opaldog

Of course, you are right. We would probably fly into SGN and out of HAN.

bniemand

We went to Vietnam in February, last month, and the weather in the north was perfect...mid/high 70s to 80 and no rain. The weather research I did said the temp was typically in the high 60s, so not sure if our experience was unusual.

We used Buffalo Tours for our trip and they arranged a private tour for us with private guides in each city. I figured out the cities and hotels I wanted prior to contacting them, and they made all the reservations and arranged the guides. We stayed 2 weeks and chose higher-end hotels, but I know from the Buffalo Tours website that they cater to all price levels.

You can search on my screen name to find my trip report and read more details. (It's not done yet but I'm still working on it!) We were "on the ground" for 11 days (not including international flying time) and opted to go to Luang Prabang in Laos rather than Halong Bay.

Your original post mentioned you were thinking about keeping it to one or two cities. Most Vietnam tours seem to go to at least five. But if you really wanted to take it slow and avoid switching hotels too many times, I would suggest these three cities: Saigon, Hue and Hanoi. To me those were the three highlights and in my opinion a great way to get an overview of the country. Plus there are good opportunities for day trips out of Saigon and Hanoi to break up your time in the cities. However, we love cities and are city people, so if you're not a city fan you should take my suggestion with a grain of salt!

opaldog

bniemand: Thanks I will look up Buffalo Tours. When I said 1 0r 2 cities, I mean 1 or 2 destinations; vietnam and another country. I am leaning more toward just Vietnam as we don't have that much time. I don't mind moving around, but think more about every few days, depending on itinerary. I will read your report. Personal travel reports give so much information. Thanks.

silverwool

I also travelled to Vietnam with Travel Indochina on my first trip to Asia and was very impressed. We did not only eat at 'safe' restaurants. Our guide offered the opportunity to visit a restaurant down in the Mekong Delta that served 'field chicken', ie rat. That was the only thing I passed on. Tried spider, cricket, snake etc.

However, I've moved on and now prefer to travel independently. Once you get over the shock of crossing the street in Hanoi its a fairly easy country to find your way round in.

opaldog

silverwool: We enjoy independent travel. I don't want to be on a bus tour of Vietnam. I am wondering how and if we can do a combination of independent and excursions arranged either here at home or when we arrive. I like the idea of flying into probably Hanoi and leaving from Ho Chi Minh City (whichever is the cheaper airfare) and using trains to travel the country.

northie

opaldog-for our trip we used World Expeditions. Our first and only group trip but it was small and gave lots of free time and allowed the fuss free great travel on the trains.