Vietnam ideas?

parking_question_chap

Hi all

Looking to try Vietnam for 10 days next spring so doing some planning early.

I dont want to spend loads of time travelling when I want to be relaxing or exploring so thinking just two resorts for 5 days each.

Questions

1) I am really keen on going to Ha Long Bay, I have found a nice hotel on the South of Ha Long. However it seems a small ish area, would there be enough in the area for 5 days?

2) Having done some browsing I like the look of Hoi An and the nice beach hotels. Is it going to be too tricky to get there from Ha Long? Are there any similar beach resorts a little further north on the coast?

3) Are there any direct flights from London which would take me near the above?

littlereddevil

You can fly to Hanoi( for Ha Long ) or Ho Chi Minh. For 10 days I personall would do 3 nights in HCM and 7 in Hoi An. But it's best to fly to Hoi An.
Of course it depends on your interests, everyone is different.

agrinnall

I wouldn't spend 5 nights in Halong, I did 1 night on a junk and 1 night in a hotel on Cat Ba island, travelling from and to Hanoi at each end. You probably could do 5 nights in Hoi An as there are things to do in the town, trips to My Son ruins (I did one that had me there for dawn which was great but an early start) and although I didn't go there I'm told there are some nice beaches. As littlereddevil says flying to Hoi An is probably the best option as it's a long land journey from Hanoi.

PompeyPete

10 nights isn't very long , so you need to be careful with your itinerary.

Qatar Air have several flights a day from LHR via Their hub in Doha to Saigon.

Saigon is a great place to top and tail a trip, and has plenty to keep you occupied.

Hoi An is great, particularly after dark. You get there by flying from Saigon to Da Nang, and then a 40 minute taxi ride.

We stayed a week in Hoi An, only went to the beach once, by pushbike, and don't know why we made the effort.

For a bit of a contrast away from the heat have a look at a couple of nights in Da Lat, easy enough to get to by short flight from Saigon, and it's halfway[ish] to Da Nang.

There's also the Mekong Delta area, easy to visitvfrom Saigon.

But you also need to consider the weather, and as I said 10 nights soon passes, and you don't want to spend too long stuck in airports or on the road.

I've been to various spots in SE Asia loads of times, but for some reason I gave Vietnam a wide berth until last October. Loved the place, but plan your time carefully, and don't even think about an All Inclusive trip.

PompeyPete

You might be able to pick a few ideas from the following...

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5341295

There are plenty of other threads, just type Vietnam in the Search box.

Doshwaster

Yes, I would avoid long overland transfers in Vietnam. They may look cheap but the the roads are very poor - 12 hours in a bus bouncing up and down over potholes isn't fun.

For a 10 day trip you could probably fit in a few days in Hanoi with a side trip to Halong Bay (don't do more than one night there) then fly down to Hoi An before returning to Hanoi for your flight home.

Hanoi is a hectic and fun city but it takes a while to get used to. I spent the first day getting very lost but once your get your bearings then it kind of makes sense. After that you'll need some peace & quiet and Hoi An is perfect as it's a town where nothing much ever happens.

Internal flights in Vietnam are cheap (I don't think I paid more than £30) but run to a very loose schedule and are often delayed by the weather so don't book a connecting flight for your long haul trip home. It's a lot safer to return to the hub the previous night and stopover.

agrinnall

I would do what Doshwaster suggests (which is more or less what I was driving at in my previous post, but probably with less clarity). Hanoi and HCMC are very different cities, and while on a longer trip I'd definitely recommend seeing both, if you only have time for one I think Hanoi is the more Vietnamese city and it's the one I'd go for. Just try not to get run over crossing the road on your first day (although the same also applies in HCMC)!

PompeyPete

For a good month by month overview of what weather to expect, and what parts of the country are recommended...

http://www.selectiveasia.com/vietnam-holidays/weather

A very recent cautionary tale about cruising Halong Bay...

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowTopic-g293923-i9984-k9500250-Which_boat_caught_fire_and_burned_May_7-Halong_Bay_Quang_Ninh_Province.html

...so choose your operator carefully.

bigadaj

agrinnall wrote: »

I would do what Doshwaster suggests (which is more or less what I was driving at in my previous post, but probably with less clarity). Hanoi and HCMC are very different cities, and while on a longer trip I'd definitely recommend seeing both, if you only have time for one I think Hanoi is the more Vietnamese city and it's the one I'd go for. Just try not to get run over crossing the road on your first day (although the same also applies in HCMC)!

Yes, I'm sure things have changed since we went in 1997. Unless you were very unlucky and got hit by a UN landcruiser the main hazard was weaving through bicycles whilst crossing the road. For me getting strangled by the ad hoc lighting system that locals had set along the pavements in lieu of street lighting was a bigger hazard.

Doshwaster

bigadaj wrote: »

Yes, I'm sure things have changed since we went in 1997. Unless you were very unlucky and got hit by a UN landcruiser the main hazard was weaving through bicycles whilst crossing the road. For me getting strangled by the ad hoc lighting system that locals had set along the pavements in lieu of street lighting was a bigger hazard.

The main difference now is that the bicycles have mostly been replaced by motorbikes.

I have been to a lot of Asian cities but the traffic in Hanoi is the worst I have seen outside of India. Crossing the road involves navigating through multiples lanes of motorbikes heading in both directions which never stop. The trick is to just step out and keep walking - don't stop and don't look anyone in the eye as that just freaks them out. For extra safety cross with a monk: it's considered very bad karma to run over a monk.

PompeyPete

A good read for anyone with a nervous disposition on the rules of the road for pedestrians in Vietnam...

http://tuoitrenews.vn/city-diary/21217/rules-for-crossing-the-street-in-vietnams-major-cities

It really doesn't take long to master.

And remember, if you have an accident, then if you weren't there it would never have happened.:)