Vietnam: Two-Week Itinerary in the North and South Regions

Vietnam is an incredible country with beautiful landscapes, delicious food and kind people. I’d heard other travelers touting Vietnam as one of their favorite countries to visit, so my expectations were sky high. High expectations for a trip can often lead to disappointment. Luckily, Vietnam met and exceeded my expectations.  

I only had about two weeks to explore this country, meaning I didn’t have enough time to see everything I wanted. With two weeks, it’s best to stick to just one or two regions. Most people recommend traveling only in the north and central regions, but I really wanted to see Ho Chi Minh City in the south. 

Unfortunately, that meant missing out on some places I was interested in seeing. But overall, I was pretty happy with what I could fit into a two-week trip to Vietnam covering some of the highlights in the north and south.

This was my itinerary.

Start: Hanoi (3.5 days)

Although our flight to/from Vietnam was in and out of Ho Chi Minh City, most of our plans were in the northern area. We took a flight to Hanoi shortly after landing in the HCMC airport. 

Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam and a jumping off point for many people exploring the northern region of the country. This area of Vietnam is one of the most popular to visit given its diversity in natural landscapes, colonial architecture and narrow streets and alleyways. 

Hanoi itself is a fascinating city, filled with museums, temples and even the first university in Vietnam. It also hosts Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum where you can go to see the resting body of President Ho Chi Minh. Not to mention the amazing food and coffee.

The most popular place to stay when visiting in Hanoi is the Old Quarter, which holds the majority of the city’s highlights. You’ll want to stay in a central location if you only have a couple days in the city and want to be walking distance to the major sites. If you stay outside the Old Quarter, you can also cheaply take a bus or hire a Grab to get to these locations.

You can read more about my visit to Hanoi here, but highlights include:

• Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Museum
• Temple of Literature 
• Imperial Citadel of Thang Long
• Hoa Lo Prison Artifact (aka the Hanoi Hilton)
• Hoan Kiem Lake
• Old Quarter Night Market
• Train Street
• Art mural street
• Tons of delicious food and coffee (including egg coffee!)
• Bia Hoi corners

Ha Long Bay (3 days)

A common trip to combine with Hanoi is Ha Long Bay. Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the Seven New Wonders of the Natural World. Thousands of small limestone islands jut out of jade green waters, resulting in a unique and gorgeous landscape.

There are a few ways to visit Ha Long Bay. Some people visit as a day trip from Hanoi. It is about a four-hour one-way trip from Hanoi, which is a bit too far for a day trip for me.

Other people visit Ha Long Bay from Hanoi and stay overnight either in Ha Long City or on the national park of Cat Ba Island. The island has hiking trails and kayaking spots and can be a good option for exploring Ha Long Bay without committing to a cruise.

I think a cruise is the most common way to explore Ha Long Bay. Cruise itineraries typically span two or three days and will go through Ha Long Bay or Bai Tu Long Bay. I opted for a three-day, two-night cruise through Bai Tu Long Bay. I think the one-night cruise is typically more popular, but that just seemed too short to me.

Bai Tu Long Bay is technically a different section than Ha Long Bay, but significantly less crowded because only a handful of companies are permitted to operate in this area. It also has more islands than Ha Long Bay proper.

You can read more about my experience here, but highlights of this trip included:

• Visiting a floating fishing village
• Kayaking through the bay
• Relaxing on a private beach
• Exploring a cave
• Water puppet show
• Morning tai chi
• Evening squid fishing
• Watching sunsets from our ship

Sa Pa (2 days)

After our cruise, we headed back to Hanoi to catch an overnight train to Sa Pa. Sa Pa is another popular region in the northern area of Vietnam, known for its rice terraces and high concentration of ethnic groups like the Hmong people. From what I understand, Sa Pa has only become a popular tourist destination within the past decade and is still rapidly developing. We passed a lot of construction sites for new hotels throughout our trek.

Sa Pa City looks like any recently built up tourist town, reminding me a bit of Aguas Calientes in Peru or Mostar in Bosnia & Herzegovina. We actually didn’t spend too much time in Sa Pa City itself because we did a two-day trek with Sapa Sisters – a trekking company run entirely by Hmong women. 

