Vietnam

American has great fares to Vietnam right now, so I’m taking the opportunity to take my Dad back since he hasn’t been there in exactly fifty years. We are going for two weeks. I’m thinking 4-5 days in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), maybe Nah Trang for the beach for a few days, Angkor Wat (I know it is in Cambodia) for three or four. Some questions:

  1. It looks like I need to fly to get from place to place? True?
  2. The guidebooks say not to even think about renting a car. True?
  3. Where else should I go?
  4. I presume I’ll want a driver/guide in Saigon (we need to go to Ben Hoa where my Dad was stationed and other places around the city). Any recommendations?
  5. Where to stay and guides for Angkor Wat?
  6. Where should we go for about 4 days on the beach and where should we stay?

One point. My Dad was there in 65-66 before the US military commitment ramped up and before most of the major battles. He doesn’t seem interested in travelling around the hinterlands to see old battle sites like some vets may want to do.

This is very important to my Dad and I want to make it perfect.

Thanks for the help.

Craig

Very commendable endeavor Craig. I hope there some people here with info. Maybe Charlie Fu has some info. I think he only has 16 countries to go before seeing them all.

About 10 years ago I visited Hanoi, flew to Siem Reap, and from there to HCMC. I’m sure a lot has changed but think I can answer some of your questions…

  1. yes, fly
  2. the traffic was pretty crazy and I could not imagine driving. Can be difficult just crossing the street when the bikes flow by you like a river
  3. Hanoi was very nice
  4. http://fcccambodia.com/fcc-hotel-angkor/ was nice. Siem Reap is small.

I was there in 2001 and went from Saigon to the north via bus, train and rented motorcycles. We took buses to get from Saigon to the beaches at Nha Trang and up the coast to Hoi An and Da Nang, but took a train from there to Hanoi. That worked fine for me, but not sure of train system in the south.

My two favorite places were in the north. Halong Bay - sleeping on the deck of a boat under the stars was great. Also really loved Sapa, but it is a haul to get there and may not be your cup of tea.

5 days seems like a lot for Saigon - 2 days in the city and a day cruising the Mekong Delta seems like enough. IMO better off spending extra days in Nha Trag or going further up the coast to Hoi An or up north.

I really loved Vietnam - much less touristy than Thailand and I found the people warm and friendly. Hope you and your father have a great trip.

I just got back from Saigon last month. I would not even think of driving there…the traffic rules don’t really exist. People just kind of all go like a herd. There’s cars, buses, trucks, motorbikes and bicycles all mixed up going the same direction or different directions. I was surprised I didn’t see any accidents. Taxis are cheap and easy to get. Vinasun is the better taxi company (it’s like red/white/green). Do you have a hotel booked? Most have tours available at their booking desk. I usually stay at the Hotel Nikko in Saigon (HCMC). It’s a good location, but a slight distance from the center of town so it’s a bit quieter. There’s not much around walking distance so a taxi is necessary.

I went to Angkor Wat about 3 years ago. It was on a tour so I don’t remember the hotel we stayed at. We had a tour guide that took us around. They use US dollars there and prefer it, which seemed kind of odd. It’s similar to Vietnam, but seems poorer. I witnessed quite a few car accidents here (well motorbikes clipping each other and the family getting thrown to the ground with no one stopping to help - I was on a tour bus and saw it as we drove by). We drove to a spider market (they sell cooked tarantulas and grasshoppers) that was interesting to see. I tried both…my friend said the tarantula would taste like soft shell crab…it didn’t.

So to answer your questions:

  1. yes you need to fly place to place
  2. do not rent a car
  3. Cu Chi tunnels was interesting to see, but I don’t know if your dad would want to visit the location. I didn’t really fit well crawling in those tunnels, but it’s a tourist attraction. Hanoi is a nice city and I agree, the overnight boat on Halong Bay was fun.
  4. Maybe get a tour guide for a day and use taxis to go to any preferred destinations
  5. Maybe check tripadvisor.com for a tour guide and hotel recommendation for Angkor Wat. I don’t remember where I stayed, but recall it was just okay.
  6. I can ask my buddy where he stayed (he went to Nha Trang last month) if you’re interested.

Everyone:

Thanks for the input so far. I went to the Vietnam Airlines website and it is remarkably cheap to fly around within Vietnam.

Thanks for confirming the car thing. It seems sort of obvious, but I wanted to ask.

The NIkko in HCMC is $108 a night per room so I was thinking about staying there.

I would appreciate some guidance re: places to stay in Nha Trang. there is an Evanson resort that looks pretty nice. The other alternative is to go up to Da Nang and go to the beach there. It seems to have the advantage of being close to Hue and Hoi An, so there is more to do in the area.

Again, thanks everyone. Please give more input.

Craig

I’ve been to Hue and Hoi An. There’s a lot of temples there, but not much else that I recall. Nha Trang is supposed to be a really nice beach resort area. I’ll get more info for you from my buddy.

