crellston

Yes, I went to one of the full moon festivals in Hoi An a few years ago. It was pretty impressive with lots of lanterns floating down the river for and hour or so as well as dancing and street theatre. They also dress up the shops and restaurants with lanterns etc.. If you are going to HA and can swing it to be there at Full Moon time then it is the best time to go. Do book a restarant by the river in advance ( although, we arrived in town purely by chance and found a great place without too much trouble).

pattyroth

Thanks, thursdaysd! We will probably add one day and night to SR. Not absolutely positive yet. And thanks crellston! That is helpful about the Full Moon festival. Then I talked to my cousin Bobby who has been to Vietnam two times and loved Hoi An, staying 4 days their second visit. So now I am thinking I will change things to cut a day short from Hanoi to be able to arrive in Hoi An the day of the Full Moon Festival for October. Hate to miss Hanoi one day but would like to see Hoi An and especially that night.
So right now I am thinking:
Hanoi one night
Sapa--four nights including the two train nights, allowing time to do a day trek there and Bac Ha
Market (timed to arrive on Sunday morning and drive straight to the Bac Ha Market)
Hanoi --two days and nights
Hoi An--two nights--timed to hit the Moon Festival
Laos_ 4 nights with some day trekking
Siem Reap--4 nights
Phnom Penh--just for the day, leaving at 11:30 PM for home--through Seoul.

pattyroth

Anyone try the Le Sen Boutique Hotel in LP?
I think we will try to stay at Elegance Diamond or Ruby in Hanoi.
Thai Binh Sapa Hotel or Sapa Garden B and B in Sapa
Maybe Ving Hung Merchants House in Hoi An
Laos LP: Apsara or any other suggestions?
Siem Reap: not sure.

Any other suggestions????

crellston

Patty I have only stayed at Ving Hung Merchants House and Apsara. Be aware that There are 3 Vinh Hungs in HA, the merchants house in teh centre is the original. We like it there as it is very atmospheric but it could be a little dark for some. Great location as it is the only hotel actually in the centre of town.

The Apsara in LP is a nice place just one block from the Main Street ( important if you want to get up at 5 am for the alms procession - highly recommended). It is a boutique type place with good food and is, or at least was, great value. The 3 nagas is also excellent, but I have a feeling it has now been bought by a big hotel group and is now v. Expensive.

SR is awash with hotels so it must be difficult to choose. The first time we stayed at the Foreign Correspondents Club which was very cool and trendy ( perhaps a bit too cool!) the next time was at Peace of Angkor, cheap and cheerfull but good value and great for photographers as they run specialist trips ( the owner is a photographer)

thursdaysd

Last time I visited LP I stayed here: http://www.villa-senesouk.com/

Nice place right on the main street at the quieter northern end. The place I stayed in SR has closed.

pattyroth

So I wrote my first email request to Tonkin. We'll see where this goes now. Also think I want to do a photography "tour" one day in Siem Reap with Angkor Wat. Has anyone done that before? Seems like a way to get to the better areas for photos.

pattyroth

And I forgot to say THANKS again to crellston and thursdaysd. Your thoughts and ideas are so helpful to me.

pattyroth

Just heard back from Tonkin--not even 12 hours! They are suggesting Halong Bay over the 2 nights in Hanoi, but I am thinking that Hanoi would be better. Does that seem to fit?

thursdaysd

If you only have two nights for Hanoi, absolutely do Hanoi in preference to Halong Bay. No contest.

pattyroth

Thanks thursdaysd. That was my inclination and now you have confirmed it!

Friendship_Bay

If you haven't already booked in LP, you might want to check out the Mekong Riverview. We were here for 5 nights in Feb, and thought it was very good...central but quiet and very well-managed

pattyroth

WE have not yet booked there Friendship_Bay and I will check it out. Thanks!

pattyroth

I just checked on TripAdvisor and there are no rooms available on any dates that I tried! Hope Tonkin has other options.

pattyroth

Plans are coalescing with Tonkin. Have to decide about the touring parts--book a few days with them or go it ourselves? Also they suggest 3 nights in Hoi An, but I am thinking 2 and reserve the other one for Hanoi. Flights are ending up more expensive than I thought! Between Hanoi and Danang, back to Hanoi to Luang Prabang, LP to Siem Reap, and SR to PP. Have contacted photographer Eric DeVries about a possible photo day in SR.

thursdaysd

So take the night train between Hanoi and Danang, and the bus from SR to PP. I would book Sapa ahead, probably do the rest on the ground.

crellston

I agree with Thursdaysd suggestions. Train travel is really cheap and a great experience. I would suggest getting a cable lock to secure bags whilst on board. We have only taken a few flights in Vietnam as mostly we travel overland, but those we did seemed a lot cheaper by buying at the various Vietnam Air offices around the country. The only problem we had was trying to book tickets during Tet which was a) stupid and, b) nigh on impossible!

The bus from SR to PP is a good service but do take earplugs unless of course you are really into Cambodian pop music..

Booking on the ground is simple as any hostel and most hotels will book tickets etc. for Ou at short notice and with minimum fuss.

pattyroth

Good ideas, Crellston and thursdaysd, but I do worry about the time element some. Certainly would eat up our time to take the train. I'll look into that more, but I think i feel a little time pressured since I noticed one of the hotels we wanted was already booked for our dates. When I told the TA, she said she had already reserved it for us (thankfully) knowing they could use it for someone else if we didn't want it. It's not that we can't afford the flights, it's just that I like to be economical!

First I leaned towards 3 nights in Hanoi and 2 in Hoi An and then I've switched! I realize we have a busy pace and the quieter town to wander and photograph might be nice after Sapa and Hanoi. Has anyone taken the Sapaly train 2 berth cabin? I have heard that none of the trains are any better than others.

thursdaysd

Actually, taking the night trains will <i>save</i> you time - day time, sightseeing time. Have you considered how long it takes - aside from actual flying time - to fly anywhere? You will also save hotel nights.

Note that the night train to/from Sapa is not very comfortable regardless of which carriage you are in (the different "trains" are actually different carriages attached to the same train) - the tracks aren't very good. The trains between Hanoi and Saigon are better. See http://www.seat61.com/Vietnam.htm for details on which one to take.

Hoi An is not particularly quiet. It is fully of shopping tourists.

pattyroth

LOL! about the shopping tourists! I'll check out the other trains. I was thinking that they would be equally uncomfortable and we do need sleep. But it seems you are saying they are better.

thursdaysd

patty - I have ridden a lot of night trains (see http://wilhelmswords.com/rtw2004/ ) but the train to Sapa was my second worst night train ever. (The worst was sitting up for 24 hours on a Thai train in third class....) I was in a Livitrans carriage, and the ride was so bad I did wonder whether they had coupled it wrong. It was a bit better coming back. The trains on the main line between Hanoi and Saigon are much better. Read the seat61 link and you'll get info on buying tickets and which trains have more comfortable carriages.