jcasale

We are beginning to think about a possible trip to Vietnam in November. When we traveled to Thailand and Cambodia we pretty much planned our own itinerary (with the expert help of this board) and I plan to do the same with Vietnam. One thing we did in Thailand and Vietnam was to book private guides for certain days and found that they were very reasonable and very beneficial (especially Tong and Ponheary). I am wondering if there are similar "finds" in Vietnam? We will spend some time in Hanoi, Saigon (HCMC), and probably some combination of Hue, Hoi An, Danang, and/or Nha Trang. Any thoughts on those areas is appreciated.

rhkkmk

hi--- you might try the "kids" groups.... there is hanoi kids, danang kids and others i suspect.... google them.... you just take them out to lunch and tip them... no set cost..

we used danang kids in hoi an....

quite honestly if you do your homework you can easily do all the sights yourself very easily... taxis and cyclos are very reasonable....

you need very little time in saigon...

we stayed in great 3* places this trip....look for my trip report or send me an e mail

we loved hoi an the most of all the places.... we did not get to hue--fogged out... hanoi is super too...

bob

jcasale

Hi Bob,
I noticed when I was scrolling through some of the reports that you were just in Vietnam. How is it that you end up scoping out these great Asia places and then we steal your ideas !? I will definitely check out your report. Did you send out pictures? Our computer died recently so I may have missed some. If you have posted them to shutterfly can you forward me the link again? Have to convince Bill that Vietnam is the place to go to celebrate my retirement and our 20th. Pics will help!
Jen

dgunbug

We also spent time in VN this year and used the Hanoi Kids. For the most part, guides are not really necessary, but it was fun having the kids accompany us for a day. If you go to Sapa, you will need guides for your walks, but it is easy to find guides as you go. We were very satisfied with the guides we used at the information center in Sapa. You can also click on my name and find my VN trip report. I'd also be happy to answer any questions. It was unfortunate that Bob was unable to get to Hue as it was one of our favorites. We concur that you should limit your time in Saigon, or skip it if you are short on time.

sf7307

Be sure to look at dgunbug's pictures!

http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...etnam-trip.cfm

rhkkmk

my pics are long but i will send them to you

rhkkmk

my pics are long but i will send them to you

jcasale

I did check out dgunbung's pics and am enoying yours, Bob. The pictures of Halong Bay are helping convince DH that Vietnam might be a cool place to visit.

Amy

HaLong Bay is beautiful; really one of my favorite spots in Vietnam (and sleeping on the boat was the best night's sleep I've ever had.) I don't have any guide rec's, as my trip was so long ago, but here are some more pix if it's not overload: http://travel.webshots.com/album/569832392chwMeC Please pardon the appearance as they were originally slides.

Saigon/HCMC itself wasn't the most exciting, but I loved the long leisurely trip down the Mekong that I took out of Saigon.

JerryS

A true "find" - hung do, henritours.com. A wonderful;, entertaining and knowledgeable young man, and an excellent guide.

Cicerone

I agree that in many places you may not need a guide, esp if you have done your reading and have something like the really useful DK Eyewitness guides. (Sorry Fodors, they really are the best IMO for sights.) That being said, I hired a guide on my last visit to Hue, and I thought she was quite good. I have used guides on and off over the last 30 years of travel, and she certainly ranks up there with some of the best (the bar being set by the wonderful Scale Reale/Conext Rome guides in Italy). I would recommend her:

Miss Thao
[email protected]
tel: 84-983-700 218

I was assigned her by Vietnam Open Tour/Sinh Cafe at http://www.vietnamopentour.com/ and http://www.sinhcafe.com/ which was recommend in Lonely Planet, which may be a good source for other suggestions. Vietnam Open Tour can probably provide you with guides for most cities if you want. However, I would suggest that you contact Miss Thao directly to see if you can just work out your own deal with her rather than paying Vietnam Open Tour as the middleman. She may offer you a better price. I paid about US$70 for a full day via Vietnam Open Tour. It included a car as well as various boats to see the tombs and Citadel. Miss Thao’s English was quite good and her knowledge of the subject seemed very good as well. She took me to back areas of the Perfume Pagoda like the monks’ kitchens and quarters (which I had not been to before as one is never sure where one is allowed in those places, but she knew where she was going). It’s helpful to have someone take you to the tombs as they are located in a rather large area, and some of the tombs themselves are enormous. You can go back to the Citadel on your own as well after a tour and take a more leisurely look. Biking around the inside of the Citadel is one of my most pleasant Vietnam travel memories and I would recco it to you. It’s a little vilage of its own inside the walls.

Lane_n

If you are going to visit mekong-delta you can contact mekongprivatetours at gmail.com
Hope you have a good trip.

jcasale

These are all great suggestions - thanks. Amy, thanks for including your pictures. They are wonderful. This is why I love the Fodors Asia board! Definitely one of the most helpful! And we will likely have another couple joining us so sharing the cost of a guide just became even less expensive.

sf7307

Cicerone, are you saying you spent one day with Miss Thao, and then on another day you rented a bicycle and went back on your own?

Cicerone

Yes. I toured the Citadel with Miss Thao, which gave me a good idea of the layout and the history. I found some of the buildings really lovely, so wanted to go back for a longer look, which I did myself the next day. I got a bike my from hotel and rode over to the Citadel, and after then spent a few hours riding around inside the walls. There are basically no cars, only other bikes and motorbikes. There are virtually no other tourists, other than perhaps when you get to the few restaurants in the southeast area. Tons of great street life, people making incense, funerals, farmers gathering water spinach in their tiny canoes. There are some imperial remains in the middle of the area as well.

Like the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Citadel is laid out in a huge square, with outer and inner walls on all sides. (Unlike the Forbiden City, there is a whole village between the outer wall and the inner walls.) It's hard to get lost, as you just follow the road which goes all around the inside of the outerwall, and make forays into the interior as you want, then back to the walls. A large corner of the northeast of the square is a military base, and you can't go in, so that is another useful landmark for navigating. From the Citadel, you can also ride into the adjacent town market area outside the northeast wall. Traffic in the streets there is not too heavy, roads are fairly wide, and it is quite easily managed, as opposed to riding in places like India, where you can easily get hit (by a cow if not a car).

CFW

Cicerone, As always your posts are great with good off-the-beaten path recommendations. Do you have any restaurant recommendations for Hue? Yes, I know, I'm always asking about restaurants...

sf7307

I agree - thanks Cicerone!

sf7307

CFW, this thread (started by me) might help you.

http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...-hong-kong.cfm