Vietnam Discovery in 16 Days — Self-Launched

Fly into Noi Bai (HAN). Skip the airport taxi desk and take the Noi Bai Express bus no.86 (about £1.30) or a Grab ride (£8–10) to the Old Quarter. Check into a hostel private double or budget hotel near Ma May or Hang Bac (about £14). Spend the afternoon walking Hoan Kiem Lake, the Temple of the Jade Mound and the 36 guild streets. Evening: bia hoi corner and a banh mi from a street cart (the 'banh my 3T' style breakfast sandwich is everywhere for under £1.50). Book tomorrow's Ninh Binh day tour in person or on Klook/GetYourGuide so you can compare operators.

🚌Noi Bai Express bus no.86 (~£1.30) or Grab (~£9)

🛏Hostel private double / budget boutique hotel, Old Quarter (~£14)

• →Hoan Kiem Lake & Ngoc Son Temple
• →Old Quarter street-food walk
• →Bia hoi corner

Joined small-group day tour (booked via Klook or GetYourGuide, £28–35 with lunch) covers Bai Dinh Pagoda's 10m bronze Buddha, a 2–3 hour rowboat through the Trang An river caves (the sampan is rowed by local women with their feet — tip £2), and the 10th-century Hoa Lu citadel. Traditional goat-meat lunch is included. Alternative DIY version: local bus or train to Ninh Binh (£3–5), then a hired bicycle/taxi between sites, hiring the Trang An boat directly (£7). Back in Hanoi by early evening — eat bun cha at a family grill house (~£3).

🚌Shared minibus via day tour (included); alternative: train to Ninh Binh ~£4

🛏Hostel private double / budget hotel, Old Quarter (~£14)

• →Bai Dinh Pagoda
• →Trang An boat trip (2–3 hrs)
• →Hoa Lu Ancient Capital
• →Goat-meat lunch

Book a sleeper bus or VIP limousine van from Hanoi to Sapa (5.5–6 hrs, £10–13) — the limo vans are more comfortable than the train plus shuttle combo for the same price. Arrive around lunchtime, check into a guesthouse with valley views (£13). Afternoon: walk down to Cat Cat Village (2 hrs, 3.5 km) to see Black Hmong homes, the waterfall and the French-era hydraulic power station; entry ~£2.5. Arrange your next two days of trekking with a local Hmong guide through your guesthouse (about £18–22 per day including lunch) — licensed local women guides are excellent and this keeps money in the village.

🚌Hanoi–Sapa limousine van / sleeper bus ~£12

🛏Valley-view guesthouse, Sapa town (~£13)

• →Cat Cat Village walk & waterfall
• →Hydraulic power station ruins
• →Arrange local Hmong trekking guide

Full-day guided trek (12 km, 4.5 hrs) from Sapa down through Y Linh Ho and the Muong Hoa terraces to Lao Chai (Black Hmong) and Ta Van (Dzay), with a picnic lunch en route. Your guide costs ~£20 and village entry fees are a couple of pounds. You can either stay the night in a Ta Van homestay (£10–12 with dinner and breakfast, a genuinely better experience than returning to town) or ride back to Sapa — tell your guesthouse in advance either way. Evening: rice wine and family dinner in the homestay.

🚌On foot; motorbike return to Sapa ~£4 if needed

🛏Ta Van homestay (~£12 incl. dinner & breakfast) or Sapa guesthouse (~£13)

• →Y Linh Ho & Muong Hoa valley trek
• →Lao Chai Black Hmong village
• →Ta Van Dzay village
• →Homestay dinner

Half-day guided walk (about 3 hrs) through Suoi Ho, past the early-1900s French church ruins, on to Ma Tra and Ta Phin to meet Black Hmong and Red Dao communities. Red Dao women will offer herbal-medicine talks and the famous herbal bath — budget £5–8 if you take it (worth it after two days of trekking). Lunch at a local spot (~£3). Afternoon bus or limo van back to Hanoi (£12), arriving evening. Overnight in the Old Quarter.

