Plan

Phu Quoc or Da Nang? Here’s how Vietnam’s two most popular beach bases compare on beaches, culture, cost, and access.

A day-by-day Phu Quoc itinerary covering the north, center, and south of the island, built around a 3 to 4 day first-time trip.

Phu Quoc is Vietnam’s largest island, a beach and resort destination in the Gulf of Thailand. Here’s what long-haul travelers need to know before visiting.

Hue is worth a day trip from Da Nang or Hoi An if you care about Vietnamese history and imperial architecture, and can accept seeing a fraction of it in one day. It was Vietnam’s imperial capital for over a century, and its walled Citadel, royal tombs, and Perfume River give it a completely different…

Da Nang and Nha Trang are Vietnam’s two most-visited beach cities, and both make a real case for themselves: Da Nang for its long, wide sand and easy pairing with Hoi An, Nha Trang for its scenic bay setting and island-hopping day trips. If you only have time for one on this trip, the short…

Packing for a Ha Long Bay cruise is different from packing for the rest of your Vietnam trip: cabins are small, laundry is not reliable, and you will want gear for kayaking and cave visits, not just city sightseeing. The single most important rule is to bring a small overnight bag rather than your full…

October and November give you the clearest skies and best visibility of Ha Long Bay’s karst islands, while July through early September carries the highest risk of storms disrupting or canceling your cruise. Winter is calm but often misty, and December–January is the most expensive stretch of the year due to holiday travel. There is…

A day trip gets you the same karst scenery and cave visit as an overnight cruise for a fraction of the price, but it skips the sunrise-over-the-water and stargazing-on-deck moments that most people associate with Ha Long Bay. If your budget or schedule is tight, a day trip is a genuinely worthwhile visit, not a…

Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage bay of more than 1,100 limestone karst islands roughly 130 km (81 miles) east of Hanoi, and it is almost always visited as a cruise, not a shoreline sightseeing stop. Most first-time visitors book either a day trip or a 1- to 2-night overnight cruise directly from…

Ancient Town, An Bang Beach, the Cam Thanh basket boats, and a tailor order — a realistic day-by-day plan for a first Hoi An trip.