Vietnam has many beautiful natural sceneries and unique tourist attractions. From the 1000 years historical capital Ha Noi, world natural heritage Ha Long Bay, to Hoi An – a beautiful historical city and finally the dynamic Ho Chi Minh city … Each destination will provide you with memorable and unique experiences. Let’s plan together for a 10 days travel plan in Vietnam to enjoy the best this wonderful country provides.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. 10 DAYS VIETNAM ITINERARY: WHERE TO GO? AND WHAT TO DO?
You have many options in your 10 days Vietnam itinerary according to your needs.
1.1. NORTH TO SOUTH TRAVEL ROUTE
It’s hard to enjoy every tourist attraction in Vietnam within just 10 mere days. However, if you don’t have much time and still want to visit all 3 regions in Vietnam then the following plan is just right for you.
- Day 1 – Arriving in Ha Noi: Ha Noi is the 1000 years old capital city of Vietnam. It is famous for its busy streets and numerous historical structures. On the 1st day of your trip, you should check into the hotel, enjoy your lunch with some famous food like Pho/ Bun cha/Banh Xeo… Walk around Hoan Kiem lake in the afternoon, visit Ngoc Son Temple and visit the old quarter of Ha Noi. At night enjoy other street foods and return to the hotel for some much needed rest.
- Day 2 – Travel to Ha Long Bay: On the morning of the second day, you will travel to Ha Long – World renowned Ha Long Bay – a worldwide natural heritage certified by UNESCO. The bay has thousands of small limestone islands and beautiful caves. If you only have 1 day to explore Ha Long, you should spend the lunch while touring the bay on a boat, visiting Sửng Sốt cave, Ti Tốp island, enjoy the beautiful beach or climb mountains in the afternoon. Finally chill out on the boat or at your hotel when night comes.
- Day 3 – Return to Ha Noi: On the 3rd day of the trip, return to Ha Noi and continue to explore unvisited landscapes and tourist attractions (Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Quoc Tu Giam temple…) and prepare for the days ahead.
- Day 4 – Hue: This will be your next destination. This is a culturally and historically significant city, preserving what’s left of the last Nguyen dynasty in Vietnam. After arriving from Ha Noi, check into your hotel, spend the morning recuperating. Lunch usually consists of Huy delicacies while spending the afternoon visiting relics of the old Hue capital, Thien My temple… In the evening you can travel alongside the Huong river in a small boat to enjoy the local culture and activities and enjoy traditional Hue songs.
- Day 5 – Da Nang: 2-3 hours travel by bus or train from Hue, Da Nang is a modern, vibrant and well known city due to its unique sceneries. Tourists usually spend 2-3 days in this city to enjoy most of what the city can offer, however if you only have 1 day, you can travel here from Hue in the morning. Have lunch in Da Nang, visit Ngu Hanh mountain, and go to My Khe Beach in the afternoon. At night go enjoy the nightlife of the city, try out some street food and visit famous landmarks like Rong bridge, Han River bridge.
- Day 6 – Hoi An: On your 6th day, visit Hoi An old town, release flower lights on Hoai river… Hoi An is one of the world’s cultural heritage sites with old and small streets, ancient houses and unique structures, a reminder of how this place used to be a busy merchant harbour.
- Day 7 – Return to Da Nang and move to Ho Chi Minh City: From Hoi An, you will return to Da Nang and fly to Ho Chi Minh city. HCM city is the biggest and the most active city in Vietnam, famous for its landmarks like the Independence Palace, Duc Ba Church, Ben Thanh market and a diverse and plentiful cuisine.
- Day 8 – Mekong Delta: Mekong Delta is a rich area of land with an intricate system of canals, well known for their watery landscapes, bountiful lush green fruit gardens, Cai Rang floating market and many traditional craft villages. On the 8th day you can move to My Tho, Ben Tre from Ho Chi Minh city and enjoy lunch with local cuisines. In the afternoon, enjoy local delicacies, take a tour to the nearby fruit plantations or canoeing on the canals. At night, return to Ho Chi Minh city and rest up for the next day’s adventure.
- Day 9 – Cu Chi tunnel network: Cu Chi tunnel network is a famous tunnel network, a symbol for Vietnam’s anti invader spirit during the Vietnam war. After visiting the tunnel network, you need to return to Ho Chi Minh city.
- Day 10 – Explore Ho Chi Minh city: On your last day in Vietnam, spend time relaxing and shopping in shopping centers or Ben Thanh market, enjoy local cuisines and visit unexplored tourist attractions. Then spend some time packing up and preparing to leave Vietnam.
