Hi everyone,
Hello!
I have done Vietnam in 1 month as well, here is what I did:
Hanoi: You should def take a tour out to the Ha Long Bay, it was wonderful! Boatride between thousands of island, go kayaking, bathing and exploring caves or national parks. A great start.
Hoi An: Great town, beach, food, tailors and opertunities to take a mb out to the Marble Mountains.
Nha Trang: Great Beach, but I found lots of the diving tours to be not all that.
Da Lat: Hitched a motorbike tour up in the mountain. Cool experience, bathing in river falls, visiting farms etc.
Saigon/ Ho Chi Minh: More touristy town, mud spa and you can go out to Cu Chi tunnels for some history and shooting range.
I can also recommend a trip out to Phu Quoc Island
Read all about places to go in VN at the site.
Most beautiful places would be Sapa, Ha Giang and Mai Chau (all in the North) + Halong Bay
Hoi An on the Central Coast is also pretty awesome
Do not miss Hanoi - most interesting city in SE Asia
Central Highlands also pretty nice around BMT and Dalat
(stay off those long distance buses aka rolling caskets - VN highways are very unsafe)
Hi NorwegianP and Daawgon ,
thanks for the brief information. Which cruise operator do you recommend for my Halong Bay cruise? I planning on a 3D2N crusie.
Thank You
Lester
I have read many reviews of cruise operators on tripadvisor.com
Thanks stoneman. i have read it but the reviews for most cruise operators seems to be positive. However i would like to know more about the price the reviewers paid for.
Lester,
I would read some of the many on HaLong Bay. HB is so popular that it can have the feel of a cattle drive. Dozens of buses disgorge hundreds of tourists at roughly the same time. You are herded from your bus to a boat w/o any say in the matter. You just hope you are getting the boat and tour paid for! Organized chaos IMO.
Book your tour once in HaNoi. It will be cheaper than booking via the Internet. Get at least 3 written quotes as you walk around the Old Quarter (best area to stay IMO). Your hotel/GH will try to book your tour as well. Have your quotes in hand before telling your hotel you are going to HB. You will know very quickly if they are trying to rip you off. If your hotel will match your best quote, go with them. That will make everyone happy. Also chat with others while in HAN and you may run into someone that has been with a tour company that gave them good value on their HB tour.
Now getting from HAN to HCMC. You have 4 choices.
1. Use the buses most VN people use between cities.
2. There are vans running between most VN cities as well.
3. Use the
4. Use the when possible, the bus when no rail option.
1. Good choice if you want to meet VN people. Go to the bus station in each city. Book each leg when needed. Usually not the best bus for comfort.
2. I would forget this option. The vans stop every time someone raises their arm. Overcrowded and not a fun experience for a foreigner IMO.
3. Cheapest and most convenient way to see VN. Stay in any city on the open tour as long as you like. Tell them the day before you want to leave and away you go. This is the way most visitors get from HAN to HCMC. Every tour company stops at affiliated hotels. Stay there or find another hotel. Bus will leave from that hotel. But, as stated, VN has a terrible accident rate on its highways.
4. Rail is the safest option. However, it is more expensive and you have to plan ahead. You usually cannot book one day in advance and get the class seat you want on the popular routes.
Send me a PM if you have additional questions on traveling around VN. Good luck with your planning.
Hi vegasmike, thanks man. Your info is more than enough to help me. I will add you as a friend. Hope we can stay in touch and exchange more stories on our travel experience.
Hello everyone!
In my experience, there are some place you should stop to visit from North to South in Vietnam such as: Hanoi (this is a unique city), Halong Bay (a new natural wonder in world), Hoi An Ancient Town, Hue City, Nha Trang Beach, Mui Ne, Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau Beach.
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