annergizer

As requested , I am going to do a quick (?) synopsis of my trip with the you-know-who travel company. We chose YKW because other companies had trips to Laos/Cambodia, or Vietnam/Laos or some other unworkable combination of too many days, and virtually none included Sapa. My girl friend (not girfriend - we are just friends...) and I only had 15 days and so we arranged a private tour, which we structured so that we could be in Sapa for the Sunday Ba Ha market and also to do a day hike into the countryside. Also, we wanted more than 2 days in Siem Reap b/c there is so much to see there.

We arrived in Hanoi, and proceeded to a nice little hotel within 3 blocks of the lake. We had a free day to explore and to also take a cooking course - eh, not so great. The next day we were picked up for our city tour, which included the usual sites around Hanoi and the ethnic museum. We then collected our luggage and were driven to the train station and escorted onto the night train to Sapa. We enjoyed the night train, even tho it broke down and caused us to arrive about 3 hrs later than expected. If any of you choose to do this, I strongly recommend that you spend the extra money and buy out the whole sleeper. It technically sleeps 4, but not if you include people and luggage!!!. For an extra $60, round trip per person, we had the whole room ( use that term lightly) to ourselves, We stored clothing and stuff on the upper bunks and slept on the lower ones. We loved Sapa, esp the shopping! there is a lovely silver jewelry store at the end of town - all hand made. The center of town is filled with tribal people selling their handmade wares. I must confess that I bought SO much that we had to walk to the post office and ship things home.
Anyway, we had foot massages for $6 in Sapa and then set out the next morning for our 3 hr hike into the countryside. Loved it, loved it. Bring money. You will have to buy something from each tribe you visit. I have more cell phone holders than I know what to do with ! But it is in good fun, and they can use the money. The YKH tour company arranged for us to be able to shower and change at the hotel's indoor spa for just a few dollars, as we were taking the train back that evening. The next morning we taxi'd back to our hotel and then were picked up by a shuttle bus for a 3.5 hr trip to Halong bay. (BTW: Apparently North Face brand is manufactured in VN, so in Hanoi, and in Sapa, there are store front after store front selling back packs and winter jackets for ridiculously low prices.) Anyway, once in Halong Bay, we boarded the Dragon 1 and met with our other travelers. We were on a boat with 4 other couples and had a marvelous time with them. We even got to go kayaking, despite the windy day. We stayed overnight on the boat which was plenty. The next day we traveled back to Hanoi and then back to the airport for our flight to Hue.

We loved Hue, even tho it rained the whole day. We toured Emperor Ming Mang's complex, and then boarded our own, PRIVATE, boat to tour down the Perfume river. We stopped along the way to see how bricks are made, thatched roofs are made, rice paper, puffed rice, coconut candy, and rice paper are made. We ate lunch at a very french colonial restaurant with fab service and awesome food ( all included), and then reboarded our boat back to our hotel. BTW - we bought beautiful silk pajamas on the boat. if you do this trip too, make sure you buy 2 sets. I still regret buying only 1.

The next day we were driven down to Hoian, with a stop at a museum to look at Cham artifacts. On to Hoian, which is a small , unchanged since the days of Japanese and french traders to do some .... you guessed it ... shopping. Hoian is known for their silk. I bought a silk robe for me and for my daughter at ridiculously low prices. We also wandered thru the local market, where we had our eyebrows "threaded" and then our whole face! The whole thing cost $20.00 - at least $150 in America. We love local markets where it is all about the market and minimally about the tourists.

Any way , from there we flew to Saigon. We requested, and added the Cu Chi tunnel tour, which is about 1 hr out of town. THis was so interesting, and worth the travel. For those who weren't even born yet, this is how and where the Viet Cong waged war against the American soldiers. They lived in a vast tunnel system, and booby trapped the area with sharpened spikes in holes. It was amazing and left no doubt that we didnt have a chance of winning anything in VN. The next day was the standard city tour. We took a tuk tuk and motorcycle to the Rex hotel for drinks and dinner, as the Rex is where everyone goes for drinks on the roof top. As an added attraction, we had manicures and pedicures in a lttle place by the night market. $10.00.

