AsiaCultureFoodieAdventureSoloBudget

Vietnam

A Country That Rewires You.

Ha Long Bay from a junk boat, lanterns in Hoi An, pho at 6am — Vietnam hits different.

Vietnam is a country stretched thin and packed dense — 3,000km of coastline, a spine of mountains, and a history so layered that ancient Cham temples stand beside bomb craters beside UNESCO heritage towns beside rooftop bars. Ha Long Bay's limestone islands rising from jade-green water are one of the world's great natural spectacles; Hoi An's lantern-lit old town at dusk is among Asia's most beautiful street scenes; Hanoi's Old Quarter is a living museum of 1,000 years of Vietnamese commerce. And through all of it, some of the world's most complex and satisfying food, available at plastic-stool street carts for the price of a postage stamp.

Best For

Solo · Backpackers · Foodies · Couples

Duration

10–14 Days

Best Season

February – April or August – October

Visa

e-Visa Required

14+

Photos

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Capital City

Hanoi

Province / Country

Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Hanoi is the capital and Vietnam's most atmospheric city — 36 ancient streets of the Old Quarter, each originally named for the trade it housed: Paper Street, Silver Street, Tin Street. The lake at the centre of the old city, the Temple of Literature and the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum all cluster within easy walking distance. Egg coffee at a balcony café overlooking Hoan Kiem Lake is the quintessential Hanoi morning.

Must-Know

What Vietnam Is Famous For

The experiences, landscapes and moments that define a trip here.

Ha Long Bay

2,000 limestone islands rising from jade water in the Gulf of Tonkin — one of the most otherworldly natural landscapes on earth, best experienced on a 2-night junk boat cruise with kayaking through grottoes, swimming at private beaches and sunrises that turn the bay pink and gold.

Iconic

Hoi An Ancient Town

A UNESCO heritage port town where Japanese merchant houses, Chinese clan halls and French colonial shopfronts share streets lit by hundreds of silk lanterns at night. The Hoi An full-moon lantern festival, when the town extinguishes electric lights and floats candles on the river, is among Asia's most magical events.

Nature

Sapa Rice Terraces

Hand-carved rice terraces cascading down mountain valleys in northern Vietnam's highlands — tended by Hmong and Red Dao hill tribe women whose traditional dress and silver jewellery have changed little in centuries. The trekking here, especially in September-October when the rice turns gold, is among Southeast Asia's finest.

Ho Chi Minh City & Cu Chi Tunnels

Vietnam's chaotic, energetic south — 10 million people, a thousand scooters per block, rooftop bars in former colonial mansions, and 40km of wartime guerrilla tunnels 45 minutes outside the city. The War Remnants Museum is harrowing and essential; the Cu Chi tunnel experience is unforgettable.

Adventure

Phong Nha Caves

The largest cave passage in the world (Son Doong) sits in Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park — with its own weather system, underground river and rainforest inside the cave. More accessible caves like Paradise Cave and Phong Nha Cave are equally extraordinary and don't require a $3,000 expedition permit.

Hanoi Old Quarter & Street Food

Hanoi's 36 ancient streets are also its greatest food destination — Pho Gia Truyen for the definitive beef pho at 6am, Bun Cha Huong Lien where Obama ate with Anthony Bourdain, and the narrow alley bia hoi corners where fresh beer costs 25 cents and strangers share tables until midnight.

Take Home

What to Shop in Vietnam

From artisan workshops to open-air markets — things worth packing an extra bag for.

🏮

Hand-stitched Silk Lanterns

Hoi An's artisan workshops produce silk lanterns in every colour and shape — the same designs that light the ancient town's streets at night. Custom orders take 24 hours; they pack flat and illuminate any room with atmospheric warmth.

🎨

Vietnamese Lacquerware

Hand-painted lacquer art on wood — bowls, vases and wall panels built up in 15–20 layers of natural sap, each polished before the next is applied. Hanoi's Hang Khay street has the best workshops; genuine lacquerware has a depth and glow that no painted surface replicates.

👗

Custom Tailored Clothing

Hoi An is arguably Asia's best tailor town — skilled craftspeople can copy any garment or create from scratch in 24–48 hours at prices that make Western tailoring look absurd. Ao dai (Vietnamese national dress) made to measure is the ultimate Hoi An souvenir.

☕

Vietnamese Coffee & Egg Coffee

Vietnam is the world's second-largest coffee producer — Robusta beans roasted with butter and fish sauce (yes), ground in a phin filter and served iced with condensed milk. Hanoi's egg coffee (cà phê trứng) — a whipped egg yolk cream on strong espresso — is the most intriguing coffee you'll ever drink.