I went to Viet Nam on business in 2013, and ended up spending a weekend there as well.

I did not enjoy HCMC very much; it is obvious that not much money was put into the city for many years after the war, and although it is crowded and lively, it felt dirty and run down. For whatever reason, our hosts took us to Cu Chi, which I found disturbing. You can shoot guns for fun on an old range, and watch a video where the brave Vietnamese girls are heroes for shooting the American invaders. Some of the tunnels are hard to get in and out and very narrow, I had to walk sideways through them, and I am generally considered thin. I did like the modern area near the river in HCMC, but it didn’t feel special.

I enjoyed Hanoi much more. It is cleaner, and the parks, temple, and markets near the main lake (where the turtle just died, very bad omen for them) were all very interesting. Also, the very old university in Hanoi is a must-see (the one with the turtles); very unique and a tribute to how their culture values education.

Our hosts took us to Haiphong for the weekend, very beautiful place. We took an overnight cruise through the tufts, and shared the boat with a Canadien tour group who had done all of Viet Nam by bus. The cruise was the last big hurrah of their trip. Worth looking at that as well.

Enjoy the journey, and remember to cross the street slowly but surely!!! And the food was amazing!!

  1. It looks like I need to fly to get from place to place? True? some people fly, some people take the 8 hour train ride from HCMC to Nha Trang. It’s just up to you. You need to fly to Siem Reap
  2. The guidebooks say not to even think about renting a car. True? don’t even try driving. China is up there as maybe the worst traffic but Vietnam is a close close close 2nd. The difference between china/vietnam is that there are crosswalks in China. Crossing the street is an exciting adventure in HCMC
  3. Where else should I go? Hanoi is gorgeous. Halong Bay is a few hours from there and it’s beautiful for an overnight cruise. Hanoi is a bit more modern than HCMC. If you love food, Hue is the capital of food in Vietnam. Could eat for DAYS. If you want to do beach Hue is relatively close to Da Nang. Da Nang is then close to hoi an which is one of the “ancient” cities in Vietnam. Which after reading your posts, you’ve already thought of.
  4. I presume I’ll want a driver/guide in Saigon (we need to go to Ben Hoa where my Dad was stationed and other places around the city). Any recommendations? Sorry, we self guided ourselves and did occasionally day tours/overnight tours when necessary (like in Halong bay)
  5. Where to stay and guides for Angkor Wat? Get a private tour guide/driver. This is VERY typical and very inexpensive, I can’t remember the price off the top of my head but i’m cheap as hell and I thought it was a deal. We did two days of temple tours, that was more than enough. Angkor Wat itself is a clusterf*ck as there are so many ppl there. Some of the side temples are even more beautiful. The kids that panhandle for money in the temple system are vicious and also very cute and endearing. My wife was carrying around this janky ass umbrella that only had half of the umbrella that stood up. One girl just followed her around to make fun of her umbrella. She obviously didn’t get money. But the kids will cry when you tell them no, their other friends will come and tell you you’ve made their friend cry… it’s a group effort, be strong.

You definitely do not need 4 days in Siem Reap. Outside of the temples it’s pretty boring. Cambodia is probably the most run down country I’ve visited (for good reason if you know the history) and it really reflects when you are there. I’d say fly in, do two days of temple tours (if you even want to do 2 days) and then fly out. Spend the majority of your time in Vietnam.

ha. I think I’ve visited every east/south east asian country but still have all of South america/Australia/parts of Africa to go :smiley:

Charlie:

Thank you. Very helpful.

Craig

My buddy said he stayed at the Intercontinental in Nha Trang. Said the hotel was great, they basically ate the local seafood, went to a mud bath and laid out.

Just saw this after being gone for a few days. I’ll just add a couple cents worth, inflation adjusted. I agree with the comments on driving, etc.

  1. You can easily fly between HCMC and Da Nang (1 hour) and HCMC and Hanoi (about 3 hours)…or if adventuresome you can try trains or buses. Many of the tour companies run buses to places like Na Trang.

  2. Car; even the US State Dept warns against doing this; if you ever killed someone in a crash who knows what would happen.

  3. Where else? A couple mentions of Da Nang, Hoi An, and Hue. They are fairly close together. The area south of Da Nang has a string (17 I think) of modern high end resorts with good golf. There are beach resorts in Hoi An and you can ride shuttles into the actual town. It is a “historic” city with lots of tourist stuff, but is kind of neat; no motorized traffic in sections of the city.

Da Nang is now over a million people. Hue is to the north, easy bus ride, and again important in history and the war with the US. It is worthwhile. That stretch of cities would be easy to cover and accomplish your beach strategy. “China Beach” is near Da Nang, but there are nice beaches in Hoi An. Bourdain did a very fawning show on Hoi An. I have not been to Nha Trang; many recommend it but some say it’s over rated.

  1. I don’t think you really need a guide in HCMC, although you could do a half day bus tour to get oriented. The city is easily walked or use cabs. Go to the War Museum; fascinating, especially the photos. You can easily spend a half day or full day.

