Planning Vietnam

The "big" holiday of choice for 2015 will be Vietnam with a teeny dip into Cambodia. We head off in mid-June so be sure to check in and hear all about it but for now I thought I would share our trip itinerary for future inspiration for you travel fiends.

We are currently planning to fly direct with British Airways after work from London Heathrow to Kuala Lumpur. We want to use our well earned Avios points and unfortunately BA do not fly to Vietnam. As we loved our last visit to KL we thought we would make the most of our one night stopover here!

In another mental travel moment I have decided to book one night in Cambodia as we are in the area! So we are taking a very early morning flight with Air Asia from KL to Siem Reap and have booked transfers and a 1.5 day private temple tour to include Angkor Wat for sunrise, Ta Promh, Banteay Srei, Pre Rup, Phnom Bakheng for sunset, and Angkor Thom with Happy Angkor Tour who so far have been very kind and helpful. Our hotel of choice is The Anantara Siem Reap where we have booked bed and breakfast accommodation. Whilst there we also hope to visit the famous Pub Street for some evening grub.

From Siem Reap we will fly with Vietnam Airlines on an evening service into Hanoi. We have also pre-paid for a visa on arrival in Vietnam and booked a transfer through our hotel of choice The InterContinental Westlake, Hanoi where we will reside for two nights. Whilst here we also hope to participate in a Hanoi Street Food Tour, which costs around 20USD each.

We have booked a two night stay after a recommendation from friends for Halong Bay. We plan to use Dragon Pearl Junks and take the trip, which includes dinner in a candlelit private cave. From here we will take another Vietnam Airlines flight to Da Nang for four nights of relaxation in Hoi An staying at the Hotel Royal Hoi An. As this is our main holiday of the year and time to really unwind we will then take a short 45 mins flight again with Vietnam Airlines to Nha Trang where we plan to spend three nights chilling out at The InterContinental Nha Trang.

Next we will take yet another flight down to Ho Chi Minh City and spend two nights at the InterContinental Asiana Saigon. During our time here we have planned to take a half day Cu Chi Tunnel tour and also a City Cyclo tour both booked through viator.com

We hope this means we will get a real taste of what Vietnam has to offer and feel like we have really explored the country. We cannot wait to take this trip and I know I am counting down the few weeks we have left until our departure. I will post plenty of reviews after our stay so please come back for more info in July!