My top ten travel moments from Vietnam
I packed a lot within my six weeks in Vietnam. It was such a fun country to explore and I liked my time there.
After my visit, I’ve compiled this list of my top ten moments whilst travelling through Vietnam. I hope it gives you some inspiration on the sort of things you can do in the country, should you decide to travel there yourself.
My itinerary through Vietnam
Before I begin, I figured I’d share a bit on what I did in Vietnam. That way, you know why I’m talking about the things I do.
I flew into Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, following a month in Indonesia. I spent a couple of days exploring Hanoi before I travelled to Ha Giang, a mountainous region in the far north of the country, for the classic easy rider motorbike tour.
After Ha Giang, I returned to Hanoi for a few days, then visited Cat Ba, an island to the east, and Ninh Binh, an area with gorgeous countryside and rice paddies. I later visited Phong Nha, known for its impressive caves, and Hue, a former capital of Vietnam.
I paused for two weeks in Da Nang, a city in Central Vietnam, to do a Workaway. As part of this, I volunteered at an English language school in return for accommodation. It gave me a consistent base from which I could visit nearby attractions, such as Hoi An and My Son Sanctuary.
I left Da Nang to continue exploring the country, continuing onto Nha Trang, a coastal city popular for its beaches, and Dalat, a mountainous city in the Central Highlands. I then finished my time in Vietnam with a few days in Ho Chi Minh City.
My top ten travel moments in Vietnam
In this list, you’ll see the top times that I had in Vietnam. These are the moments where I was having the best time, mainly because I was doing something incredible, meeting great people, or trying something new.
It was so hard to whittle this down to just ten moments! I’ve listed these below, in no particular order.
1. Halloween at our Workaway in Da Nang
Whilst travelling, my sister, Lou, and I spent two weeks volunteering in Da Nang. We volunteered at a school which offered evening and weekend English lessons, joining them at their cafe to help students practise their English.
Volunteering at the cafe was a good experience, not only because it gave me a chance to pause in between constant travel, but because it allowed me to connect with the locals and learn more about Da Nang.
My top highlight of the Workaway was the Halloween party that the school held. This fell halfway through our time there, and there were games, drinks, and plenty of conversation. It was so nice to be part of the school’s community!
2. Walking through Paradise Cave, Phong Nha
I’ve seen few sights that are as breathtaking as Paradise Cave. This massive cave is one of the most popular to visit in Phong Nha in Central Vietnam. I found it incredible it doesn’t make it on the list of the largest caves to visit in Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park; albeit, Phong Nha is home to some of the largest caves in the world, so it’s got some fierce competition!
Walking through a gap in the ceiling and down the steps into Paradise Cave absolutely stunned me. The cave was so large and everything felt supersized compared to previous caves I’d visited, with crazy hanging stalactites.
It wasn’t ideal to be visiting Paradise Cave on a backpacker tour with too many laddy Brits, but even that couldn’t distract from the beauty of the cave. It’s one place I’ll be dreaming of coming back to, for sure.
3. Drinking egg coffee in Hanoi
Egg coffee: what a drink! I’ve seen many people who are put off by the idea of raw egg in coffee, but that’s never been me. The egg lends the drink a frothy, velvety texture which turns it more into a dessert than a liquid.
Some of my top moments from Hanoi are drinking egg coffee in various traditional cafes. These small establishments, now populated by tourists, epitomise the old town and were fun to visit – especially considering we’d have never found them without the help of a tour guide or two.
My joy from drinking egg coffee was so great, it was one of our last stops in Ho Chi Minh City before we left Vietnam for the last time.
4. Diving in Nha Trang
Vietnam isn’t known for its diving, but it’s still got some good spots. Having just completed the PADI Open Water Diver course in Bali, we couldn’t resist heading to Nha Trang for a couple of dives.
Diving in Nha Trang wasn’t like the pristine spots we’d previously seen in Komodo National Park, or like the compact shelves and reefs we saw in Amed, Bali, but it had a charm all of its own. I loved going through the little holes in between the rocks – even if my dive guide had to pull me out a few times – and having time to focus on the small things.
