Vietnam forum

Posted from within Vietnam.

It is some time since Seat 61 was in VietNam. Things have moved on.

First of all, trains travel, in both directions, on a single 1 metre narrow gauge tracks which limits their speeds to under 79 kilometres per hour and this means that HCMC to Ha Noi takes at least 32 hours.

I presume these friends don't want to do the journey in a single hop so they should plan carefully.

A bus is recommended for either HCMC to Da Lat or Mui Ne. Obviously a subsequent bus ride from either of these two places is necessary to reach Nha Trang.

I recommend MAI LINH as they have new buses and their drivers have actually received bus driving training - most Open Tour drivers simply moved from a motorcycle to a bus and assume they handle the same way.

As a bus rider you might appreciate that Nha Trang / Hoi An and Hue / Ha Noi are two segments that are killers. For these an OVERNIGHT soft-sleeper is recommended.

BUT train travel requires forward booking - 2-3 days - so your friends will have to decide how long they want to spend in Nha Trang and book their seats before leaving either Da Lat or Mui Ne.

They should check prices with at least 2 or 3 'travel agents' before putting their money down (agents charges vary).

An overnight train will land your intrepid Travellers in Da Nang the following day, where they might want to visit the Cham Museum, before taking a bus OR taxi to Hoi An.

There is no need to book the Hoi An / Hue bus more than a day ahead - again Mai Linh or Sinh are recommended - and a swarm of buses depart around 08.00 and 12.00H daily to race to Hue.

Hue can be 'done' in a day so it will necessary to book your Hue / Ha Noi rail ticket as soon as they have checked in to a hotel.

They can take the half-day tour by CITY TOUR (the best of the bunch) either on the day of arrival or the day of departure.

The Hue station is on the southern extremity of the city near the La Residence hotel, about 15 minutes in a Mai Linh white 9-seat vehicle. Trains DEPART DEAD ON TIME.

Next morning, Ha Noi!

I recommend in Da Lat;
/-------------------------------
Dreams Hotel
151 & 164 B Phan Dinh Phung
Da Lat, Lam Dong
Tel: 063-833-748
E-m: dreams@hcm.vnn.vn
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I recommend in Nha Trang;
/-------------------------------
BA TU (Room 203 is popular)
34-G1 Nguyen Thien Thuat
Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
Tel: 058-522-466
Mobile: 0905-369-867
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I recommend in Hue;
/-------------------------------
Nguyen Tri Phuong Hotel
56 Nguyen Tri Phuong
Hue-Centre, TTH
Tel: 054-829-282
Fax: 054-849-482
E-m: NguyenTriPhuongHotel@yahoo.com
GPS: 16N27.97 / 107E35.64
Rooms: 16; Largest: 4; USD$4 (dorm); 8-16 other rooms.
-------------------------------/

(I have no interest in these properties but have inspected over 4,382 hotels in VietNam and to my mind these offer decent accommodation for a fair price.)

HCMC and Ha Noi you most likely know are urban jungles where anything goes. But the Park Hyatt is my favourite HCMC hotel, as well as the Ky Hoa Hotel (for gardens, peace and quiet).