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Vietnam

A 25-day adventure by Ward-eringTheWorld Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 24, 2023
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    Hanoi

    Sep 25–27, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Hanoi - the capital city of Vietnam and where our adventure began. A chaotic city where there are 8 million people; 4 million scooters and where traffic moves around you when you cross the road. The old quarter is a bustling hub, where local people come to buy, sell and trade. Many things are imported from China - with the border being so close, prices are low - if you haggle properly.

    "Train street" is a narrow street that has cafes and bars either side and that trains pass through. It's a surreal experience having a passing train come by you within touching distance.

    We also visited the Vietnam Military Museum. Billy was in his element being surrounded by US fighter jets that the Vietnamese had shot down.    Read more

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    Halong Bay

    Sep 27–29, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌧 28 °C

    Halong Bay - a place so special that it's going to need more than one post! Halong translates to 'where the dragon descends into the sea'. Legend has it that a great mountain dragon charged towards the coast, its tail gouging out valleys and crevasses. As the creature plunged into the sea, the area filled with water, leaving only pinnacles visible.

    It is now recognised as a UNESCO world heritage site and has almost 2000 limestone islands scattered through the Gulf of Tonkin waters.

    We opted for one night on a cruise and one night on an island to experience as much as possible. Unfortunately the weather was not on our side when we arrived but alas the beauty of Halong did not disappoint!

    We started our cruise with a fantastic lunch - all fresh, authentic Vietnamese dishes. We went to the less visited Lan Ha Bay where we stopped and were transferred to bamboo boats to visit the Dark and Light Cave. The cave itself was very impressive and homed some bats ... which was fine until they started flying! We also saw some Cat Ba Langur monkeys - which are only found in Halong Bay. There are only approximately 60 left in the wild so we were very lucky to actually see them! Of course we also had to have a swim in the water which was a great way to cool off from the humidity!

    Our tour guide used to be a chef so taught us how to make some Vietnamese food, before sitting down to dinner which was great! Karaoke followed - thankfully there's no video evidence of that!

    We were lucky enough to wake up to a beautiful (dry!) sunrise over the bay. We sailed over to Cat Ba island where we cycled to a local village to learn about their culture. Unfortunately during this cycle the rain started and when I say rain I mean monsoon! We were absolutely soaked and it was like cycling through rivers rather than on roads but it was a (fun?!) experience.

    We finished our day visiting one of the floating fishing villages. These farms float on the bay and host a variety of fish - some of which are sacred and not for selling. The largest fish can reach 200kg!    Read more

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    Cat Ba Island (Halong Bay Part 2)

    Sep 28–29, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    Cat Ba Island is the largest island in Halong Bay. Here we did kayaking in a beautiful bay and spent the evening exploring the town.

    The next day we decided to get up early and explore the national park. We hiked for about an hour through thick forests to get to the peak of Dinh Ngu Lam. We had stunning views and Billy had great fun filming some of the island with his drone.

    We then went to explore a nearby cave and finally to Cannon Fort to get one final view from land over the bay. It was bitter sweet leaving such a stunning place!    Read more

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    SaPa

    Sep 30–Oct 2, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    We arrived into Sapa at 5am after an overnight bus ride. Being up this early we decided to go to Fansipan - the highest mountain in Indiochina at 3143m. Luckily there is a cable car up to the top which gives stunning views of the surrounding rice field valleys. Unfortunately the weather at the top did not match that in Sapa town and we were met with thick fog. Despite the lack of view of the surrounding valley, we were amazed by the grand temples, Buddhas and pagodas at the top.

    On our second day here we went on a road trip through the mountains - seeing rice fields and watefalls. Again the fog was thick and restricted our view for the most of the afternoon. There is a glass bridge at the top of O Quy Ho Pass which we were reluctant to go up given the weather. However the guy at the bottom convinced us the clouds would clear. Of course at the top there was thick fog and we couldn't see a thing. This was probably a good thing as Billy was fast reminded about his fear of heights! After wandering around for about an hour we decided to call it quits. As we were in the queue to go back, we saw the clouds clear a bit so decided to give it another 5 mins to see if we could actually see the valley. And luckily it did! We had clear views for miles and were so grateful we got to see the beautiful valley from above.

    Day 3 in Sapa we visited Cat Cat Village - a traditional wooden hut village where the H'mong culture is preserved.    Read more

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    Danang

    Oct 3–5, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌧 27 °C

    On to central Vietnam we go! Danang's beach was voted one of the top 6 beaches in the world and its easy to see why with golden sands stretching for miles. Traditional fishing still happenes from this beach with local fishermen pulling in their nets from the beach. We had a more chilled time here- enjoying the beaches, exploring nearby islands and meeting some of their wildlife.

