Hoi An is best known for its beautifully preserved World Heritage centre, but you’ll soon discover that’s just one of its charms! After you’ve relaxed on its long and sandy beach, get to know the rural fringes on two different but complimentary countryside tours. Cycle through villages lined with water palms and coconut trees, learn to cast a fishing net from a basket boat, and enjoy a seafood lunch on the boat ride back to town. Then, spend a morning at an organic farm, learning to whip up some Vietnamese home-cooked delights. Your afternoons will be free to go street-food snacking and trinket-shopping on Hoi An’s lantern-strung riverfront, one of the prettiest settings in Vietnam.

Ho Chi Minh City is the best place in the country to learn about the effects of the “American War”, but museum displays and walking tours aren’t always suitable for children. Instead, we’ve included a fun and educational day out to Cu Chi, part of a network of supply tunnels built by guerilla fighters. After you’ve squeezed through the tunnels and seen some of their inventive booby traps, you’ll travel back to the city by speedboat, zip through the streets on a cyclo, then spend the afternoon at the home of a local family. Famous for their musical prowess, the Truc Mai family have played all over the world, and they’ll be happy to show you their instruments and play for you today

At the Delta, the mighty Mekong fans out into hundreds of streams and canals as it makes its way to the ocean. This is Vietnam at its lushest and most fertile — loaded with tropical fruits, farms, and traditional cottage industries. As you explore the region on a converted rice barge, you’ll stop to drink honey tea with shrimp farmers, take sampan rides along small canals, watch crispy rice paper being made, and cycle to markets and temples surrounded by greenery. In the evenings, you’ll return to your riverside resort and have plenty of time to swim in the pool, eat delicious local food, and improve your Vietnamese cooking skills with some tips from the chef.

Leaving Vietnam behind, it’s time for your introduction to Cambodia. To help you get beneath the surface of the capital, we’ve included our favourite “alternative” walking tour. It’ll take you beyond the monuments to explore residential areas brimming with daily life, into one of the oldest pagodas in the city, and along a riverfront lined with street vendors and the occasional huddle of monks. Finish off with a peep into the Royal Palace, then enjoy lunch cooked at a training restaurant for underprivileged youth. Later, you’ll get a window into Cambodia’s traditional performing arts as you watch masters and students in action — and perhaps even have a go at some yourselves.

Leaving the city behind, it’s time to head for the lovely little port town of Kampot — but not before a stop to visit the bears of Phnom Tamao Wildlife Sanctuary. Help prepare toys and food for the bears, enjoy a Khmer-style picnic lunch for yourselves, then arrive in Kampot for a cruise at sunset — around the time when fishermen are getting ready to head out on the water. Over the next two days, you’ll have plenty of time to soak up the sleepy atmosphere of the town’s Chinese shophouses, French-colonial villas and charming riverside bars. A highlight is sure to be a stand-up paddleboarding tour of the quiet coves, tangled mangroves and fishing villages in the surrounding countryside.

Surrounded by beautiful hills, Khmer villages and rice paddies, coastal Kep is the ideal setting for a bit of chilled-out countryside exploration. Hop in a tuk-tuk visit village schools, handicraft workshops and Kampot pepper farms — world-famous for their black, white and red varieties of this tongue-tingling spice. Then, take a day to yourselves to relax in the Khmer sunshine before your journey home. Kep is a wonderfully relaxed and charming place to conclude your family adventure.