30 Days in Vietnam – South to North Itinerary – TREKwithBECK
Vietnam is a beautiful country which I have visited twice now and loved each time! There is so much to see and such a vast change in scenery in each city. It is a country rich with culture and history. Tasty food and breath-taking nature. There really is something for everyone here!
I have travelled the country in both directions now, and South to North is by far the best way to travel Vietnam. This is because the scenery and food just get better the further North you get, so I feel it’s better off to start South, so you can finish off with a bang in the North. However, you can use this itinerary backwards and start your travels off in Hanoi if that is easier and fits better into your plans.
Like all my South East Asia itineraries, this itinerary can be followed after my Cambodia itinerary, in the direction I completed for my 6-8 month trip.
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Visas
You will need a Visa to travel to Vietnam and you will have to apply online prior to your arrival. If you plan on visiting Vietnam on your backpacking trip or as a vacation, make sure to apply for your Visa at least two weeks prior to your expected arrival time. It can take anywhere between 3-10 days to receive the visa.
This is the official Vietnam visa portal, a single-entry visa is $25 USD and allows 30 days to travel within the country. In some cases, you will need to provide proof of onward travel. If you want to travel for longer, you can apply for the 90-day visa which costs $78 USD.
This is just some basic information for applying for a visa for Vietnam, always make sure you do your own research! The prices stated are the cost at time of writing.
How to get to Vietnam
This itinerary starts in Phu Quoc which is in the southernmost part of Vietnam. To get here you will need to catch a flight. From most countries you can catch international connecting flights straight to Phu Quoc, all will most likely have a changeover in Ho Chi Minh.
If you want to start this itinerary from North to South you can also catch a flight directly to Hanoi, which has a large international airport.
I use Skyscanner to find cheap flights for all of my travels all around the world!
How to travel around Vietnam
There are several options to travel around Vietnam, including train, bus, minivan, and flights. If you are short on time, I would recommend mixing up between buses and flights. If you are on a budget or backpacking, the best way to travel around the country is via bus or night bus.
This is the way I travelled around for majority of my travels. The buses are extremely comfortable and even the daytime buses are usually the sleeper buses. Meaning that they have lay down seats, which can also be put to a semi upright position. There are different levels of bus standards in Vietnam; standard/local and VIP.
The standard buses don’t have curtains and the beds are smaller. The VIP buses have 2 types, standard VIP cabin which has smaller seats, but curtains around each side. VIP 20-24 have luxury seats which are much wider cabins, and the buses usually have a toilet.
For longer night-time travel, I would recommend booking the most upmarket VIP buses, if possible, as the sleeper buses don’t make a lot of toilet breaks throughout the night. A little warning that you will most likely be taking a lot of sleeper buses in Vietnam!
There are two ways you can book your transport, while in Vietnam at your hostel or a tour company, or on 12go Asia. I always book on 12go Asia as you can book far in advance and then don’t have the stress of not getting on your desired transport!
Day 1 – 2: Phu Quoc
Phu Quoc is a rather large island located south off the mainland of Vietnam, very close to Cambodia. It is a beautiful island, with great beaches and some unique activities. This island isn’t majorly popular with backpackers and does give more of a resort vibe. It is rather beautiful though and worth checking out for a day or two.
Once you arrive on the island, spend the first day walking around and getting to know the island. Staying in Duong Dong Town will give you the best central location. Things to do on this island include:
- Beach Clubs
- Snorkelling or island boat trips
- Vinwonders – an amusement park fun for kids or adults
- Eat fresh local seafood
- Visit the local markets
- Watch a fire show on the beach
- Rent a scooter and explore the island – there is one main road that runs around the island and the roads are in good shape.
Two days is plenty of time to explore this island, in my personal opinion. You can spend one day exploring the beaches and beach clubs, and the other on a boat trip or visiting Vinwonders.
Day 3 – 4: Ho Chi Minh City
Welcome to the hustle of Ho Chi Minh City! Not being much of a city girl myself, this was place was a lot to take in – and crossing the street is a nightmare. There are quite a few things to do in Ho Chi Minh, however how busy and overwhelming it is, gave it a rather low rating during my travels through Vietnam. Nevertheless, it is somewhere you should go and explore. Two days in this city is plenty.