    We also took a trip to Ba Na Hills. Five cabel car routes operate here taking you to the peak of 1487m. At the top is a restored French village which was originally constructed in the 1910s. Major construction is underway to make this an even bigger tourist destination - theme park rides and all. One of the recent additions is the Golden Hands bridge which [should] give beautiful views over the hills to Danang. Of course the fog followed us so we couldn't see a thing! Thankfully we managed to get good views from the top of the island the next day!    Read more

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    Hoi An

    Oct 5–8, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Hoi An - a quaint, historic, delightful town. The old town was once a major port and is influenced by the Japanese and Chinese. Now a UNESCO world heritage site with over 800 preserved historic buildings. It is a lovely place to walk through and just absorb the atmosphere - made extra pretty by all the lanterns hanging in the streets.

    Our first stop was the Coconut village where we were taken out by a local on her bamboo boat. This was calm and peaceful until we went for a 'spin' (see video)!

    We also stopped in to one of the local tailors to get some custom made clothes. This was a fun experience to completely design your own outfit, picking the fabric and having them altered and adjusted! Billy's teddy bear Toby even got in on the action!

    Being rainy season in Vietnam the weather can change very quickly. One night when we were out we experienced it in full. Streets soon became rivers and the thunder and lightening was so loud & dramatic it caused other tourists to scream! An hour later, its all cleared up and life goes on as normal.

    Before we moved onto the next city we visited the Thanh Ha Pottery Village. All the pottery is manually crafted from terracotta clay taken from the nearby riverbeds and shipped worldwide. Here we got to make our own cups/vases; decorate them and see how the professionals do it. Safe to say we won't be changing careers any time soon!    Read more

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    Nha Trang

    Oct 8–11, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    Nha Trang is a beautiful beach resort which we spent time chilling out on after 2 busy weeks. The hotel we stayed in had a rooftop pool on the 40th floor with a glass bottom that looked out over the beach. We were spoilt for choice for spots to relax at!

    We spend a morning exploring the Po Nagar Cham Towers which were built between the 7th & 12th century. Originally there was 8 towers but now only 4 remain and are still used for worship.    Read more

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    Phu Quoc Island

    Oct 11–15, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    Welcome to paradise! Phu Quoc Island is Vietnams largest island - fringed with white sand beaches & a dense tropical jungle.

    We stayed in an eco-resort a short drive away from the main town. October is low season as it is still classed as rainy season. This ment we basically had the resort to ourselves!

    We spend a full day exploring some of the smaller islands around Phu Quoc. We took a speedboat out to some of the coral reefs for snorkeling. At one of the four reefs we tried sea walking. This involves walking 5m underwater with a astronaut like helmet on and seeing the sealife from a different perspective. A unique experience!

    We also took a trip to the Coconut tree prison. The Americans housed approximately 40,000 Viet Cong Prisoners here during the war. It has a gruesome history with some barbaric torture methods.

    Sao beach in the south was worth the visit- gorgeous white sands and crystal clear water! Could've stayed forever!!    Read more

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    Ho Chi Minh City

    Oct 15–18, 2023 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    Ho Chi Minh - the last stop of our trip. Formerly known as Saigon until the end of the war in 1975, Ho Chi Minh is the most densely populated city in the country. Our first day was spent exploring the city. We learnt about the atrocities of the Vietnam war by visiting the war museum. It was harrowing to read the stories of people affected and the international support against the war.

    We then went to visit the tallest building in Vietnam and the 18th tallest in the world - Landmark 81. Standing at 461meters tall, the 81 story building has views across the city. At the top there is an outdoor viewing platform - safe to say I was happier out there than Billy!

    The next day we had an early start to visit the Cu Chi tunnels. This is a network of underground tunnels used during the war. The tunnels stretch from Cambodia to Ho Chi Minh city covering a distance of more than 250km. The network of tunnels are several storeys deep and feature trap doors, weapon factories and kitchens. Some people lived in the tunnels for almost 20 years, only having one meal a day to minimise the chance of the enemy finding their whereabouts.

    We also visited the Mekong delta; the "rice bowl" of Vietnam. A water world where boats, houses and markets float upon rivers, canals and streams that criss cross the landscape. Here we visited local people, learnt about their culture and the produce they make from the rivers.    Read more

    Trip end
    October 18, 2023
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