UN-PHO-GETTABLE VIETNAM: NEW YEAR, NEW HERE™4 Days / 3 Nights
February 4 to February 7, 2027
Price range: $1,000 through $2,300
PRICES ARE USD PER PERSON. LIMITED PACKAGES AVAILABLE.
THE L.U.X. PROMISE: THE ART OF TOTAL IMMERSION
ZERO FRICTION
At MASX, our guiding principle is LUX: Live Ultimate Xperiences — where true luxury is the freedom to stay present and fully immersed in the moment. To ensure your connection to the city’s quiet rhythm remains uninterrupted, we operate under a strict, silent protocol:
You aren’t led by a “guide.” You are accompanied by a N.I.T.E. Navigator. They are local expert guides who help you Navigate Immersive Travel Experiences. They are your sophisticated peers, your cultural translators, and your partners in after-dark cultural experiences that will open doors that don’t exist on any map.
Your journey exists in two worlds. The Black Passport is your shared tactile anchor— a physical relic to hold in your hands. The Digital Artifact is your high-fidelity digital legacy — a cinematic film to revisit together.
A physical book that preserves the story of your experience.
Your story is captured as it happens. Seven days after your experience, you will receive a curated collection of captured moments from the experience.
OVERVIEW
NEW YEAR, NEW HERE: TET in SAIGON is a curated immersion into Vietnam’s most important holiday as it unfolds across one of the country’s most dynamic cities.
Structured as a journey from preparation to celebration and renewal, the experience follows the changing rhythm of Tet through flower-filled streets, festive markets, spiritual traditions, neighbourhood discoveries, and everyday encounters.
From the anticipation of the days leading into the New Year to the quieter moments that follow, guests experience how Tet is woven into daily life through food, symbolism, community, and connection. Along the way, familiar places reveal deeper meanings, transforming Saigon into a living expression of Vietnam’s most cherished celebration.
ITINERARY
SAIGON
Day 1: The City In Bloom
A WELCOME TO VIETNAM
The journey begins with one of Vietnam's most iconic traditions — not a Tet custom, but a national ritual enjoyed every day of the year. Gather around steaming bowls of Pho as your N.I.T.E. Navigator introduces the flavours, ingredients, and regional differences behind a dish that has become one of the country's most recognizable cultural symbols. As conversations begin and first impressions take shape, the experience offers a simple but meaningful introduction to Vietnam itself.
FLOWERS OF THE NEW YEAR
The city's Tet preparations come into focus along Nguyen Hue Flower Street, where elaborate floral displays, seasonal decorations, and gathering crowds transform the heart of Saigon into a celebration of renewal. Surrounded by flowers chosen for luck, prosperity, and happiness, you begin to discover how symbolism quietly shapes the season.
THE TET MARKET
The journey continues into Cholon, where preparations for Tet unfold at street level. Around Binh Tay Market and the surrounding neighbourhoods, stalls overflow with festive decorations, traditional foods, gifts, and offerings destined for homes across the city. As families make their final purchases and businesses prepare for the holiday, everyday objects begin to reveal the customs and meanings woven into the celebration.
THE CITY AWAITS
As evening settles, the experience returns to the heart of the city. Along Nguyen Hue and the surrounding streets, decorations glow, crowds gather, and anticipation quietly builds. Cafés fill with conversation, families stroll beneath the lights, and the atmosphere carries a sense that something important is approaching. Between modern city life and seasonal tradition, Saigon prepares to welcome a new year.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Pho Welcome Lunch
Nguyen Hue Flower Street
Binh Tay Market
Cholon Discovery
Tet City Lights
Day 2: The Threshold
TET ON THE TABLE
The day begins through the flavours of Tet. Gather around a table filled with dishes traditionally enjoyed during the holiday season, from Banh Tet, a traditional sticky rice cake, and Thit Kho Trung, slow-braised pork and eggs, to festive sweets shared across generations. Through food, stories, and conversation, you discover how meals become one of the most important ways Vietnamese families preserve traditions and welcome the New Year.
