SOLO BICYCLING (NON-MOTORIZED) IN HCMC, HOI AN & HANOI.....

---

SOLO BICYCLING (NON-MOTORIZED) IN HCMC, HOI AN & HANOI.....

In early Feb/10 I am planning a 2 1/2 week trip to Vietnam (my first). My planned itinerary is 6 nites in HCMC, 1 nite on the train (soft sleeper) enroute to Hoi An, 4 nites in Hoi An, 6 nites in Hanoi and 2 nites back in HCMC. Then I fly on to Bangkok for 3 weeks in Thailand.

My past travels to Asia have included 3 weeks in Malaysia and 2 trips to Thailand (5 weeks doing tsunami relief work in Phuket in Jan/Feb/05 and 3 weeks in '06 vacationing). This said, I know the 'hairy' driving conditions in all Asian cities. I'm a 70 y.o. retiree and travelling solo. I've hit 22 countries in my lifetime so I pretty well know the ropes. On this trip I would split my sightseeing about 2/3 cycling in the suberbs of cities and the countryside and 1/3 doing museums, historic sites and markets.

Any in-put on my Nam trip would be appreciated, including;
1. Would you recommend any adjustments in the number of days I'm planning in each locale? NOTE: The reason for allowing 2 additional nites in HCMC at the end of my Nam trip is to ensure there are no glitches in making my onward flight to Bangkok, such as cancelled flights out of Hanoi, traffic congestion in HCMC, etc.
TET in 2010 falls on Feb. 18th so the country will be even more chaotic than it normally is.
2. Can anyone tell me of personal experiences of doing the 'bike thing' as I'm planning to do it?
3. What has your experience been with the QUALITY OF THE BIKES at rental shops?
4. Is a lock always supplied with the rental bike or should I take my own?
5. My plan is to stay in good 2* hotels which I have already selected. Do most/all of these types of establishments have provision for safe bike over-night storage should I decide to rent a bike for several successive days?

Thanks for reading my em and for any assistance/advice you can provide.

Warren

---