For people who have been to Vietnam...?

Question

what would you recommend for someone with only 2-3 weeks to spend in the country? Itineraries, things that should not be missed, ect.

Answer 1

You can cover a lot for the period of 2-3 weeks. One way is to check with some Vietnam tour guides for your itinerary. Check out on OurExplorer-

http://www.ourexplorer.com/Templates/Cou...

Answer 2

you can easily find VN tour throughout Vietnam by the famous travel agencies like Vietravel, Vido, 4U Tours ...

The places where u should not miss like:

Saigon

Mekong Delta

Phu Quoc

Phan Thiet

Nha Trang

Hoi An

Hue

Phong Nha Cave

Ha Long Bay

Hanoi

Sapa

Answer 3

Nha Trang (beautiful beach)

Ha Long Bay

Hoi An

Hue

Da Lat

Ha Noi (the capital)

Sai Gon (Ho Chi Minh city) - considered to be the capital in southern Vietnam

those places are really beautiful and interesting.

trust me, I'm Vietnamese :)

Oh wait, one more thing, don't forget to eat "phở". It's delicious.

Answer 4

Something that you should consider.  You are going to be hitting the country right in the middle of Monsoon. A little different every year but you should at least know that you are going to be seeing a lot of rain.  Good luck and check out the blog below.

Vietnam is the in place to visit right now. If you start in Hanoi make sure to take the night train to Sapa and stay at the Mountain View Hotel. (Great views and inexpensive)  It could be the highlight of your trip. Take the 2 day tour to Halong Bay. Very nice. Then start south bound. I firmly believe that Hoi An is the best place to visit in Vietnam. The ancient town is a World Heritage city and absolutely beautiful. The beach is white sand and 40 kilometers long. A great place to relax and eat great food.  The Mango Rooms is noted as one of the best restaurants in Vietnam.  The Sleepy Gecko has bike tours that are just amazing. So my overall vote of a place to visit in Vietnam is Hoi An.

  Vietnam is really inexpensive. Hotels cost about $10 a night.  Of course you can pay much more if you have the budget.  You can find beer at less than 15 cents a glass. The people are wonderful.

Pass on Nha Trang unless you like multi story buildings on the beach although many people love the area.  Dalat is great if a bit corny and cool during the hot summer months.  Saigon is always and experience.

Phu Quoc is beautiful but the pollution was pretty bad.  Parts were very nice though  the Mekong is great with lots of things to see but you can do it in a couple of days. You are going to have a great time. I went around the world to many different countries. I have been on the road for over two years. I like Hoi An. It’s the best.

Answer 5

There are many options you can take for your 2-3 weeks in Vietnam.

If you are interested in adventure travel this itinerary will suite you much:

- 01 week northwest Vietnam: Hanoi- Mai Chau - Son La - Dien Bien Phu-  Lai Chau- Sapa - Cao Son - Hanoi

- 02 days in Ha Long bay

- 02 days in Hue

- 01 day in Hoi An

- 02 days in Nha Trang

- 02 days in Sai Gon

- 02 days in Mekong Delta

For the relaxing tour:

- 03 days Halong bay

- 02 days Tam Coc and Cuc Phuong

- 03 days in Hue and Perfume pagoda, Phong Nha

- 02 days in China beach

- 03 days for Ho Chi Minh trails

- 03 days in Sai Gon and Phu Quoc beach

- 02 days in Can Tho and Cai Be

- 03 days in Angkor - Cambodia

You should book the tour with the well-known company such as: exotissimo, hai-ve-nu,....

Answer 6

I visited Vietnam in October/November and we had very good weather, hardly no rain.  We also traveled for 3 weeks and did Hanoi, Halong Bay, Sapa, Ninh Bin (for the Tam Coc valley), Hue, Hoi An, Nha Trang and Ho Chi Min.  For 3 weeks this were too many destinations, because we spent many days or nights in the train and we would have had much more fun if we would have used this time cycling or hiking.

Although Sapa is in a very beautiful region, I don't think it's responsible to travel there. The local communities are spoiled, women become tour guides while men have nothing to do unless working in restaurants. We also stayed in the Mountain view hotel and it's a typical backpackers place, nothing typical at all. We had much more contacts with locals when we did a solo cycle trip in Ninh Binh or a guided tour for 3 with a local guide about 35km north of Hanoi.  

Vietnam is a super country to visit but if you want to experience the Vietnamese culture, don't try to visit all the highlights in 2 or 3 weeks.  I would suggest to either see the North and Hoi Ann/Hue and try to discover most of the country by yourself. The organized tours are full of backpackers and they will only take you to the tourist traps.

I loved Vietnam and will certainly try to go back.

Answer 7

You can visit some highlight of Vietnam like Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, Sapa, Hue, Hoian, Mekong Delta, Cuchi tunnel

- If you like the beach, there are several beautiful beach in the south of Vietnam like Hoian, Nhatrang, Muine, Phuquoc.

Cheer!

Answer 8

The above answers have covered the topic comprehensively. Don't forget to take in the Vietnamese cuisine as well.