Here a few things you can do with your time in this busy city:
- War Remnants Museum
- Ben Thang Market
- Chi Chi Tunnels
- Have a drink or meal at one of the many sky bars
- Party on Bui Vien (walking street)
- Shopping
- Visit the Cafe Apartments
Ho Chi Minh does have some rich history and culture, and as confronting as it is – I do recommend spending a day exploring the War Remnants Museum and Chi Chi tunnels. These activities can be completed easily on a day tour.
You will have to catch a flight from Phu Quoc to Ho Chi Minh City. There are plenty of domestic flights leaving Phu Quoc airport daily, for a rather cheap price. Unfortunately this is the only way to get between these two destinations, however the flight is only about 45mins!
Day 5 – 7: Da Lat
Da Lat is a city located in Vietnams Central Highlands. It is centred around a gold course and lake, with surrounding hills and pine trees. This was my favourite place in the south as it had much more laid-back feel. There are plenty of things to do in Da Lat that revolve around nature. From waterfalls, lakes, hiking and canyoning.
One experience I recommend is booking a night or two stay in the Crazy House! That’s right you can stay in the iconic Crazy House in one of the many unique rooms. This is where I stayed, and I loved it. It also gives you free entry to the house and you can explore when there are no other tourists.
Three days will be plenty to explore everything Da Lat has to offer, it also gives you enough time to explore the town and the surrounding nature.
- Visit of stay in the Crazy House
- Hike Lang Biang Mountain
- Truc Lam Pagoda
- Elephants Waterfall
- White water rafting or canyoning
- Dantanla waterfalls
- Take a swan boat out of the Lake
- Alpine Roller coaster – insanely fun!
There are two ways you can get from Ho Chi Minh to Da Lat; bus or flight. If you are short on time, I would take the flight as they start from $50 AUD and only take about an hour of travel. If you are budget backpacking or just want to experience the scenery, you can take the bus.
Buses run essentially 24hrs a day, so there are plenty to choose from. The duration of this trip is anywhere between 6-8hours. You can choose sleeper buses or normal buses for this trip, they will cost around $20 AUD. Both flights and buses can be booked on 12go Asia.
Day 8 – 11: Hoi An
No matter how long you spend in Vietnam, Hoi An MUST be on your list! This is an iconic location with incredible culture, food, beaches and much more. This is a truly beautiful place to visit, and I loved my time here. I have also visited twice and will probably go back! Hoi An is a well-preserved ancient town, cut through with canals. It is famous for many things, but mainly famous for its tailors!
This itinerary has given 4 days in Hoi An, as if you choose to get custom clothing made (which you should), it gives time for these items to be tailored and enough time to explore Hoi An and the outskirts. You can also split this part of the itinerary into 2 days in Hoi An and 2 days in Da Nang, if you would like to visit Da Nang. They are only about hours’ drive from each other.
For tailored clothing, I went to Bai Rai tailor which had great service and good quality clothing, I would highly recommend this tailor. You can also send clothing or any other items back home via the post office. It is very easy to organise, and most hotels/hostels will organise this for you.
- Tailored clothing
- Eat the incredible street food!
- Walk around Ancient Town
- Day trip to Cua Dai Beach
- Visit the Night Markets
- Take a boat on the Canals
- Cycle through the rice terraces
- Take a lantern making or cooking class
- Try Egg coffee – the BEST in Vietnam
- Take a day trip to Da Nang or the Ba Na hills
There are two ways you can get from Da Lat to Hoi An; overnight sleeper bus or flying. The most common way is by sleeper bus, which takes roughly 12-14hrs. This can cost anywhere between $30-$60 AUD, depending on what level of sleeper bus you choose. I chose the basic one (as it was the only option), and it was fine. The journey was smooth, however we only had one bathroom break.
If you choose to fly, you will have to catch a flight from Da Lat airport to Da Nang airport, then catch a mini van to Hoi An. This journey will take 4.5 hours of flying and about an hour of driving. It will cost anywhere from $200-$300 AUD. This will be the better option if you don’t want to be on a bus for 12+ hours.
