A three-week Vietnam Travel Itinerary 2022

We were lucky enough to spend three weeks in Vietnam recently and had such an amazing time. We had just come from Laos, so we started out journey in Hanoi and travelled South before ending in Ho Chi Minh City. However, if you would prefer to do the South first then you can easily just reverse this route.

Our Route

Hanoi

2 nights

We arrived in Hanoi early morning. The city is very busy and most likely one of the first things you will notice is just how much traffic there is everywhere. Crossing the road in Hanoi can be quite a challenge. There is plenty to do in Hanoi, but we believe you can do most of it with just two nights.

Things to do

Cat Ba (Halong Bay)

3 nights

We actually headed to Halong Bay for a night before moving onto Cat Ba and kind of wish we had just gone straight there instead. Halong Bay is actually a very built up area and a tourist haven for Vietnamese tourists, which meant it was extremely busy. Instead, we would suggest either going straight to Cat Ba from Hanoi or jumping on a tour that will take you there with all activities included.

Things to do

Ninh Binh

2 nights

We had accommodation booked in Ninh Binh city centre, but when the coach dropped us off in Tam Coc Ninh Binh instead (a beautiful town a bit further out) we decided to cancel that and stay there instead. We are glad we did as it was far less busy than the city centre and meant we were close to all the tourist attractions.

Things to do

Night bus to Phong Nha

1 night

The night bus from Ninh Binh to Phong Nha was around 7 and a half hours and left at 9pm. This meant we got into Phong Nha at about 4:30am which wasn’t ideal, but the Central Backpackers Hostel, where the coach stops, has a 24 hour desk, so we were able to get into a room and go back to sleep which was nice.

Phong Nha

2 nights

Phong Nha is a very quaint village with not a lot of restaurants and bars, but it definitely makes up for it in beautiful scenery and plenty to do.

Things to do

Hue

2 nights

Hue is a very vibrant city and was far less stuffy than Hanoi in our opinion. However, it does seem to be quite a bit more touristy, so be prepared to be hassled on the streets and down the rivers constantly.

Things to do

Hai Van pass (Leave Hue at 8:30am. Arrive in Hoi An around 5pm by motorbike)

The Hai Van Pass is a beautiful mountain road that has stunning views of the surrounding areas. It was made famous by Top Gear when they did their Vietnam special and ever since tourists have been making the journey themselves on motorbikes. The Hai Van Pass is found in between Hue and Da Nang. Often people decide to end (or begin) in Hoi An instead though, which is what we did.

You can hire the motorbikes from a company or hostel that will arrange your bags to be taken onwards for you. Or you can take an easy rider option, where someone else rides the bike for you, so you can just sit on the back and admire the views. There is a third option of hiring a van service that will transport both you and your luggage and will stop off at various points for you to explore.

If you want to find out more about how we did the Hai Van pass then read our blog about it here.

Hoi An

3 nights

Hoi An is a beautiful seaside city in Vietnam. It provides both vibrant and busy vibes that a city usually has to offer, whilst also having a quieter beach front area if you travel towards the sea. We arrived in Hoi An at around 6pm after doing the Hai Van Pass, so we were pretty tired. This is why we suggest around 3 nights in Hoi An, so that you can really explore.

Things to do

Night bus to Dalat

1 night

From Hoi An to Dalat it will be around a 14 hour night bus. We left Hoi An at around 6pm and arrived in Dalat around 7:30 am, which was quite a nice time to arrive.

Dalat

2 nights

Dalat is a mountainous town in Vietnam where the average temperature is around 21 degrees. This was quite a shock to us as we had clearly started acclimatising to the hotter weather and found this to be quite cold. Remember to pack your jumper and trousers for here.

Things to do

Ho Chi Minh City

3 nights

The journey from Dalat to Ho Chi Minh City is around 7 hours long. This is why we actually decided to take a day sleeper coach, as we didn’t want to arrive in the city at an ungodly hour, like 4am. We choose to take the 10:30am coach, which got us in around 6pm. If I was to do it again, I think we would have chosen to leave around 8:30am instead, so that we got into the city before it got dark and could spend most of the afternoon there too.

Things to do: