Vietnam Coracle

Explore the famous ‘royal cuisine’ of Vietnam’s former imperial capital with this extensive Huế food guide, featuring 16 Huế dishes & dozens of specific location recommendations…

Vietnamese cuisine utilizes edible flowers in myriad ways. Flowers are healthy and aromatic, adding colour, flavour and texture to many dishes…

A wide variety of noodle dishes from across Vietnam all within a few steps of each other on a tree-lined street in District 2, Ho Chi Minh City…

Artisanal breweries, local beer restaurants, dive bars for resident artists, chic cocktail lounges for posers & budget hangouts for backpackers…

Away from the tourists & towns are several clusters of local, informal, atmospheric, reasonably priced, fresh, fun, friendly & scenically located seafood restaurants…

Dozens of cool, cosy, photogenic, independent coffee shops with countryside views form one of the most exciting coffee scenes in Asia…

Every Saigon neighbourhood has a local fresh produce market. Mine is Văn Thánh, where there are dozens of good, inexpensive street food vendors, cafes & juice stalls…

An up-and-coming beach city on the south-central coast, Quy Nhon has a vibrant dining scene, featuring fresh seafood & a host of local specialities…

Stylish sky bars with sunset views, windowless speakeasies with professional mixologists, rustic-chic wine bars above the waves, cheap beach shacks & much more…

A gardener & home cook walks you through the most commonly used fresh herbs & spices that are fundamental to Vietnamese cuisine & culture…

Saigon is arguably the best place to explore Vietnam’s extraordinary street food scene. The city boasts so many street food outlets that it feels like a gigantic open-air restaurant. This is my guide to 7 of the best streets for street food in Saigon…

Snail eating is incredibly popular in Vietnam. A night of shells & beer is a very local experience. Young & old feast late into the night. The snails come in all shapes and sizes and they’re delicious. ‘Shell tapas’ is a fun night out that everyone should try

Everyone knows who Saigon’s Lunch Lady is, right? Well, probably not this one. Ms Nga is 43 years old. She serves a different soup each day of the week, from her cramped, ramshackle soup stall. Originally from Thai Binh (a northern province famous for producing excellent cooks), she moved to Saigon in the mid-90s…

Bánh Khọt are delicious gems: crispy discs of rice flour batter & coconut milk, fried until they’re crunchy on the outside but moist on the inside, then wrapped in herbs & dipped in a sweet-spicy sauce. Here are 7 places to eat bánh khọt in Vũng Tàu…

Throughout Saigon, there are clusters of crumbling old apartment complexes, all of which are on the verge of either collapse or demolition. Living conditions appear cramped and grim but, outside on the sidewalks, the street life and street food is among the best and most vibrant in the city…

On a recent road trip between Saigon & Hanoi I made a record of some of the meals I ate along the way, to try and illustrate the variety of food available, and what a delight it is to eat your way from one end of the country to the other…

Before the lock-down, street food was still thriving: indeed, sitting down to a bowl of noodles was one of the only times you could take off your mask. I documented my last meals before the spread of COVID-19 forced a nationwide lock-down.

A kaleidoscopic world of luminous colours, shifting shapes, unfamiliar textures, esoteric ingredients & rich flavours, chè is a fascinating sub-category of Vietnamese cuisine. Commonly translated as ‘dessert’, in reality chè is so filling & nutritious that it’s a meal in itself….

The Lunch Lady in Saigon is famous for serving a different soup every day of the week. Here’s her weekly menu, illustrated with tantalizing images of each of the dishes…

A volcanic island surrounded by a ring of reefs, Ly Son is a striking, stark & geologically fascinating destination. Easily reached by regular fast ferries, Ly Son Island is located off the coast of central Vietnam….

A halo of sand encompasses this green & forested island in the Gulf of Thailand. But Phu Quoc is currently undergoing major development, so now is the time to visit its beaches, before it’s too late (in some cases, it already is)…

One of the most pristine natural environments in Vietnam, several hiking trails traverse the Con Dao Islands offering sensational views…

From north to south, the Vietnamese coast is flecked with thousands of islands; hundreds of which are inhabited & dozens of which can be visited by island-hopping. A handful of these islands are already well-established tourist destinations, but many are only just emerging as potential attractions….

