (B)

Breakfast at the hotel.
0800 A.M Travel uphill for Cao Bang and proceed further to the Chinese border and visit the Coc Po Cave where Ho Chi Minh came back to Viet Nam after 30 years in exile. It was from here that Ho Chi Minh founded the Viet Minh paving a new path for Vietnam to gain independence.

Travel back to Cao Bang in late afternoon. Free time.
Overnight in Cao Bang.

A corner of the former fortress of Cao Bang

Day4 Visit Cao Bang Fortress/Cao Bang – Dong Khe Battlefield – Lang Son (130km, with guide) (B)

Breakfast at the hotel.
0800 A.M Visit former Cao Bang Fortress and learn why the Viet Minh’s border Campaign in 1950 changed to attack from Cao Bang to Dong Khe. Then proceed on Route 4 – the supply route for the French posts in the border region.

Visit Dong Khe and learn about the battle which showed the maturity of the Viet Minh’s troops against the French’s.

Continue onto Lang Son City.
Overnight at Lang Son.

A relic of the Dong Khe Fortress, Cao Bang, Vietnam

 

The valley where the Cao Bang Disaster took place which marked one of the most horrific disasters for the French Army

Day5 Visit Lang Son/Lang Son – Hanoi (150km, with guide) (B)

Breakfast at the hotel.
0800 A.M Visit Lang Son Citadel and the To Thi Mountain, Tam Thanh Cave, Nhi Tranh Cave. Travel back to Hanoi with visit to Chi Lang Passage where several battles took place which brought victory for the Vietnamese over Chinese invasions.
Overnight in Hanoi.

Route 4 (Route Coloniale 4) between Cao Bang and Lang Son, Road of Fire or Road of Death for the French Army once

Day6 Hanoi Morning Historical Tour (with guide)/Free afternoon (B)

Breakfast at the hotel.
0800 A.M Have the morning visiting different historical sites in Hanoi where important historical events took place in 1945-946 which led to the Indochina War.
Have free time in the afternoon.
Overnight in Hanoi.

Day7 Depart Hanoi (B)

Breakfast at the hotel.
Have free time our team transfer you back to the airport for your departure. We trust you have had a great battlefield and historical tour of Vietnam with Paradissa.