So my cousin Priya called me last week (like 11 PM, completely random) asking about Vietnam because her company's giving her a month off and she wants to go somewhere "not basic." And I'm sitting there half-asleep like... Vietnam? I just spent three hours that afternoon scrolling through photos from my trip there two years ago because Facebook reminded me or whatever. Weird timing, right?

Anyway, I ended up talking her ear off for like an hour about all the places I went that weren't the usual Hanoi-Ha Long Bay-Ho Chi Minh circuit. Because here's the thing – and people are gonna hate me for this – but I actually found Ha Long Bay kind of overrated? There, I said it. Don't get me wrong, it's pretty, but it's SO crowded and everyone's doing the exact same boat tour and taking the exact same photos.

Let me backtrack a bit. When I was planning my trip (this was 2023, I think? Maybe late 2022?), I originally looked at one of those Vietnam tour packages where they bundle everything together. You know the type – 10 days, 6 cities, wake up at 5 AM every day kind of thing. My friend Dave did one of those and he came back exhausted. Said he needed a vacation from his vacation, which honestly sounds about right.

But then I started digging around and talking to people who'd actually lived there or traveled slowly, and I realized I was doing it all wrong. The real Vietnam – the stuff that actually stuck with me – was in these random places I almost didn't visit.

Okay so here's what I'm thinking about

Ninh Binh. Oh my god, Ninh Binh. It's like two hours from Hanoi (maybe three if traffic sucks) and barely anyone talks about it? I don't understand why it's not on every Vietnam travel packages itinerary. It's basically Ha Long Bay but on land, with these insane limestone karsts and rice paddies everywhere. I rented a scooter – which, full disclosure, I'm terrible at driving scooters but I survived – and just got lost for a day.

There's this place called Tam Coc where you take these little boats through caves. And the women rowing the boats? They row with their FEET. Their feet! I'm still not over it. The whole thing cost me like... I wanna say ₹800? Maybe 200,000 dong? I'm so bad at remembering the conversion. But it was cheap, whatever it was.

The thing nobody tells you about Ninh Binh is that it gets HOT. Like, stupid hot. I went in April (mistake) and I thought I was gonna melt into a puddle. Bring water. Bring so much water. I ran out and had to buy this sketchy lukewarm bottle from a random lady on the side of the road and my stomach was fine but I probably got lucky.

The Central Highlands are INSANE

Hot take: skip Da Nang. Or like, don't skip it completely but don't spend more than a day there. Everyone makes such a big deal about the beaches and yeah they're nice but they're just... beaches? Instead, go inland to Dalat.

Dalat is this mountain town that feels like you're not even in Vietnam anymore. It was a French colonial hill station (is that the right term? I'm terrible at history) and it's all pine trees and strawberry farms and these weird fairy tale-looking buildings. The weather's actually cool – I wore a jacket at night, which felt surreal after sweating through my clothes everywhere else.

I stayed at this homestay run by a family who spoke maybe 10 words of English and I spoke zero Vietnamese, and somehow we communicated through Google Translate and hand gestures and it was one of my favorite experiences of the whole trip. The mom made me Vietnamese coffee every morning that was so strong I'm pretty sure I could see through time.

From Dalat you can do these motorcycle tours to coffee plantations and waterfalls. I did one with this guy named Minh (found him through my hostel) and we spent like 6 hours just riding around and he'd stop randomly to show me things that definitely weren't on any tourist map. At one point we stopped at his friend's farm and they insisted I try homemade rice wine at like 2 PM. It tasted like paint thinner but I smiled and pretended it was great because I'm polite like that.

Wait, does this even make sense? I feel like I'm jumping around too much...

The Mekong Delta but not the way everyone does it

Okay so most Vietnam packages will take you on a day trip to the Mekong Delta from Ho Chi Minh City. And those trips are fine, I guess. But they're super rushed and you're on a bus with 40 other people and everyone's getting herded around like cattle.

What I did instead – and this might sound stupid but hear me out – I took a local bus to Can Tho (which was an adventure in itself, the bus broke down halfway and we all just sat there for an hour) and stayed there for three days. Can Tho has this floating market called Cai Rang that starts at like 5 AM, and you have to actually wake up at 4:30 to get there when it's good.

I'm not a morning person AT ALL but I dragged myself out of bed and got on this little boat with maybe 6 other tourists (all of them German for some reason?) and it was... honestly kind of magical? The sun was rising and all these boats were selling fruits and soup and coffee right there on the water. I had breakfast on a boat. The soup was so good I think about it randomly sometimes.

The boat owner – her name was something like Huong? I might be remembering wrong – she took us through these tiny canals where the big tour boats can't go. We saw actual village life, people washing clothes in the river, kids going to school on boats. It felt real in a way that the packaged tours just... don't.

Cat Ba Island > Ha Long Bay (sorry not sorry)

Alright I mentioned earlier that I found Ha Long Bay overrated. Cat Ba Island is right next to it but way less touristy. You can do boat tours from there that go through similar scenery but without 500 other boats crowding every cave and viewpoint.

I stayed at this random hostel on Cat Ba (booked it like the night before, very last minute decision) and ended up going kayaking with some people I met there. We paddled into these hidden lagoons and at one point we were completely alone, just us and these massive cliffs and the water so clear you could see fish everywhere.

My arms were dead after though. Like, couldn't lift them the next day dead. I'm apparently very out of shape? That was a fun realization.

There's also hiking on Cat Ba. I attempted one trail, got about halfway up, decided I valued my life, and turned around. But the people who made it to the top said the views were incredible so if you're more athletic than me (low bar), definitely do it.

Random other places that were great

Ha Giang province in the far north – this was my favorite part of the whole trip but I'm running out of space and energy to explain it properly. It's this 3-4 day motorcycle loop through mountains that look fake they're so pretty. You need to book it ahead though, they have permit restrictions or something.

Hoi An's still touristy but I actually loved it (controversial opinion #2?). Get clothes tailored, it's ridiculously cheap. I got two dresses and a suit made for like... maybe ₹8000 total? The suit doesn't fit great anymore because I gained weight but that's a me problem.

Phong Nha-Ke Bang for caves. Like serious caves, not touristy caves. Some you need guides and gear for. I did one called Paradise Cave that was massive and barely anyone was there.

The actual logistics part I guess

So about those Vietnam trip packages everyone asks about – they're not terrible? Like, if you have limited time and want someone else to handle everything, sure. My parents did one and they liked it. But you pay a premium and you're on their schedule and you don't get to just... wander and find random stuff.

I think the sweet spot is booking flights and maybe first/last night hotels through some Vietnam packages deal to save money, but keeping the middle part flexible. Vietnam's super easy to navigate on your own. Trains are cheap (and overnight trains save you hotel money – I'm a genius), buses go everywhere, and locals are generally helpful even with the language barrier.

Grab works in cities (it's like Uber). That saved me so many times when I was lost or tired or both.

Accommodation's cheap if you're not picky. I stayed in hostels mostly, like ₹600-1200 a night? Hotels are maybe double that for decent ones. Splurge on a few nice places and budget the rest, that's what I did.

Food is SO CHEAP. I ate like a queen for maybe ₹400 a day? Banh mi is like ₹80 and it's huge and amazing. Pho for breakfast every day because why not.

Anyway I gotta wrap this up because I've been typing for way too long and my cat is screaming at me for dinner. But yeah – go to Vietnam, skip the super organized package tours if you can, be willing to get a little lost and uncomfortable, and definitely go to those random places nobody talks about. That's where the good stuff is.