I have worked as an amateur local guide since my university and this trip is the longest and most interesting among all. I admit that I could not survive without the Local Guide program of Google Maps. Ha.
Anyway, I was luckily asked to be the local guide for my boss’s family (including him, his wife, daughter, and son) during their Christmas trip last December. Until now that I have time to share about the journey.
This is a fantastic chance to introduce my beautiful Vietnam. And I sincerely want these giant friends to have a wonderful vacation! (Just fun calling them “giant”. They’re actually not, it’s just me. They are typical Australians and I am a short Vietnamese girl, which makes me look like a tiny human). My job is to ensure they have the best experience with the most affordable budget [First tip: staying with a local guide will give you better price on almost everything]
Hope my post partly inspire or suggest you some ideas on where to visit and what activities you can enjoy during your first journey to Vietnam!
The trip was supposed to be one-month long but due to limited time, we change to two-weeks itinerary. Even so, we made sure the team can have enough energy and time to cover all six famous cities of Vietnam – Da Nang, Hue, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Da Lat, and Ho Chi Minh City.
You may wonder why these 6 cities and why we don’t include the north area. It’s due to limited time. Moreover, if you are first-time visitor, the central and south of Vietnam is easier to plan your trip. Another reason, my boss’s daughter is allergic to gluten. Staying gluten-free in the south is less troublesome. [But if you are a true nature explorer, the north will definitely amaze you with breathtaking landscapes and stunning scenes]
We start from Saigon (another name of Ho Chi Minh City) with a lovely morning walk and ‘hop on’ the plane to fly to Da Nang on the first day.
We chose Vietnam Airlines, which is suitable for people who hate lateness. The price, however, is quite high. [Vietjet Air is another popular airline with reasonable price, but it’s for people with patience only. They delay most of their flights]
1. ĐÀ NẴNG
Da Nang is voted to be the best city to live in Vietnam and it is not a surprise.
A modern and dynamic city with clean streets and super friendly citizens, I want to live here too! It’s like a… calmer version of Saigon. Thanks to the coastline of 3,260 km, Vietnam is proud to have many beautiful beach cities; one of which is Da Nang.
Various accommodation booking sites are available in Vietnam: booking.com, Agoda, Airbnb, Traveloka, etc. I personally prefer booking.com. But it’s even better if you have a local buddy who love traveling. Reviews and tips for inbound tourism are shared everywhere on social medias, but in Vietnamese.
We booked a villa that is not too far from downtown, and a private van (with driver) to go around. Vietnam is a country of motorcycles. There is no better way to enjoy our country than sitting on a motorcycle. Numerous motorcycle agencies offer cool tours. Or you can totally hire a van like I did if you stay with a group.
Turn out it is published before I can finish my story. Sorry for that. I’ll try to complete this quickly and let people not confused about what I am saying 
