Vietnam
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10 Things to know before your First Trip to Vietnam
I think Vietnam is very different from the countries in Southeast Asia. Those who make the tour Thailand – Laos – Cambodia – Vietnam are perhaps a little shocked when they come to Vietnam, after having visited the 3 other countries, because Vietnam has NOTHING to do with these 3 countries indeed. Vietnam isn’t a Buddhist country! while the 3 other countries are Buddhist, hence the cultural difference. I am Vietnamese and objectively, after visiting the 4 countries, I can say that the most beautiful landscapes are in Vietnam. The landscapes are so varied, we have such a culinary richness that Vietnam is really a must see destination. To minimize…
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Itinerary Vietnam: 3 weeks, Budget & Advice
Recommended itinerary I have already written an article about the beautiful landscapes of Vietnam here. Here is the itinerary that I recommend if you want to visit Vietnam in 3 weeks. The destinations are rather touristic, but I assure you, even the Vietnamese go there. Some new popular local destinations are Co To, Binh Lap, Binh Ba… but Vietnamese people rent a car to go there, or pay an agency to get there, there is no open bus for that yet. The links go back to my travel diaries.The links to the bus or train schedules refer to the site 12go.asia, a very famous Singaporean site.Although it is a very…
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Prepaid 4G SIM card in Vietnam: how much does it cost? Where to buy it?
Why should I buy a SIM card in Vietnam? Because you need the Internet to order your Grab (equivalent of Uber in Vietnam)Tourist agencies tend to call you to confirm the imminent arrival of your bus / any change related to your trip. Vietnamese telephone operators Viettel MobiFone VinaPhone Vietnamobile Viettel is the operator Irecommend if you can find a SIM card from this operator at the airport because it is the only one for the moment (2018) to offer a very good 4G service. It belongs to the army so the infrastructure is better, you can get better reception.Other operators offer 3G, and are just starting to deploy 4G.…
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Da Nang (Vietnam): Visit of Ba Na Hills, Golden Bridge, Nui Than Tai
During our stay in Hoi An, my parents came to visit us and we went to Da Nang together. Da Nang is the most promising city in Vietnam at the moment. Located between the ocean and the mountains, Da Nang offers many tourist activities. In addition, its beautiful beaches several km long, its high-speed Internet connection, its airport not far from the city center, its abundant and juicy food, its international fireworks competition, and its many job opportunities are attracting more and more talents, who prefer to leave the polluted cities like Ha Noi or Ho Chi Minh City. If you ever take a plane to Da Nang, choose a…
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Hoi An Travel Guide (Vietnam): What to visit, When, Budget, Transportation, Money…
After a month spent in Hoi An, we discovered the best addresses of this pretty and small town. We will share them with you in this guide (long but complete). Let’s get started! How to get there? By train: there are trains that stop in Da Nang, a seaside town 25km from Hoi An. Then you can take an Uber/Grab (more info about Grab here) to Hoi An (for about 270,000VND). Use our code GRABTOURDUMONDE for a 1st free ride By plane: the nearest airport is also in Da Nang. If you take the plane, sit near the window, the landscapes are breathtaking From the airport, there are shuttles to…
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Travel Guide to Custom Clothing and Tailoring in Hoi An (Vietnam)
If you fell in love with custom-made clothes in Hoi An, know that you aren’t alone! Hoi An is very famous for its tailors. They are everywhere, you can’t miss them! The prices being very affordable, it is difficult to resist. It is also a great experience to have clothes specially designed for you. For JB, it was a first. The particularity of Hoi An is its express service: a custom-made garment in 24 hours, this allows us to answer the orders of tourists who stay only 2 or 3 days. Usually, in Ha Noi, I have to wait a month, if the dressmaker wants to take care of my…
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A jump into the past in Hoi An (Vietnam): Travel Diary
After Ha Noi, it is in Hoi An that we decided to settle for a month. But don’t worry, you can do everything we did below in 2 days 😀 Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary How to go to Hoi An? We chose to fly from Ha Noi to Da Nang (75€/person checked luggage included with VietJet Air), then a cab from Da Nang airport to Hoi An (300,000VND a 4-seater car). Our hotel As the city is very small, most tourists stay only one or two nights. So, with our 25 booked nights, all the hotels gave us sick discounts, and we…
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Travel Guide of Phong Nha – Ke Bang: What to visit, prices, budget, transportation, scooter…
We have just spent 4 WONDERFUL days in Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park. As the information about this park isn’t up to date (even in the tourist guides), because of the inflation in Vietnam and the tourist services in this area, here is MY guide, updated in March 2018 I STRONGLY recommend you to go there, even if you have to skip Ninh Binh or Hue’. Honestly, even as a Vietnamese and having travelled my country from North to South several times, Phong Nha remains one of my top destinations in Vietnam, which I will not tire of (just like Sa Pa, Da Lat and Hoi An) How…
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The National Park of Phong Nha – Ke Bang (Vietnam): Discovering the most beautiful caves of the country
Phong Nha Park has long been famous for its beautiful caves, but it is from 2009, thanks to the discovery of the largest cave in the world “Sơn Đoòng”, that tourist services are as accelerated. Now it is very easy to get to Phong Nha. Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary How to get there We took a bus from Hoi An. A minibus comes to pick us up at the hotel at 1:30 pm to drop us in front of a big bus (with bunks) which leaves at 2 pm and arrives at 10 pm in Phong Nha. On the way, we change…
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Gánh Hàng Rong – The mobile boui boui in Vietnam
Sitting on a 10cm high plastic chair in the street, I am eating one of my favorite desserts in Hoi An when a group of French tourists pass by. They are both intrigued by my dessert, which looks like an uncooked tofu, and by the size of the chairs, which is as small as a brick.If these chairs are so small, it is because they allow the saleswoman to store everything in her two baskets, each hanging on a long bamboo stem, and “walk” her boui boui from one street to another. The Vietnamese call this kind of walking boui boui, and ephemeral, “Gánh Hàng Rong”.Gánh Hàng Rong, the name…
