A Halong Bay Cruise
In Vietnam's northeast, a 3½-hour drive from Hanoi through the verdant rice field of the Red River delta, “Descending Dragon Bay” has been twice recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site of Vietnam. First was in 1994 for the outstanding beauty of its seascape, covering more than 1,500 square kilometers of more than 1,600 towering, jungle-clad, vertical limestone islets, hiding many cave such as Sung Sot and "Surprise Cave" - all of it a breathtaking sight any time, and mysterious looking in the late-afternoon fog. The second time in 2000 it was recognized for its special value in geography and geology, as the consequence of sedimentation over 200 million years, as when million tons of water pressurized dead shellfish on the sea bottom. Due to earthquakes, tectonic plates collided and made the area rise up out of the sea, whereupon millions of years of erosion and weathering by waves and rain resulted in the distinctive rock formations we see today.
There's no better way to begin or wrap up your Vietnam holiday than a cruise to enjoy the natural beauty of the landscape of Halong Bay. There are different options, and the best possible way to have it organized by a local travel agent. If you little time, it's possible to experience Halong Bay with a day cruise, but you have more time it it's much more relaxing and enjoyable cruising for two days/one. These cruises offer not only dramatic bay views but also great onboard activities like cooking demonstration on the sundeck, along with exploring caves, paddling kayaks to the beaches, and more.
Sapa: Hike & Stay Overnight with a Local Family
Once a "hill station" where until 1954 French colonialists escaped the heat - it's over 1,600 meters over sea level, set amid the peaks of the Tongkinese Alps and with a refreshing temperature around 20° Celsius (68°F) all year round - this market town of some 61,000 has become a magnet for travelers interested in adventure, nature, and local culture. Amid the mountains are deep green valleys surrounded by verdant rice terraces on the mountain slopes, offering great options for hiking as well as cultural experiences with some of Vietnam's most fascinating ethnic minority people, particularly the Hmong and Dao.
Sapa was a ghost town for many years, but was discovered by Western tourists in 1993, when the first guest houses and small hotels began to be established, and these days it's one of the country's more popular destinations. Today it's much easier get here from Hanoi by overnight train or a 4½-hourdrive. The best part of the visit isn't necessarily the town itself but rather the experience of trekking through the rice terraces on the spectacular mountains, crossing the suspension bridge over the rushing river, and home stays in the remote villages surrounding Sapa, sleeping in traditional thatched-roof houses and enjoying home cooked meals and rice wine with friendly host families.
Vietnam's capital and second largest/busiest city offers a lot of great sightseeing touring options. And apart from visiting its interesting museums and admiring ancient temples nearly a thousand years old, a highlight you shouldn't miss here is a tour of the many vendors of street food in Hanoi's old quarter, a labyrinth of narrow alleyways - many named after the products and foods made and sold here, and where it's easy to get lost. It's packed with informal stalls and eateries serving delicious local delicacies and snacks. Narrated with explanations by expert guides, it's a great chance to learn about and sample the authentic food culture of Vietnam.
Many dishes may look weird to you, but once you taste them, you may end up asking for seconds. Some examples that previous visitors have found the most delicious include pho bo noodle soup; "jumping spring rolls" (so named because they're served so hot you have to switch them back and forth in your hands); crispy banh mi (a French legacy of baguettes stuffed with minced pork); and barbecued pork on skewers and served with herbs (usually coriander and mint). There are plenty of other goodies along your tour, so you can just point to something interesting to try. The best times to take a street-food tour are early morning and late afternoon, for breakfast and/or dinner. And remember to show up hungry and thirsty!
Explore Ancient Hue & the Surrounding Countryside
Amid the picturesque and harmonious landscape of central Vietnam halfway between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), this city of 455,000 was the capital of the Dang Trong kingdom from 1738 to 1775 and of the Nguyen dynasty from 1802 to 1945, leaving it with a legacy of grand royal palaces, temples, tombs, and a citadel surrounding the royal Forbidden Purple City, all of which is also marked as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Many of the royal mausoleum - designed and built when their eventual occupants were still alive - sit in beautifully peaceful gardens along the bank of the poetically named Song Huong (Perfume) River, winding gently from the high mountains down between the citadel on the northern bank and the royal tombs on the south bank. For history and culture, taking a day to explore Hue's monuments and the bucolic surrounding countryside - including a scenic dragon boat river cruise - should be on all visitors' Vietnam bucket list.
Experience History & Local Life in Hoi An
Also in central Vietnam, on the Thu Bon River with a population of 155,000, Hoi An is home to an old quarter that is yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site, as a well preserved example of a fishing village which from the 15th through 19th centuries grew into Asia’s busiest international trading port, welcoming Japanese, Chinese, and Western traders. The old town is small enough to explore in a relaxed way in a day or two; there are just five main streets where most of the most important attractions and traditional architecture are located.
