Vietnam Travel Guide

One of the very beautiful place of the Mekong delta - Chau Doc, as close as you can get to Cambodia without being in it. The Bassac River flows through the town and is a border crossing for river borne traffic, and the small Sam Mountain has an excellent view of the flat plain on the other side. It’s an attractive, busy place with a good hotel and several interesting attractions.

For most travellers, Vinh Long is the first place in the Mekong Delta where it’s possible to gain a reasonable experience of the area’s distinctive culture. Most head straight for a boat to cruise some of the Mekong's famous canals and channels. This is a pity, for the town itself is something of a backwater is thus worthy of attention by those wishing to escape the commercial side of tourism.

Can Tho is located in the center of the 11 provinces of the Mekong Delta, 170 km from Ho Chi Minh City, south of the Hau River. The Hau River is considered a benefactor of this region, since yearly floods deposit large quantities of alluvia to the rice fields. The climatic features of this area are similar to the other provinces of the Mekong Delta. The temperature rarely falls under 15°C and the rainy season lasts from May to November.

Located in Binh Thuan province, Phan Thiet is 200 km from Saigon and lies south of Cam Ranh bay on the southernmost stretch of Central Vietnam. Mui Ne is one of the most stunning beaches in Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan. Mui Ne gets its name from the local fishermen using this area as a shelter during the stormy season. Mu~i meaning nose or peninsula and Ne meaning to duck or to take shelter.

The city of Nha Trang is becoming more popular with the tourists in recent years. Yet, with a population of 300,000, Nha Trang still retains its small town atmosphere. This resort town is well known for its miles of beach and the friendliness of its people. The city is flanked by nearly ten kilometers of prime beach where the water is warm year round.

The Cu Chi tunnels of Vietnam are one of those horrible remnants of a horrible war that most folks would probably rather forget.  So, of course, they've become a tourist attraction. The Cu Chi Tunnels lie 75 km northwest of Saigon ... which nobody these days but the government and maps call Ho Chi Minh City.  At the height of the Vietnam war, the tunnel system stretched from the outskirts of Saigon all the way to the Cambodian border ... something like 250 kilometers of tunnels.

Like many cities in Vietnam, Saigon did not escape the wrath of war. Since the beginning, Saigon has had quite a traumatic history. There are many citations to the birth of Saigon and the origin of its name. In the 15th century, this area were swamps, marshes and thick forests. By the early 17th century, a small township was formed. According to one theory, Saigon or Sai Con has its root in a Khmer word Prei Kor (Kapok Tree Forest)....

Qui Nhon is the little visited provincial capital of Binh Dinh province. Although it was recognised as a city as late as 1898, its history reaches back to the days of the Kingdom of Champa. In the 11th century, the Cham people migrated southwards and moved their capital city to a location about 30km north of present-day Qui Nhon and named it Vijaya.

Phong Nha-Ke Bang park is now the fifth UNESCO recognised site in Viet Nam after Ha Long Bay, the imperial city of Hue, the ancient quarter of Hoi An and the My Son historical site. Phong Nha-Ke Bang national park, located to the north of the majestic Truong Son range in central Quang Binh province, is one of the world's two largest limestone regions.

Today, nature has reclaimed much of the land, but craters are visible almost everywhere in the area. It has been estimated that nearly a third of the ordnance failed to explode. Clearance is continuous, but there are still enough live landmines, bombs and shells to add to the tens of thousands of children and adults killed or maimed by unexploded ordnance since 1975. The numbers are dropping, but incidents of death or injury among local people are reported almost every week.

Hue is located in Thua Thien prefecture and is in the central part of Vietnam. Located 660 km from Ha Noi and 1080 km from Saigon, Hue has always been considered the fulcrum of Vietnam's two rice baskets, the Red river delta and the Mekong delta. Hue became the name of Vietnam's most well known ancient capital because of the local mispronunciation of the word Hoá in Thuân Hoá.

Lang Son is a northern province which is located on the Sino-Vietnamese border over a stretch of 253 kilometers. Lang son town is linked with Hanoi via National Highway 1A. This is an important transportation link between Vietnam and China. The main ethnic groups found in that area include the Kinh, Tay, Nung, Dao, and Ngai.  The annual average temperature is 21.5°C with an annual humidity of 82%.  Famous tourist sites include Tien Pagoda, Tien Pond, Nhat Thanh Cave, Nhi Thanh Cave, Tam Thanh Cave, and Mau Son Resort.