7 best places to visit in Vietnam
Vietnam was one of our favorite travel destinations for so many reasons. We loved the number of things to do, the beautiful scenery, the affordable prices, and the food. Vietnam was truly Hawsome and should be on your travel bucket list if it isn’t already.
Top places to visit
We started our week-long trip in Vietnam in the northern city of Hanoi. We ended up using Hanoi as a hub to visit many places on this list in northern Vietnam. While in Hanoi we were amazed by the architecture, city design, and number of mopeds. Seriously, more mopeds than you have ever seen in your life!
One place in Hanoi that we truly fell in love with was Train Street. In this small street set on train tracks there are tons of little shops and restaurants. A few times per day at set times a train comes down the street. We went once in the morning and then came back again in the late afternoon because we enjoyed it so much and because we wanted to be there when the train came.
Another cute little place we found while exploring Hanoi was the Note Coffee Shop. This place is unique because all the walls in the entire shop are covered with little positive notes. It makes for a very colorful and positive break from the hustle and bustle of the streets of Hanoi. Additionally, the drinks and service were excellent.
One very popular and worthwhile destination in Vietnam is Ha Long Bay. It’s about three hours from Hanoi, but it is totally worth it. This bay is filled with more than 2000 little islands and islets with huge limestone karsts coming up out of the water. It is a UNESCO world heritage site and was definitely a highlight of our time in Vietnam. The shuttle from Hanoi was only $30 roundtrip.
Another incredible place to visit not far from Hanoi is the Ninh Binh province. There is so much to see and explore in this area from the old capitol of Vietnam at Hoa Lu, to taking a guided canoe ride at Tam Coc, or climbing the 500 steps near the Mua Caves to get a view of everything. We were able to do all of this and more through a tour. We only paid $50 per person with everything included.
After exploring Hanoi and the surrounding areas, we took a short flight to the city of Da Nang. Da Nang is the largest city in central Vietnam and a major port city. Da Nang has so much to offer including, beaches, nightlife, amazing food, cool bridges, and more. Did we say bridges? One of the can’t miss things to do in Da Nang is to visit the Dragon Bridge. You probably have never seen anything quite like it. We know we haven’t.
Another incredible thing to do while in Da Nang is to visit Ba Na Hills Sun World! This is like the Vietnamese version of Universal Studios or The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It is a massive amusement park located about 30 minutes from Da Nang. And although it is a bit pricey by Viatmenese standards it’s totally worth it. One of the main reasons we wanted to go was to see the Golden Bridge. This bridge is a 150-meter pedestrian bridge with two giant hands as pillars supporting the bridge. The bridge overlooks Da Nang and the surrounding area. If you are in Da Nang you should definitely check out this unique amusement park.
Our experience
We had an absolute blast traveling around Vietnam. We went for a little over a week in early June and the weather was warm but nice. We felt safe all the time and it was very easy to get around. Everything was cheap in comparison to most other countries including the tours and hotels. The street food was incredible and often we spent less than $4 total for two large bowls of pho for dinner. I think Nelly had pho every single day we were there because she loved it so much. The people were friendly, but few spoke English outside of the tour guides. We honestly wish we could have spent more time exploring other places in Vietnam, but I guess that means that we will just have to come back someday.
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About Author
Jordan and Nelly
Welcome! I'm Jordan Haws(ome). Thank you for stopping by. My wife, Nelly, and I are world travelers, photographers, and travel bloggers. So far we have been to 5 continents and over 40 countries. Our goal is to travel as much as we can and inspire you to do the same.