We spent a week exploring Vietnam. We split our time between the two main cities of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, plus a couple of days cruising the spectacular Halong Bay.
Vietnam in 1 Week Itinerary
| Day 1 | Ho Chi Minh City Flight to Ho Chi Minh City Accommodation – C Central Hotel Bui Vien Walking Street |
| Day 2 | Ho Chi Minh City War Remnants Museum Notre Dame Cathedral Central Post Office People’s Committee Building Union Square HCMC Museum Lunch at Quan Ngon 138 Independence Palace Dinner at Vietnam Harvest Drinks at The View Rooftop Bar |
| Day 3 | Cu Chi Tunnels |
| Day 4 | Hanoi Flight to Hanoi Accommodation – Serene Boutique Hotel & Spa Hoan Kiem Lake Lunch at Luc Thuy Restaurant & Lounge Ho Lao Prison Dinner at Don Duck Old Quarter |
| Day 5 | Halong Bay Drive to Halong Bay Accommodation – Rosa Cruise |
| Day 6 | Halong Bay Hang Sung Sot Vietnamese Cookery Class |
| Day 7 | Hanoi Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Ho Chi Minh Museum Museum of Military History Hanoi Flag Tower Temple of Literature |
Vietnam Day 1 – Ho Chi Minh City
Flight to Ho Chi Minh City
Once we have taken off, through enough turbulence that the child next to us throws up, food is served. I have ticked the nut allergy box on the booking form, so I get a ‘special’ meal. The good news is that it comes an hour before the regular meals. The bad news is that it’s not actually worth eating. For desert the old man gets a cornetto – I get 4 chunks of unripe pineapple. And I can’t for the life of me understand why he gets bread and cheese and I just get bread? I am not impressed.
We land in Ho Chi Minh City. Our hotel has sent a Land Cruiser to collect us. The traffic is mental; mostly motor bikes apparently driven by suicidal maniacs. Our driver is taking no prisoners. The fact that we reach the hotel without killing anyone is genuinely a surprise.
Accommodation – C Central Hotel – Đề Thám Bùi Viện Walking Street
Our hotel; C Central Hotel – Đề Thám Bùi Viện Walking Street is right in the heart of the city. Our room is in a tall, narrow building, eleven storeys high, with just two rooms on each floor. It’s rather luxurious and has two things we haven’t seen in weeks; a bath and a set of scales. Being so centrally located, we had worried that the room might be noisy at night, but it wasn’t. The hotel is actually split over two buildings, with the restaurant, which serves an excellent breakfast, being in the other building a minute’s walk away.
Bui Vien Walking Street
Today is one of great excitement. Having been away from family for 8 weeks, today we get to meet up with our daughter. We have arranged to meet in Bui Vien Walking Street; a crazily busy pedestrian street lined with bars and restaurants.
After plenty of beer, washed down with spring rolls, we finally make it to bed 21 hours after we got up.
Vietnam Day 2 – Ho Chi Minh City
Today, we are going sightseeing in Ho Chi Minh City. The little I know about Vietnam come from studying the Vietnamese War in politics classes at university (and from watching Miss Saigon). So after breakfast, we start by walking to the War Remnants Museum.
It’s only a mile away, which doesn’t sound too onerous. But we have underestimated the heat and the crazy motorbike drivers. It soon becomes clear that I don’t have the mental fortitude for crossing Vietnamese roads. Eventually I develop a routine – wait until the pedestrian light goes green, shut my eyes and cross. It slightly increases my chances of dying, but at least I won’t see what’s coming.
War Remnants Museum
Going to the War Remnants Museum straight after breakfast was a mistake. It’s a truly harrowing experience and keeping my fried eggs down is quite an effort.
Outside and downstairs inside are plenty of old military vehicles and equipment.
Inside, as you ascend to the next floor, it’s mostly photographs. Horrific, harrowing photos of war, death, mutilation and destruction.
After that, more photos. A section on the devastation caused by the tens of thousands of unexploded bombs the Americans left behind. The cluster devices, designed to explode and send out hundreds of pieces of shrapnel, are small, yellow and shiny and often mistaken for toys by children.
Last, and possibly worst of all, a section on the effects of Agent Orange, a gene damaging herbicide, on those exposed to it and their unborn children. It is truly horrific.
