Vietnam
Vietnam
Limestone bays, lantern-lit old towns and some of Asia's best street food
- Flying time from Mumbai
- Approx. 6–7 hrs, typically via one connection
- Visa
- Vietnam entry requirements — we'll guide you on the current requirements
- Currency
- Vietnamese Dong (VND)
The Southeast Asia trip for travellers who want more texture and less polish — Hanoi's tangled old quarter, an overnight cruise through Ha Long Bay's limestone karsts, Hoi An's lanterns lit at dusk, and a food scene that rewards wandering rather than a fixed itinerary.
Ha Long Bay is the reason most itineraries start in the north — a cabin cruise through the limestone karsts, rather than a rushed day trip out and back from Hanoi, whose old quarter and street-food trail deserve two or three unhurried days either side.
Hoi An's ancient town is where the pace slows further — lantern-lit at night, best walked once the day-trippers have thinned out — while Ho Chi Minh City in the south adds markets and war-history sites for travellers who want the fuller length of the country.
Vietnam combines well with Malaysia or a longer Southeast Asia loop, less naturally with a short Bali-only trip. The e-visa is straightforward for Indian passport holders, and we file it as part of the same conversation where we plan the rest of the trip.
Particularly good for
- First-time Asia travellers
- Food-led travel
- Photography-led trips
- Honeymoons
- Slower, off-the-polish trips
Enquire
A Vietnam journey, built for your dates
Tell us who is travelling and roughly when. You will have an itemised proposal within one working day.
No price listed here on purpose — hotel category, season and group size move the cost more than the destination does. Tell us the basics and it comes back itemised, not guessed.
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Mumbai
HAN
Hanoi
- Flying time from Mumbai
- Approx. 6–7 hrs, typically via one connection
- Visa
- Vietnam entry requirements — we'll guide you on the current requirements
- Currency
- Vietnamese Dong (VND)
- Language
- Vietnamese; English spoken in tourist areas, less so outside them
- Suggested duration
- 7 to 10 nights, Hanoi/Ha Long Bay north to Ho Chi Minh City south
- Pace
- North and centre for a first trip; the full length only with 10+ nights
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- Currency
- Vietnamese Dong (VND)
- Language
- Vietnamese
Inside this circuit
What each country brings to Vietnam
Where each stop sits in the itinerary, and the handful of places within it worth building a day around.
Hanoi & Ha Long Bay
The north — an overnight cruise through limestone karsts, and a street-food capital either side.
- An overnight cruise through Ha Long Bay
- Hanoi's old quarter and street-food trail
Hoi An & Ho Chi Minh City
The centre and south — a lantern-lit old town, and markets and history further down the coast.
- Hoi An's ancient town, lantern-lit at night
- Ho Chi Minh City's markets and war-history sites
Beyond the highlights
Things to do in Vietnam
An overnight cruise on Ha Long Bay
Staying a night on a junk boat among the limestone karsts is a genuinely different experience from a day trip — kayaking and a sunrise on deck included.
Hoi An's Full Moon Lantern Festival
On the 14th of the lunar month, the old town switches off electric lights in favour of lanterns and candles — worth timing a visit around if the dates align.
A Hanoi Old Quarter food walk
36 streets, each historically tied to a trade, now a dense grid of street food, coffee shops and markets — best explored on foot with no fixed plan.
The Cu Chi Tunnels, near Ho Chi Minh City
A preserved section of the Vietnam War-era tunnel network, a sobering half-day trip out of the city.
Cooking class in Hoi An or Hanoi
Vietnamese cuisine's reliance on fresh herbs and balance of flavours comes through clearly in a hands-on class, usually including a market visit.
Eat
Food in Vietnam
- Pho is a Hanoi dish first and a national one second — the northern broth is different from the sweeter southern versions found further south.
- Banh mi, bun cha and fresh spring rolls round out the everyday street-food staples worth seeking out beyond pho.
- Hoi An has its own specific dishes (cao lau, white rose dumplings) not found elsewhere in the country.
- Vietnamese coffee — strong, often with condensed milk (ca phe sua da) — is a food experience in its own right, especially in Hanoi's café culture.
Shop
Shopping in Vietnam
- Hoi An's tailors for made-to-measure clothing, typically finished within 24–48 hours.