In addition, many visitors also take excursions to outlying villages, either independently by renting a bike to pedal past verdant rice paddies or via organized tours. One favorite is Tra Que, where vegetable farmers still use traditional methods of preparing the soil, dropping the seeds and watering crops from buckets hoisted on their shoulders. You'll meet friendly locals tending their farms and see all the herbs and plants, destined both for Hoi An's produce market and the kitchens of its hotels and restaurants. You can even roll up your sleeves and grab a shovel to help them dig the soil - a surefire lesson on how hard it is being a farmer. Organized farming and fishing tours also include the experience of working with a water buffalo in the rice field; first you'll need to learn a handful of key words and phrases to direct, bathe, and even ride your water buffalo. Riding a water buffalo - now that's an Instagram moment for sure, eh?
Discover the Caves of PhongNha-Ke Bang
Due to its geography and geology, this country is awash in limestone formations, such as Halong Bay and the karst mountains an hour west of Hanoi. Another excellent example is the a network of caves and caverns that covers a significant swath of the country. A particularly fascinating place to explore is the north central coast region's Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site comprised of more than 2,000 square kilometers of limestone karst formations which are Asia's oldest, formed over 460 million years ago. The park also includes a network of more than 300 grottoes, caves, and underground rivers believed to begin on the other side of the border with Laos and stretch for more than 70km. An important zone geological research in the Indo-Pacific region, it also offers great opportunities for adventure travelers to explore some of these caves, both on foot and by kayak and boat, such as Son Doong cave, its 9,000m length making it the biggest ever discovered on earth; it took the first explorer group seven days to explore, and its largest sectin is wide enough to fit a 40-storey building.
If you're a foodie who's taken with Vietnamese cuisine during your travels in the country and your Hanoi street-food tour, the country's capital is also one of the best places to learn how to actually cook some of these delicacies. Most interactive classes include a visit to a local wet market where you experience the color, the smell and the noise as you browse herb shops and produce and spice stalls and learn how to use these herbs and spices in the kitchen. Under the guidance of your chef, and trying out your bargaining skills, you'll shop for the right ingredients you'll need for your cooking class, and maybe some extra to take home. After choosing ingredients like lettuce, red shallots, basil, and lemongrass, you'll return to the classroom, roll up your sleeves and plunge into usually around three hours of hard, sweaty but fun work putting it all together. Then you'll sit down and enjoy your creations with a well deserved bottle of beer! Then you can go home with a cooking certificate, recipes, and no doubt some great photos of your Vietnamese culinary achievement.
If you're visiting Ho Chi Minh City, take a day or two to leave the hustle and bustle behind and board a cruise on the Mekong River Delta, which covers a large swath of southwestern Vietnam and where you'll experience a variety of landscapes, from hills to of the flat, verdant rice fields fertilized by the red silt from the thousands of waterways and small canals in the country's mightiest river system. A day cruise gives a good taste of these landscapes as well as human activity on the river such as traditional wooden boats and floating markets; shore excursions take you through bountiful orchards and bonsai garden, and to visit local family businesses making products like rice paper, coconut candy, and rice wine. An overnight cruise will take you deeper into the heart of the delta to discover more authentic local life in the less seen river towns and sleepy villages along the waterways.
Heavenly Beach Idylls in Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, Con Dao, or Phan Thiet
Vietnam has over 3,000km of coastline boasting numerous beaches with powdery white sand, turquoise waters, and almost year-round sunshine, and in the last decade, this country has truly become a rising star for beach travel. Some of the most popular are to be found along the central and southern coast, such Hoi An, Nha Trang, and Mui Ne, while there are also many which are more isolated and untouched because of poor road access. In addition, apart from the mainland, the islands of Phu Quoc and Con Dao in the south feature sandy stretches considered among Asia's most beautiful.
Try the Distinctive Vietnamese-Style Coffee
It may come as a surprise that Vietnam is not only among the world's top ten coffee-growing countries, but actually second after only Brazil, with nearly two million tons of coffee beans distributed to the world market. Introduced by the French in the late 19th century, ca phe (from the French café) and coffee culture has long been firmly ensconced here. In Hanoi, people like to sip java in cozy streetside coffee parlors, especially tucked in the narrow alleyways of the Old Quarter; one particularly excellent and atmospheric shop (with a spectacular view of Hoan Kiem Lake, by the way) is Café Pho Co, which means "Old Quarter Coffee."
Vietnamese drink strong, dark-roast coffee, brewed with a drip filter, and drunk hot or often iced. A popular variation is ca phe nau, (also called ca phe sua da), mixed with sweetened condensed milk, giving it a bit of a custardlike taste (over ice, it's known as ca phe nau da). Coffee drinkers in Ho Chi Minh City like their brew in a big, tall glass full of ice; you may see them sucking their iced coffee while weaving their motorbikes on the hectic city streets. And in parks and on street corners you'll also spot locals drinking while squatting in a particular pose referred to as the ca phe beit, "coffee style squat." And by the way, another particularly notorious variation that throws some some foreign visitors - though when they dare to try it they love it - is ca phe trung "egg coffee," into which an egg yolk is mixed for a layer of frothy egg cream (it's been likened by some to "liquid tiramisù). Bottoms up!
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