Last Updated on July 8, 2025 by SampleBoard
A fortnight in Vietnam feels like flipping through a living picture book. One spread shows limestone spires that dwarf tiny rowing sampans. Another glows with silken lanterns drifting over an ancient riverfront.
Between each scene, you nibble a crispy bánh mì, hop an easy flight, and watch your children barter for dragon-fruit smoothies in perfect Vietnamese.
The distances are short, the weather never dull, and the country’s kid-friendly welcome is legendary.
A clear plan turns that richness into reality, letting your crew move from Hanoi’s frenetic markets to the Mekong’s sleepy canals without a single “Are we there yet?”
Vietnam’s e-visa takes minutes online and now covers 90 days for most nationalities.
Book it at least two weeks out, then line up open-jaw flights into Hanoi and home from Ho Chi Minh City to avoid back-tracking.
High-speed trains are an adventure, yet the one-hour domestic flights save tantrum-triggered hours on highways.
Lock in a couple of crowd-magnet experiences before you fly:
Everything else can be tweaked on the road. Just pack lightweight layers, reef-safe sunscreen, and patience for sudden rain.
Begin in the Old Quarter’s tangled lanes. Parents sip egg coffee while kids point at blue incense smoke curling from hidden temples.
A guided food walk works best on night one; navigate sizzling bun cha grills, then end at Hoan Kiem Lake where neon reflections paint the water.
Day two, roll through French-era boulevards by pedal-powered cyclo and catch a mid-afternoon water-puppet show.
If little legs fade, slip into the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology’s outdoor houses—lots of ladders, zero boredom.
Karst cliffs rise straight from gold-green rice fields here. It’s two full days of balance boats, bikes, and gentle hikes.
Overnight in a bamboo bungalow beside lily ponds so the chorus of frogs can replace city horns.
From Ninh Binh, it’s a three-and-a-half-hour shuttle to Ha Long’s emerald water. Board a classic wooden junk where family cabins fit bunks and balconies.
Afternoon kayaking reveals secret lagoons while onboard chefs hold spring-roll workshops.
After dark, try squid-fishing under deck lights. Dawn tai chi on the top deck wins teen approval thanks to epic selfies.
Choose a two-day, one-night itinerary; it leaves enough time but avoids cabin fever.
Fly north-to-south from Ha Long’s catamaran pier to Da Nang, then transfer 60 minutes to Hoi An.
The town’s mustard-yellow shophouses sparkle at dusk when lanterns light every balcony. Spend one morning in a lantern workshop twisting bamboo frames; ship the glowing souvenirs home.
Another afternoon, hop a basket-boat into coconut palm channels where fishermen spin doughnut-shaped coracles to K-pop beats, an instant kid crowd-pleaser.
Between sightseeing, retreat to An Bang Beach. Waves stay gentle, sunbeds are cheap, and seafood cafés grill garlic-butter clams that disappear faster than ice-cream melts.
Da Nang breaks the journey south and spices it with future-city vibes.
Catch a post-dinner flight to Ho Chi Minh City and arrive just as neon skyscrapers outshine the stars.
Wake up to motorbike symphonies and fresh bánh bò pancakes.
Start at the War Remnants Museum’s outdoor aircraft yard; graphic indoor exhibits suit older kids, so pair younger ones with a quick visit to nearby Tao Đàn Park’s playground.
At noon, duck into Ben Thanh Market for DIY rice-paper rolls.
Afternoon choices: Notre-Dame Cathedral’s scarlet bricks, or a sky-bar view from Bitexco Tower (mocktails included). In the evening, join a street-food scooter tour—drivers provide kid helmets—and zip through alleys ablaze with woks.
Sleep in District 1 to stay central and close to the morning pastry hunt.
Finish where the river splits into countless fingers. Base yourself in Cần Thơ. Rise before sunrise to reach Cai Rang floating market while steam curls from pho cauldrons on wooden boats.
Vendors pass pineapple spears over water, and children grin from hammock slings. Later, paddle a sampan through water-coconut tunnels or pedal raised paths between cacao orchards.
Many homestays offer cooking classes—wrapping crispy elephant-ear fish in rice paper is messy magic.
If you booked that earlier Mekong cruise, you will disembark back in Ho Chi Minh City rested and sun-kissed, ready for the long flight home.
Two weeks once felt enormous when you first traced the route, yet the days slipped by like dragonflies skimming rice paddies.
Your family sampled three kinds of pho, debated the sweetest mango, and discovered that scooters always claim the right of way.
You climbed limestone ridges, drifted beneath emerald spires, and watched lanterns shimmer against a velvet sky.
The magic lay in balanced planning—locking down the essential beds and boats—then giving Vietnam room to improvise.
Carry that flexible curiosity into every future adventure; each trip will blossom with the same graceful rhythm you found wandering from north to south.
