Four Days in Vietnam
October 3, 2022 1:29 PM Subscribe
Sixty something adults arriving Ho Chi Minh City very late on a Thursday night in February, departing Monday morning.
Original plan was fly Friday morning to Siem Reap, Cambodia for a few days, but all the flights are already booked. So what do you recommend?
Should we just hangout in and around Saigon? Or, should we fly somewhere else to see something special?
Urban scenes don't attract so much, we are drawn to nature and history.
Original plan was fly Friday morning to Siem Reap, Cambodia for a few days, but all the flights are already booked. So what do you recommend?
Should we just hangout in and around Saigon? Or, should we fly somewhere else to see something special?
Urban scenes don't attract so much, we are drawn to nature and history.
If you're adventurous eaters, there are some amazing food tours in Saigon (check the top rated ones on Tripadvisor.) Also worth going to Hue to see the temples.
posted by egeanin at 2:02 PM on October 3, 2022
posted by egeanin at 2:02 PM on October 3, 2022
There's a few "Mekong River Delta" tours that you might like. It's about an hour outside of Saigon, they get you out to the islands in the delta and you get to ride those small narrow boats like gondolas. I'd really recommend hiring a guide for the day who'll get a van and pick you up and such.
I really liked an overnight cruise on a small boat we did out of Halong Bay. Some of the boats only hold a couple dozen which keeps things really peaceful and quiet. Definitely recommend that. The scenery is amazing.
Don't miss a Vietnamese iced coffee in those tropical mornings.
posted by GamblingBlues at 2:22 PM on October 3, 2022
I really liked an overnight cruise on a small boat we did out of Halong Bay. Some of the boats only hold a couple dozen which keeps things really peaceful and quiet. Definitely recommend that. The scenery is amazing.
Don't miss a Vietnamese iced coffee in those tropical mornings.
posted by GamblingBlues at 2:22 PM on October 3, 2022
Four days in Saigon might be a bit too long. Check out Notre Dame Cathedral and the Post Office. Buy some souvenirs at Ben Thanh. You can do all that in half a day. There's definitely some history and museums to explore, especially in relation to the war, but you'll probably get bored if urban scenes are not your bag.
Cruising on Ha Long Bay is absolutely stunning. It's otherworldly, especially if you can tour some of the caves in the limestone islands. You'd have to fly to 2 hours to Hanoi and drive 3 hours to Ha Long. It might be tight to fit into your schedule, depending on your travel style.
Hue is a beautiful little city with some nice historical structures and mausoleums to tour, also a short flight away. I've also heard great things about Hoi An and Dalat but haven't been to either.
If you don't want to fly anywhere, you can take a hydrofoil down the Mekong to Vung Tau and hang by the beach for a couple days.
posted by gnutron at 6:10 PM on October 3, 2022
Cruising on Ha Long Bay is absolutely stunning. It's otherworldly, especially if you can tour some of the caves in the limestone islands. You'd have to fly to 2 hours to Hanoi and drive 3 hours to Ha Long. It might be tight to fit into your schedule, depending on your travel style.
Hue is a beautiful little city with some nice historical structures and mausoleums to tour, also a short flight away. I've also heard great things about Hoi An and Dalat but haven't been to either.
If you don't want to fly anywhere, you can take a hydrofoil down the Mekong to Vung Tau and hang by the beach for a couple days.
posted by gnutron at 6:10 PM on October 3, 2022
I recommend setting aside a couple hours for the War Remnants Museum.
posted by grobstein at 6:33 PM on October 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by grobstein at 6:33 PM on October 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
We recently spent a long weekend in Saigon and really enjoyed it but it sounds like our tastes are quite different. . . The already mentioned Mekong Delta day trip is certainly a good option. We did an urban walking tour using a company called With Locals which we really liked and I know they offer MD tour options too. They’re not locally based but they work with and verify everyone who does tours for them so it’s high quality and pretty affordable. The other big day trip is to the Cuchi tunnels for a recreated Viet Cong experience. This didn’t appeal to us either but we know lots of folks who have gone and liked it.
Ha Long Bay is a trip to take if your in Hanoi, not sure I’d recommend it in your case as it’s a 90 minute flight from Saigon and 2 hour drive out of Hanoi to get there, though it is certainly very beautiful.
Hoi An is supposed to be gorgeous and smaller and very touristy but in a mostly good way. We have it on our list to check out next.
You can have a lot of very different Saigon experiences depending on where you stay. District 1 is the financial and foreign tourist core with business hotels and a fine option for a visit (it is where we ended up) but checking out different districts gives you a whole different vibe dependening in where you go. In D2 which is known as the expat area we went to two exceptional bakeries - Breadventure and Micro Boulangerie. As a baker/bread nerd I was wildly impressed with both operations.
In D1 we had such a good time at a speakeasy bar called Snuffbox we went back two nights in a row. It’s hard to find bc you have to enter a building to get to some stairs (this is kind of common even of non speakeasies in Saigon, always check if the address you are looking for includes a floor number and be willing to poke your head down what look like alleys or private hallways). Also there is a Bun Thit Nuong stall opposite the Saigon Center (Mall) that is maybe one of the top five things I’ve ever eaten in my life. Staggeringly good.
posted by Exceptional_Hubris at 8:07 PM on October 3, 2022
Ha Long Bay is a trip to take if your in Hanoi, not sure I’d recommend it in your case as it’s a 90 minute flight from Saigon and 2 hour drive out of Hanoi to get there, though it is certainly very beautiful.
Hoi An is supposed to be gorgeous and smaller and very touristy but in a mostly good way. We have it on our list to check out next.
You can have a lot of very different Saigon experiences depending on where you stay. District 1 is the financial and foreign tourist core with business hotels and a fine option for a visit (it is where we ended up) but checking out different districts gives you a whole different vibe dependening in where you go. In D2 which is known as the expat area we went to two exceptional bakeries - Breadventure and Micro Boulangerie. As a baker/bread nerd I was wildly impressed with both operations.
In D1 we had such a good time at a speakeasy bar called Snuffbox we went back two nights in a row. It’s hard to find bc you have to enter a building to get to some stairs (this is kind of common even of non speakeasies in Saigon, always check if the address you are looking for includes a floor number and be willing to poke your head down what look like alleys or private hallways). Also there is a Bun Thit Nuong stall opposite the Saigon Center (Mall) that is maybe one of the top five things I’ve ever eaten in my life. Staggeringly good.
posted by Exceptional_Hubris at 8:07 PM on October 3, 2022
On of my all time favorite travel experiences was taking Sophie's Art Tour. We visited private galleries, learned about the history of Vietnam through art, and there are things in the main art museum I would have missed otherwise.
If you're athletically inclined, I also recommend checking out Grasshopper Adventures bike tours. That part of Vietnam is flat so the biking should be easy and they can provide e-bikes.
posted by brookeb at 12:58 AM on October 4, 2022 [1 favorite]
If you're athletically inclined, I also recommend checking out Grasshopper Adventures bike tours. That part of Vietnam is flat so the biking should be easy and they can provide e-bikes.
posted by brookeb at 12:58 AM on October 4, 2022 [1 favorite]
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posted by emd3737 at 1:40 PM on October 3, 2022 [1 favorite]