CHOLON BEFORE MIDNIGHT
The journey continues into Cholon, where Chinese-Vietnamese traditions remain deeply woven into the city's identity. Streets fill with decorations, lanterns glow above busy sidewalks, and local businesses make their final preparations before Tet arrives. Moving through the neighbourhood, you experience a side of Saigon where celebration, community, and heritage come together in a distinctly local way.
THE FINAL HOURS
As evening settles, anticipation begins to build across the city. Families gather, businesses close their doors, and final preparations unfold before the arrival of Tet. Outside homes and storefronts, offerings begin to appear as families prepare for Giao Thua, creating a unique atmosphere found only in the final hours of the year. Moving between neighbourhoods and gathering places, you witness the traditions, rituals, and quiet anticipation that accompany the arrival of Tet.
MIDNIGHT IN SAIGON
The experience culminates in the heart of the city as crowds gather beneath lights, decorations, and the energy of the approaching New Year. Along Nguyen Hue and the surrounding streets, anticipation builds toward midnight. As the city welcomes Tet, fireworks illuminate the skyline, marking the arrival of a new year. Surrounded by thousands sharing the same moment, you become part of one of Vietnam's most important traditions — a celebration that belongs not to a single place, but to an entire nation.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Tet Specialties
Cholon Discovery
Giao Thừa Offerings
Nguyen Hue Countdown
Midnight Fireworks
Day 3: The First Morning
FIRST PRAYERS
The first morning of the New Year begins at Vinh Nghiem Pagoda, where families and local residents gather to welcome the year ahead. Amid rising incense and quiet prayers, guests witness one of Tet's most enduring traditions — offering wishes for health, prosperity, and good fortune. Surrounded by the rhythms of local life, the experience offers a meaningful glimpse into how many Vietnamese choose to begin the New Year.
THE LUCKY VISIT
Throughout Tet, first visits carry special meaning. Known as Xong Dat, the tradition holds that the first person to enter a home or business in the new year may influence the fortune of the months ahead. As the city settles into the new year, you discover traditions connected to luck, prosperity, and the hopes people carry into the future. Along the way, you may notice families exchanging red envelopes known as Li Xi, a cherished custom associated with good fortune and New Year wishes. Through conversations, observations, and small customs encountered throughout the day, Tet reveals itself not only as a celebration, but as a season rich with symbolism.
COFFEE AND CONVERSATION
Away from the larger celebrations, another side of Saigon begins to emerge. In neighbourhood cafés, locals gather to relax, reconnect, and enjoy the slower pace of the holiday. Over traditional Vietnamese coffee, you experience one of the country's most beloved daily rituals while discovering how Tet is often celebrated through simple moments shared with others.
A QUIETER SAIGON
As the day continues, the city reveals a side rarely seen during the rest of the year. Streets move at a gentler pace, familiar gathering places take on a different atmosphere, and the usual rhythm of Saigon gives way to something more reflective. Moving through the city, you experience a rare moment when one of Asia's busiest urban centres briefly slows down to welcome the year ahead.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Tet Morning Calm
Vinh Nghiem Pagoda
New Year Blessings
Tet Symbols
Vietnamese Coffee
Day 4: The Continuation
THE CITY RETURNS
The second day of Tet begins at a gentler pace. Across the city, more people begin to step outside, cafés welcome their first customers, and neighbourhood streets gradually become livelier once again. While the holiday continues, the atmosphere feels different from the quiet reflection of New Year's Day as Saigon slowly settles into the year ahead.
TET TREATS
As the city awakens, festive treats continue to be shared between family and friends. Preserved fruits, traditional sweets, and seasonal snacks appear on tables throughout the holiday, offered as gestures of hospitality and good fortune. Through flavour and tradition, you discover another layer of how Tet is celebrated beyond its major rituals.
NGUYEN THIEN THUAT DISCOVERY
The experience continues through one of Saigon's most distinctive local neighbourhoods. Among ageing apartment blocks, independent cafés, food vendors, and everyday businesses, you discover a side of the city often overlooked beyond the usual tourist paths. With time to explore, browse, and linger, the neighbourhood offers opportunities for spontaneous encounters, local conversations, and perhaps a final souvenir or two before departure.
