Self tour vietnam??

Question

How easy is it to travel around Vietnam by yourself (i.e not with an organised tour). Is public transport easy and reliable, should you pre-book accomodation? Can you recommend any good travel guides (except lonely planet?) Cheers!

Answer 1

It is very easy to get around Vietnam, especially along Hwy 1.  A lot of people speak English.  For transportation I prefer the Train. For those on a limited budget there is always the open bus option at Kim or Singh Cafe.  I don't use a guide book I use the internet as my search tool and maps.  I ususally book ahead for my hotels; but do not pay in advance.  virtualtourist.com and tripadvisor.com are good search tools.  Good luck on your trip. Cheers

Answer 2

No problem.

It's very easy to go by train or bus and somehow ot also works out to talk with hands and feet!?

It's absolutely safe and really cheap.

It depends on the time of your trip, but usually you always find a room somewhere.

So - enjoy!

And....look up information in the Internet, lonely planet has a lot of outdated information!

Answer 3

Its very easy and very cheap to travel by bus and train,its also very slow.Most people travel the coastal route from HCMC to Hanoi.There are many places to stop,allow extra time for Nha Trang,[i live there and its wow].I don't know your budget or how long you have but flying is cheap,50 usd HCMC-Nha Trang,90usd HCMC-Hanoi.The middle ofFebuary is Tet [new year] accommodation is expensive and harder to find for a week either side,other than that you will have no problems.www.asiarooms,com is a good site,i think its always a good idea to have your fist night booked.in all the big places there is a company called the Singh Cafe,they can help you sort all you need.merry Xmas.

Answer 4

You will have a great time traveling around Vietnam independently.  They do like to keep tourists in the tourist areas so it's difficult to get accommodation etc. outside of the normal tourist destinations (they need a permit).  If you stick to the coastal areas you will have no problems.  Main mode of transport is the train but you can get buses and taxis no problem.

Recommend learn some Vietnamese before you go.