  2. Lots of culture in Hanoi; several good museums. My fave is the Museum of Ethnography. The Ho Chi Minh memorial is worth it.

  3. Other: many good French restaurants; one in HCMC has Faiveley by the glass…also some new wine bars. Most people like Ha Long Bay. The Mekong Delta can be a day trip by bus from HCMC. Another idea is Vung Tau; it is about 100 miles east of HCMC and they run high speed boats; fun trip.

Feel free to contact me with specifics. I’ve been to Vietnam five times for 2-3 week stretches and have been in most cities and regions except Sapa.

Dupe

Loved Hoi Ann and the Hyatt in Danang,especially if you have Hyatt status (they have shuttles to Hoi Ann).

Ha Long bay is the best place we visited in our 2 trips. Plan to stay at least one night, as a day trip from Hanoi is very long.

Cut back on time in HCMC. Use it for Hanoi. Hue is worthwhile. The train from Danang to Hue has great views and not too long. It’s cheap, we bought seats for our luggage as well as ourselves.


Hotels I’ve enjoyed: Hyatt Da Nang, Park Hyatt Saigon, Sheraton Saigon, Sheraton Hanoi, Hilton Hanoi (better located then most of the western hotels), M Gallery hotel in Hue (small rooms though).

Don’t know Na Trang but to me, Danang’s proximity to Hoi An makes it the best choice.

Just saw this thread and all good advice. We’re going again at the end of February. I’ll chime in to reinforce what’s been said.

Car Rental - does not exist, so it’s not an option. You’ll need a taxi locally or a driver with a car if going longer distance. They are cheap and can be arranged by tons of tour companies around. Check on trip advisor for some specifics.

Flights within on VA are cheap as you found. Upgrade to business for just a few bucks as the seats in the back with have your knees jammed into your chest if you’re of average Caucasian height. And, while you can buy online now, you can also just walk up and purchase for the same price if there are seats available.

You will need to become very good at pleasantly, but insistently declining people hounding you. Lots of reports of petty theft and deft money exchanges for products or services where the amount you gave them isn’t what they claim. To be fair, I haven’t experienced that. However, we did have a bad experience out on a boat in Ha Long Bay when we stopped to look at a floating fish market. Unbeknownst to us, every fish we pointed at ended up back on our boat and the captain was demanding something like $400 (US) for 3 or 4 items they had already killed and wanted to cook for us. Ended up settling for all the US cash on us which was about $60, but the value of the fish in the market at shore was probably less than $10. We told the captain to keep the fish and get us back to shore. My wife was beyond angry. Just use that as an example for everywhere you go and how to be on alert that people might try to force goods or services on you then demand exceptional payment for something you didn’t order or request.

We loved Saigon, Hanoi, and Hoi An (however, it might have become pretty touristy now). Danang was fun, but my wife’s family is from there. Unlike others, we didn’t like Hue much and cut our trip down to a single night there. The ruins are interesting, but in poor condition and nothing like you would expect from a historic site in a developed country. The road (or train it sounds like) from Danang is pretty as you wind up over a mountain pass. My father in law used to use his helicopter to chase deer down from the mountains around there to the beach for soldiers to kill for venison. They used the helicopter guns to kill them!

Crossing the street is crazy with the traffic! I’ve heard of people taking a taxi just to get across. Search on YouTube for videos on how to cross the street for a good primer. I’m serious. I would have done it all wrong otherwise. Walk steady and slowly. Make your pace predictable and traffic will magically part around you.

Have fun and eat on the street a lot! We love it there!

I’m curious what you mean by American has great fares to Vietnam? I didn’t think they offered that route. Is it with a partner airline? Into what cities? What kind of fares are you seeing? We’re flying Korean Air DFW to Seoul to Danang and returning Saigon to Seoul to DFW.

Chris:

Thanks for the guidance.

I’m flying American metal to Narita, then JAL to HCMC. On the way back, it’s Hanoi to Narita on JAL, then American metal to ORD. Round trip air fare is about $1,000. I think that is pretty cheap to go 22,000 miles. There were apparently even cheaper fares out there but they have been grabbed. For reference, look at the mileage run forum on http://www.flyertalk.com. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/mileage-run-deals/1741659-aa-dca-han-about-403-a.html.


Craig

Craig, those are great prices and for only 1 stop! We used Korean because I could transfer and use miles with them and they flew to Danang with only 1 stop. Prices for coach for our tickets originally were about $1300 which I thought was good at the time.

Enjoy your time and let us know about it when you return!

It sounds like Barry Lipton knows what he’s talking about. And you have to see Ho’s body in Hanoi. Rice fields of Sapa? Dalat is supposed to be beautiful. Go to Phuket Quoc island if you want perfect secluded beaches circa Thailand 20 years ago. Go to Nha Trang if you like Russians and rats.

Phu quoc

Just follow the locals.