An island of dramatic coastlines & jungle-clad limestone pillars, Cat Ba is one of Vietnam’s star natural attractions & part of world-famous Halong Bay….

Hon Son Island is a gem. It’s a rugged yet green & exceptionally beautiful isle. With jungle-covered mountains rising from the ocean, peaceful fishing hamlets in picturesque bays, and palm-fringed beaches, Hon Son has got it all…

A glistening archipelago of small tropical islands off the southwestern coast of Vietnam, Nam Du is beautiful & undeveloped. With mesmerizing beaches & bays, a jungle-clad interior, and over 20 outlying islands, Nam Du is a treat…

A new & exciting destination, Phu Quy Island is but a drop of green land in the vast blue ocean, and has only very recently opened its doors to domestic & foreign travellers. A fascinating place with a real sense of isolation, this is my comprehensive guide to Phu Quy Island….

A small & tranquil island at the mouth of a river, Tam Hai is within easy reach of Hoi An & Danang. This little island is a self-contained, peaceful world, with its own beauty, its own festivals, and its own resort….

Lying in the Gulf of Thailand, just off Vietnam’s southwest coast, Pirate Islands is a rugged archipelago, only recently opened to foreign visitors…

Newly completed roads have opened access to the beaches, bays, forests & hamlets of the north & east coasts of Phu Quoc Island. Previously difficult to get to, these parts of Phu Quoc are the least developed, most characterful & charming on the island….

From the moment you step off the plane on the Con Dao Islands, you know you’re somewhere special. The main island of Con Son has a tragic past as a penal colony, set up by the French colonial administration. But today, it is the gorgeous natural beauty of this archipelago that’s attracting attention.

Lying in the calm, warm waters of Van Phong Bay, just an hour north of Nha Trang, Diep Son is a mini-archipelago of small green islands. At low tide, a curving sandbar is exposed, linking three of the islets via a ‘sand bridge’….

Situated on one of Phu Quoc Island’s most attractive & least developed bays, Bamboo Cottages is a small, tasteful, mid-range beach resort powered by solar energy….

A small, modern, mid-range resort on Phu Quoc’s lesser-known east coast, The Pier occupies a fabulous position beneath jungled hills with sweeping coastal views.

Featuring minimalist décor & contemporary design, The Secret is a luxury resort on the beautiful & elegant seafront road on Côn Sơn Island…

A crisp, clean & contemporary beach resort straddling the cliffs on the spectacular coast road south of Nha Trang, Mia is the embodiment of minimalist-chic….

A lush, tasteful & understated property with a narrow but beautiful beachfront & two elegant infinity pools, Camia Resort is a good value mid-range place to stay on Phu Quoc Island…

With an immaculate rooftop infinity pool & sky bar with 360-degree views of the city & sea, Fusion Suites is set to become one of the most photographed places in Vung Tau…

An enormous, five-star accommodation on a long beachfront with great facilities, the Movenpick is ideal for large families with children or travelling groups…

In the northwest of the island, Gold Coast is a mid-range resort with excellent food, a good beach, easy access to local life & superb views of Phu Quoc’s rugged northern bays & jungles

A long-time favourite beach retreat for travellers & expats, Mango Bay is still the best place to stay on Phu Quoc Island in its class & price bracket. Mango Bay offers guests both comfort & a connection to nature, but not one at the expense of the other…

Immaculately clean, well-designed, well-maintained, well-run & luxurious, the InterContinental features outstanding facilities, spacious & well-equipped rooms & a great beach…

Ten kilometres north of Nha Trang, Amiana Resort features a long seafront, lush gardens & several enormous, highly photogenic infinity pools…

Quirky but classy, The Shells is a modern resort on the west coast of Phu Quoc Island, offering generously proportioned rooms with sea-views & lots of light & space…

Just a couple of hours southeast of Saigon, Ho Tram Beach Resort is one of Vietnam’s most tasteful & charming coastal retreats. It’s romantic, elegant, refined yet understated, and blends in with the natural surrounds….

