haminhan0916

Hello everyone! My family is making a plan to travel in Vietnam in late January - early February, 2017. We bring our parents and children with us. We only have one week and wonder which region in Vietnam is convenient for all the family members. We ask this question in some other places and are suggested to go to Da Nang, Hue and Hoian. Do you know any tour of these places with reasonable price?

SusannahT

My recommendation is to base yourselves in Hanoi with side trips to Halong Bay & Sapa. The highway bus to Sapa was very comfortable.

LancasterLad

Try not to travel during the TET holiday and a few days either side.

haminhan0916

LancasterLad, is it ok if I change the date to March?

LancasterLad

Don't see why not. This link might help you choose what area to visit...

http://www.selectiveasia.com/vietnam.../weather/march

susiesan

Where are you coming from? If you are US citizens be aware of the recent increase in the cost of the visa, from $25 to$135 each. For a family of 6 that could make Vietnam a very pricey destination for just one week.

haminhan0916

Thank LancasterLad so much for useful website.
Hi Susiesan, I also hear about this policy but I am not from U.S. Thank you.
Hi Perryluckie, which travel agency did you hire?

joesphlovvorn

If you plan to travel Hanoi- Sapa -Halong, it is better to consider about weather. You should avoid visit those places when storm season comes.

haminhan0916

Thanks. How can we contact them? Is the weather ok in your trip?

crellston

Hamin,

If you can move your dates to March, so much the better. You will not only avoid teh Tet celebrations but will almost certainly encounter better weather throughout the whol country.

With just a week you need to concentrate on one region to avoid travel time eating into that week too much.

Danang doesn't have a great deal to commend it but it is a good entry point for central Vietnam - Hue, Hoi An, the Hai Van pass and marble mountains. Central Vietnam would be my last choice for a first trip to Vietnam.

Hanoi has a huge number of historical sights and you could easily spend your entire week there, but in the interest of variety, I would suggest maybe 3-4 days in Hanoi city with a side trip to for a few days to the beautiful countryside of Sapa or Mai Chau valley or Ninh Binh and maybe a day trip to the Perfume Pagoda. You could consider Halong Bay but it is not one of my favourite places.

Saigon is one of my favourite cities in Asia but apparently is not to everyone's taste. It is very busy and may not suit all three generations of your family. However the Mekong delta will be very nice at that time of year and you could spend 2-3 days there visiting some of the floating markets and maybe even Chau Doc.

Some photos of some of these places from our trip last year on our blog:

https://accidentalnomads.com/category/vietnam/

There are lots of tour agencies in Vietnam. Some very good, some very bad! Choose wisely! We check out a couple on our last visit to Hanoi and were very pleased with http://ethnictravel.com.vn - a mid range company with decent guides and, I would think, would be good for a family trip.

Kathie

Note that the post was an advertisement, not a recommendation. There are a number of well-recommended VN agencies, ones that post ads illegally here are not recommended.

Daisy2203

dont worry, its in Tet holiday and you can enjoy many landscapes such as : Sapa, Da Lat with Peach blossom or Flower festival very nice.From Ha Noi capital go to sapa by train or to Da Lat by air, it is very convinience for you.