Diving is such fun and I’m glad that I got to experience it in Vietnam!
5. Flying pancakes in Da Nang
Another top memory in Da Nang was when we attended the Jolie Cooking Class. After a trip to the Han Market to buy ingredients, we headed to a nearby house for some cooking. It was just me and Lou in attendance, so we tried making all the dishes on the menu.
The most entertaining part of the class was when we made banh xeo, pancakes made with rice flour and filled with pork and prawns. I love banh xeo – they are so crispy and moreish.
Whilst we were making them, we had a little tennis match, where we hit our pancakes between our pans. Dignified? Not at all. However, it was entertaining.
6. Travelling by mototaxi everywhere
In Vietnam, everyone travels by scooter. Whilst I’m not convinced these are the safest, I can’t deny that the scooter makes it easy to get around and reduces congestion.
Hence, in almost every city in Vietnam, we took Uber mototaxis for short journeys. Some of these journeys were entertaining, like riding through heavy rain at night in Da Nang (not recommended for contact lens wearers). And some of them were so scenic.
There’s just something so freeing about being on the back of a scooter. I felt so much closer to the world surrounding me, with the breeze in my hair and a full vision.
This particularly combined for us on the classic motorbike tour through Ha Giang, with four days on the back of a motorbike. Freedom on the back of a motorbike, plus stunning scenery: how can it get any more thrilling?
7. Cycling around rice paddies in Ninh Binh
Elsewhere, Lou and I took bikes to explore the lush fields of Ninh Binh. Trying to save on transport costs was interesting – we cycled way too far on our hotel’s poor bikes for comfort – but pedalling through the fields was exciting in itself, before we even got to any attractions.
I loved my time exploring Ninh Binh, visiting temples in caves, walking around ancient citadels and taking boat rides through the enchanting Trang An. Visiting by bicycle made the trip simple and fun, and I thoroughly recommend it for anyone also visiting the area.
8. Being gifted flowers in Dalat
Our time in Dalat made a change from the rest of our trip to Vietnam. This city is more temperate than the other places we visited, making it refreshingly different to what we did elsewhere.
Possibly my favourite moment from Dalat was our visit to a small strawberry farm on the outskirts. Here, we drank strawberry juice and ate strawberry yoghurt whilst admiring the view.
Just before we left, the owner of the farm presented us with two bunches of yellow and pink chrysanthemums. They were so gorgeous!
Unfortunately, it was fitting that we couldn’t take them on our overnight bus that same night. We ended up gifting them to our hostel, and I like to think they decorated the lounge for days afterwards.
9. Watching sunset from Cat Ba
Mainland Vietnam only has an east coast, which means it’s lacking in sunsets (as the sun sets in the west). Having just spent a month in Indonesia, which is full of west-facing spots, I’d got my fill of gorgeous sunsets.
However, sunset on Cat Ba was a treat – and not just because it was the only sunset we got in Vietnam. We sat on the edge of the island between two beaches. The vista formed by the orange sky against the dark sea was pretty gorgeous.
10. Eating my way around Ho Chi Minh City
Ending our trip in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s most developed city, was quite a change from the last few places on our itinerary. But I loved it. It seemed like the kind of city which would be a pleasure to live in.
My top highlight from the city was the food tour we took on one of our last nights. The tour was run by students who shared their insights into Saigon and took us by scooter to eating spots around the city. I’d never have been able to find these places without them. There was a thrill to driving through flower markets and cutting through small alleyways in this big city.
After the food tour, we went for a drink at a rooftop bar: the perfect way to end our time in Vietnam.
Conclusion
I loved getting to know Vietnam. As I was there for six weeks, I felt like I saw a lot and developed a good understanding of the Vietnamese people and culture.
These ten moments summarise what I enjoyed most about my trip – although there was a lot to pick from.
Would you like to visit Vietnam? Where would you like to visit most? Let me know in the comments.
