My best friend just got engaged last month and she's already stressing about honeymoon planning, and when she asked me about Vietnam I literally spent an hour on the phone telling her everything. So I figured I should just write this down properly because apparently everyone's suddenly considering Vietnam for their honeymoon now?

We did one of those Vietnam honeymoon tours in February, and I'm still processing whether it was romantic or just... really hot and chaotic. Let me explain.

How We Even Landed on Vietnam

Okay so backstory – my now-husband and I got married in January, and we were doing the whole honeymoon research thing right after engagement. I wanted Maldives (basic, I know, but those water villas looked insane), he wanted to "experience culture" and not just lie on a beach. We compromised on Vietnam because it had beaches AND culture. Seemed like a win-win.

We looked at maybe 20 different vietnam honeymoon packages online, and honestly? They all kind of blended together after a while. Prices ranged from ₹90,000 to like ₹2 lakhs for 8-9 days, and I couldn't figure out what justified the massive price difference. Were the expensive ones serving gold-flaked pho or something?

Ended up booking through this agency my colleague recommended – ₹1,35,000 for 9 days covering Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, Da Nang, Hoi An, and Ho Chi Minh. They called it a "romantic package" which basically meant rose petals on the bed and one candlelight dinner. We were sold.

Reality Check #1: Vietnam is HOT

We landed in Hanoi in February thinking it'd be nice and cool. And it was... for like the first two days. Then we headed south and oh my god, the humidity. I'm talking hair-frizzing, makeup-melting, why-did-I-wear-jeans level of humidity.

The Vietnam honeymoon couple package we booked had us staying in "romantic boutique hotels" which sounds fancy but actually meant small rooms with sometimes-working AC. Our first hotel in Hanoi was genuinely nice – rooftop restaurant, comfy bed, the whole thing. But the one in Da Nang? The AC made weird clicking sounds all night and I barely slept.

Here's what nobody tells you: Vietnam in February is wedding season for locals. So we'd be trying to have our romantic walks and there'd be like three wedding photoshoots happening at the same location. One time in Hoi An we accidentally photobombed someone's wedding photos because we didn't realize what was happening. Awkward.

Ha Long Bay: The Romantic Part (Mostly)

The overnight cruise on Ha Long Bay was supposed to be the highlight, right? And it kinda was, but also kinda wasn't.

We got this "deluxe cabin" with a balcony as part of the package, which was actually pretty cool. Waking up with the bay right there, having morning coffee while watching the karsts... yeah, that was properly romantic. My husband's not even a morning person but he was up at 6 AM taking photos.

But then there's the reality of being on a boat with 40 other people, including three other honeymooning couples (we could tell from the awkward matching outfits). The "romantic" dinner was a buffet where you're jostling for spring rolls with strangers. Not exactly intimate, you know?

The kayaking through caves though? That was genuinely fun. We got lost for like 20 minutes (going in circles apparently), and just laughed about how we're gonna be terrible at adulting together. Those are the moments that made it worth it, not the scheduled "romantic" stuff.

Hoi An: Where It Actually Got Good

Okay unpopular opinion – Hoi An was way more romantic than Ha Long Bay, and it wasn't even trying to be. The old town at night with all the lanterns? Come on. That's peak honeymoon vibes right there.

The vietnam honeymoon tour had us doing a cooking class together, which I thought would be cheesy but was actually really fun. We made cao lau and white rose dumplings, and I only burned myself once on the wok. Our instructor was this tiny elderly woman who kept laughing at how bad we were at rolling things. She'd been doing this for 40 years and we were... not naturals.

We also rented a scooter one afternoon (off-script from the package) and just rode around the countryside. Found this random beach that was totally empty, watched the sunset, got caught in a sudden rainstorm on the way back and arrived at our hotel completely drenched. Best day of the trip, hands down.

The tailor shops in Hoi An are dangerous though. My husband got three suits made, I got two dresses, and we definitely spent more than we budgeted. But hey, honeymoon financial decisions, what can you do?

The "Romance" They Don't Tell You About

Here's the thing about vietnam honeymoon packages – they're big on symbolic romantic gestures but sometimes miss the practical stuff that actually matters for couples.

Like, they'll give you rose petals on the bed (which we honestly just brushed aside because who wants to sleep on flower petals?), but they don't tell you that some hotels have see-through bathroom doors. Privacy matters, people!

Or they'll book you a "romantic" dinner with a view, but it's at 6 PM when the sun's still blazing and you're just sweating into your pasta. We learned to specifically ask about timing for these things.

The spa day in Ho Chi Minh was actually pretty great though. They gave us a couples massage that was genuinely relaxing, even though I felt awkward the whole time being in the same room while getting massaged. Is that just me? Felt like performance art.

Money Talk (Because We're All Thinking It)

Let's be real about costs. The ₹1,35,000 covered:

• Flights (one stopover, not direct)
• Hotels (mix of 3 and 4-star)
• Breakfasts
• The Ha Long Bay cruise
• Some guided tours
• Airport transfers
• That one candlelight dinner

What we spent extra:

• Lunches and other dinners (₹15,000 easily)
• The scooter rental and random taxis (₹3,000)
• Shopping in Hoi An (₹25,000, don't judge)
• Tips, coffees, random snacks (₹5,000)
• Activities not included like spa and cooking class (₹8,000)

Total real spend was closer to ₹1,90,000. Just so you're prepared.

Would I Recommend Vietnam for Honeymoon?

Honestly? Yeah, but with conditions. If you want a beach resort where you don't leave the property for a week, go to Maldives or Bali. Vietnam's not that.

But if you want a mix of exploring, good food, some culture, and occasional romantic moments? Vietnam works. Just don't expect it to be romantic in the typical candlelight-and-roses way. It's more like... adventure-romantic? If that makes sense?

The vietnam honeymoon tour helped because we didn't have to plan everything, which was nice right after the wedding chaos. But it also meant we were on someone else's schedule during what's supposed to be OUR time. Trade-offs everywhere.

My husband and I joke now that our honeymoon was more about figuring out how we travel together than having some perfect Instagram-worthy experience. Like, I learned he takes 47 photos of the same temple from slightly different angles. He learned I get really hangry if we don't eat by 1 PM. Important stuff.

Random Things to Actually Know

The best food we had wasn't at any fancy restaurant the package included – it was at street stalls and tiny local places. Don't be scared to eat street food, just go where locals go.

Also, everyone speaks at least a little English in tourist areas, so communication wasn't as hard as we thought. Though there was this one incident where I tried to order coconut water and somehow ended up with a smoothie? Still unclear what happened there.

Bring comfortable shoes. Like, actually comfortable, not "cute comfortable." We walked SO MUCH. My feet still haven't forgiven me.

The Instagram vs reality gap is huge. That photo of us looking all romantic at the Temple of Literature? We took it after arguing about whether we should hire a cyclo or just walk. Relationship goals, right?

If I could do it again, I'd maybe add a few extra days to just chill. The package kept us moving constantly, and by day 7 we were both exhausted. A honeymoon should have some lazy mornings built in.

Anyway, that's my extremely honest take on doing Vietnam for your honeymoon. Tell your friend it's worth it, just manage expectations and maybe add some buffer days for actual relaxation. And bring extra money for those Hoi An tailors – you've been warned.