KARL WATSON
TRAVEL DOCUMENTARIES
VIETNAM
Quick facts
Trip length:
Time of year:
Year of trip:
Budget:
6 weeks
Dec - Feb
2019 - 20
$2,791
Table of contents
Click to skip forward to a section:
- Dalat
- Quy Nhon
- Hoi An
- Hue
- Tam Coc
- Hanoi
- Ha Giang
- Phu Quoc
Some links in this post contain affiliate links. I receive a small commission if you use the links at no extra cost to you.
Budget breakdown
Things to note:
-
Due to the nature of my freelance work, I always book my flights last minute, which means they cost a lot more than if bought a few months in advance
-
Considering how cheap Vietnam is, I really wasn't holding back with my spending, particularly in terms of accommodation where I often stayed in private rooms instead of dorms at hostels
Total Trip Costs
Flights from the UK:
Visa:
Accommodation:
Transport:
Activities:
Cash spent:
Total:
$1,101
$110
$629
$333
$522
$1,197
$3,892
Budget without visa & flights from UK (42 days)
Accommodation:
Transport:
Activities:
Cash spent:
Total:
$629
$333
$522
$1,197
$2,681
Budget (42 days)
This is how much it would've cost if I only stayed in dorms rather than private rooms
Accommodation:
Transport:
Activities:
Cash spent:
Total:
$265
$333
$522
$1,197
$2,317
Itinerary Summary
Ho Chi Minh City
Duration of stay
5 nights and 4 full days
Accommodation
-
Prince Of Whales Hostel, private room: $20/night
-
The Hideout Hostel (NYE party)
Activities
-
Mekong Delta Tour: $34
-
Cu Chi Tunnels: $17
Dalat
Duration of stay
2 nights and 1 full day
Travel
Bus 6hrs: $12
Accommodation
Mr Peace Backpackers House, dorm room: $4.67 per night.
Activities
-
Rollercoaster
-
Cable car: 80k VND / $3.50
-
Crazy House: 40k VND / $1.75
Central Highlands
Duration of stay
2 nights and 3 days of riding
Travel
Bike rental from Mr Peace: $30/day
Accommodation
-
Lak Lake Resort House, twin private room: $20 per night
-
Ngoc Mai Guesthouse, twin private room: $7 per night
Nha Trang
Quy Nhon
Duration of stay
2 nights and 1 full day
Travel
-
Train to Dieu Tri: $12
-
Taxi to hostel: $10
Accommodation
Life's A Beach Backpackers, private room: $20 per night.
Hoi An
Duration of stay
5 nights and 4 full days
Travel
Bus: $12
Accommodation
Tribee Kinh Hostel, private room: $18 per night
Activities
-
Ba Na Hills Bike Rental: 150k VND / $6
-
Ba Na Hills Entrance: 750k / $32
-
Basket boat experience: 250k / $11
Hue
Duration of stay
2 nights and 2 full days
Travel
Hai Van Pass bike rental: 350k / $15
Accommodation
Hue Happy Homestay, dorm room: $3.67 / night
Activities
-
City Tour: 800k / $34.40
-
DMZ Tour: 450k / $19
Phong Nha
Duration of stay
3 nights and 3 days
Travel
(included in the DMZ Tour from Hue)
Accommodation
Central Backpackers Hostel, private room: $18 / night
Activities
Paradise & Dark Cave tour: 1,350k VND / $58
Tam Coc
Duration of stay
3 nights and 3 days
Travel
Night bus: $12
Accommodation
Banana Tree Hostel, doom right: $6.50 per night
Activities
-
Hostel tour: 150k / $6.50
-
Trang An boat tour: 250k / $11
Hanoi
Duration of stay
4 nights and 4 full days
Travel
Limo van: $12
Accommodation
Central Backpackers Hostel - Old Quarter, private room: $25 per night
Ha Giang
Duration of stay
4 nights and 3 full days (if I completed the loop it would've been 4 full days and would've got overnight bus down to Hanoi airport)
Travel
Bus: 350k / $15
Accommodation
Jasmine Hostel, dorm room: $6 per night
QT Guesthouse, private room: $11 per night
Paragon Noi Bai Hotel & Pool (Hanoi airport hotel): $30 per night
Activities
-
Ha Giang Loop: 3,230k / $139
Phu Quoc
Duration of stay
5 nights and 4 full day
Travel
Plane, Vietnam Airlines: $160
Accommodation
9Station, dorm room: $8 per night
Activities
-
Bike hire: 150k / $6.45
-
Cable car: 300k / $13
-
Boat tour
$6
Accommodation
Ho Chi Minh City:
The Prince of Whales Hostel & Bar
241/4 Pham Ngu Lao Street,
Phạm Ngu Lao Ward,
District 1, Ho Chi Minh,
Ho Chi Minh City:
The Hideout
275-279 Pham Ngu Lao,
District 1,
Ho Chi Minh,
Quy Nhon
Life's A Beach Backpackers
Thon 2, Xa Xuan, Song Cau
Quy Nhon
Phong Nha
Central Backpackers Hostel
Xuan Tien, Phong Nha,
Quang Binh, Phong Nha,
Tam Coc
The Banana Tree Hostel
Tam Coc Boat Station
Thai Vi Street, Ninh Binh
Hanoi
Central Backpackers Hostel
16 Thanh Ha Street,
Hoan Kiem District ,
Hanoi,
Ha Giang
Jasmine Hostel
Lam Dong Village,
Phuong Thien Commune,
Ha Giang,
Hanoi Airport
Paragon Noi bai Hotel & Pool
Đường điền xá 1,
võ văn kiệt,
sóc sơn , hà nội
Phu Quoc
9Station Hostel
91/1 Tran Hung Dao,
Duong Dong,
Phu Quoc Island,
Ho Chi Minh Airport
Ibis Saigon Airport
2 Hong Ha ,
Tan Binh,
Ho Chi Minh City,
Travel
The majority of my onward travel was booked through the hostel I was staying at, however here are some helpful links:
Activities
Again nearly all of the activities I did were booked through the hostel I was staying at.
If you're looking to book some day trips in Vietnam, here are some other ideas:
Do this trip as a tour
Click on the tour to be taken to the Intrepid Travel page.
