Arrived in Hanoi about a week ago, been walking around Hoan Kiem & Old Quarter eating tons of street food. Crushing the pho, banh mi, and smoothies. I'm not a beer drinker but I guess I should try bia hoi at some point.
Looked for some Columbia clothing, but all the Made In Vietnam shops only seem to sell North Face. Did find one with some Columbia, but only long pants and the sizes were all too large. I had figured it would be the opposite and they'd all be too small, if anything.
It's amazing how cheap alcohol is here. Bottled imports are only like 20-25k, that blows my mind. I do drink cider, so to see bottles of Strongbow at 22k is pretty crazy.
My visa expires on the 29th so I have about 2.5 weeks left. I know I'll fly out on the 28th or 29th from Saigon, but other than that have no plans. Figured I'd check out Ha Long Bay or one of the bays next to it, then head south and maybe stay in a coastal town for a few days, then about a week in Saigon.
Something like:
two more nights in Hanoi
the boat thing for a night in Ha Long Bay or a less busy one next to it
night train down to some coastal town for a few days (15th-19thish)
train down to another coastal town for a few more days (20th-23rdish)
train down to Saigon (24th-29th)
Looks like a bridge between Saigon and Nha Trang
got smashed by a barge per seat61, so I'll keep that in mind.
My interests are good Vietnamese food, smoothies, and outdoors stuff. Maybe a little cultural stuff. No interest in museums, temples, etc. Would be nice to pick up a couple of lightweight long sleeve Columbia shirts somewhere as well.
Have been reading mixed reviews on Hoi An, mostly that it's decent but super touristy. Of course, I'm also reading the same thing about Nha Trang and Mui Ne.
I guess right now I'd default to stopping in Da Nang, maybe with a side trip to Hoi An for a couple of days, then probably Nha Trang.
The more I
read about Nha Trang on wikitravel, the better it sounds. Looks like diving is very popular there, and I just got certified in Koh Tao, so that sounds pretty good. Nearby waterfalls and hot springs also sound like fun.
Was also kind of interested in checking out the DMZ, but looks like that would require a stop in Hue or Dong Ha, not sure I want to do that given time constraints. I guess I could come down from Hanoi, stop in Hue for 2 days with one day of that a DMZ trip, then hop down to Da Nang and continue as above. Looks like Hue to Da Nang is the most scenic part of the train ride.
Taking the train is mostly to check out the countryside, but I'm open to flying as well. If the train from Nha Trang to Saigon isn't interesting, I may just fly that leg instead.
Any thoughts or advice appreciated.