🚌Sapa–Hanoi limousine van / sleeper bus ~£12

🛏Hostel private double / budget hotel, Old Quarter (~£14)

• →Suoi Ho & French church ruins
• →Ma Tra and Ta Phin villages
• →Optional Red Dao herbal bath (~£6)

Book a 2-day/1-night cruise directly with a mid-range operator (or via Klook/GetYourGuide) — £85–110 per person for a 3-star junk cabin with all meals, kayaking and transfers. Insist on Bai Tu Long Bay rather than the crowded central Halong route; it's the same karst scenery with a fraction of the boats. Shared shuttle from Hanoi Old Quarter (~3.5 hrs). Afternoon kayaking at Cap La Island, swimming, sunset on deck, squid fishing after dark and a Vietnamese cooking demo.

🚌Shuttle bus Hanoi–Hon Gai pier included in cruise price

🛏Deluxe cabin, 3-star junk, Bai Tu Long Bay (~£95 incl. meals, kayaking & transfers)

• →Kayaking at Cap La Island
• →Swimming & sunset deck party
• →Squid fishing
• →Cooking demonstration

Optional 6:30am tai chi on the sundeck, then a short walk up to Thien Canh Son Cave before brunch on board. Disembark around 11am and shuttle back to Hanoi (included). Evening: take the Reunification Express sleeper (SE1/SE3, soft-sleeper 4-berth, ~£22–28 booked on dsvn.vn or at the station) from Hanoi to Hue, roughly 13 hrs. Alternatively fly Hanoi–Hue on VietJet/Bamboo for £25–35 if you'd rather save a night, adding a night's hotel.

🚌Cruise shuttle to Hanoi (included) + Reunification Express sleeper Hanoi–Hue ~£25

🛏Soft-sleeper 4-berth on Reunification Express (~£25)

• →Thien Canh Son Cave
• →Tai chi on sundeck
• →Overnight train

Arrive early morning, drop bags at a guesthouse in the backpacker lane near Pham Ngu Lao (£13). Hire a bicycle or Grab between sites. Morning: dragon boat on the Perfume River to Thien Mu Pagoda (1601) — shared boats ~£2, or hire a private one for £6. Afternoon: Hue Imperial Citadel and the Forbidden Purple City (entry ~£6), then the tombs of Minh Mang and Khai Dinh (£5 each, or a combo ticket). Evening: bun bo Hue at a locals' spot (~£2) and a walk along the river.

🚌Bicycle hire ~£2 / Grab rides ~£4

🛏Guesthouse, Hue backpacker area (~£13)

• →Dragon boat to Thien Mu Pagoda
• →Hue Imperial Citadel
• →Minh Mang & Khai Dinh tombs

Take a shared limousine bus Hue–Hoi An (3.5 hrs, £7–9) — pick the window seat on the left. Ask the driver for quick photo stops at Lap An Lagoon and Lang Co Beach, or book a 'Hai Van Pass' minibus tour (~£12) that includes the stops and the Marble Mountains. Check into a guesthouse in Hoi An's old town fringe or An Hoi islet (£14). Evening: lantern-lit walk through the Ancient Town (entry ticket £5) and cao lau noodles.

🚌Shared limousine bus Hue–Hoi An ~£8 (with photo stops)

🛏Guesthouse, Hoi An old-town fringe (~£14)

• →Lap An Lagoon & Lang Co Beach stops
• →Hai Van Pass viewpoint
• →Hoi An Ancient Town by lantern light

Book a half-day Cam Thanh fishing-village experience via GetYourGuide or Klook (£18–22): ride a bamboo basket boat with local fishermen, try traditional net and trap fishing on the Thu Bon, and have your catch cooked up for lunch. Afternoon free for the tailors (a suit in 24 hrs from ~£70), the Japanese Covered Bridge and riverside cafés. Book tomorrow's transfer to Da Nang airport or the sleeper train south tonight.

