Originally Posted by
travel_geek
I have 9 days to spend and would like to go to Vietnam. So far I have sketched out the following itinerary:
Day 1 - Hanoi
Day 2 - Hanoi
Day 3 - Halong Bay
Day 4 - Hoi An
Day 5 - Hoi An
Day 6 - Hue
Day 7 - Hue
Day 8 - HCMC
Day 9 - HCMC
I'm more into sightseeing and experiencing the food/culture, less so seeing temples and palaces. Is this doable, or should I change it? I also noticed that there are some organized tours that go to the same cities, should I consider it to maximize my time? I will be travelling solo.
Whether you take tours depends on whether you are a tours person. Personally I think 1 days in Halong Bay is too short (it takes 4 hours to get there and 4 hours back), I prefer Hanoi to HCMC and while I really enjoyed Hue it's mainly about seeing temples.
Hanoi you can see on your own but totally recommend you google "hanoi Kids", these are students who will show you around for free, really good and they will adjust to see whatever you want.
Halong Bay would definitely recommend a tour, suggest Red Dragon (or sister ships Dragons Pearl or Prince/Princess), they go to a less touristed part of Halong Bay, are much smaller and for me strike a good balance. There are some very expensive floating brothels out there and also some very cheap but very nasty options. Check on Tripadvisor this gets very good review and is a inexpensive "luxury" option.
Hue no needs for a guide, you can pick a cyclo driver cheap outside your hotel, Hoi An is more of a walk around place.
HCMC is an interesing place but could be anywhere in Asia reallly. Food is good everywhere but HAnoi and Hoi An probably best IMO.