Hi all,

Thank you so much for all the comments and tips on my previous post.
I have now revised our itinerary. I've dropped Laos and added time to be spent in each location.

I would very much appreciate any advice or feedback on our current plans before I start booking the flights. I'm getting quite excited now!
I used the itineraries from 3 agents and put my own together. Many thanks!

Auckland - HCMC transfer

5 days in:
Can Tho
Mekong Delta
Soc Trang
Chau Doc
Ben Tre

1 day? Happy to take this out
Hoi An/ Danag?

5 days in:
Hue
Ninh Bin
Hanoi

3 days in:
HCMC

Flight to Phnom Penh

Transfer to Siem Reap
5 days in:
Siem Reap
Banteay Srei
Ta Prohm
Prasat Preah Vihear

3 days in:
Battambag
Banan
Ratanak Mondul

5 days in:
Phnom Penh

Flight to Singapore
Singapore
2/3 days

Flight to Auckland

We are a family of 6 with 3 children who will be aged almost 5, 3 and 3. Thank you!

It looks too rushed - The best route in Mekong Delta (HCMC- Ben Tre- Soc Trang- Can Tho- Chau Doc- HCMC or vice versa).

I don’t think it looks rushed at all. A lot better than the previous intineries proposed to you. However, the order of some places could perhaps be arranged in order for your trip to flow better and avoid some back tracking.

Being a long thin country Vietnam lends itself to flying into one end and out of the north. As Cambodia is there, it would be easier to fly into Hanoi travel down to HCMC and then on to Phnom Penh. You could even do this by boat from Chau Doc to avoid back tracking through the delta back to HCMC. Ifyour tickets from Auckland will are to Singapore it should be easy to get budget airline tickets to Hanoi and back from PP or SR

Weather - in December the weather should be pretty good in the north and south of the country ( as far as one can they’ll these days) . Cool and dry in the north and warmer and blue skies in the south and in Cambodia. However, Central Vietnam around Hue and Hoi An can get very wet at that time. We once spent a week in Hue in Dec and it rained virtually every day! Hoi An will be better but still a little damp. I love hUe and it is worth seeing but 5 days is perhaps too much especially with children.

If you can swing it so as to start in the north and finish in te south, something like this would work.

3 nts Hanoi
2 Nts Ninh Binh
3 nts Phong Nha Ke Be Caves
2nts Hue/Da Nang
3nts Ho Chi Minh City
5 nts Mekong Delta (Ben Tre 2, Can Tho 1 Chau Doc 2/3)
2 nts Phnom Penh
3 nts Kampot and Kep
4 nts Siem Reap

I have added Phong Nha Ke Be Caves as they are one of the most impressive sights in Asia and I think the children would love it there. There are also duck farms there which were great fun. Battambang in Cambodia is nice and it is on the way to SR but I think we preferred Kampot with its beautiful river location and boat trips out on the river and Kep with its beach and crab market. On balance, I think the latter are better for children.

You can find some photos and more info on our time in these places in the relevant destination section of our blog @ https://accidentalnomads.com

I think the above would more or less strike the right balance between moving around to much and covering the major sights. I would generally favour cutting out a destination and adding extra nights somewhere rather than adding destinations.

As far as transport is concerned, flights map or may not be the options for some destinations but with six of you you could consider hiring a private minibus which could be cost effective with six of you. Also, the train could work well from Hanoi to Hue. It goes through Ninh Binh and Dong Hoi ( for Phong Nha CVes) and Hue. Might be fun for the children.

I'm very grateful for the feedback. I do feel a lot more comfortable with the new plan as well. I will rejig some of the routes around. Crellston - thanks for the tips for where to take the children! That will come in very handy. We are planning to hire a minibus and a guide as well. Flights haven't been booked yet I have some leeway.