Day 12 – 13: Hue
Hue is a small town not far from Hoi An full of history and architecture. This is a beautiful place for a short visit, and 1-2 days here is enough to explore the main sights. In Hue you can visit temples, pagodas, Mausoleums, War remnants and even an abandoned waterpark. Hue is much more laid back then other parts of Vietnam, so it’s a nice place to escape the craziness.
Hue is easy to get around by motorbike tour, grab scooters, walking or cycling. So it makes it very easy to explore in a day or two. For more information about Hue you can read my blog on 8 things to do in Hue here!
There are 3 ways you can get from Hoi An to Hue; flying, bus or train. Flying is the most expensive option and will take you roughly 7+ hours with a changeover in Ho Chi Minh – this doesn’t seem too practical going south to go north. Buses or minivans will take you roughly 3-4 hours. These are extremely comfortable minivans are your best option. They also drop you off at your hotel in Hue for convenience. These buses/mini vans only cost $20 AUD. If you want a more scenic route you can take the train from Da Nang to Hue, which will take roughly 3-4 hours and cost $10-$30 AUD (depending on your cabin class).
Day 14 – 16: Phong Nha
Phong Nha – the adventurers paradise in Vietnam! Millions of years of flooding in the area has created some of the world largest caves and cave systems. This makes the area perfect for hiking and caving, and the rivers perfect for kayaking. Although this is a top tourist destination, it is still a rather undeveloped town. But that okay cause you will spend most of your time here in the great outdoors!
You will have to book a tour to explore these incredible areas, and some caving tours need to be booked months or years in advance. Most of the common day trips (not expeditions) can easily be booked in town or through your accommodation. Three days here will give you plenty of time to reach Phong Nha from hue (buses usually only run in the afternoon), and then 2 days to explore the area.
The top things to do here are:
- Caving, hiking or swimming in one of the many cave systems
- Kayaking
- Visiting Dark Cave and Paradise Cave
- Visiting Elephant Cave
- Duck Stop
The best option to get from Hue to Phong Nha is via bus. The bus only takes 5-6 hours and they do only run in the afternoon. This will cost around $20 AUD for a one way trip.
Day 17 – 18: Ninh Binh
Ninh Binh is one of the most scenic spots you will visit on this Vietnam itinerary. The best way I can describe Ninh Binh is that it is the land version of Ha Long Bay. You are best to stay in the Tam Coc area, as this will give you a more central location to the sights. Ninh Binh town itself isn’t anything to rave about.
The attractions are rather close to each other, so two days is plenty to see the sights. If you want to explore at a slower pace, then you can stay here longer. I spent 3 days here and found I had a whole extra day where I didn’t do anything, as I had already explored the sights. You can easily travel around to the attractions via a tour or self-drive via scooter.
- Dich Dong Pagoda
- Hao Lu Ancient City
- Hang Mua Caves
- Dai Dinh Pagoda
- Take a boat trip on Tam Coc or Trang An (I recommend Trang An)
- Cuc Phuong National Park
There are two way to get from Phong Nha to Ninh Binh; train or bus. The trains don’t run often and can be hard to book, as they tend to sell out quickly. I would recommend taking a bus, either day or night bus. Day buses are much more expensive than the night buses, almost double the price. There is also only one I know of that runs during the day at 9am. There are plenty of night buses to choose from, so this would be your best option.
If you want the two full days in Ninh Binh as stated on this itinerary, I would catch a night bus from Phong Nha on the evening of the 16th day. This means you will arrive in Ninh Binh with two full days to explore this town. Most accommodations will allow you to check in early if you ask prior so you can get a few hours sleep before exploring.
If you are backpacking, I recommend staying at the Banana Tree Hostel. It’s a beautiful hostel, centrally located and close to the bus station. They also have an ‘early check in’ dorm, where you can check in after the night bus and stay in the room till normal check in at 2pm. This hostel books out quickly, so I would make a reservation in advance!
Day 19 – 21: Sapa
Sapa is one of Vietnams most northern towns, known for its stunning landscapes and cultural diversity. If you love hiking, this is the place for you! There is much to see in Sapa, however the weather will greatly impact your trip! Unfortunately when I visited here, the weather was not in my favour. The whole area was covered in mist and low cloud cover, with freezing temperatures and no visibility.
