14 days to explore Vietnam and Cambodia

Hi Ttweetie,

I travelled to Vietnam and Cambodia during that time of year for a period of 3 weeks, which was also a bit rushed. But it's good that you realise it and don't want to see everything 😊

I can imagine that you want to see family and that Hue has emotional value for you, other than that I wasn't too excited about staying there that long (sorry!). It also always seems to be raining from what I hear from other travellers (it sure did when we were there. The imperial palace was impressive, we didnt visit the DMZ.

Hoi An would be a must see, it is such a charming place. Da Nang we didn't stop at, apart from using it as a place to catch a flight to HCMC. Da Nang didn't come across as a great place for tourists? I would go to HCMC instead, more interesting things to see in the vicinity (cu chi tunnels, mekong delta). You can always take the slow route by boat from HCMC to Phnom Penh in Cambodia but that might take up too much of your time there, but it's a more scenic way of traveling. We did it, so I wrote a blog about it 😊

I don't know where in the states you live, so it's hard to see what flights would be best to book. It seems to me flying to HCMC or Hanoi (so Vietnam) rather than Phnom Penh is logical, as there are many more flights going to Vietnam than Cambodia so more to choose from, I don't know about prices.

For domestic flights there are loads of lowcost airlines, we flew Vietnam Airlines and that was also affordable (Da Nang-HCMC). I would recommend getting a flight to Phnom Penh or Siem Reap, I'd say both places in Cambodia are well worth a visit, PP for the history and Siem Reap for Angkor....

Some things to consider I guess, you might have to make some choices in what exactly it is what you want (sights, beach, relaxing, culture, etc)

Good luck!
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Have a nice trip to you!
If you have more time, you should come to Halong bay and Sapa with many interesting.
It's so excited! Reply to this

Hi!
You sound like you have a great plan 😊

I'd like to add a couple of thoughts to your cooking pot if it makes any difference!
Obviously its personal opinion, however- last year i travelled SEA. I spent a month and a half in Vietnam and when the sound of a beach came into our itinerary we jumped at the chance to finally have some beach time there. Da Nang seems to be vietnams only beach resort and i think it is given alot of undeserved hype. I went in nov/dec- the same time as you are planning on going and the beaches were really rough- def not swimmable and quite mucky as it is monsoon season.

It depends what you are wanting from your beach, but if its relaxation and sunning it up im not entirely sure Da nang would be your best choice. With its positioning aswell its not the nicest of waters.Plus, there really not alot to do there- so when we got there and the beach was a disappointment we didnt have much else to do..

Might i suggest you consider, as your in the area anyway, whilst in cambodia to visit sihanoukville, which is only a few hours bus ride away from Phnom Penh. Although the main beach is really touristy, there is a beautiful quiet gem of a beach further up the coast. and during December it was beautifully tranquil and the waters calm and clear.

Depending which order you are doing cambodia in (in our case it was siem reap,PP,sihanoukville) and where you are flying back from, sihanoukville was a welcome break after visiting PP and absorbing the awful things that took place there.

Just thought i'd put that out there 😊

sapa and halong Bay def deserve more time. I'd consider if your planning allows, to try and give Cambodia some more time..there is so,so much to absorb and all of the temples around Ankor Wat is something you dont want to try and cram into 1/2 days.
Tours of phnom penh can be done in a day if your short for time. Personally, i didnt like the city itself and found that 1 day to visit the important areas was enough and i was ready to leave to absorb everything id seen and learnt. Siem Reap needs more time. Obviously traveling between the two will need to have allowances for time.

Some advice- go to Hoi An with a whole load of ideas of what you want! otherwise, youl be spoilt for choice and end up wasting time deciding what to get! I was convinced when i got there i wouldnt need to have any tailored clothing (im not really the shopping sort of girl) but after arriving we ended up spending 4 days there due to ordering with different tailors and being indecisive about getting things! esp if your short for time you dont want to waste time doing this.

I loved HCMC and Hanoi. Though i think HCMC took my heart a bit more.it was just so crazy!

anyway, hope maybe some of this helps!

Enjoy your trip! <3 Reply to this

Hi Nurul

There are regular buses from HCMC to Phnom Penh. They are run by lots of different companies and take about 5-6 hours. The guide on the bus will help you do your visa for Cambodia too.

Hope this helps,

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In response to: Msg #154529

Hi, i visited Vietnam & Cambodia in 2010 and loved my time in Hue, we went on a motorbike tour around the back lanes of Hue and got a great feel for local life, check out hueriders.com and try to get out to the Thanh Toan bridge.

I would swap Na Trang for Halong Bay, you get the sea, sun and relaxation without the naff tourist resort experience, and if you get to kayak a bit you can probably find a beach anyway.

Definitely do Hanoi and Saigon (HCM), both are great cities and different too.

In Cambodia, you will want to do Phnom Penh and Siem Reap and wont have time for much else, but i can recommend the relaxed town of Kep near Kampot, a great alternative from the touristy Sihanoukville. You can see the old art deco buildings that are derelict with Khmer bullet holes in them - go to the old palace, the guy who camps out there charges $5 to wonder around it.

have a great trip! Reply to this