The museum is open daily from 7.30 am until 5.30 pm. Entry costs 40,000 VND (around £1.10).
Notre Dame Cathedral
We leave the museum and walk past some of the old French colonial buildings. First, Notre Dame Cathedral. This red brick church with its twin bell towers was constructed in the late 19th Century.
The Central Post Office
The Central Post Office is another grand French 19th Century building.
Outside, a war memorial is somewhat ironically flanked by a McDonald’s.
You can go inside the building, which still functions as a post office, to see the concourse with its historical maps and and the hall with its mosaic of Ho Chi Minh.
The People’s Committee Building
The People’s Committee Building is another example of French colonial architecture. The building was originally the Hôtel de Ville.
Union Square
Opposite is Union Square; a huge flag festooned plaza with a statue of Ho Chi Minh at the centre.
HCMC Museum
We continue to the HCMC Museum. This former palace now covers the history of the city and is very interesting.
It’s also a popular place for wedding photos, so we have to keep ducking and diving to avoid unintentional photo bombing.
Lunch at Quan Ngon 138
We have lunch and replace the huge amount of fluids we have lost at Quan Ngon 138. Rice and beer – all the essential food groups represented. The food here is excellent.
Independence Palace
Suitably refuelled, we enter the Independence Palace. This 1960s building, also known as the Reunification Palace, has been left untouched since the 1970s. Above ground, it’s like straying into the set of an Austin Powers movie. There’s a funky card room and a plush cinema.
There’s even a helipad on the roof. Meanwhile, In a bunker underground are the presidential war rooms.
Dinner at Vietnam Harvest
After a sweaty day of sightseeing, we head back to the hotel to cool down and rehydrate before heading out to Bui Vien Walking Street once more for a scrumptious Vietnamese dinner at Vietnam Harvest.
Drinks at The View Rooftop Bar
This is followed by cocktails at The View Rooftop Bar; a 7th floor bar decorated with fairy lights and lanterns. It’s a little sea of tranquility to relax in, whilst observing the melee on the street below.
Vietnam Day 3 – Cu Chi Tunnels
Today, the old man has booked a ‘luxury’ tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels, part of a huge complex built by the Viet Cong 27 miles north east of Ho Chi Minh City. He can’t say what the difference is with the regular tour booked by our daughter, other than it costs 4 times the price.
The drive to the tunnels takes 3 hours mostly through the sprawling suburbs of HCMC. After 2 hours, we stop at a government workshop where we are shown victims of Agent Orange making things to sell to tourists.
We continue to the tunnel location and spend 2 hours in the sweltering jungle heat while our guide tells all about the tunnels; how they were built, how the Viet Cong lived and fought, how cunning and clever they were. It’s very interesting and rather ironic seeing as his father fought on the other side.
There is an option to go underground in a tunnel specially adapted for tourists (because most westerners are too fat for the original tunnels).
After the opportunity to shoot an AK47 for £2 per bullet, we depart in our thankfully air conditioned bus whilst watching a propaganda video on the return journey. Our half day tour has taken almost 8 hours and we arrive back tired and hungry. Time for one last outing to Bui Vien Walking Street for dinner before we leave for Hanoi in the morning.
Vietnam Day 4 – Hanoi
Flight to Hanoi
An early start today and a drive to the airport through the rush hour traffic, watching the Vietnamese going about their business. The roads (and pavements) are full of people carrying an array of goods on motorbikes.
Our flight to Hanoi gets us there early enough in the day to take a stroll around Hoan Kiem Lake and visit the infamous Hanoi Hilton prison. My Day 1 itinerary covers a total distance of 2 miles, much of it along the shores of the lake.
Accommodation – Serene Boutique Hotel & Spa
First, we check into our hotel; Serene Boutique Hotel & Spa, which is indeed most serene – much appreciated in the midst of such a bustling city.
Hoan Kiem Lake
We go for a walk along the shores of the picturesque Hoan Kiem Lake. The lake is a popular spot for recreation, from walking round the lakeside path to practicing t’ai chi in parks along the shores. In the middle of the lake, on small islands, are Ngoc Son Temple and the ramshackle Thap Rua (Turtle Tower).
Lunch at Luc Thuy Restaurant & Lounge
Luc Thuy Restaurant & Lounge is a restaurant with lakeside seating, which offers diners a great view of the lake. This almost makes up for the food, which is not quite so great.