A FAREWELL TO SAIGON
Before the journey concludes, gather for one final meal and a final glimpse of the city that has welcomed you through Tet. As conversations turn to favourite moments and unexpected discoveries, the experience comes to a close not with a grand finale, but with the simple satisfaction of having shared in one of Vietnam's most meaningful celebrations.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Saigon Reawakens
Tet Sweets
Nguyen Thien Thuat Discovery
Local Treasures
Vietnamese Hospitality
OVERVIEW
NEW YEAR, NEW HERE: TET in HANOI is a curated immersion into Vietnam’s most important holiday as it unfolds through the traditions, symbols, and everyday rituals that define Tet in the nation’s capital.
Structured as a journey from preparation to celebration and renewal, the experience follows Hanoi through flower markets, festive streets, spiritual traditions, lakeside gatherings, and enduring cultural customs.
From the first signs of Tet to the wishes carried into the year ahead, each chapter reveals a different layer of the holiday. Along the way, familiar places become expressions of meaning, offering a deeper understanding of the people, traditions, and spirit that continue to shape Hanoi today.
ITINERARY
HANOI
Day 1: Signs Of Tet
THE FIRST BOWL
The journey begins with one of Vietnam's most iconic dishes in the city many consider its birthplace. Gather around steaming bowls of Pho as your N.I.T.E. Navigator introduces the traditions, regional differences, and cultural significance behind a meal that has become a symbol of Vietnam itself. Before Tet reveals its many customs and traditions, the experience begins with a simple ritual shared by generations.
QUANG BA FLOWER MARKET
Before Tet arrives, Hanoi turns to flowers. At Quang Ba Flower Market, rows of peach blossoms, kumquat trees, and seasonal plants transform the city into a celebration of renewal and good fortune. Among families making their final selections for the holiday, you discover one of Hanoi's most enduring Tet traditions while learning how flowers become symbols of prosperity, happiness, and new beginnings.
HANG MA STREET
The journey continues along Hang Ma Street, where Tet reveals itself through colour and symbolism. Red decorations spill from storefronts, lucky ornaments hang overhead, and families browse displays filled with wishes for prosperity and good fortune. As preparations continue around you, ordinary objects begin to reveal the traditions and meanings woven into the season.
CHOOSING GOOD FORTUNE
As preparations continue across Hanoi, the meaning behind Tet begins to reveal itself through the objects people choose to bring into the New Year. Among festive foods, decorations, lucky ornaments, and seasonal gifts, you explore the customs and beliefs that shape the holiday while discovering which symbols resonate most with your own hopes for the year ahead. Through conversations with local vendors and your N.I.T.E. Navigator, everyday objects become windows into the traditions, values, and aspirations carried into Tet.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Hanoi Pho
Quang Ba Flower Market
Hang Ma Stroll
Tet Market Traditions
Choosing Good Fortune
Day 2: The Turning Of The Year
THE SCHOLAR'S LEGACY
The day begins at the Temple of Literature, Vietnam's first national university, where generations of scholars once pursued knowledge, achievement, and personal growth. During Tet, the site takes on renewed significance as families visit to offer prayers and wishes for success in the year ahead. Among calligraphers and red paper scrolls, the tradition of Xin Chu brings these aspirations to life, transforming wishes for wisdom, prosperity, happiness, and success into written characters for the new year. As ink meets paper, you discover how education, tradition, and intention have remained deeply woven into Hanoi's cultural identity for centuries.
TET ON THE TABLE
As the final hours of the year approach, attention turns to the dishes that define the season. From Banh Chung, a traditional square sticky rice cake, and Gio Lua, a steamed pork roll, to festive specialties prepared for family gatherings, Tet reveals itself through flavours passed between generations. Through food, stories, and conversation, the traditions of the holiday come to life around the table.
