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Vietnam: Discover Stunning Landscapes, Rich Traditions, and Culinary Delights

A narrow, bustling street with closely packed buildings, multiple hanging wires, motorbikes parked along the side, and a person wearing a conical hat walking away from the camera.

Vietnam

Your Guide to the Land of the Blue Dragon

Vietnam is the first country in South Asia that we have traveled to since we settled semi-permanently in Thailand. We enjoy a week long visit, split in two between the cities of Danang & Hoi An. We really wanted a taste of Vietnamese culture and we found just that at some awesome spots, including the Hoi An Lantern Festival, Hoi An Memories and Marble Mountain. Stay tuned as we bring you the best of our time here and as much information (we hope) as you need to plan your stay in Vietnam.

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Our top recommended places

Our interactive map & guide to Vietnam

Check out all of the places we visited in Vietnam courtesy of this interactive map from Wanderlog. Tap any of the numbers for more information including directions, our blog posts, links to reviews and much more.

Wanderlog is a free travel planning app that allows users to create trip itineraries, organize flights, hotel and car reservations, view places to visit on a map, and collaborate with friends. It is super handy and has made a big impact on our travel planning. It saves time and is super easy to use!

Interesting Facts

Here are 8 interesting facts about Vietnam. Some may just surprise you!

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1. In Chinese, 'Viet' means 'people outside China' and 'Nam' means south. While we use them both combined today, they were also separate words in ancient Vietnamese. 'Viet' actually referred to fairies and dragons, and as such many people in Vietnam believe they have descended from these mythical creatures.

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2. Vietnam is known as the 'King of Cashews', given they produce a staggering 55% of the world's supply, to the tune of a cool $2 billion per year. 30% of the world's supply of black pepper also comes from Vietnam and the country is the second largest exporter of coffee behind Brazil.

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3. New Year's is celebrated on the same day as the Chinese New Year in Vietnam. It is known as 'Tet' and is one of the most popular festivals in South Asia.

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4. People in Vietnam really like motorcycles. In fact, there are over 60 million in the country, with 2 out of every 3 households owning one. In comparison there are just 2 million cars!

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5. Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam's very first president, can be viewed at his mausoleum in Hanoi. Since his death in 1969, he was embalmed and is on display from January to September every year. 

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6. Snake Wine is a hugely popular drink in Vietnam said to have many health benefits, although most claims are unproven. It is usually made by drowning the snake alive and we are yet to try it. Would you?

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7. The largest cave in the world, Hang Son Doong, is in the Quįŗ£ng Bình Province of Vietnam. It stretches for almost 6 miles and it is said that it is so big inside that a Boeing 747 could fly right through it!

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8. The star on the Vietnamese flag represents the five main classes in society: intellectuals, farmers, workers, youth and military personnel. The red background represents the blood lost during the years of conflict in the country.  

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Information

POPULATION

 97.4 million

CURRENCY

Vietnamese Dong (VND)

CAPITAL

Hanoi (6.4 million)

DRIVING

Right Side

TIME ZONE

ICT (UTC / GMT + 7) 

MEASUREMENTS

Standard Metric

Travel Resources

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Save, Earn, & Explore! Find amazing sign-up offers specially curated for you with travel (Klook, Trusted Housesitters, Expedia, Simbye e-SIM), teaching online (Cambly), shopping (Amazon), drop-shipping (Printify) and more! We have partnered with brands we use and trust, to help support you on your journey.

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YOUTUBE

Discover more from Vietnam on our YouTube channel with our specially curated Vietnam playlist!

DANANG BEACH Surprised us! 5 star FUN (My khe) šŸ‡»šŸ‡³
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DANANG BEACH Surprised us! 5 star FUN (My khe) šŸ‡»šŸ‡³

