Vietnam Travel guide - a must visit destination for every traveler

We are a couple traveling the world as much as we can, whenever we can take out some time from our work life. We make sure to visit at least two countries every year and tick off our longest ever bucket list of destinations. Vietnam is every traveler's dream, even I did not know about it until I became an explorer rather a tourist. I follow a lot of world travelers and was inspired to see Vietnam as soon as possible. We loved our trip to Cambodia so much, that I knew Vietnam wouldn't disappoint us.

Our dream to visit Vietnam became true in Oct 2017, and when I told my friends and family, no one knew where it was or what was there! I was surprised to see such reactions from people, "Is it in Thailand?" , " Is it another name for Burma?" , "You already saw it right, Angkor Wat place!". It was so hilarious, and we felt proud to go see a place where none of my friends had been to! We are a bit different from other travelers of our age... They have the famous destinations as the only places to see in their list. We on the other side want to visit the most unexplored yet beautiful, peaceful places on Earth! When we did our first Europe trip (Read my blog about it here), even my mom thought we'll go to Paris or Switzerland. But we went to Salzburg :) Now you know our taste of travel!

Boldly be a pop of COLOUR in a black and white WORLD... ❤️□□ The part 2 of my Vietnam travel vlog - in Hanoi is up on my YouTube channel. Link in my bio. Click now and watch it □ I’m sure you will love it.. coz we loved every bit of our trip and also putting together these videos for you guys □□ Subscribe to our channel for a new video every week - on travel tips, talks and much more.. maybe some Tamil videos too ☺️ Any other video requests? Comment below □□

A post shared by Stardust Sprinkler ✨□□ (@thekavicliving) on Dec 4, 2017 at 9:54am PST

 Vietnam is long narrow country with so many must see places, right from North to South of the country. Each place is so unique, that you will never feel the same. We could explore Vietnam only for 9 days, and made an itinerary which covered the best part of it. We took it slow at times just to soak in the experience of the locals. 

We started from Ho chi Minh (aka Saigon) in the southern part of the country. We spent 2 and half days there. Saigon is modern and has the city atmosphere. The first thing you would notice is the chaotic, millions of motorcycles on road just zooming around crazily. But trust me, you would love to watch it and see the simplicity in life that they still enjoy! 

Things to see in HochiMinh:
If you are visiting, definitely don't miss out seeing the Night market, walking street, Saigon times square, museums, cathedral, Ben Thanh Market, etc. inside the city. Then plan a day trip to the beautiful Mekong Delta, where you get to ride on a bamboo boat ride, visit the local farms, and have a taste of the local food. We skipped the Cu chi tunnels, but you could go there for the narrowest tunnel experience.  

Experiences in HochiMinh:
- We are foodies and we always research on the best food and restaurants in a destination before hand. We  wanted to try different Vietnamese coffees in the most famous coffee shops there. You could give it a try too! Try the Cong caphe, Note caphe and Trung Nyugen cafe. Egg coffee is one of a kind available only here. You also get yogurt coffee, coconut coffee and much more!

- Go for a good foot spa or a body spa to relax and feel gorgeous too! The service is great and prices are cheaper.

- Just eat the local Food! Try the Vietnamese local food in any local restaurant - Pho (Noodle soup), Pancakes (Crepes), Spring rolls, seafood, and much more. You can check out my favorite Vietnam food here.

- Mekong Delta boat ride and the visit itself was so memorable.

- Nightout in the walking street of HochiMinh is a must do. We went during Halloween and oh my God, never seen such partying ever in any place!

Watch my Travel vlog on HochiMinh and my recommendations for you:

A post shared by Stardust Sprinkler ✨□□ (@thekavicliving) on Nov 11, 2017 at 8:30am PST

Then we visited Hanoi, northern Vietnam which is completely different from Saigon in terms of culture, people, and even food. Stay near the Old quarter and you can explore the city by walk. Don't miss the weekend night market :)
Must see - Old Quarter and its 36 streets with a special theme, Temple of literature, HochiMinh Mausoleum, Hoan Kiem lake, Dragon bridge, French quarter, Dong Xuan market, Train street (train passing through a narrow street of houses), local food, coffee, unique desserts, and much more.

Watch my quick travel guide for Hanoi : 

We had been to the most raved about destination in Vietnam - "The Halong Bay" for a one night stay in a luxury cruise. I would definitely recommend you to visit Halong bay for a memorable experience. The place looks so magical and mystical with thousands of limestone rocks in the sea, like dragons resting under water. 

Watch my travel vlog on the beautiful Halong bay and my cruise experience:

I also visited Ninh Binh / Tam coc River - also called as the Halong Bay on land, which is very beautiful too. The boat ride on the river between the limestone rocks is pretty amazing. It's more than an hour ride and brilliant sceneries to capture. I will post a video on my Youtube channel soon, on my experience in Ninh Binh, including my cycling in the country side adventure.

Still we were not able to cover Sapa, Central part of Vietnam - Danang, Hoi An, Nah Thrang and many others. Hopefully will go back again soon to complete these places in my wishlist :)

Hope you liked my Travel blog on Vietnam trip. Please comment your favorite destination and any favorite experiences in Vietnam. Happy Traveling!
You can follow me on my Youtube channel and Instagram for more updates like my Vietnam shopping haul, favorite food spots.