Hoa Lo Prison
Originally built by the French in 1896, predominantly for political prisoners, Hoa Lo Prison was later used by the Vietnamese to detain American PoWs. It was these prisoners, which included former US Senator John McCain, who ironically nicknamed the prison the Hanoi Hilton.
Most of the prison, which once held as many as 2000 inmates, has been demolished. But a small section remains, which now houses a museum. Here, you can see displays which show the barbaric conditions the Vietnamese prisoners endured, with plenty of sad, emaciated life size models.
There’s also a section on the US prisoners who, it is alleged, lived an idyllic lifestyle eating pineapples, laughing and playing basketball. Eventually, the propaganda gets tiring and we rush through the Heroes of the Revolution Shrine, fight our way across several roads of rush hour traffic and return to our hotel.
Dinner at Don Duck Old Quarter
In the evening, we have dinner at Don Duck Old Quarter; a restaurant which specialises, not surprisingly, in duck. We have duck spring rolls and the house special marinated duck, washed down with Hanoi beer. All excellent and the beer makes the walk home seem less daunting.
Vietnam Day 5 – Halong Bay
Drive to Halong Bay
Today, we have booked an overnight Halong Bay trip, so it’s another early start, beginning with an excellent buffet breakfast. I eat until I can no longer move – it’s a good job I’m going to be sitting down all morning!
Next the drive to the harbour. I thought this would be a chance to get a glimpse of rural Vietnam after 4 days in the bustling, polluted cities. In fact we see very little countryside. Just more towns and sprawling industrial areas where huge Chinese, Korean and Japanese factories add to the pollution.
After 2 hours, we are deposited in an enormous warehouse full of goods, all allegedly made by Agent Orange victims, and encouraged to donate to disabled people. I’m not convinced – I have in mind the picture in Hoa Lo Prison where John McCain is being served a banquet including an entire pineapple. If I want to help disabled Vietnamese people, I won’t do it by putting money in a box in a government facility labelled ‘for disabled people’.
After 4 hours we reach Halong Bay, which is a relief, as we have done much of the journey on the wrong side of the road. There have been several near misses, including an incident with two buses and a truck driving three abreast on a single lane highway, which was close enough for me to adopt the ‘brace position’.
Accommodation – Rosa Cruise
We are taken out to our boat; Rosa Cruise, which is moored in the bay, check in and set sail while lunch is served. It consists of dishes of crab, fish and squid and is delicious.
Halong Bay is beautiful. It is an underwater mountain range, which results in 3000 limestone islets protruding from the sea. There are hundreds of boats full of tourists, all departing at the same time so we leave the harbour in a huge flotilla.
After lunch, free time to lounge on the sun deck relaxing, sunbathing and taking pictures. Then a tour of a pearl farm and the chance to kayak in a bay.
We kayak round the edge of an islet, and can see monkeys on the rocks. There’s also a lot of garbage, so I pass on the next activity, which is swimming.
We anchor for the night in a bay surrounded by other boats. Despite the number of boats (apparently, there can be up to 200 to 300 per night), it’s quite calm and peaceful. We eat dinner, barbecue chicken and fish, then the karaoke starts and I beat a hasty retreat to my cabin.
Vietnam Day 6 – Halong Bay
It’s day 2 of our Halong Bay cruise. The day starts (for some) with a Tai Chi class at 6.30 am. The old man goes, but an extra half hour in bed sounds like a much better idea to me.
Hang Sung Sot Cave
After breakfast, we visit the ‘Cave of Surprises’ (Hang Sung Sot). It is an amazing series of caves with stalactites and stalagmites it varying shapes. Many of the formations are named after objects they resemble. There are Buddhas, animals and a huge penis illuminated in red.
For me, visiting is quite an ordeal; it’s a 50 minute walk following a prescribed route of stairs and paths with hundreds and hundreds of tourists in a never ending chain. I’m not comfortable being underground, particularly with swarms of people between me and the exit. But I make it round.
Once outside, before I have had a chance to compose myself, a fisherwoman puts a basket of freshly caught squid by my feet and one spits ink in my face, which causes me to squeal like a girl.
Vietnamese Cookery Class
Back on board, we have a Vietnamese Cookery Class; how to make spring rolls. A cunning way to keep us amused and make us prepare our own lunch whilst the crew can get ready for today’s new set of guests. Once we have finished, our efforts are fried and added to a huge banquet lunch.
