Had a 10 hour night bus from Hanoi to Sapa - it seems like every time we get on one of these buses the Vietnamese stick all the Westerners at the back of the bus (with the hot engine underneath us, and the rear suspension - or what's left of it rattling away) whilst all the locals get all the nice separate spacious beds in the middle and front of the bus! So sat at the back we were sharing with 4 guys from Kent, 1 French girl and 1 Chinese guy. It was certainly ...

2 days 1 night booked, a deluxe tour of Halong Bay! We are picked up from our hostel the following morning, for once on time, we trawled the busy streets of Hanoi filling the minibus with other people who would be sharing our experience, a diverse bunch, some Americans, Spanish, German, Russian, French and another Brit. We set off out of the city and 4 hours later we arrived at the harbour, wow we knew this place was popular but this was mass tourism at its wors...

2 days 1 night booked, a deluxe tour of Halong Bay! We are picked up from our hostel the following morning, for once on time, we trawled the busy streets of Hanoi filling the minibus with other people who would be sharing our experience, a diverse bunch, some Americans, Spanish, German, Russian, French and another Brit. We set off out of the city and 4 hours later we arrived at the harbour, wow we knew this place was popular but this was mass tourism at its wors...

We've just come to the end of a full week in Hanoi. Staying in Street Backpackers we were made to feel like family -invited out to the night markets, snake farms and drinks with the owner, her husband and the other guests. Great company, free breakfast and free beer all for a tiny $4 a night! Hanoi has a buzzing atmosphere. From the early hours until late at night, the streets swarm with thousands of motorbikes, often with five or even six people aboard. Our hos...

Had a quick bus journey on a local bus along the coast with some amazing scenery dropping us at our destination of Hue safely. Only a quick stop here so rented a pair of bicycles with some friends we had met from Germany and rode to the train station to book our train for the next evening. Explored the beautiful town of Hue by bike making a stop at Dieu De Temple. The temple itself was quite modest in comparison to some we have seen while on our travels, but it...