We have been to Vietnam before (in 2018) and we thought it would be a one-time trip. So why are we returning? We realized there is so much more to see and experience, especially in the far north.
We are starting in Hoi An again and staying at La Siesta (we stayed at La Siesta in 2018 on the recommendation of Lois and Phil Cheetham and loved it). This will be a wonderful place to recover from jet lag and do some additional exploring of the Hoi An area before we travel to the more remote areas of Vietnam and move outside of our comfort zone.
When we leave Hoi An, we are travelling on a portion of the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The trail is an elaborate system of mountain and jungle paths and trails which were used during the Vietnam War by North Vietnam to infiltrate troops and supplies into South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos . We will travel on the back of motorbikes for 3 days with Hoi An Motorbike Tour Adventures, owned and operated by Mr. Phu (email .hoianmotorbiketouradventures@gmail.com) We did a 1 day tour with Mr. Phu in 2018 – it was a great way to travel, especially as we could stop anywhere we wanted for pictures. Mr. Phu has planned our route and accommodations along the way. We will return back to Hoi An for a few days before we embark on our next adventure.
We then travel by car/transfer north of Hoi An to Phong Nha area (via Hue) where we will stay in the rural village. Phong Nha-Ke Ban National Park is 885 square kilometres of unspoiled jungle, caves and underground rivers squeezed between the Laos border and South China Sea. We are looking forward to interacting with the villagers and exploring this remote rural Vietnam.
From Phong Nha we fly to Hanoi for a few days of “city life” and comfortable accommodations before we travel off the beaten track again – this time we are travelling in the far north of Vietnam for a 13 day trip which includes the Ha Giang Loop. Ha Giang is Vietnam’s northern-most province, lining the Chinese border. The North of Vietnam is filled with towering mountains, deep valleys, winding rivers and, from what we have read, breathtaking views. We will be travelling by car to reach the towns along the loop, and then we will be trekking, or travelling on the back of motorbikes to reach the small ethnic minority villages. The North East Loop part of our trip was organized by Esther Tran at Far East Tours, a Hanoi based company who has experience organizing trips along the northern border. They have arranged for a driver who knows the roads (the roads are rough, not well marked and permissions are needed in some parts). Since our driver will not speak English, Far East also organized a guide as there is very little English spoken in this area. Our driver and guide will be with us for the full 13 days.
Originally we planned to fly from Vietnam to Malaysia, then Indonesia and finally Singapore. We only visited 3 places in Malaysia before we returned home due to the Coronavirus.
We did this blog for the first time which turned out to be an excellent way to communicate with family and friends. We then turned our blogs into a book.
Additional information re: Vietnam: This was a second trip to Vietnam. On a previous trip we did the following things that we would highly recommend:
- Mekong Delta Cruise starting in Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) and ending in Siem Reap Cambodia. We travelled with Scenic and loved this river cruise line. Emerald River Cruise (owned by Scenic) is another good option.
- Ha Long Bay Cruise – we did a two night cruise which we would recommend as it takes you away from the “day-tripper” congestion. There are numerous cruise boat options to choose from.
- Vespa Wanderers out of Saigon. We did the Foodie Tour but they also do other tours
- Wake up with Saigonese in the early morningHipster Saigon – Foodie TourDinner with Signature Cocktails tasting
- Street markets and cooking class with Ms. Ngoc Tran, a Vietnamese graphic designer, photographer and local chef.
ELF Travel To ... 