US travel publisher Lonely Planet has suggested the top 10 best places to visit in the nation, including fast-paced cities, beautiful beaches, and misty mountains that feel like the edge of the known world.
Phu Quoc is the best for beach lovers. About as far south as you can get from Hanoi without entering the Gulf of Thailand, the island of Phu Quoc is where beach worshippers come to pray. Blessed with blue waters and covered with fine sandy beaches, this is a place to unwind and reach for a cocktail as the ember-coloured sun dips into the bay.
Hanoi is the best for those seeking to enjoy a city break. Give yourself time to enjoy the array of Vietnamese street food on offer and pause to soak up the atmosphere in the numerous cozy cafes found throughout in the Old Quarter, as well taking in all of the sights, the website writes.
Lan Ha Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay is the best place to snap iconic photos. While trips to Ha Long Bay are highly commercialised with motorized luxury junks blowing diesel fumes around the eroded karst islands, Lan Ha Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay are a bit more laid-back. Indeed, any photos won’t have quite so many cruise ships in the background.
Ho Chi Minh City is the best place to get a sense of the past. It’s fast-paced, frenetic and fun, particularly after dark, when the pavements transform into a mobile buffet of street food stalls and roadside bars. A little of the frontier feel of the war years lives on in the southern metropolis, and you’ll get a humbling introduction to this troubled period at sites such as the War Remnants Museum.
Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park is the best for unique experiences. As the nation’s biggest natural attraction, Hang Son Doong cave is the largest cavern in the world by volume and is a true wonder. An entire New York City block could fit inside its vast main passage, although this monster cavern is only accessible on expensive guided treks.
A stay in harmonious Hoi An is a journey into the country’s lavish and cultured past. This was once one of the most important ports in Asia, with traders from as far afield as Japan, Spain, and North America filling the pockets of local merchants with gold.
Sandy bays are situated around the nation’s central coastline, but the mood varies widely from beach to beach. Package tourists tend to flock to high-rise Da Nang and Nha Trang, which was famed as military R&R stop during the American War. However, the calmer beaches are found along the coast where a little of Vietnam’s old seaside charm still endures.
Hue is the best experience for those interested in Vietnamese imperial history. The former capital of the Nguyen dynasty, which ruled over large parts of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia in the 19th and 20th centuries, drips with imperial history, despite enduring the ravages of US bombers during the American War. Much was lost in Hue, but the grandeur of dynastic Vietnam lives on in the Citadel and Imperial Enclosure, housing the emperor’s residence, temples, palaces, and court.
Ba Be National Park is a haven for everything from macaques and langur monkeys to rare black bears, scaly pangolins, and the spectacular crested serpent eagle.
Ha Giang province can be considered the best place for mountain views. Staying in a simple village homestay, one can hike out to minority villages and rice terraces tucked between the soaring limestone peaks, and motor or peda) over some of the country’s most spectacular passes. There is a chance to snap plenty of photos on the winding mountain road between Ha Giang town, Dong Van, and Meo Vac.
Vietnamnet.vn
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