hi there, i am drafting an itinerary for my husband, myself and 16 year old son to visit vietnam and cambodia July this year (13th to 29th july). so far I have: arrive HCMC and have 4 nights there. then train to Mui Ne for 4 nights. then back to HCMC for a night before heading to Siem Reap - don't think it's possible to go direct from Mui Ne to Cambodia? don't really want to go back to HCMC though...but may have to fly or I think there is a bus overnight from HCMC to Siem reap - not sure if anyone has done that?

Then couple of nights at least seeing the Temples in Cambodia and then back to HCMC or direct to Mekong Delta. Don't want to be going back and forth but it seems that HCMC is the best bet as a base? I have heard that Koh rong island is lovely in cambodia but think travelling there would take time and I don't want to spend the trip travelling too much. any advice would be most welcome. I have heard that there are organised tour operators that could help but I usually like to do our own itineraries. many thanks for reading and helping me put some more meat on the bones of this rough intinerary.

I haven't been to Viet Nam yet, but I spend 3 delightful weeks in Cambodia, including one night on Koh Rong. It was lovely, but yes, getting there is not a trivial matter. Not impossible, but I think you'd have to really want to see it to fit it in.

I had a serious interest in the temples of Angkor, and so spent 8 full days in and around Siem Reap. IMO, even a cursory visit is best with 3 days (4 nights) -- one day each for the "small" and "grand" circuits; one day for the wonderful museum in Siem Reap and whatever else you choose to do there --- visit a "floating village," roam the markets, see how rats are trained to detect land mines at APOPO (an incredible undertaking, IMO), maybe one or two of the temples not included in the two main circuits (Banteay Srei is truly lovely), ...

I didn't write a trip report per se, but I did enter some notes about my time in that country that you might find useful:
Finally, Cambodia!

Enjoy your time in this fascinating part of the world!

I think you could streamline your trip somewhat and yet see more of that part of the world without compromising too much. Mum Ne is an outlier in your plan and frankly, would not be high on my list of places to include especially as it is the wet season.

I would suggest a route from Saigon to Siem Reap overland through the Mekong Delta e.g.
Saigon
Can Tho ( for Cao rang floating market)
Chau Doc ( Sam Mountain/ Tra Su submerged forest etc…)
fast boat to Phnom Penh
Siem Reap
fly to Saigon

if you really wanted time on the beach then I would look at one of the Cambodia islands from PP., but again, the weather?

You can consider doing your beach time in Danang/ Hoian instead of Mui Ne beach (Fly Danang to Siem Reap).

Thank you all for your feedback and it has been really helpful - i have managed to readjust the itinerary and have decided to leave out Mui Ne and do something along the lines of:

4 nights HMC then 2 night/3 day trip on Mekong with speedboad into Cambodia. then 4-5 nights on Cambodian island - still working out which one! Then flight to Siem Reap for about 3 days and then fly back to HMC.
thanks again for taking the time to reply.
Lisa

Must you fly back to HMC? IME, it's rarely efficient to back track if you can avoid it. If you haven't already done so, check for "open jaw" flight options by selecting "multi-city" on your flight search engine.

The Cambodian islands are very different. Koh Rong is the party island for backpackers, Koh Rong Samloem or Koh Tonsay (aka Rabbit Island) are more laid back. All take time to get to and from and the sea crossings may be a little rough at that time of year. An easier alternative might be Kampot, a very nice riverside town just a couple of hours from PP. Close by are Bokor NP, Kep and the salt fields (all worth visiting). If it is still there, Rikitikitavi is a great place to stay and eat.

our return flight is from HMC so yes we must back track. we booked return flights to HMC a while ago and they are non changeable.

Funny, I didn’t find Koh Ring to be a party island. I suppose it depends on where you stay. And while I enjoyed Kampot, I wouldn’t have thought it a substitute for an island experience. I didn’t stay at Rikitikitavi when there — it seemed a mecca for backpackers.

Flights are cheap from PP to Saigon and it only takes an hour so it’s no big deal. In any case, PP is not a major hub so there will be few open jaw options

I said it was an alternative to an island stay not a substitute. Strange how people perceive different places. I have stayed at Rikitikitavi a few times with never a" backpacker " in sight.Each to their own...

It seems to me that there are many reasons why different people could have different experiences of a place. For example, we might have visited them at different times of year or different years. (I was in Cambodia in December of 2023). FWIW, a number of people with whom I spoke said that tourism (who and how) had changed dramatically between the pre-COVID days and more recent times. I don't know if that's true; I'm just reporting what people told me.

More to the point, I think one advantage of forums like this one is that people get to hear from a variety of other travelers, each of whom travels in his/her own way.