After we have passed the rock that appears on the Vietnamese 200,000 Dong Note, it’s time disembark. It’s been an awesome 24 hours cruising through the beautiful bay with its calm green water and weird and wonderful rock formations. Definitely the highlight of our Vietnam trip!
We board our bus and manage the 4 hour journey back to Hanoi without any inconvenience to the driver’s social life; he is on the phone for the entire journey. We have dinner (much better made spring rolls) and retire to our room to rest.
Vietnam Day 7 – Hanoi
We have an evening flight back to HCMC, so can squeeze in a whistle stop tour of Hanoi. We take a taxi to first point on the itinerary, then walk round the rest of attractions, before taking another taxi back to our hotel. Total walking distance; around 2 miles.
Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum houses the body of the revered former Vietnamese leader. Five mornings a week, it is possible to visit the mausoleum. It is closed on Mondays and Fridays. We visited the site on a Friday when the mausoleum was closed, but there is still plenty to see here. The complex includes the Presidential Palace, the House on Stilts, the One Pillar Pagoda and Ho Chi Minh Museum. The gardens where Ho Chi Minh used to relax and meditate are now lined with stalls where you can buy tourist tat and Coca Cola. I’m sure if he knew this, he’d be turning in his grave. Except he doesn’t have a grave, he’s been embalmed and put in a Perspex box for thousands of tourists to gawk at.
The mausoleum is open every day except Monday and Friday from 8 am until 11:00 am (11:30 on weekends). Entry for foreigners costs VND 25,000 (around £0.70). Note: Visitor numbers are strictly limited, so arriving early is recommended.
Presidential Palace
You can glimpse the grand Presidential Palace from the gardens.
House on Stilts
The far more simple House on Stilts is where Ho Chi Minh preferred to live.
One Pillar Pagoda
One Pillar Pagoda is, as the name suggests, a pagoda built on a single pillar, which sits in the middle of a lake.
Ho Chi Minh Museum
At the Ho Chi Mihn Museum, you can learn all about Uncle Ho’s life.
Amidst the statues, you can see various artifacts relating to his life, including his desk and official vehicles.
Museum of Military History
Our next stop is the Museum of Military History. This, too was closed when we visited, but we were still able to visit the grounds. These contain a huge number of old American aircraft and tanks captured during the war. There’s also a great collection of communist sculptures. The centre piece is a steampunk style collection of engines and aircraft bits with a downed French plane at its core.
There’s also a great collection of communist sculptures.
The museum is open every day except Monday and Friday from 8 am until 11.30 am. Entry costs VND 40,000 (around £1.10).
Hanoi Flag Tower
From here, you can climb the Hanoi Flag Tower, symbol of the city. It is three levels high and the top level offers a great view across Hanoi.
Temple of Literature
Our last stop is the Temple of Literature; an 11th century Confucian temple.
You can walk through the temple grounds, past gardens and ornate gates, to the temple itself.
After the serenity of the temple, comes the chaos of the return to the hotel. We decide to take a taxi; it’s only a mile but all the road crossing is too much. The meter on the taxi spins round incredibly fast. We realise we are being robbed, discuss getting out, then decide that we will ask the hotel to intervene when we reach it. However, the driver stops at a one way street near the hotel and says we must get out here and walk the rest of the way. The journey, which cost us 50,000 VND on the way out, costs 287,000 VND on the way back. A huge argument ensues, I’m all for calling the police but in the end the old man settles on a payment of 100,000 VND and we depart unscathed. We have been scammed, but at least we have had the full Hanoi experience.
We return to the airport, where our flight is an hour late and reach HCMC by 9 pm. Foolishly, we think this means that ‘rush hour’ will be over and the 6 mile drive to our hotel won’t take long. But it’s Friday night and everyone is on their way out. I find it surprising that a communist country has virtually no public transport – everyone goes everywhere by motorbike. Tonight, many of the ladies are glammed up and riding side saddle. 45 minutes later we have made it. We don’t have any dong left so settle for drinking the mini bar dry and going to bed.
- Trip taken: April 2018
- Updated: December 2025
I hope you found the above information useful. For guides to more destinations in the 50+ countries we have visited, check out my full list of Independent Travel Itineraries here.
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