We are thinking about driving with a car all the way from Hanoi to Saigon. Has anyone done this lately and how are conditions of the roads. How huch time will it take just for the driving without stops? Thank´s a lot for the help.

Went by car part of the trip. You cannot rent a car and drive yourself. You can rent a car and driver. Traffic is very chaotic in Saigon and Hanoi. I do not think you would even want to consider driving yourself. Many of the roads are not that good also. The road out of Hue to the DMZ is bad,although much work is being done on it. A wonderful country-much beauty in its scenery and friendly people. Driving only with a responsible driver would I ever consider it.

Hello Mary, which part of the road were you driving? What was the average speed you could achieve? Thanks

We drove with an English interpreter and Vietnamese driver from Saigon to Cantho. We drove from Danang to Hue. We flew from Saigon to Danang. Then flew from Hue to Hanoi. I am not sure over the roads you would even want to drive that entire distance. Air Travel is relatively cheap and good. I am not sure what our speed was,but they do drive fast whenever the roads make it possible. Last Feb. was my first visit and will be there another l5 days this Feb. Went with a customized tour people who will plan the trip to your desire with car, driver and interpreter. Their website is www.indochinatours.com So pleased with their service will travel the same way again but going to some different places in Vietnam

eva--<BR><BR>pls fly!! or if u want to stop at hue, danang, nha trang etc along the way, do a series of train- and planehops. lots of flights btwn all these cities, but for both trains and planes u'll need to book ahead or be stuck. i lived in vn 4 yrs and given a choice, wd take any mode of transportation over road travel, whether by motorbike, car or bus. road conditions are ok for that part of the world, but the habits and attitudes of drivers are unbelievable. vn does not require driver education for anything below 100cc, so u constantly face motorbikes shooting out from lanes and driveways w/o checking for oncoming traffic, drivers of larger vehicles bullying smaller vehicles out of their way at dangerous speeds, vehicles crossing directly in front of u in the expectation u will see them and brake in time, truck and bus drivers playing chicken while bearing down on each other (and sometimes crashing off the road), plus the tension and maneuvering of sharing the same lane w/ pedestrians, bicycles, oxcarts and countless motorbikes.<BR><BR>if i were u, i'd take one train segment for the experience (great for meeting locals but watch ur bags at all times), but bring along a flexible attitude--i once cdn't get a flight from nha trang to danang and ended up on a train that took 16 hrs bc of local flooding. other than that, i'd take vn airlines. good luck!