Many world travellers use ‘’Rough Guides’’ as their bible for where to go in the World and what to do when they get there. Vietnam has recently been included as one of the 20 most beautiful places on the Planet to visit. Clearly, many people agree because the number of visitors arriving annually for a Vietnam holiday has been increasing year on year. The last full year’s figures state that 15.4 million visitors went to Vietnam in 2018 and 18 million are expected in the current year. Vietnam is growing quickly among world desinations.

There are several reasons that ‘’Rough Guides’’ has cited for their selection of Vietnam and it has placed emphasis on a couple of places in the North to illustrate what the Country has to offer; Halong Bay on the Coast and Sa Pa in the Northern Highlands north of the Capital, Hanoi, and close to the Chinese border. Quite naturally, these two places and the Capital itself are regularly included in Vietnam travel packages. A good Vietnam travel agent will be able to produce a tailormade Vietnam tour package itinerary to include them as well as the other things in the Country of particular interest to a client.

Halong Bay, of course, has been recognised as a stunning venue for many years now. New Open World, a Swiss organisation, selected it as one of the world’s new natural wonders of the world back in 2011. You can cruise among the hundreds of islands, limestone karsts, the vast majority being uninhabited, and sleep on a boat overnight enjoying the silence and natural environment.  

Van Don International Airport has opened recently making it even more accessible, but surely, those with time, and wanting to see Sa Pa as well will still fly into Hanoi and see the best of the Capital as well? Hanoi is a four hour drive west of Halong Bay and the obvious starting point for the trip up to Sa Pa.

There is much to enjoy in Hanoi, ranging from the narrow streets of the Old Town where you can sit on a plastic chair and eat street food to the Museums, ‘’French boulevards’’ and the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum.  If you are on an organised tour, all the arrangements for seeing and enjoying the best of Hanoi will be made for you.

You can travel by road or rail up to Sa Pa which is mainly known for its rice terraces which change in colour between when the rice is planted until harvest time. Initially you would see glistening water, then the various shades of green as the rice grows until finally at harvest time, everything is golden. What you actually see will depend on when you travel but what you can always enjoy is Sa Pa itself and the ethnic tribes that have lived in the Region for many centuries, largely in the same way that previous generations have done.

Vietnam deserves its position in the ‘’Beautıful Top 20’’ so why not book today?