I didn’t end up doing much with my time here, as It wasn’t worth hiking and not seeing anything. For this reason, I would check the weather and the time you plan on visiting Sapa to make sure it will be in your favour. It still has a place on this itinerary, as I think it would have been such a highlight of my trip. Three days here will be enough time to go on day hikes or multi day trekking.
Things to do in Sapa:
- Franspian Mountain (highest peak in Vietnam) – can be completed via trekking or cable car
- Rice Terraces
- Authentic Home stays
- Cat Cat Village
- Silver or Love waterfall
- Ham Rong Mountain
Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh on Pexels.com
The best way to get from Ninh Binh to Sapa is via bus or mini van. Either way you will have a changeover stop in Hanoi, where you may have to wait a while for the second leg of the journey. The whole journey takes roughly 9 hours and will cost upwards of $20 AUD. There are also night buses, if you’d prefer to have a full 3 days in Sapa. In this case I would catch the night bus on the 18th day from Ninh Binh, so you have the extra day to explore.
Day 21 – 24: Hanoi
Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam! Whether you choose to start your itinerary here, or end the itinerary in Hanoi, you are going to love it. This is still a busy and vibrant city, but it is a lot less commercial than Ho Chi Minh. There is much more to see and do, and still plenty of history and culture. I have given 3 days in this Vietnam itinerary to explore this city, as I believe that is the adequate amount of time to explore the city and the surroundings. At a much slower pace.
Wonder around the streets, visit train street, eat incredible food and amazing egg coffee. I know you will fall in love with this place. I have already written a blog on things you can do with your time in Hanoi, which can be found below.
You can read my blog here on 8 things to do in Hanoi!
The best way to get from Sapa to Hanoi is by bus or mini van. There are several buses or mini vans, departing at multiple times over the day. These will cost anywhere from $10 AUD upwards. The whole journey will take roughly 6 hours, and if you choose a mini van, it will drop you off at your hotel in Hanoi for convenience.
Day 25 – 26: Ha Long Bay
Ha Long Bay is an iconic spot not far from Hanoi. This is a beautiful Bay featuring thousands of towering limestone islands, topped with rainforest. It is truely spectacular. There are many ways you can experience the beauty of this area, by day tour, overnight, multi day or staying on Cat Ba island.
I went on the 3D/2N cruise with hideaway tours, which I booked with my accommodation. I chose to complete this 3 day cruise, rather the Ha Giang Loop as the weather wasn’t particularly good for the loop the time I was there. If I were to go back and complete this itinerary again, I would spend one day on Ha Long Bay, with an overnight trip and the next couple days doing the Ha Giang Loop – if the weather was permitting.
The best way to visit Ha Long Bay Is via a tour. This makes it much more convenient, as it included transport to and from Hanoi as well as any meals. You can visit the Bay yourself, but you will have to make your way to Cat Ba Island (bus, boat, bus) and will still need to complete a tour from the island. This is another great option if you have more time to spend in the area.
Day 27 – 29: Ha Giang Loop
The next 3 days and 2 nights you will spend exploring the famous Ha Giang Loop, which is a motorbike trail in the Northern Parts of Vietnam! This has become an extremely popular activity amongst backpackers and although it is something I am yet to do, it is extremely high on my bucket list. The Ha Giang Loop is a 350km round trip adventure, that will lead you through deep valleys, local villages and mountainous landscapes.
You can complete this loop via self drive – Please DON’T do this If you don’t have your motorcycle license or are a new driver. The best way to complete is with an easy rider, which means you can sit back, relax and take in your surroundings. This is a rather expensive activity, but it is highly rated. There are plenty of tours on offer, but I would recommend booking through the Hanoi Central Backpackers. Their tours have raving reviews, and they are very well organised. This tour will cost around $230 AUD , including accomodation, bus, meals, rider, entrance fees and more. This tour starts and ends in Hanoi, which is the most convenient option for this itinerary.
Make sure to check the weather before deciding to do this loop! If the weather isn’t going to be in your favour, you will not get many views. It also does get very cold, so make sure you have a jacket with you.
Photo by Q. Hưng Phạm on Pexels.com
On the last day you say goodbye to Vietnam and either travel back home or onto your next destination!
I hope you found this itinerary helpful and easy to use. Any questions please leave in the questions box down below.
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Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh on Pexels.com
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