I am planning to visit Vietnam next year. After asking some local travel agencies, I was offered two options below:
Option1: 12 days in the mountain
This tour offers 02 days in Ha Long bay, 8 days in the mountain to Ba Be, Ha Giang, Bac Ha, Cao Son, Sapa, Yen Bai then 02 days in Hanoi.
The tour features some relaxing days in Hanoi and Halong bay with most of the time trekking in the mountain.
I am wondering about the road condition, Pan hou resort and Cao Son Ecolodge services.
The operator said this trip is very colorful as I can visit many interesting tribes and enjoy their real life.
Option2: northwest trails 10 days
The trip will tour Mai Chau, Son La, Dien Bien Phu and Sapa for 8 days, 02 days in Hanoi with much exciting activities such as climbing mountain and trekking.
I just want to know about the facilities of Muong Thanh and Lan Anh hotel as they said they are 2-3 star hotels.
Please advise me which option is better and some descriptions of the hotels.
Thanks so much
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Comments
May I know how long does it takes for you to travel by motorbike form one place to another as you mentioned.
If I am at Sapa, would I need to take a day to venture into another nearby location?
At Hanoi, how long and what transport can I take to go to Ninh BInh or Cao Bang or Perfume pagoda?
Appreciate your advice. You can email me too
Thx
Stan
stantsk@gmail.com
from those with experience of touring by motorcycle, would it be too ambition to travel without a guide and making our own arrangement to hire a motorcycle. Additionally is accomodation on the northwest trail easy to come by without reservation. Any advice greatly appreciated. thanks..
Wolfie.
how much to stay in the hotels,we are looking at going in nov this year and have looked at tour companys but im sure we can do this ourselves we plan on doing the northern routes ,all help would be appreciated are there plenty of gas stops etc cheers ox
I hope you'll enjoy your trip and let me know if you need more advice,
Angela Luis
I'll like to enquire more about HCMC as i'm currently attached to a company there and i definitely wish to make full use of my trip here, so could anyone tell me more about the places of attractions in HCMC where i'll be able to tour within a day?
Thanks
You can join Cu Chi Tunnels 1/2 Day (to discover tunnels under the land), Cu Chi and Cao Dai Temple 1 Day, you also join HCM City - Vung Tau 1 Day (include before and behind beach, Jesus Statue, Big Pagoda...)
vietnam is indeed a beautiful place with its watery plains and mountain scenery to magical deserted beaches, noodle carts, and nouvelle cuisine ... the best part about Vietnam for history buffs like me is its war history and sucking back bia hoi street-side in Hanoi!
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shawn
Also the night trip from Nha Trang to Danang is an excellent alternative to the horrible bus ride. From Danang railway station, it's a 1 hour trip to Hoi An by taxi.
We took the hard sleeper from Hanoi to Lao Cai (no soft sleepers available), and this was reasonable. We were with 6 in our compartment and slept reasonably well. Some points to remember however:
- Go for the lower berths: they are cooler then the top berths, and the luggage can be stored underneath the bed, so stealing is impossible.
- The train from Lao Cai to Hanoi arrives in Hanoi before 5 am, which is unreasonably early.
- Some travelcaf
All the best,
Jemma
Ho Chi Minh is the business city in Vietnam. It is even noisier and more chaotic than Hanoi. The town has a nice center. I would recommend a stay of three to five days to visit the city.
I give you some sites that you can visit such as :
1. Reunification Palace: Built on the site of Norodom Palace, which was the home of the French Governor General.
The South Vietnam President lived here during the Vietnam war. It was here through the gates that a North Vietnamese tank drove through the gates to mark the fall of Saigon on April 30th 1975.
2. Ben Thanh Market: Ben Thanh market is located in district 1; just a walking distance from the Pham Ngu Lao Road. You can easily see it with the belfry and the clock on its entrance. Lots of things that you can buy in Ben Thanh Market like coffee as in all kinds of coffee- grounds, beans, powder, etc.! Lots of bags, shirts, souvenir items- shirts, keychains, frames, caps etc.. I also like the big fruits being sold here.
3. War Remnants Museum: The War Remnants museum is dedicated to the Vietnam War. It gives the full history of the war over three Floors.
4. Notre Dame Cathedral: The Cathedral known as Nha Tho Duc Ba. Built in the late 19th Century from local stone then covered with red ceramic tiles shipped from France it is the largest Church built in the French empire.
5. City Hall: Part two of my City Hall Tips with more pictures The Saigon City Hall is one of the famous Landmarks of Ho CHi Minh City and is now renamed the People's Comitte Building.
From HCMC, you can do an excursion to the Mekong Delta. And if you still have some days left, take a plane and go to Phu Quoc.
I had a wonderful trip in Vietnam last month. I made a tour from North to South. Thanks to the travel agency Checkin Vietnam, I found the hotels with very raisonable prices, good services and also interesting tours. If you are interested in it, you can visit their website "checkinvietnam.com".
Best regards,