Vietnam Travel blog: three parts of Vietnam at glance

When it comes in mind about Vietnam, there are many places to visit. To break down, the country is comprised by 3 main parts the north, center and south (watch full video about 10 places to travel in Vietnaml ). Accordingly, to learn about Vietnam culture when spending holiday in this country, you also can learn about these 3 regional culture. Besides, the Vietnamese cuisine, lifestyle and customs also can be classified by 3 parts of Vietnam.

Northern Vietnam

Main holiday attractions in northern Vietnam include Hanoi, Halong Bay, Sapa, Mai Chau, Ha Giang, Ninh Binh. As three fourth of Vietnam are mountainous and highland typography, you can arrange a Vietnam travel itinerary basing on your interest. The best time to travel to the north is Nov to April. These months treat us with a moderate temperature, dried and sunny weather. There are some drizzles in February which is called by local "the spring drizzles" which represent a growth for the upcoming year. 

Hanoi is the most famous city and a must-see when travel in Vietnam. This capital city is quiet charming with old quarter, the thousand year culture with many stories as well as extraordinary gastronomy. Beside a Hanoi City tour to explore the most highlighted spots in Hanoi, you are also invited to delve into local culture and cuisine. You can walk around Hanoi old quarter and taste scrumptious food or participate in a cooking class to know how they make the food. In the neighborhood of Hanoi, there are handicraft villages for your exploration as well. To name some, you can visit Bat Trang Pottery Village, Van Phuc Silk Village, Duong Lam Ancient Village, etc. 

Halong Bay cruise is a beautiful experience to crew through a paradise of emerald ocean with karst mountains setting around. There are thousands of limestone mountains, stunning caves and pristine nature that make Halong a memorable trip. Halong Bay is among three bays in this area. As it's a UNESCO Heritage Site, Halong Bay is a bit crowded these days. If you don't want to miss the core site recognized as the heritage, taking the normal route is fine. On the other hand, you can go with the much less touristy area of Lan Ha Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay. Embarking on cruises venturing to these bays, you surely be friend with the pristine nature and enjoy the marvelous scenes. Depending on your traveling plan in Vietnam, you can  join an overnight cruise or take a full day cruise on Halong Bay tour. The overnight boat give you more pleasant time to enjoy all moments of the day of Halong Bay. Meanwhile, the day trip is a bit rush but goes with better rate. 

Adventurous travelers can take a bit longer drive from 3 hour to 7 hours to explore the mountainous region of Vietnam. As long as you can arrange you time, these highland destinations such as Mai Chau, Pu Luong, Sapa, Mu Cang Chai, Ha Giang, etc. surely won't disappoint you. Ninh Binh is a plain country which is pretty close to Hanoi. This place is also called Halong Bay on land where introduce interesting stories about local life in rural area of Vietnam.

Central Vietnam

The best time to visit Central Vietnam is Nov to April too. Basically the weather is nice for traveling whole year except September and October when the monsoon affects and causes heavy rain as well as flood in Hoi An and Da Nang. There are three spots to explore when traveling to the central part of Vietnam are Hoi An ancient town, Da Nang city and its beaches, and Hue the former capital with heritages from Nguyen Dynasty. 

The cuisine in central Vietnam is favorable to both Vietnamese and international visitors. You can explore the indigenous gastronomy in different experience. A street food tour in Hoi An ancient town to taste famous Hoi An break, bbq rolling, sweet soup, etc. In Da Nang City, a beloved place to taste local food and snacks at very low price in Con Market. When visiting the Imperial relics in Hue, you are recommended to enjoy a exquisite meal at local garden house restaurant to feel the ambience of the previous dynasty. 

Southern Vietnam

Traveling down to southern Vietnam, you shall experience a blend of the leading modern Ho Chi Minh City and pristine countryside in Mekong River where local life are very much related to river and water. Ho Chi Minh City is the most populated and vibrant city of Vietnam. It's also a historical city where showcase exciting and scary relics of Vietnam War. Driving an hour from Ho Chi Minh, you can visit Cu Chi Tunnels to go down and explore the tunnel system during Vietnam War. 

Beside land tours in Vietnam, you can add on extra beach excursion. From Ho Chi Minh City, you can take domestic flights of less than one hour to the stunning beaches in the south of Vietnam such as Phu Quoc Island, Con Dao Island, Mui Ne beaches and Vung Tau beaches. 

How to travel in the south of Vietnam is a nice thing to sort out. Don't just explore the city with a car. There are abundant of experience to try here. Some suggestions of fun things to do in Ho Chi Minh City like Vespa tour to less touristy places of the city, Dinner cruise on the Saigon River or chill on a rooftop and admire the city by night. 

How many days needed to travel around Vietnam depends on your interests. An adventure Vietnam trip including mountainous area might take more days, meanwhile you can see the most highlighted places in Vietnam from 7 - 10 days. The neighbors of Vietnam also area beautiful countries that you can combine a journey with package holidays to Vietnam and Cambodia in 10 days. Longer trip can add on Laos with extension of around 4 days in Luang Prabang ancient town.