- Hanoi's Old Quarter for lacquerware, silk and local crafts.
- Ben Thanh Market in Ho Chi Minh City for a broad mix of goods and a classic market experience.
- Non la (conical hats) and embroidered textiles as portable, distinctly Vietnamese souvenirs.
Who this suits
Is Vietnam right for your trip?
Family travel
Workable for families with some planning around pace — Ha Long Bay cruises and beach stops (Da Nang, Phu Quoc) suit children well, while the big cities (Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City) involve a lot of traffic and walking that can tire younger children quickly. A circuit that alternates a city day with a beach or bay day tends to work better than back-to-back city days.
Honeymoons
A strong value-for-money honeymoon option — Hoi An's lantern-lit old town and a private Ha Long Bay cruise cabin both suit a romantic pace, at a lower overall cost than many other Asian honeymoon destinations. It suits couples who want scenery and food alongside romance, rather than a pure resort-and-nothing-else trip.
Adventure
- Trekking in Sapa's rice-terrace mountains, usually with a homestay in a hill-tribe village.
- Kayaking through Ha Long Bay or neighbouring Lan Ha Bay's limestone karsts.
- Motorbike touring the Hai Van Pass between Hue and Da Nang, one of Vietnam's most scenic coastal roads.
- Cycling the rice paddies and canals around Hoi An or the Mekong Delta.
One way to plan it
A suggested Vietnam itinerary
A realistic starting outline, not a fixed or booked itinerary — your consultant adjusts the pace, order and length once they know your dates.
- Day 1–2
Hanoi
Old Quarter food walks, a water puppet show, and the city's French colonial-era architecture.
- Day 3
Ha Long Bay
An overnight cruise among the limestone karsts, with kayaking and a sunrise on deck.
- Day 4–5
Hoi An
The lantern-lit old town, a tailor fitting, and a cooking class.
- Day 6–7
Ho Chi Minh City
The Cu Chi Tunnels, the War Remnants Museum, and the city's French Quarter before departure.
What we arrange
The Vietnam we actually book
Not an exhaustive list of everything possible — the handful of things we think are worth building days around.
Ha Long Bay, overnight
A cabin cruise through the limestone karsts, rather than a rushed day trip out and back from Hanoi.
Hanoi's old quarter, on foot
A street-food trail walked with someone who knows which stall is actually worth the queue.
Hoi An by lantern light
The ancient town's evening hours, when the lanterns come on and the day-trippers thin out.
Ho Chi Minh City's markets and history
For travellers who want the south folded in — markets, war-history sites, and a very different pace from the north.
Paired with Malaysia
A short flight joins the two for a longer, two-country trip that reads far better than four countries in one.
When to go
Honest seasons, written for departures out of India
Including the months we would talk you out of.
October — this month
22-28°C
North turns dry and cool, south stays warm
November — next month
19-25°C
Cool, dry north — best window opens
October – April
The dry, cooler window for the north (Hanoi, Ha Long Bay) — the season we recommend most.
February – August
Best for central and southern Vietnam (Hoi An, Ho Chi Minh City), opposite the north's calendar.
May – September
Wetter in the north with short, heavy afternoon showers — still workable, and noticeably quieter and better value.
Before you go
Travel tips
- Traffic, especially motorbikes, is dense in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City — crossing the street means walking at a steady, predictable pace rather than stopping or running.
- Bargaining is expected in markets but not in shops with fixed price tags or restaurants.
- Vietnam spans a long north–south distance with genuinely different weather in each region at the same time of year — check conditions for your specific stops, not just "Vietnam" as a whole.
- Tap water is not drinkable — bottled or boiled water is standard practice.
- Modest dress is expected at temples and pagodas, similar to elsewhere in the region.
Questions
Vietnam — frequently asked questions
Most first-time itineraries cover Hanoi, Ha Long Bay and Hoi An or Ho Chi Minh City — trying to cover the full north-to-south length in one trip usually means too many one-night stops to enjoy any of them properly.
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Vietnam packages with real dates
Dated departures — flights, stay and sightseeing already bundled in.
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Let's plan your Vietnam journey.
One conversation, then an itinerary with the reasoning attached — hotels named, inclusions listed, exclusions stated plainly.
Or call +91 81085 31332 · Monday – Saturday, 10:00 – 19:00 IST