HI- Heading back to SEA...with friend who has a month off.
I would like some route ideas to help eliminate travel hassles. NOT sure where we are flying into..either Hanoi, Saigon or Bankok.
Will definately go north Vietnam to Sapa again as that was a highlight. I never made it south of Hoi An so thought of working north from Ho Chi ming--Dalat etc...then heading north to Hanoi then Sapa on the China border etc. WOndering about MUST sees in the Saigon area? I dont think we will stay or spend time in Hue or Hoi Ann as I did this last year...so the more options in the south the better etc.

Getting Over to Laos seems a bit of a hassle from Vietnam....so wondering if its better to fly to Bankok and work way north to the Mekong for the slow boat ride to Luang Prbang etc???..From there head to Plain of Jars, Vang Vienne then Vientienne etc....from there where??? Dont want to re-due Cambodia so from Vientienne...can we fly to HANOI direct..????

Oh so many questions sorry. Juast trying to avoid redue of the same routes to see more etc. Still looking into the visa thing too. What about Hanoi First...then south to Saigon...then PLANE to Houei Xai????
thanks for any help or ideas
Norm

Norm,

What time of year you are going? I went to SE Asia in Spring of last year and it looks like you really liked Sapa. I have to warn you that when we went they were clear cutting and it was smoggy and took away from the view.

If you are planning on going ahead of time I would recommend going to the island of Phu Quoc. There is only like two flights a week from HCMC and they book up. You can also take an extended tour on the Mekong Delta to get there. (The tour agencies discouraged it though so if its what you want be direct and dont let them talk to you out of it).

I didnt do the boat ride up the Mekong to get to Laos. I heard it was really crowded and I ended up flying between Hanoi and Vientiane. Lao airlines flies this route daily. Vang Vieng is an awesome party town (dont get a tube) and Luang Prubang is georgeous. We immediately headed out of Vientaine and I have yet to meet anyone that doesnt recommend doing anything different.

Enjoy!

Good advice from lkr1212 but I gotta say, don't get a tube in Vang Vieng?! I've gotta ask for the reasoning behind that one as it's sort of the "thing" to do there and I seriously enjoyed it.

There are daily flights between LP and Ha Noi - new planes all maintained by VietNam Airlines.

No more pigs or extra plastic stools in the aisles, either.

Thanks--will be in Laos the mid part of December. Thinking of a bus toward Sapa to see the back roads and not do the plane option. I like overland travel even if its not a smooth ride.
thanks for the tip on flying to Hanoi...wonder if i can fly to Dien ben phu (sp?) too.??
thanks
n

lkr1212 wrote:Norm, ...
If you are planning on going ahead of time I would recommend going to the island of Phu Quoc. There is only like two flights a week from HCMC and they book up. ...

There are up to SIX (6) FLIGHTS DAILY to Phu Quoc.

< http://www.vietnamair.com.vn/wps/portal ... am&lang=en >

"Good advice from lkr1212 but I gotta say, don't get a tube in Vang Vieng?! I've gotta ask for the reasoning behind that one as it's sort of the "thing" to do there and I seriously enjoyed it. "

Regarding this...my thoughts are that you can do all the fun stuff on the river without a tube. I was there with my family last Jan and Feb 2009 and we barely used our tubes. We hung out at the bar places to do the swings/ slides/ zip-lines ect. When we were there, the water was super low and slow so a tube was really just kind of a pain. We could have easily swam/waded the short distance we were actually in the river. Also, btw, the areas where you drop off of the swings and stuff are dug out really deep so it is safe. During the rainy season it might be different...It was a ton of fun though...fond memories for our family for sure.

Thanks again for the comments.
My thoughts on responses.

Im aware of the "tube" thing. To be honest I can and DO this here in my hometown on the Yellowstone River...so its not something new or unique really for me to do. I understand if you come from a big city or river-less place to want to do it. Also the sense I get was it was a young crowd drunkfest from everyone I talked too. Im getting to old I think to be doing that. I would like to maybe Kayak the river...thus I can bring my camera gear and not worry about getting it wet. Would like to see the culture and unique parts of Laos and NOT have it be "spring-break at Datona" kind of setting...just my take.

What ELSE did you do in the VV area? I know of hill tribes one can visit in the area...any thoughts you might have on this???

Regarding the Phu Quc Island...YES im actually going to go there for a couple of nights. Its my gf's birthday and weve already booked a bungalow and air flight...so cool.

My concern now has been getting from Laos to N. Vietnam. I would like to see the areas WEST of Sapa towards the Lao border. It sounds like a lot of people DONT travel this way OR take the bus on the back roads. Again...im trying to avoid tourist as much as possible. I thought it might be better to fly from Vientiene to Hanoi then do a circle route of the upper part of the country. I have friends that live near Sapa and will do another homestay with her...would really like to get between there and Dien ben foo (sp?) etc...Im into culture...hilltribes and photography.
The route overland from Laos doesnt seem easy.

Any thoughts would be helpful
thanks

Hi Norm Montana

You can cross into Laos from N Vietnam near Sapa - the town is Sam Neau. People dont normally do it because there is no visa on entry available at that border post in laos. So you will need to get your Laos visa beforehand.
I took the bus from LP to Sam Neau (19-26 hours) which goes through the backroad and then went to Southern Laos via Phonsavan. Vieng Xai, a beautiful little town near Sam Neau-was the highlight of my 2 months in laos. you need to take local transportation to get there and these parts are definitely not touristy but you will bump into a couple tourists here and there.
Please feel free to pm me if you have specific questions