Learn Chinese, Travel or Work in China
In this article you’ll find a lost of tourist itineraries for Vietnam. To make it easy, we’ve divided it into three categories (click on the links below to go directly to the category you’re most interested in):
If instead you’re interested in our “general” advice for traveling in Vietnam, you can read this article.
The emotions and multiethnicity that you’ll discover when traveling in Vietnam will stay with you your entire life. It’s an experience so profound that only time will cause it to vividly emerge in your mind, ready to be recounted.
In this article I’ll bring you to the northwestern region of Vietnam, specifically in Ha Giang Province, on the border with China’s Yunnan Province, where the two countries share an immense spiritual and cultural heritage of Buddhism and Confucianism, ethnic minorities and an impressive natural landscape.
Ha Giang is a peaceful town immersed in the green karst mountains at the base of the Dong Van high plain. I suggest that you choose it as a base for the trip I’m about to recommend.
Like Sapa, the region’s attraction is the limestone mountains that extend over a wide area. But here, compared to the northeast they have a unique rocky formation, with peaks and villages of countless ethnic groups clinging to the mountains or at the bottom of valleys, where I still wonder how they manage to live and grow things there.
But let’s go in order.
Ninh Binh is located in north Vietnam, along the Red River Delta, and is also known as “Ha Long Bay on Land”, because it looks a lot like famous Ha Long Bay with its karst formations; but unlike the famous bay, this is located in the interior and “floats” on immense rice paddies and waterways.
In this area you can see, and if you want, participate in the rural life of Vietnam. In fact the entire province is relaxing, without much traffic and very few tourists. You can also fully enjoy the panorama, from ancient temples, fishermen among frangipani, rice paddies and karst formations.
Ninh Binh is the perfect place to relax after visiting Hanoi, the chaotic capital. It is located about 100 kilometers south of Hanoi, and 200 kilometers southeast of Ha Long Bay; it is therefore easily reachable by train or bus from main towns.
The ideal time for visiting this part of Vietnam is in my opinion the rainy season (from May to October), because it is in this period that nature is at its lushest and the rice paddies are a shiny green. During the rest of the year, the beauty will be just as disarming but the colors will tend towards yellow. [Read more…]
First of all I feel I should recommend this park to you because it is one of the natural wonders of Asia, not to mention a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It’s the most spectacular national park in Vietnam, with mountains covered with tropical jungle and rivers that proudly flow out of the gorges that open out of the mountains.
Here nature was gentle and superb, gifting Vietnam with an impressive underground system: the largest caves in the world.
The park is located in central Vietnam, more or less where the country begins thinning out and everything becomes more serpentine, between Laos and the sea.
There are lots of ways to get there, whether you’re coming from the north or south of the country, seeing that it’s the park destination with the greatest natural interest. [Read more…]
Sapa is an old mountain station in the northwest of Vietnam, dear to the French since 1922. If you like hiking, you absolutely can’t miss seeing this valley that at first glance, will seem like a post-realistic painting.
In fact, Sapa is surrounded by small villages of ethnic minorities and farmers dedicated to growing rice and other cereals and sweet hills with rice terraces in view. It’s an unusual and spectacular scenario.
The best period for visiting the town is from March to May or after the summer when there will be less rain.
Despite being late into the rainy season with thick fog, I had the pleasure to also observe the mountain peaks on two bright days. If you don’t have the same good fortune, I can assure you that the town will still be colorful and bright, thanks to the colorful clothing of the ethnic minorities that live there and around, with whom I’m certain you’ll come into contact with.
Coming from Lao Cai, whether by bus or motorbike, you’ll enjoy a stupendous landscape of terraced hills.
In the northern region of Vietnam riding a motorcycle is common among travelers, both for the unique mountain landscape as well as the road that is, to say the least, unusually spectacular. From Hanoi, for example, it’s 380 kilometers away, and you can also put the bike on a train, get off at Lao Cai and do the last part – about 40 kilometers uphill and curvy – on bike. However the town, being very touristy, is well connected and there’s even a bus station. [Read more…]
If you’re looking for a romantic destination that’s also a fresh place to find refuge from the tropical sun of the south of the country, Da Lat is the right place: an enchanting and flowery hill city, 300 kilometers north of Ho Chi Minh and 140 kilometers from Nha Trang, in Lam Dong province, in southern Vietnam’s highlands. Da Lat is surrounded by lakes, large pine forests, greenhouses and plantations of coffee and strawberries which has made it famous as a tourist destination for both foreigners and locals.
Also known as little Paris, Da Lat is a beautiful mix of homes built during French colonization, where colonists in fact built this location to escape the humidity and pressing rhythm of Ho Chi Minh. It’s also a main draw for those interested in architecture.
You can get to Da Lat by land, enjoying the landscape – as I always prefer, -, as well as by bus and by train: from Ho Chi Minh it’s about 7-9 hours away and from Mui Ne, about 5 hours. If you prefer, you can fly to Da Lat from various destinations; the airport is located 30 kilometers from the city center. [Read more…]
The Hang Nga Guesthouse, best known as “Crazy House”, is an extremely unconventional building designed and built by Vietnamese architect Đặng Việt Nga in Da Lat, in Vietnam.