1.2. TRAVEL PLANS TO EXPLORE NORTHERN VIETNAM IN 10 DAYS
If you have 10 days to explore northern Vietnam, where would you go? If the answer still elude you then TrustVisa has a 10 days travel plan for you to sample:
- Day 1 and 2 – Sa Pa: Discover the beautiful landscape of the mountainous Northwestern Vietnam with unique terraces and indigenous villages. Discover Da temple, Sa Pa market, enjoy local delicacies such as thắng cố (a H’Mong dish made of horse, buffalo meat, pork and beef), lợn cắp nách (a pig which can be carried by your armpit). Climb the Fansipan mountain – highest peak in Indochina either by cable carrier or by the steps carved into the mountain itself. Visiting Mường Hoa valley with distinct terraces and H’Mong and Red Yao people’s villages.
- Day 3 and 4 – Ha Giang: Discover Dong Van stone plateau, a grand and the most deserted place in Vietnam. Visit Lung Cu flag pole, the most northern part of Vietnam and Dong Co old quarter with unique structures. Travel the winding mountain passes like Ma Pi Peng pass, Sung La valley and villages of indigenous peoples.
- Day 5 and 6 – Ha Long: Enjoy the tour boat, beaches, visiting fishing villages in the Bay area, mountain climbing at Ti Top island, kayaking…
- Day 7 and 8 – Ninh Binh: Visit Trang An, a world heritage site certified by UNESCO. Famous for its limestone mountain and underwater cave systems. Visit Bai Dinh temple, the biggest temple in South East Asia. Discover Tam Coc – Bich Dong also known as “Ha Long Bay inland”, with gorgeous water and rice field sceneries. Visit Hoa Lu – the capital of ancient Vietnam.
- Day 9 and 10 – Ha Noi: Enjoy the diverse and tasty local cuisines, visits the remaining local tourist attractions and landmarks such as Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Quoc Tu Giam temple, Hoan Kiem lake, Mot Cot pagoda, Ha Noi grand theater, VIetnam Museum of Ethnology… and spend some time to recuperate before leaving Vietnam and return home.
1.3. 10 DAYS VIETNAM ITINERARY TO EXPLORE CENTRAL VIETNAM
Spending 10 days to travel and enjoy whatever everything Central Vietnam has to offer, tourists can enjoy many new and exciting experiences.
- Day 1 and 2 – Quang Binh: Here you can join an expedition in Phong Nha – Ke Bang, world natural heritage renowned for its expansive and wonderful cave system. On day 2 you can check out other tourist attractions like Nhat Le beach, Mooc stream, Ozo natural reserve and enjoy local culture and sea foods and other delicacies.
- Day 3 and 4 – Hue: Take a tour around Hue, the old capital of Vietnam, enjoy Hue local cuisine with famous food such as bún bò (beef rice noodle), bánh bèo (rice batter with minced shrimp and sauce), bánh nậm(rice batter cake with shrimp, pork or frog meat as filling with special vegan option which has green bean filling). In the evening, enjoy the vibrant nightlife while travelling on a boat on Huong river. On your second day in Hue, continue to visit the remaining tourist destinations like Hue Museum of Royal fine arts, Dong Ba market.
- Day 5 and 6 – Da Nang: In your first day in Da Nang, you can visit Ngu Hanh Mountain with its mysterious caves, adorned shrines and ancient temples, enjoy local food such as bánh xèo (rice batter cake with pork, shrimp, vegetables and potatoes), mì Quảng (a noodle originated from Quang Nam, about 100 km from Da Nang). Or you can ride on a boat to see the famous bridges at night. On your second day, you can travel to Ba Na hills, ride along the longest cable cab in the world to get to a miniature European town in the center of Da Nang. Here you can enjoy the cool weather and explore well known destinations like the Golden bridge and other entertainment facilities.
- Day 7 and 8 – Hoi An: Visit Cau temple, Tan Ky old building, participate in releasing lanterns on Hoai river at night. Visit My Son, the ancient sacred site in the morning of the 7th day, and return to Hoi An in the afternoon to go to Thanh Ha traditional ceramic village or Tra Que vegetable village.
- Day 9 and 10 – Quy Nhon: This is a peaceful coastal town with long coast line and beautiful smooth white beaches. Here you can visit Eo Gio, Ky Co, Doi tower, Banh It tower, Phuong Mai sand dune, Ghen Rang tourist zone, coastal fishing villages or relaxing on the shore of Quy Hoa beach and enjoy local aquatic cuisine like bánh xèo tôm nhảy (rice batter cake with freshly caught shrimp, a lot of vegetables and sauce), bánh hỏi lòng heo ( rice batter cake with pork fat, pork intestine and grilled pork) .
1.4. EXPLORE SOUTH VIETNAM WITH A 10 DAYS ITINERARY
10 days might sound long but it isn’t enough to explore the entire south Vietnam. With just 10 days you can try out our 10 days travel plans :
- Day 1 – Ho Chi Minh city: Visit the Independence Palace, the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon, the City Post Office, Ben Thanh market, Nha Rong dock… Enjoy local delicacies such as phở, bánh mì and cơm tấm (rice made with broken rice grain).