HOAN KIEM BEFORE MIDNIGHT
As evening settles over Hanoi, the city gathers around Hoan Kiem Lake and the surrounding Old Quarter. Families, friends, and visitors fill the streets while anticipation quietly builds. Beneath lights, decorations, and the glow of the lake, the atmosphere becomes a shared expression of the year's final hours.
THE ARRIVAL OF TET
As midnight approaches, the energy reaches its peak. Around Hoan Kiem Lake, the city welcomes the New Year through celebration, gathering, and collective anticipation. Lights illuminate the skyline, fireworks mark the turning of the year, and thousands of people share the same moment together. Surrounded by one of Hanoi's most cherished annual traditions, you become part of the celebration as one year gives way to the next.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Scholar's Wishes
Xin Chu Calligraphy
Tet Specialties
Hoan Kiem Countdown
The Arrival Of Tet
Day 3: The First Blessing
TRAN QUOC PAGODA
The first day of Tet begins at Tran Quoc Pagoda, where worshippers gather beside West Lake to offer incense and begin the year with intention. Amid drifting smoke and quiet prayers, one of Hanoi's most enduring New Year traditions comes into view, revealing how hope, gratitude, and good fortune remain woven into the season.
NEW YEAR BLESSINGS
Across Hanoi, wishes for health, prosperity, and happiness accompany the first day of the year. Through offerings, symbols, and conversations encountered throughout the day, Tet reveals itself not only as a celebration, but as a season shaped by intention and meaning. Along the way, you may notice families exchanging red envelopes known as Li Xi, a cherished tradition associated with good fortune and New Year wishes.
HOAN KIEM PORTRAITS
Around Hoan Kiem Lake, families gather in traditional áo dài to mark the occasion through photographs, reunions, and shared moments together. As the city slows around them, these small scenes offer a glimpse into how Tet is remembered — not only through rituals, but through the people who celebrate it.
BESIDE THE LAKE
As the afternoon unfolds, Hanoi settles into the slower rhythm of Tet. Around Hoan Kiem Lake, families gather for photographs, children play beneath the trees, and conversations drift through the cool air. The sounds of the city soften against the water, revealing a quieter side of Hanoi rarely experienced during the rest of the year.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Tran Quoc Pagoda
First Blessings
Hoan Kiem Portraits
Ao Dai Traditions
Lakeside Stillness
Day 4: What Remains
TET AT THE TEA TABLE
As the city eases into the New Year, another Tet tradition begins to unfold. Gather around a traditional tea table to sample seasonal sweets and treats shared during family visits throughout the holiday. Through tea, conversation, and flavours enjoyed across generations, discover how some of Tet's most meaningful moments are found not in grand celebrations, but in the simple act of spending time together.
THE OLD QUARTER RETURNS
The city continues its gradual return to everyday life. Around the Old Quarter, more businesses reopen, familiar rhythms begin to reappear, and Hanoi settles into the next chapter of the year. Moving through streets that only days earlier were preparing for Tet, you witness the transition from celebration to continuation.
LOCAL TREASURES
With time to wander, browse, and explore, attention turns toward the objects, flavours, and crafts that tell Hanoi's story. From traditional goods to small discoveries tucked between historic shopfronts, the experience offers opportunities to find meaningful keepsakes while continuing conversations with the people who shape the city.
A FAREWELL TO HANOI
Before the journey concludes, gather for one final meal and a final glimpse of the city. As stories are exchanged and favourite moments revisited, the experience comes to a close carrying more than memories alone. Like the character chosen earlier in the day, a small piece of Hanoi continues forward with you.
SIGNATURE MOMENTS
Tet Sweets & Treats
Old Quarter Discovery
Local Treasures
Farewell Lunch
The Hanoi Spirit
INCLUDES
- 4 Days / 3 Nights Accommodation
- All transportation within the experience
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner and café moments
- The artifacts (Black Passport & Digital artifact)
- English-speaking N.I.T.E. Navigator
- All admissions, activities, and festival participation outlined in the itinerary
- Curated workshops, rituals, and cultural experiences
- International airfare to Vietnam
- Travel insurance (highly recommended)
- Visa fees (if applicable)
- Personal expenses & additional purchases outside the curated experience
