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VN + Japan 6 wks March/April - which order?

VN + Japan 6 wks March/April - which order?

Old Nov 14th, 2017, 11:38 AM
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VN + Japan 6 wks March/April - which order?

Very early planning - looking at air now on points.

I'm inclined to fly from Toronto to SGN and spend 2-ish weeks in Vietnam (leaving mid March) and then about a month in Japan (April).

Or we could go to Japan first and VN at the end.

Weather looks good in VN in latter part of March - any thoughts? Obviously we want to be in Japan for part of Cherry Blossoms.

TIA
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Old Nov 14th, 2017, 01:50 PM
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I'd want to go to Vietnam first, given what you say about the weather there in March. I don't think I would change that opinion even if starting in Kyushu.

Golden Week starts April 28 next year, so you might find better award availability if you are flexible on the date that you leave Japan.

I'd consider an open jaw ticket on the VN end, say fly to Hanoi and return from HCMC, or vice versa.

You could also try a mult-city ticket with an open jaw in Japan, e.g. fly YYZ-SGN-FUKuoka and Tokyo-YYZ on one ticket. Or use Toyama or Osaka airports, etc.
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Old Nov 14th, 2017, 01:58 PM
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Put another way: I would not want to go anywhere north of Hiroshima in March if I could go there in April. Actually, I could say that about anywhere north of Okinawa.
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Old Nov 14th, 2017, 03:17 PM
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I'd do Vietnam first. singapore and southern Vietnam start getting miserably hot in April. Cherry Blossoms will be blooming in April in Japan. I'd work my way north from SIN , then fly home out of Tokyo or Osaka.
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Old Nov 14th, 2017, 09:07 PM
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I can't speak of Vietnam, but if cherry blossoms are your priority, then being in Japan from the end of March through the first week of April on average is a good time for the southern half of the country. Nobody can accurately predict the exact times of blooming until about a month prior however.

I would suggest though that you don't have to only concentrate on the cherry blossoms - Japan has far more if you are interested. Japanese love tulips, and you can find some fantastic places towards the end of April like Huis Ten Bosch in Nagasaki, Umami-kyuryo Park in Nara, Shinrin Koen in Saitama (http://www.shinrinkoen.jp), or the annual Tulip Fair in Toyama.
http://tulipfair.or.jp/fair/en/

Nabano no Sato in Mie and the Hitachi Seaside Park in Ibaraki are also both spectacular places.
http://en.hitachikaihin.jp/

And the shibazakura by the Fuji 5 Lakes is stunning also.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6919.html
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Old Nov 15th, 2017, 08:10 PM
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I'd consult climate data
timeanddate.com

and festival schedules.
JMO.
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Old Nov 17th, 2017, 08:18 AM
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Agree with the above, late March into April is a lovely time in Japan if you're visiting Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima areas...

Definitely avoid Golden Week unless you love crowds and exceptionally high prices...

I've never been to Vietnam so can't comment on weather there.
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Old Nov 17th, 2017, 02:12 PM
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Is this your first trip to VN?
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Old Nov 17th, 2017, 02:23 PM
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oops and where are you planning to go in VN? That can make a big difference in the weather.
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Old Nov 17th, 2017, 04:23 PM
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March is arguably the best months In which to travel anywhere in Vietnam. In April it will start getting hotter, especially in the South. April should be an excellent time fr the cherry blossom etc. Although both places will be peak season at those times. Book early if you have specific accomodation in mind.
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Old Nov 18th, 2017, 02:14 AM
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Thanks all.

yestravel - yes to first trip. Assuming a bit over two weeks so hoping to do the traditional south to north itinerary. Any suggestions?

I think we'll go to VN approximately March 10 for about 17 days then to Japan for a month, leaving about 4 days before the beginning of Golden Week.

I'm going to try to get the flights this weekend then I can do serious itinerary planning.
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Old Nov 18th, 2017, 10:29 AM
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Good idea to go to VN first and got South to North to avoid the possibilty of sizzling weather in the south. We were there 5 years ago (geez, hard to believe it was that long ago!) for about 3 weeks. We did the typical trip with the exception of our excursion from Hanoi to Sapa via car which provided a very different look at VN. Hanoi was fascinating. Saigon came at the end of 7 weeks in SEAsia so I appreciated how cosmopolitan it seemed after other places we had been. HoiAn while touristy I found charming. Hue was interesting and a standout was our day tour with Hue Riders (motorcycles) which we both loved. There is always much debate about the Halong Bay cruise - other than the long drive out &back we enjoyed our overnight there. Mekong Delta was probably my least favorite part of the trip. We used Tonkin travel fo most of our bookings and they provided a couple drivers and couple of guides. Guide quality varied, but the company was easy to deal with. They could usually get less expensive rates at all the hotels we selected. Picking up drivers as we went would have been no trouble. Here's our TR which has VN towards the end.
https://www.fodors.com/community/asi...m#last-comment. Be sure to check out crellston's blogs on VN.

I've been watching the PBS special on VN War so it's brought back memories of our trip as well as that time in history.
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Old Nov 19th, 2017, 01:53 PM
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Air booked for our SE Asia trip! I was able to book Biz Class the whole way (which for non-Canadians is a huge achievement when dealing with Aeroplan). So our itinerary is:

Toronto to Ho Chi Minh City

16 days in Vietnam

Hanoi to Tokyo

4 weeks in Japan

Tokyo to Seoul

6 nights in Seoul


Will post more as our plans unfold - but we're very excited about this basic itinerary
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Old Nov 20th, 2017, 05:30 AM
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Nicely done on getting flights in J. Were you able to get decent connections?

We spent a couple of weeks in Vietnam in early 2016 as part of a Circle Pacific jaunt. The highlights for us were Hanoi, Halong Bay (I know this gets mixed reviews, but we enjoyed it), Hoi An, and Hue. We did not get as far south as HCMC, but we did add a leg out to Luang Prabang and then down to Siem Reap. I'd return to Vietnam in a heartbeat.

Like you, we then went on from Hanoi to Japan. I'll be interested to hear more as you work out the details.
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Old Nov 20th, 2017, 07:44 AM
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AA - surprisingly good connections... 2.5 hours layover in Beijing then onto HCMC and about 3 hours HAN-NRT. Easy flight NRT to ICN and then I took the non stop AC from ICN to YYZ, incurring higher fees but worth it. (fees were about $600 each - not bad for J class and the itinerary)

I had been looking online on aeroplan and availabilities were up and down with many flights combo economy/business (of course the business leg is always the shortest!). I called yesterday and got a really helpful agent and she produced this itinerary that was't showing online. Well worth the $30.

Thanks for your VN highlights - did you do a trip report? Will start a separate thread for trip planning. Best to you two! (Spain next year?)
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Old Nov 21st, 2017, 06:54 AM
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Hi Liz,

You did well on those arrangements, and lucky for you to find a helpful agent.

I did not post a Vietnam report here on Fodors, but I did write a series of emails to family and friends. I'll dig them out and forward them to your email addy. You might find some useful information in there.

Yes, four weeks in Spain, starting on February 6th. Cordoba, Malaga, Granada, Seville, and Barcelona. (Hotels in the first three places and then apartments in the latter two. One of our daughters, her husband, and our granddaughter will be joining us for the Seville and Barcelona weeks.) Then on to Lanzarote in the Canaries and finally home via Madrid.
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Old Nov 21st, 2017, 08:55 AM
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AA - thanks for the emails!

Yikes - better get busy and send our suggestions for your Spain trip - great itinerary!

Best

Liz
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