Explore

Top Attractions in Vietnam

The places everyone tells you to visit — and they're right.

01 · Must Visit

Ha Long Bay Junk Boat Cruise

2,000 limestone islands rising from jade water — best experienced on a 2-night cruise where you kayak through grottoes, swim at private beaches and wake up to sunrises that make the bay look painted. Lan Ha Bay (less trafficked) or the 4-star Pelican cruise are worth the upgrade.

02 · UNESCO Heritage

Hoi An Ancient Town at Dusk

A 15th-century trading port preserved intact — Japanese covered bridges, Chinese assembly halls and French shopfronts all within walking distance, lit by silk lanterns that turn the streets orange at night. The full-moon lantern festival (14th of each lunar month) is when the whole town glows.

03 · Adventure

Sapa Trekking & Hill Tribe Villages

Terraced rice paddies carved into mountains by Hmong and Dao farmers over centuries — trekking between villages with a local guide, sleeping in homestays and crossing rope bridges above valleys of golden rice in harvest season (September–October) is Vietnam's most memorable land experience.

🏍️

Ho Chi Minh City by Night

Vietnam's southern megacity on two wheels after dark — rooftop bars in French colonial buildings, street-food alleys serving banh mi and com tam, and the energy of 10 million people all seemingly on scooters simultaneously.

🕌

Hue Imperial Citadel

The former imperial capital of Vietnam — a walled citadel containing the Forbidden Purple City, elaborate royal tombs along the Perfume River, and a cuisine so refined it was prepared exclusively for emperors.

🏖️

Da Nang & My Khe Beach

Vietnam's most underrated city — a beautiful crescent of beach backed by the Marble Mountains, 30 minutes from Hoi An and 2 hours from Hue. The Dragon Bridge breathes fire on weekend nights.

🛶

Mekong Delta Boat Trip

A maze of waterways, floating markets and river islands south of Ho Chi Minh City — take a speedboat to Can Tho for the Cai Rang floating market at dawn, where entire supply chains run on boats.

🦇

Phong Nha Caves

The world's largest cave passage — Son Doong has its own clouds, underground rivers and jungle inside the cave. More accessible: Paradise Cave's 31km of limestone formations lit in eerie silence.

🌊

Phu Quoc Island

Vietnam's tropical island in the Gulf of Thailand — white beaches, coral reefs, fish sauce factories and a famous night market. The best beach in Vietnam for a few days of complete decompression.

Taste & Culture

Food, Rituals & Vietnam's Soul

Eat with your hands. Watch the ceremony. Understand why people keep coming back.

Buddhism & TaoismTet New YearLantern FestivalHo Chi Minh LegacyHill Tribe CulturesAo Dai Traditional DressWater PuppetryCommunal Ancestor Worship

"Vietnam teaches you that beauty survives everything. The lanterns in Hoi An weren't rebuilt after the war — they never stopped being lit."

Pho

Vietnam's greatest export — a clear bone broth simmered for 12–24 hours, poured over rice noodles with paper-thin beef slices, then finished tableside with basil, bean sprouts, lime and chilli. The Hanoi version (leaner broth, fewer herbs) and the Ho Chi Minh version (sweeter, more garnishes) are two different soups.

Banh Mi

The Vietnamese baguette — a direct product of French colonialism, now filled with pate, pickled daikon, coriander, chilli and your choice of protein. The crunch-to-filling ratio is perfect in a way that bread engineers have never managed to replicate. Madam Khanh in Hoi An is the legendary address.

Bun Cha

Hanoi's most beloved lunch — grilled pork patties and belly in a broth of fish sauce, rice vinegar and sugar, served with cold rice noodles and a plate of fresh herbs. Anthony Bourdain and Barack Obama shared a meal of this at Bun Cha Huong Lien on Hanoi's Le Van Huu street for $6 total.

Cao Lau (Hoi An Noodles)

A dish that exists only in Hoi An — thick chewy noodles made with water from a specific ancient well, topped with crispy rice crackers, pork and bean sprouts in a minimal broth. The recipe hasn't changed in 400 years and supposedly can't be authentically replicated outside the town.

Banh Xeo (Sizzling Pancake)

A turmeric-yellow crispy rice crepe sizzling with shrimp, pork belly and bean sprouts, eaten by tearing off pieces and wrapping them in lettuce and herbs dipped in nuoc cham fish sauce. The sizzle when the batter hits the pan is what gave it the name: banh xeo means 'sizzling cake'.

Before You Go