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Destinations

Vietnam

Fifteen hundred kilometres of coast, three climates that rarely agree, and land gates into both Cambodia and Laos — Vietnam is the country most of our six-country routes are built around.

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Vietnam

One country, three different countries

Vietnam runs for 1,650 km down the eastern edge of the peninsula, which is why so little of what you read about it is true everywhere. The north has a genuine winter: Hanoi in January sits at 15°C under low cloud, and the terraces above Sa Pa are cold enough for frost. The centre, from Hue to Nha Trang, has its own calendar — dry and hard-lit from February, wet and occasionally cut off by typhoon in October and November. The south has no winter at all, only a dry half and a wet half, and even the wet half is usually an afternoon downpour rather than a lost day.

For a trip that only sees one country, that variety is a scheduling problem. For a trip that crosses borders it is the opposite: Vietnam is the piece that can absorb the month you are travelling in. A November route that would be miserable in Hue is fine in the Mekong Delta and excellent in Phu Quoc, and the same trip can pick up Cambodia — which by then is at its best — in a single road day.

Colorful shophouses line a busy street in Hanoi's Old Quarter with motorbikes and a taxi passing by.

A rower in a conical hat paddles a boat along a narrow water coconut palm-lined canal in the Mekong Delta.

Hanoi · Mekong Delta

Destinations

Where people actually go

2 – 3 nights

Hanoi

The old quarter, the street food and the airport most northern trips start from.

1 night

Ha Long Bay

One night on the water, usually on the way in or out of Hanoi.

2 nights

Sa Pa

Terraced valleys, market towns and walking at altitude.

The Meridian Gate of Hue Imperial Citadel glows at sunset behind its stone bridge and moat.

1 – 2 nights

Hue

The imperial city, the royal tombs and the road over the Hai Van pass.

3 nights

Hoi An

A walkable old town, a beach twenty minutes away and the best cooking classes in the country.

2 nights

Ho Chi Minh City

The southern gateway, and the start of the road to Cambodia.

1 – 2 nights

Mekong Delta

Canals, orchards, floating markets and the river route into Cambodia.

3 – 4 nights

Phu Quoc

Where a long overland route usually ends.

Seasons

When to come

The honest version: there is no month that is ideal from Hanoi to Ca Mau at the same time. March and April come closest, which is also when prices and crowds are highest. October and November are excellent in the south and unreliable in the centre. June to August is hot everywhere but it is also when the northern terraces are green and when European school holidays fall, so we build those trips around early starts and a coastal finish.

Water-filled rice terraces curve around a hillside village near Sapa, Vietnam.

Northern Vietnam, May

JFMAMJJASONDNorthern VietnamCentral VietnamSouthern Vietnam

Three means the month usually works everywhere in that region, two means it works with a plan, one means rain, heat or sea conditions will shape your days. No month is closed to all six countries: when the Mekong is in flood, Bali and the Philippines are at their driest.

Borders

Crossing in and out by land

Vietnam has land gates into both its neighbours, and using one is what turns two separate holidays into a single trip. Two things decide whether it works: which gate your Vietnamese e-visa names, and whether the country on the other side will sell you a visa at that gate.

Border	Crossing	Route	Time at the border	Status	What it means for your visa
Vietnam – Cambodia	Moc Bai – Bavet	Road, Ho Chi Minh City – Phnom Penh	6 – 7 h	Open	Cambodian e-visa accepted here. Your Vietnamese e-visa must name Moc Bai as the exit gate.
Vietnam – Cambodia	Ha Tien – Prek Chak	Road, Phu Quoc ferry – Kampot / Kep	3 h from Ha Tien to Kampot	Open	Take a Cambodian visa on arrival here (USD cash and a passport photo). The e-visa is not listed for this gate.
Vietnam – Laos	Lao Bao – Dansavanh	Road, Hue / Dong Ha – Savannakhet	7 – 8 h	Operating, no government status page	The Lao e-visa is not valid at this gate — buy a visa on arrival.
Vietnam – Laos	Nam Can – Nam Kan	Road, Vinh – Phonsavan	8 h	Operating, no government status page	Lao visa on arrival only.
Vietnam – Laos	Tay Trang – Sop Hun	Road, Dien Bien Phu – Muang Khua	5 h	Operating, no government status page	Lao visa on arrival only.

Checked 20 September 2026

The Vietnamese e-visa ties you to the entry and exit gates you chose when you applied, and they cannot be changed afterwards — this is the single most common reason a self-planned overland trip falls apart at the border. The Lao e-visa is not valid at any Vietnamese land gate; you buy a visa on arrival there instead.

Planning

How many days it needs

7 – 8 daysOne half of the country. North: Hanoi, the bay and a night in the hills. South: Saigon, the delta and an island finish.

10 – 12 daysThe classic north-to-south line with two internal flights — Hanoi, Ha Long, Hue or Hoi An, Saigon.

14 daysThe same line at a pace that lets you stop: two nights in the mountains, three in Hoi An, a proper delta stay.

With a second countryGive Vietnam eight to ten days and let the land border carry you into Cambodia or Laos rather than flying back out through Hanoi.

Combinations

What it joins well with

Cambodia is the natural second country: the road from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh is a single day, and both countries share the same dry season. Laos pairs best with the north and the centre — Dien Bien Phu to Muang Khua, or Hue to Savannakhet — and rewards travellers who are happy with long, slow road days. Thailand almost always joins by air rather than by land, because the Thai – Cambodian border is closed and the road route around it is not worth the three days it costs.

The border decides the route more often than the map does.
How we plan multi-country trips

Start with Vietnam.

Plan My Trip

Tell us your dates

We will tell you which half of the country they suit, and which neighbour is worth adding.

Plan My Trip

Common questions

Questions travellers ask most

Do I need a visa for Vietnam?

Most European passports have 45 days visa-free; American, Australian and Canadian passports need an e-visa, which is open to every nationality and now runs up to 90 days. Whichever applies to you, a pre-arrival declaration is compulsory at every airport and is filed no more than three days before you land.

Can I enter Vietnam by land and leave by air?

Yes, but if you are travelling on an e-visa you must name both the land gate and the airport when you apply. Changing them later is not possible — you would have to apply again.

Is Ha Long Bay worth an overnight?

On a boat, yes: the bay empties in the late afternoon and fills again mid-morning, and the overnight is the only way to see it quiet. As a day trip from Hanoi it is eight hours of driving for four hours of water.

How bad is the rain?

In the south and in Cambodia, an hour in the afternoon that you can plan around. In central Vietnam in October and November it can be days rather than hours, and roads over the passes do close. We move the centre to the start or the end of a trip in those months rather than dropping it.

Journey ideas