- Day 2 & 3 – Can Tho: On the morning of the second day in your 10 days travel plan to explore southern Vietnam, move to Can Tho – the Central province of the entire Mekong delta. Have your lunch with local foods, and in the afternoon visit Ninh Kieu pier. Enjoy your evening on a tour boat and immerse yourself in the cultural and unique traditional folk songs and singers. The morning after, move to Cai Rang floating market and finally depart to Ca Mau in the afternoon.
- Day 4 – Ca Mau: Ca Mau is the most southern province of VIetnam with many natural sceneries. Here you can experience the beauty of Ca Mau by boat with many famous tourist destinations like Cà Mau cape and its primitive mangrove forest.
- Day 5 – Ho Chi Minh city again: Return to Ho Chi Minh to have a rest, explore the local culture and take a walk on Nguyen Hue walking street
- Day 6 – Binh Thuan: On the morning of the sixth day, move to Binh Thuan, a province famous for its beautiful beaches and gorgeous white sand dunes. When you are in Binh Thuan, don’t forget to visit Mui Ne beach, sand dunes, Wind turbine field and Bau Trang freshwater lake.
- Day 7 – Ninh Thuan: On the morning of your seventh day in our travel plan, you travel from Binh Thuan to Ninh Thuan in order to explore Hang Rai ancient rock field (the name come from local legend where sea otters would make their nests in the field), Vinh Hy bay, wine vineyards.
- Day 8 & 9 & 10 – Nha Trang: On the morning of your eighth day, travel from Ninh Thuan to Nha Tang – a popular and well known tourist attractions. Enjoy your last three days in Vietnam, you can visit the local Aquarium Institute, Dai Cam Ranh beach, Nha Trang VIn Wonder, Nha Trang Stone Cathedral, Vinh Huy street, Hon Tre, Hon Noi, Hon Chong, Hon Tam tourist area, Ponagar tower, Tang Bay waterfall… rest, recover and prepare to depart Vietnam.
2. HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO TRAVEL TO VIETNAM?
The cost of travelling to Vietnam depend on many different factors such as tourist seasons, the type of hotel you will be staying at, transportation methods and personal spending. Below are the estimate of your travel expense for a 10 day trip:
3. THINGS YOU MUST PAY ATTENTION TO WHEN TRAVELLING IN VIETNAM
When taking a tour in Vietnam, there are some things you must pay attention to to ensure a smooth, safe and trouble free experience:
- Papers: Check to see if you need a visa to gain entry into Vietnam. There are many countries that are part of visa exemption treaties with Vietnam and so you do not need a visa to gain entry. Your passport must also be valid for at least 6 months since the date of entry.
- Weather: The weather in Vietnam changes by seasons and by region. The north has 4 distinct seasons while the center and the south has dry season and rainy season. Tourists need to check the current weather before travelling and prepare appropriate clothes.
- Security: VIetnam in general is a safe place with a low crime rate, but you still need to take care of your personal belongings.
- Traffic: Traffic in the city is busy with numerous vehicles, therefore you must be cautious when crossing the road and obey traffic laws.
- Currency: Việt Nam Đồng (VND) is the primary currency used in Vietnam. You can exchange foreign currency at the airport, bank or reputable currency exchange places. In big cities credit cards are acceptable but in the countryside and at smaller stores, you should prepare cash.
- Communication Language: In bigger cities and at tourist attractions, many staff and local people can speak English and other foreign languages, but in the countryside English isn’t well known or practiced.
- Travel vehicles: Tourists can use different transportation vehicles such as bus, electric car, taxi or motorbike to move around the city. If you rent a bike, please make sure you carry a proper driving licence and follow the traffic laws.
- Shopping: At smaller market or shops, you can try to bargain for a cheaper price. In supermarkets or main stores, the prices are usually fixed and non negotiable.
- Hotel booking: You should book your hotel or motel room before your trip to ensure the availability, especially during tourist season. You can check out the prices online through travel websites to choose a place to stay.
4. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
❓SHOULD YOU VISIT VIETNAM?
Yes, Vietnam is a fantastic destination with plenty of wonderful and beautiful natural sceneries, diverse culture, tasty cuisine, incredibly safe and everything is cheap.
❓WHAT SHOULD YOU BUY AS GIFT WHEN VISITING VIETNAM?
There are many specialties of Vietnam suitable as gifts for your friends and families such as: Ao dai, brocade, silk, guốc mộc, nón lá, bút ngọc trai, souvenir made from bamboo, coffee, spices, ô mai Hà Nội, Nha Trang tamarind squid, traditional paintings…
We are at the end of your 10 days travel plans, you must have had an amazing experience and have plenty of unforgettable memories. We hope you will grow to love Vietnam as much as us.