From Saigon, we flew to Cambodia/ Siem Reap where we stayed at a little "boutique" hotel at the end of town, and within walking distance to the entrance to Ankhor Wat. Thank god they had A/C and pool, as Cambodia is hot and humid. We had a marvelous time shopping at the night market, bargaining and eating Khymer food. If you go, eat at Khymer Kitchen. The food was so good we ate there 2 nights in a row. I think we spent about $6.00 for dinner, $3.50 for wine and less for beer. We took tuk tuks back and forth from our hotel to town $3.00 each way. What can I say about cambodia? The ruins are breathtaking, the carved murals endless, the details incredible. Although by the 3rd day I was beginning to say "what? another wat???" it was worth it. On our final day, we went on another boat ride on Tonle Sap lake and then took a ox cart ride (sounded more fun than it was), We had the rest of the day free, and then flew home to USA that night.

Somewhere along this blog line, we had another private boat ride, but I cannot remember where! All told , we had 3 private boat trips, which made us feel very upscale, despite the downscale prices. I again offer my e mail address (annergizer1216<>yahoo.com) for anyone who would like to see our pictures from our trip

Bisbeee

Thanks for the report. Sounds like you had a very good trip.

Yes, there are The North Face products made in Vietnam, but what you saw where "knock-offs". All TNF products are made for export and not for sale in the local market.

dgunbug

Thanks for trip report. Can't wait to get to Vietnam.

barefootbeach

Thanks for all the details....what hotel did you stay at in Sapa, which train did you take there...and did you feel wiped out from overnight train travel and then catching the shuttle to Ha Long Bay? Did you only stay one night in Sapa?

I'm glad you commented on the Cu Chi tunnels, because I'm planning to skip those but may look into it again. Wasn't sure they were worth the travel time to get there.

Thanks for the heads up about the silk!

annergizer

can't remember the hotel name. We were supposed to stay at the Royal View, but people on Tripadvisor gave it a bad rap. We stayed at another hotel, on the next alleyway, as recommended on tripadvisor. We slept well on the train, aided by a little ambien. They knock on your door to let you know that you are arriving within the 1/2 hr, so you have time to hit the bathroom and brush your teeth (with bottled water) The only way to get to Sapa is on the overnight train. We stayed 2 nights in Sapa. I loved it. I loved getting out of the polluted, busy, bustling, dirty city of Hanoi and into the country. We returned to Hanoi on the overnight train and then were met by a shuttle bus, at the hotel we had stayed at (arranged by our tour company) and drivng to Halong Bay. It is a long trip with nothing much to look at and one bathroom stop. There is no food on the train, so you need to eat dinner before you travel. They do offer tea, coffee and beer.

I thought Cu Chi was mind blowing. You have to sit thru a black and white propoganda movie first, which got a little trying at times, given that America thought that we were rescueing The North from the dreaded COMMUNISTS. Seems they did not feel that way tho. Check out their gift shop while u are there. We skipped the war museum in favor of the tunnels. I think we made a good choice.

JC98

Great report! If you don't mind, could you share what is the total price of the tour? Did you have plenty of time to do and see things, and not feel rushed as in most tours?

What is the website of this tour company? Please send the link to your travel photos.

Thanks!

annergizer

Hello JC98.

Since Tonkin Travel (tonkintravel.com) does private tours, everyone's price would be different depending upon what you want to do. For instance, we booked the whole sleeper car which added $60 pp to the trip. Well worth it. And upgraded to a better hotel in Sapa.

When I contacted Tonkin, they sent me back a suggested tour itinerary and then we tweaked it to add Sapa and the market. I suggest you contact them. They gave us the most places for the least amt of money. AND, it was private. Just my friend and I so we could take as much or as little time as we wanted. However, be aware that we stayed at "boutique" hotels - small, but well appointed and always with A/C. If you want big luxurious hotels, your price will escalate accordingly. But, why would you want that???