🚌Bicycle to Cam Thanh ~£1

🛏Guesthouse, Hoi An old-town fringe (~£14)

• →Bamboo basket boat ride
• →Traditional fishing with locals
• →Catch-of-the-day lunch
• →Tailors & Japanese Covered Bridge

Slow day. Options: cycle out to An Bang or Cua Dai beach (£1 bike hire, sunbed £3), take a cooking class (£20–25 incl. market visit), or get a £6 massage. Wander the antique-shop warehouses and assembly halls with your Ancient Town ticket. Pre-book tonight's onward travel — either a 1-hr flight Da Nang–Saigon (£30–45) or the Reunification Express sleeper Hoi An/ Da Nang–Saigon (~£35, 17 hrs). Flying saves a full day; the train is cheaper and part of the experience.

🚌Bicycle ~£1; airport shuttle Da Nang ~£6

🛏Guesthouse, Hoi An old-town fringe (~£14)

• →An Bang Beach
• →Optional cooking class
• →Assembly halls & old merchant houses

Transfer to Da Nang airport (£6 shuttle) and fly to Tan Son Nhat (£30–45, 1h20), or take the sleeper train if you chose that route. Check into a hostel private room or budget hotel in District 1 near Bui Vien or Ben Thanh (£14). Afternoon: Reunification Palace, the War Remnants Museum (£2) and a walk down Dong Khoi to the Saigon River. Evening: Ben Thanh street-food market or a £3 banh xeo in District 3.

🚌Shuttle to Da Nang + flight to Saigon ~£40 (or sleeper train ~£35)

🛏Budget hotel / hostel private room, District 1 (~£14)

• →War Remnants Museum
• →Reunification Palace
• →Ben Thanh market food crawl

Morning small-group tour to Cu Chi (booked via Klook/GetYourGuide, £15–20 incl. transport and entry; the Ben Duoc site is less crowded than Ben Dinh). Watch the construction film, crawl a section of the tunnels, and try the tea-and-cassava guerrilla ration. Back in the city by mid-afternoon — use the time for the Notre Dame Cathedral exterior, the Central Post Office and a rooftop beer. DIY option: local bus no.13 to Cu Chi town then a motorbike taxi, ~£5 total.

🚌Shared minibus via tour (included) or local bus ~£5

🛏Budget hotel / hostel private room, District 1 (~£14)

• →Cu Chi Tunnels guided visit
• →Tea & cassava tasting
• →Central Post Office & Notre Dame

Two-day/one-night Mekong small-group tour booked via Klook or GetYourGuide (£55–70 incl. transport, meals and homestay) — this is far better value than DIY-ing the delta's islands. Stops at Vinh Trang Pagoda, sampan rides around the Dragon/Unicorn/Phoenix/Tortoise islands, orchard walks with tropical fruit and folk music, a bee farm with honey tea, a coconut-candy workshop, and cycling through Tan Thach village. Overnight in a Can Tho homestay with a home-cooked dinner.

🚌Minibus Saigon–Ben Tre–Can Tho (included in tour)

🛏Mekong Delta homestay, Can Tho (~£12, included in tour price)

• →Vinh Trang Pagoda
• →Sampan through Thoi Son canal
• →Coconut candy & bee farm
• →Cycling Tan Thach village

Up at 5:30am for a small rowboat or motor sampan to Cai Rang floating market (£6–8 shared) — the best hour is 6–7am before the tourist boats arrive; buy a pineapple from a vendor boat. Then a walk to a fruit plantation, a rice-noodle factory and Binh Thuy communal house, plus the Khmer Munir Ansay Pagoda. Return minibus to Saigon in the afternoon (included in the tour, or local bus ~£5). Last night in District 1 — dinner at a bun mam stall and a Bui Vien nightcap.

🚌Return minibus Can Tho–Saigon (included) or local bus ~£5

🛏Budget hotel / hostel private room, District 1 (~£14)

• →Cai Rang floating market at dawn
• →Rice-noodle factory
• →Binh Thuy communal house
• →Munir Ansay Khmer Pagoda

Breakfast banh mi, then bus no.109 or 152 (about £0.50) or a Grab (£6) to Tan Son Nhat for your flight home. If you have a late flight, the Fine Arts Museum and a final pho are a good send-off.

🚌Bus 109/152 to Tan Son Nhat ~£0.50 or Grab ~£6

🛏None (departure day)

• →Last banh mi breakfast
• →Optional Fine Arts Museum