This trek was probably my favorite experience in Vietnam. Highlights included:

• Hiking through the mountains then down through rice terraces
• Lunch at a local house
• Dinner and homemade rice and plum wine at a local house
• Seeing tons of animals and regional plants
• Views of Sa Pa City and rice terraces from above

Ho Chi Minh City (3.5 days)

Ho Chi Minh City – or as the locals call it, Saigon – was the last stop on our trip. So many people told us this city wasn’t worth visiting, but I disagree. The contrast between Hanoi and HCMC makes it worthwhile in itself, but the city also has plenty of interesting sites and day trips.

We enjoyed one last coffee in Hanoi and jumped on a plane to HCMC. The difference between the two cities is immediate as soon as you leave the airport. Downtown HCMC is filled with towering skyscrapers and neon signs, large parks and wide sidewalks. Where Hanoi is small, quiet and feels more traditional, HCMC is bigger, bustling and feels more modern. HCMC has also become a popular expat enclave, and definitely feels like it caters more to westerners compared to Hanoi.

If you just have a short time in HCMC, the best neighborhood to stay for a central location is Quan (District) 1. This neighborhood is in downtown and walkable to all the major sites. Like Hanoi, it is possible to cheaply grab a bus or a Grab if you want to stay in a different neighborhood or see things outside Quan 1.

We spent about 3.5 days here, including a day trip. You can read more about my time here, but the highlights included:

• War Remnants Museum
• Independence Palace
• Ben Nghe Street Food Market
• Saigon Central Post Office
• Book Street
• Notre Dame of Saigon
• Saigon River
• Jade Emperor Pagoda
• Ben Thanh Market
• Cu Chi Tunnels & Mekong River Delta day trip
• Cocktail bar and craft beer scene

I know the itinerary above is only 12 days long, but you’ll need an extra couple of days for transit time if traveling between cities. 

Things I want to return to see:

If you have more time in Vietnam, there are plenty of more highlights in the country to fill your time. I’d like to return to visit a few different places:

• Ninh Binh (north region): also called “Ha Long Bay on land” is an area also known for giant limestone karsts sticking up out the land and sea. I’d like to come back to bike and kayak through these areas and do more cave exploration
• Ha Giang Loop (north region: A popular motorbike tour of the northernmost region of the country
• Hoi An (central region): The Ancient City is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is a popular favorite among tourists
• Da Nang (central region): A coastal city with sandy beaches and the Marble Mountains and a famous Dragon Bridge
• Hue (central region): Vietnam’s capital until 1945 and seat of the Nguyen Dynasty with a Forbidden City
• Mekong River Deltav(south region): Though I got to see a bit of this region on my half-day trip out of Ho Chi Minh City, I still felt like I barely got to see any of it. I’d like to return and spend more time on the river given its historical, cultural and economic significance

As you can see, Vietnam has a lot to see that can easily fill weeks of travel. It was hard to decide among everything, but hopefully I’ll be back someday.

Tips for Traveling in Vietnam:

Safety:

Vietnam is generally considered a safe country. There is some petty crime like pickpocketing. You do need to be careful holding your phone out in high-traffic areas, especially around train stations and in Ho Chi Minh City. 

You do have to worry about scams like overcharging for taxis, food or goods at markets. If you take a taxi, make sure to know how much it should cost and set a price upfront. Grab (similar to Uber) is a bit safer, but there are cash-only options where they may add costs at the end of the ride.

Food:

There’s so much good food in Vietnam. People are often concerned about food safety, but a good rule of thumb is to stick to places that are somewhat busy. Also, make sure the broth is still hot/boiling so you know it’s fresh. 

You can also look up reviews on Google, but a lot of restaurants are not on Google in Hanoi and HCMC. You’ll miss out on a lot of great street food if you try to stick only to what’s on Google Maps. I never had any issues with the food in Vietnam.

Getting Around:

There are a variety of options to get between cities in Vietnam, including planes, trains and buses. Trains will often be faster than cars, especially in the mountainous north. The fastest way to get between cities is plane, but overnight trains can be more fun. Buses are the cheapest mode of transportation.

Haggling:

Haggling is very much part of the culture, especially when buying souvenirs. In fact, I was told off by a local for not haggling over something I bought. If a price is not already marked on an item, a good rule of thumb is go to 10-50% of the amount named when asking how much. It seems weird especially in western cultures to haggle over what amounts to a couple dollars, but it is apparently expected and necessary. Note, this is only when the price isn’t already listed.

Have you been to Vietnam? What was your favorite part?