As we gladly see the back of Covid, many of us have started to plan out our upcoming travels. Many countries have opened their borders to tourism and independent travellers however flight schedules have been slower to catch up and many of the old flight routes that we knew have not resumed operation.
Vietnam has officially opened up as of 16 March 2022 to tourism and travellers can now enter the country on a 30-day visa but it hasn’t been easy to obtain accurate and official information from the Vietnamese government. The best resource I’ve found so far is Vietnam Briefing, which although is privately run, does offer quite accurate and up-to-date information about travel news and visa situations for Vietnam:-
https://www.vietnam-briefing.com/news/covid-19-vietnam-travel-updates-restrictions.html
Although, Ho Chi Minh and Ha Noi are the key locations that visitors will visit, there are many other places in Vietnam that are, in my opinion, more beautiful and interesting than the big cities. Amongst these lesser destinations are places like Da Lat, Da Nang, Hue City, Nha Trang and Ha Long Bay; all of these rarely receive the coverage that they deserve.
Bradley Williams has a very interesting personal blog about Da Lat and unlike the commercial and often fake information you get on Tripadvisor; this blog actually shows you the real deal:-
https://www.dreambigtravelfarblog.com/blog/best-things-to-do-in-da-lat
This blog is really interesting and I really like the “realness” of the accounts and pictures that haven’t been photoshopped.
This is an interesting retreat is privately run which is a real get-away kind of retreat.
https://spapure.vn/first-villa-debuts-at-exclusive-development-in-dalat/
In Da Nang, there are some really interesting manufacturers of local produce using ingredients from Vietnam. A newly-launch brand with home-made XO sauce, snacks and ready to cook food is called Hey Hey:-
Another that deserves a mention is called the Biltong Masters or now renamed to the MEAT Company
If you are looking to rent an apartment or a short-stay or property in Da Nang, this independent website called OneDay is great:-
https://www.oneday.com.vn/en_VN/residential/vietnam-to-rent/da-nang-city/
Olivia’s Prime Steakhouse is another great place to visit if you fancy a juicy steak in Da Nang:-
There is a treasure trove of things to do and places to visit in Vietnam; to see the whole country would take and if time permits the most romantic and relaxing way to travel is by train because there is a North-South train that takes you from one end of the country to the other; here is some more information about that:-
https://www.vietnamonline.com/transport/north-south-express-train.html