Vietnam

Vietnam - what an incredible diverse country. Food is 10/10, people are friendly and landscapes are gorgeous, what's not to like?

Getting around in Vietnam:

Grab (really good and cheap like uber).

Open ended bus tickets (you just buy a hop on hop off kind of ticket it’s like £40 for the whole of Vietnam pretty good) look for good ones some are terrible.

$180 to rent motorbikes for a month (I would bike Vietnam if have the time- STAY IN VIETNAM FOR 6 weeks!!!) 

Get the train if going from Hanoi to Nihn Bihn. 

Biking: Look on ‘Vietnam coracle’ for motor bike trails, petrol locations and accommodation. 'Vietnam coracle' is honestly the HOLY GRAIL. I only did a 550km route from Hoi An to Phong Nha so can only give detailed advice on that route:

Western Ho Chi Mihn trail: (3 days 2 nights) make sure you keep on the western trail as it’s beautiful.

Start in hoi an do the hoi van pass stop at marble mountains (if you have time) and at elephant springs!!! Then stay the night in ‘a Luoi’ 75 km from hue (there is a homestay somewhere along this road but try make it to he town) so make sure you pass through Hue at 4.30 latest to get there before dark (roads are very bendy). Then bike to Khe San (stop for lunch- not that we really found anywhere for lunch) then bike to Long Son (stay here for the night) then bike to Phong Nha. BARELY ANY PETROL on last stretch and from Hue to a Luoi. So ensure you fill up at Long Son and then where ever you find petrol next. 

Ho Chi Mihn - I loved this city, it kind of reminded me of Tokyo as it is quite developed and busy.

Where to stay:

• hideout
• something beginning with F

Where to eat: 

• pho place on the corner of hideout hostel!!!!!!! (helpful directions I know but its just like a very basic 'restaurant'/street food kind of place with incredible Pho

What to do: 

• go out (walking street is really cool)
• cu chi tunnels (get a tour)
• market is quite decent
• war remonents museum

Mui Ne - sand dunes in Viennam who knew? Alongside a $1 hostel it would be rude not to.

Where to stay:

• Mui Ne hills backpackers!!! (If you have money stay in the luxury version of it for one night so you can use the peng pool, the basic version has two pools but they aren't as nice)

Where to eat:

•  walk down the road (from Mui Ne hills backpackers) it’s ridiculously cheap

Stuff to do:

• chill out by the pool
• go on the dune tour (run by hostel £20 for quad bikes for 20 mins but actually is so worth it so DEFIANTLY do it. plus mui ne is so cheap if you stay there for a while it will even out
• there is a beach where you can watch wind surfers
• if there’s a good group of people the bar/‘pool party’ is hilarious 

Dalat - a quick stop of for some canyoning fun but definitely worth a night or two here. 

Where to stay: 

• Dalat family hostel - Mama takes care of everyone! Amazing food and the staff here are absolute gems
• Cozy something (can't remember this name properly but probably the one with cozy in it!)

Where to eat: 

• food at Dalat family is really good 

Stuff to do: 

• Crazy house
• Botanical gardens or something
• Canyoning (drowned 100 times but worth it)
• Some waterfalls and more to see but wasn't here for long so research that
• Maze bar (night life is fun but weird)

Nha Trang - beach location, beach isn't anything particularly special (still nice but not spectacular), as a backpacker I would only go if you want a resort vibe with a low price tag. 

Where to stay: 

• Ninvanna (like a backpackers resort think it’s like £7.50 a night, can be really party but was quite chill when we were there)

Things to do (at Ninvanna, you can't leave the resort as it is in the middle of no where):

• Free yoga
• Volley ball and basketball court
•  kayaking tour for a bit extra
• football with locals 

Hoi an - WOW, honestly this city captured my heart. It is beautiful the streets are full of lanterns the food is alive with flavours. YOU MUST GO!!

