TimeToEarnMiles

Hi - Flying into SGN in July and spending 5 full days in Vietnam (I know, not enough time). Can anyone recommend a beach town/area that we should stay in for 2 - 3 days. We're going to split time between SGN and another city for relaxation.

I know there's tons of sites that have reco's, but would rather take the advice of my fellow Flyer Talk'ers.

Thanks!

havepointswilltravel

Da Nang (DAD) has many beach resorts ranging from expensive to dirt cheap.
IC, Hyatt Regency and Pullman are some good ones. For real quiet beach time , the IC is your best bet. Over 20 daily flights from SGN.
Train is 17 hours o/w.

dragonmp11a10

Recommend Nha Trang, has some incredible waters for snorkeling or scuba diving. Also, some of the best seafood.

If you feel like splurging, then stay at Vinpearl (it's on its own island!).

Last recommendation: always negotiate/haggle prices.

Diplomatico

Another thumbs up for Da Nang. Great beaches, nice relaxed vibe, good variety of options for sightseeing and dining/drinking. Fast free wifi pretty much everywhere.

yurtripper

Personally I didn't care much for Nha Trang. When I was there it was full of noisy brits getting boozed up on lager and eating chips (fries). To avoid this you can go away from the main drag (Van Don?) down towards the Diamond Bay area. The university area to the north of the city is peaceful too, though you don't have the classic beaches there.

Hoi An was much nicer but this isn't really a beach resort area like Nha Trang, so that might not work for you.

sandy86

Phan Thiet is good choice and not far from HCMC, you can take train or car. For other places as Nha Trang or Phu Quoc it is better to have much time there to worth for flights

dinhoecotour

There are 2 beaches near HCMC such as Vung Tau beach and Mui Ne beach but Mui Ne is better.

Cheers,
DinHo

TimeToEarnMiles

Thanks for all of the great suggestions. I don't mind paying for another flight to get to a great destination. Has anyone been to all of the recommendations? Out of Da Nang, Nha Trang, Hoi An or Phu Quoc, which is the best in your opinion?

dragonmp11a10

That's a relative question, which will result in a relative answer... it depends on what your preferences are (beautiful beaches/waters, great seafood/cuisine, other entertainment/nightlife, etc).

For me I like a balance of all the above, and then some. That's why I recommended Nha Trang. Indeed, it is popular with tourists (lots of Europeans & Russians) but I personally didn't have any issue with that the 2 times I was there (most recently Dec 2015).
Nha Trang even has several mud bath spas, I recommend the Thap Ba Spa... it was simply an awesome experience. Splurge a little and get a VIP package that comes with a private hut, private mud bath, private hot spring and massage.

So from my perspective, the order of recommendation would be: Nha Trang, Da Nang, Phu Quoc, Hoi An.

BTW, it seems that Phu Quoc has an incredible hotel award redemption sweet spot: JW Marriott Phu Quoc. Check out this FrequentMiler review: http://frequentmiler.boardingarea.co...iott-phu-quoc/
I doubt it'll stay a Cat 5 for long.

Enjoy your VN trip!

TimeToEarnMiles

Thanks so much for your feedback. We're definitely into nice resorts/waters. We'll look more into Nha Trang.

We were considering Phu Quoc because of the JW. We're big fans of the JW. We got married at one and have stayed in JW's around the US and Asia.

Such a tough decision!