Welcome to our BEACH CLUBS, Sand and Sunsets adventure in Da Nang, Vietnam! Join us as we explore this captivating city, Da Nang in Vietnam, filled with enchanting landscapes, vibrant culture, and unforgettable experiences. In this travel video, we'll share our lasting impressions of DANANG BEACH We had a short visit of 10 days but we love the city and country so much we have it on our long stay list for the near future! We explore the main strip area of DANANG BEACH, locally known as My Khe Beach. Join us as we return to the EPIC ESCO BEACH BAR and check out the OCEAN LOUNGE BAR, popular hotspots for tourists. Although we visited during the day, we're confident these places are equally amazing at night! We explore the main strip area of DANANG BEACH or locally known as My Khe Beach. We have a return visit to the EPIC ESCO BEACH BAR and we check out the OCEAN LOUNGE BAR a hot spot for tourists. We only visited during the day but I'm sure these places are AMAZING at night too! Sit back and enjoy the sights and sounds that DANANG BEACH has to offer. Follow along we have much more for you from Danang, Vietnam! šŸ”” Remember to like, comment, and subscribe to our channel for more exciting travel content. #vietnam #danangbeach #danang #explorevietnam #beachclubs #vietnamvlog #travelvlog šŸ‘©šŸ»ā€šŸ’»Join our website community! āœšŸ» BLOG & SHOP www.closerlives.com šŸ“§ EMAIL contactus@closerlives.com šŸ“§ abroadperspective@closerlives.com šŸ“ø INSTAGRAM @jennandleontravel šŸ’šŸ»ā€ā™€ļøJENN @_a_broad_perspective šŸ™‹šŸ»ā€ā™‚ļø @leon.gregori213 šŸ›œ FACEBOOK JennandLeonTravel
The BEST PLACE to STAY in HOI AN, VIETNAM! šŸ‡»šŸ‡³ Unforgettable Stay at Mulberry Hoi An Silk Village
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The BEST PLACE to STAY in HOI AN, VIETNAM! šŸ‡»šŸ‡³ Unforgettable Stay at Mulberry Hoi An Silk Village

If you are planning a trip to HOI AN, Vietnam then you NEED to watch this first! We stayed two nights at the MULBERRY HOI AN SILK VILLAGE hotel and it did not disappoint with impeccable customer service, beautiful facilities and exceptional cuisine we couldn't have had a better stay. We enjoyed the games room (who doesn't love a good pool table/billiards!?), the beautiful spa, both refreshing and relaxing pools, a lovely tea time and a complimentary tour of the traditional ways of making silk! The tour and area is also open to daily visitors to the area as well. Klook link to hotel accommodation: https://bit.ly/43jpSfD As in the video we preferred the main building hotel area versus the cottage villas šŸ‘©šŸ»ā€šŸ’»READ OUR TRAVEL BLOG and FIND OUR PHOTOGRAPHY! āœšŸ» BLOG & WEBSITE https://www.closerlives.com/jenn-and-leon-travel-blog šŸ’¼Business inquiries šŸ“§ EMAIL contactus@closerlives.com šŸ“§ JENN abroadperspective@closerlives.com INSTAGRAM @jennandleontravel https://www.instagram.com/jennandleontravel/ šŸ’šŸ»ā€ā™€ļøJENN https://www.instagram.com/_a_broad_perspective šŸ™‹šŸ»ā€ā™‚ļøLEON https://www.instagram.com/leon.gregori213/?hl=en FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/JennandLeonTravel *12GO* Book your transport in advance and get great deals on trains, buses, ferries and even flights! https://booking.closerlives.com/en *KOHO ONLINE BANKING* open a Canadian account as a new user using our code: LBJDEPD4 https://www.koho.ca/referral/ Once you spend $20 in the first 30 days, youā€™ll get the $20 cash back *EXPEDIA* book your first trip/hotel/car rental/flight as a NEW USER on App with a min. spend $230 and receive $30 off https://www.expedia.ca/refer?refcode=JenniferJNfW4 *AMAZON* our Travel Must Haveā€™s on Our Storefront https://amzn.to/3PJajs5 *EPEDEMIC SOUND* The music we use for our vlogs. Get 7 days free trail here: https://share.epidemicsound.com/al0ue2 *CAMBLY* Earn extra money tutoring anywhere in the world as a native English speaker online. Teach 10/hrs and receive a $30 bonus. Apply through our link: https://www.cambly.com/invite/F6QAQ4SK?st=040924&sc=4 šŸ“ø *TRUSTED HOUSESITTERS* Explore the World and stay for free while house sitting or pet sitting! Sign up with our link and receive 25% off your annual membership https://www.trustedhousesitters.com/refer/RAF778513/?utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=refer-a-friend&utm_campaign=refer-a-friend *PRINTIFY* Start your drop-shipping business today with the no.1 print-on-demand service https://try.printify.com/closerlives *Disclaimers* We only recommend products we would use ourselves and all opinions expressed here are our own. This video may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, we may earn a small commission. We are JENN and LEON. We are a Canadian and British couple that has been traveling the world FULL TIME since 2021. Our vlogs are helpful to those looking to travel abroad, slow travel, budget travel, fast travel and luxury travel. There are also lifestyle and couple videos too. #hį»™ian #vietnam #travelcouple #hoian #vietnamvlog

As entrepreneurs and full-time slow travellers our goal is to see as much of this beautiful planet as we can! We love getting to know communities and locals around the world and through our channel we want to help and support them by sharing their culture with our viewers. By subscribing to our channel you will get notified of our latest videos as and when they land, so you will never miss out!

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Check out our other FREE comprehensive guides from countries across the continent of Asia

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