Vietnam - Itinerary
- Patricia Narsico
- Nov 29, 2017
- 5 min read
Vietnam is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. Vietnam is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, Thailand across the Gulf of Thailand to the southwest, and the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia across the South China Sea to the east and southeast.
*Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam
When I think or hear about Vietnam, I remember the Vietnam War and strength of the people of the country. This is the first country I traveled to alone. It was quite a experience, but I won't change that for anything.
There 10 cities in Vietnam; Hồ Chí Minh City, Hà Nội, Hải Phòng, Cần Thơ, Biên Hòa, Đà Nẵng, Nha Trang, Buôn Ma Thuột, Huế & Vinh. And the city I visit was Hồ Chí Minh City, previously called Saigon. And by god, I fell in love with that city.
Forgive me if I'm not as detailed oriented as my previous posts because I won prize at work that allowed me to travel to any where I wanted to and Vietnam was the first country I visited.
Itinerary
Notes: I will be using (UTC+08:00) Kuala Lumpur, Singapore because I live in the Philippines
Day 1
03:00 PM - Arrival at Mactan-Cebu International Airport (Lapu-Lapu, Cebu, Philippines) 06:05 PM - Departure from Mactan-Cebu International Airport (Lapu-Lapu, Cebu, Philippines) 07:30 PM - Arrival at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines) 10:45 PM - Departure from Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines) 12:20 AM - Arrival at Tan Son Nhat International Airport (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam) 12:30 AM - Airport Immigration 12:40 AM - Luggage 12:50 AM - Headed to hotel (Harmony Hotel) 01:30 AM - Checked-in 02:00 AM - Lights out
Day 2
07:00 AM - Breakfast buffet at the hotel
08:00 AM - Prep for the day 09:00 AM - Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica 10:00 AM - Saigon Central Post Office 11:00 AM - Highlands Coffee Café 12:00 PM - Takashimaya 12:30 PM - Lunch at Ike Ike Maru 02:00 PM - Ho Chi Minh Fine Arts Museum 02:30 PM - September 23 Park 03:00 PM - Starbuck Coffee (New World) 05:00 PM - Walked back to the hotel 06:00 PM - Arrived at the hotel 08:00 PM - Lights out
Day 3
08:00 AM - Breakfast buffet at the hotel 10:00 AM - Prep for the day 11:00 AM - Shopping around stores near hotel 12:00 PM - Lunch at Pizza 4P’s 01:00 PM - Sulbing Cafe 02:00 PM - Saigon Zoo And Botanical Garden 04:00 PM - Huynh Hoa bakery 06:00 PM - Head back to the hotel 08:00 PM - Lights out
Getting there
There are daily flights to Vietnam depending on the airline you want to buy your tickets from. When I went to Vietnam I used Cebu Pacific, but there was not promo that was happening when I bought my tickets.
I highly recommend waiting for promos from your favorite airlines because the airfare can get a bit pricey. The total amount I paid for was around ₱ 6,917.00 just getting to Vietnam.
Means of Transportation in Vietnam
There are several transportation options in Vietnam;
Taxi
Uber or Grab
Bus
Motorcycle/Scooters Rentals
Car Rentals
Bicycle Rentals
Taxi
There are 2 major taxi companies in Ho Chi Minh that I know of; Vinasun & Mai Linh Taxi. Both are very reliable and trustworthy.
According to Vietnam Online;
"In Vietnam, illegal taxi drivers have so many tricks up their sleeve, especially when it comes to foreigners being the customers. The easiest way is to use a modified meter, which runs faster than normal ones; thus allows unscrupulous taxi drivers to rapidly increase the fare. The longer the trip is, the more money they can rip off travelers. In addition, they usually take longer paths, which they call “shortcuts” but in fact are circling around to maximize the fare. Sometimes, taxi drivers can offer tourists some good places to go, just to later on ask for tips. However most of this information can easily be found through post office, maps or from the internet.
How to avoid: In order to avoid this scam, you should get a cab of trustworthy brands, like Mai Linh (the Green Taxi), Vinasun or Taxi Group. Better yet, ask a receptionist at your hotel to help."
*Source: https://www.vietnamonline.com/planning/common-travel-scams-and-how-to-avoid-them.html
And I can attest to that because I used the taxis from both company during my stay there. The meter didn't spike, nor did the taxi driver's complain about anything and asked to add more on top of the fare I was suppose to pay (which is a very common scam with taxis around the world).
Uber or Grab
One rookie mistake I made was I didn't buy a sim pack in the airport or anywhere and in my defense I didn't know my phone would be compatible with their sim cards. If I did buy that I would have definitely used Uber or Grab to make sure that I know the total amount I pay for.
It's pretty straight forward how to use Uber or Grab, it's the same all over the world. Download the app, register and use; the great thing about both apps is that it give tutorial about how to use their interface.
Both apps are available in Play Store and App Store.
Bus
I regret not being able to which their buses their in Ho Chi Minh, mainly because I didn't see any buses pass by the hotel I stayed in.
For more information about the bus system in Ho Chi Minh please click this link.
Rentals: Motorcylce/Scooter, Car or Bike
I was not able to experience using these 3 modes of transportation just because I didn't know how to drive any of them, plus you would need an international driving permit.
If you wanna know more about how to use these types of modes click the links below;
Accommodations
Disclaimer: I'll be basing my chooses through Agoda because I use it in all my travels in terms of accommodation; mainly because if you keep using the site you get more discounts, plus it's convenient.
The criteria I'll be using is the overall rating and number of reviews the place has. Of course this all in my opinion, you can choose to go differently; also note that we did not go to these places, expect for the one we stayed in. And note the photos from Agoda
Below are three resorts or hotels at three different price points
$ - ROU Hostel
Rating: 6.8
Reviews: 84
Pros: It's a good place to stay if you're under budget and it's also a backpacker's place, which means you get to meet fellow travelers.
Cons: There's no WIFI within the place and no free breakfast.
$$ - Crown Diamond Hotel
Rating: 7.6
Reviews: 280
Pros: There's free breakfast and WIFI in all rooms
Cons: It's a bit far from the airport
$$$ - Harmony Hotel
Rating: 8.4
Reviews: 1202
Pros: It's in the heart of the city, WIFI in all rooms, great breakfast buffet, a friendly staff and there's an indoor pool (which I never got to use)
Cons: There are no buses that past in front of the hotel
This is where I stayed while in Vietnam. I would definitely recommend this hotel if you're not really thinking of your budget.
Tips
Here are a few tips if you wanna visit Vietnam (which I recommend you should);
Buy a sim card in the airport or in phone shops (make sure it's the prepaid one)
Use Uber and Grab
Try the bus system
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