The building, which is often described as “the fairy-tale house”, mimics the form of a tree and contains “natural” decorative elements such as animals, mushrooms, spiderwebs and caverns.
To alleviate the costs during construction of the house, from 1990 Đặng Việt Nga opened the house to tourists. Not only is it possible to visit the house (as I did), but you can also sleep there (there are 10 bedrooms).
The price for a visit is about 40,000 VND (about two Dollars!), while the price of rooms vary from 30 to 60 Dollars a night.
The Crazy House is open to visitors every day from 8:30 in the morning to 7 in the evening. The address is: 03 Huynh Thuc Khang St, Ward 4, Da Lat, Vietnam.
If you’re passing through Da Lat, I recommend you visit it!
Here are photos of Crazy House: [Read more…]
About 125 kilometers South of Saigon is the seaside town of Vung Tau, at the tip of a peninsula separated from the main land by the Co May River. It is very popular with locals at weekends and holidays, being so close to Saigon.
There are buses from Tan Son Nath airport, and mini vans that leave every 15 minutes from Mien Dong bus station.
The journey takes around 2 hours, and the mini van will drop you at any hotel or Guesthouse in Vung Tau. It is a good idea to get the phone number or business card of the driver, so that when you want to go back to Saigon, you can ask to the receptionist of the hotel where you stay to call the driver. The mini van will then pick you up at your hotel, at the time of your choice.
There is also a boat that leaves from Bach Dang Pier, located in Saigon’s District 1. Note that the boat is a bit more expensive (around 200,000 VND).
There are hotels and lots of guesthouses in Vung Tau. They are very low priced, you can get room with fan for as little as 50,000 VND. Weekends and holidays will be a bit more expensive, with pricing starting at around 200,000 VND.
Click here to check out the best hotels in Vung Tau.
You can visit Vung Tau all the year. The dry season is from November to March, when the weather is cooler. In April it gets quite hot and the rainy season is from May until October. [Read more…]
Da Nang is on the coast surrounded by beautiful beaches on two sides and the Han river running through the city. Around the city there are also mountains and many pagodas; it is an interesting place to stay and it offers easy access to surrounding places to visit, such as the ancient city Hoi An, only 20 kilometers south of Da Nang, and the Hivan Pass, a few kilometers north.
Da Nang is in the middle between Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi; there are many daily flights from either city with Vietnam Air or Viet Jet, which is a low price airline.
Also if you are coming from Thailand, then Air Asia has recently started direct flights Bangkok to Da Nang. Also there is a regular train service from Ho Chi Minh or Hanoi. The travel time is about 16 hours from either city but the time can vary. Buses also offer overnight leaving in the afternoon and arriving in Da Nang in the early morning.
There are many hotels spread over the city, from 5 star luxury to budget hostels. Some hotels offer long term stay at a very reasonable price. In low season you can find decent hotels for about 8 USD per night, in both Agoda.com or Booking.com.
Finally, it’s easy to find rooms by just turning up, except at holiday times such as TET which is in February about the same time as Chinese New Year. In such a periods it is recommended to book well in advance. [Read more…]
Once a vibrant, energetic port town along the Thu Bon River, Hoi An has grown into one of Vietnam’s top tourist destinations – and for good reason. Its rich history, unique culture, and mouth-watering cuisine, make this charming waterfront town a hit among visitors. Today, the entire town is recognized as a UNESCO Heritage site, ensuring the preservation of its lavish Chinese congregation halls, wooden houses, and fascinating past.
More than a few leave Hoi An laden with shopping bags, as the Old Town is home to innumerable tailors, who fashion just about any clothing item or accessory you can imagine. Wander around the Old Town and you’ll find scores of high-quality, handmade goods, from wearable items to traditional handicrafts. Though Hoi An may not be as big or bustling as other destinations in Vietnam, in many ways that’s part of the town’s charm, as it provides a beautiful, peaceful respite from the noisier, more chaotic streets of urban Vietnam.
Hoi An is most often reached by way of Da Nang, the modern metropolis 30 kilometres north whose status as a regional hub affords travellers access to an international airport as well as a train station and plenty of bus transport options.
Da Nang International Airport welcomes flights from destinations across Vietnam as well as a handful of international destinations within Asia. Nearby, the local train station is a major stop along the country’s north-to-south line, while the city’s bus station connects to other, smaller destinations throughout the area. Da Nang public bus number 1 also travels along the coast between downtown Da Nang and Hoi An every 20 minutes from 5:30 AM to 5:50 PM.
Beyond mass transit, a handful of Easy Rider companies can provide transport to Hoi An by way of single- and multi-day trips from destinations like Hué and Da Lat. These tailored motorbike tours feature experienced drivers/guides and stop at several attractions en route to Hoi An, such as Lang Co Beach and the scenic Hai Van Pass. [Read more…]