Where to stay:

• Sunflower/Vietnam backpackers, a bit out from old town but apparently good (my parents came to visit while we were here so we actually stayed in a hotel - the room cost 30 for 3 of us so if you need a break splash out here!)
•  eat cau lo (local hoi ah meal)

Where to eat: 

• Cargo club
• Morning glory (more expensive both of those)
• Mrs vy’s If you order carefully not too expensive
• Mr sons really good really cheap. (All of these are quite far away from hostels but think you can get bikes for free from the hostel) 

Stuff to do:

• Shopping (markets are amazing!!!)
• Cooking class (coconut eco tours really good $30 includes boat cruise thing on the coconut boats - cheaper classes are offered by restaurants
• Cycle town the river/around
• Get a 'boat' tour at night (£5 per boat, looks like a rowing boat, for ‘20’, actually 10 minutes, candles cost $1), 

Hue - Don't bother, only stay here if you don’t bike from hoi an to phong nha. If you do happen to go there is an abandoned water park and you can sometimes bribe the security to let you go in.

Phong nha - I couldn't love a place more. Heaps to do, in the middle of nature and again great food.

Where to stay:

• Easy tiger!!!! (book in advance it gets busy)

Where to eat: 

• Bamboo cafe😍 

What to do: 

• Rent bikes and just bike around the national park if you didn’t do western Ho Chi Mihn trail
• Go to duck stop!!! (best day ever)
• Apparently the botanical gardens are nice
• Dark cave (400,000 don’t do a tour just bike there yourselves and then pay for the entry/semi tour)
• Paradise cave. 
• Easy tiger bar, soooo much fun! 

Nihn Bihn - beautiful scenery. Worth a visit!

Where to stay: 

• Don’t stay in Nihn Bihn stay in Tam Coc/somewhere nice. 
• If you can afford it ‘for you homestay’ but was £9 for a private room, dorm rooms might be cheaper.
• If not Chez beo homestay is apparently good.

What to do:

• Trang An boat cruise (apparently better than tam coc but was 200,000 pp instead of 150,000 for the whole boat but apparently guides made you tip ect)
• For you homestay has a pool nice place to chill out in a really beautiful area.
• Mua Cave, its a beautiful view point that you need to climb up to.

Halong bay - Amazing! There is always Cat Ba if you want to do something a bit different/cheaper but castaways is the ultimate 'gap year' experience so just save the extra cash and do it.

Where to stay/what to do:

• CASTAWAYS £143 just do it (be careful of scams, the real castaways leaves from Vietnam Backpackers in Hanoi, if in doubt book it there!)

Mai chau/ sapa- Stunning emerald rice fields! Most people go to Sapa however we were told for our time of year to go to Mai Chau instead and I am so so happy we chose to do that. Most transport departs from Hanoi to these locations.

Where to stay/what to do:

• Sapa just get night bus and then go with one of the random ladies. However I have heard much better things about Mai Chau (only difference is in Mai Chau the rice terraces are lower and longer where as in Sapa they are shorter and higher). 
• Mai chau - if you’re lazy do the tour from Vietnam backpackers it is pretty cheap and diverse but you only see the amazing rice terraces for about 3 hours so it is probably better to do it yourself. Just find a homestay there and hire a motorbike there.
• ‘Puluong tree house zoom zoom’ had a really beautiful trek near by but your guest house will probably give you all the trekking information you need.

SIDE NOTE: Pretty sure you can get from Nihn Bihn to Mai Chau so might be better doing Halong bay after Mai Chau/Sapa. 

Hai giang loop - motorbike loop which  is apparently the best thing ever, so if you have time definitely do that! However please note that these roads are not for the faint hearted, if you have not had sufficient experience please get a guide as the roads can be very dangerous.

Hanoi - I personally do not like Hanoi very much, its crowded and there is not a lot to do here. I went to the gym whilst here and that's saying something...

Where to stay: 

• Vietnam backpackers downtown (such a fun hostel) 

Where to eat: 

• Pho 10 (near Vietnam backpackers original)
• New day (near downtown)
• Bahmi place (turn right out of Vietnam Backpackers downtown hostel and just walk down the street) 
• polite & co looks fancy and cool

Stuff to do:

• Nothing but go out...
• A couple of museums
• There is a gym (hero’s gym= cheap
• Beer street, ACTUALLY this looks fun. I hate beer however if I liked it I would definitely want to get drunk with the locals. 

Other places I didn't go to put look good: Cham island (hoi an), An bang beach (hoi an).