One of the first luxury resorts to grace the sands of Mui Ne, Victoria Resort & Spa is still one of the best places to stay on this popular beach on Vietnam’s southeast coast. With lush tropical gardens & a long stretch of beach, Victoria is far more spacious than its competitors…

On the seafront road along Danang’s long, sweeping beach, the Four Points by Sheraton is a high-rise hotel with a rooftop pool, bar and excellent views…

Big, indulgent & exceptionally good quality, The Grand Resort & Casino marks the beginning of the transformation of the quiet & unassuming coastline of Ho Tram, into what is hoped will become Vietnam’s answer to Macau & Las Vegas….

A small-scale, affordable mid-range resort with dazzling sea views over one of the prettiest bays in Vietnam, Escalade Resort, Cam Ranh is tasteful, good value for money & great place to unwind….

A luxurious resort in a spectacular location comprised of large villas with private pools, two beaches & a plethora of high-end facilities. Premier Village would usually be out of my budget. But, due to unique pandemic-related circumstances, my friends & I were able to stay for a reduced rate…

The unsung hero of seafront, mid-range accommodation on Long Beach, Thanh Kieu Resort is an exceptionally lush, peaceful, and unassuming place to stay on Phu Quoc Island. It’s been my go-to resort for years…

Chiseled into the cliffside high above the sea, this stunning coast road negotiates a boulder-strewn promontory where people say dragons come to die…

Thanks to new coastal roads, it’s now possible to ride from Saigon to Hoi An, and beyond to Dong Hoi, following the coast all the way & avoiding the busy main artery of Highway 1 for the vast majority of the route. This is a salty, sunny, sandy & scenic road trip….

Probably the most scenic coastal route in Vietnam, this is a meandering ocean road skirting the edges of a green & rugged peninsula…

A short, scenic, easily navigable & rewarding road trip through desert-like landscape on excellent coast roads between Mũi Né & Cà Ná…

One of the most famous roads in Vietnam, the Hai Van Pass weaves around a mountainous stretch of coastline in Central Vietnam, linking Danang & Hue

A rugged headland at the northern tip of Danang’s municipal beach, Son Tra offers mountains & forests, cliffs & coves, wildlife & centuries-old banyan trees, lofty mountain passes with majestic views & sandy beaches untainted by concrete high-rises….

The scenic route between Saigon and Mui Ne, the Ocean Road is an easy, feel-good road trip, with a great balance of off-the-beaten-track experiences & creature comforts. Ride it in a day or linger for a week soaking up all it has to offer…

There are now four different routes between these three cities in Central Vietnam. Each route has something different to offer: choose between The Coast, The River, The Mountains, or The Tunnel…..

Historically, four great passes have divided what is now Vietnam. These occur at the four points along the coast where spurs from the Truong Son Mountain Range spread eastwards to the sea. Of these, my favourites are the ‘twin passes’….

Covering nearly 200km of completely empty beach, coastal back-roads lead from the old imperial capital of Hue to the beach city of Dong Hoi. Scattered with thousands of traditional-style tombs, this coastal region is rarely explored by foreign visitors…

Scattered across the plains of Binh Dinh Province, the ruins of the ancient kingdom of Champa are a powerful reminder of the rich history of what is now Vietnam. Visiting the remains of the Cham towers & Vijaya citadel is a rewarding day trip from Quy Nhon….

One of the most interesting aspects of travelling through Vietnam is observing & experiencing the changes that occur from one region to the next. Whether serious or superficial, significant or frivolous, I’ve jotted down some of the differences I notice when travelling south to north…

Vietnam’s last imperial line left behind a rich legacy of cultural attractions in and around the former royal capital of Huế…

Temples of the forest, banyan trees are great, natural edifices rich in cultural, spiritual & folkloric symbolism. A bridge between the human, natural & spirit worlds, banyan trees are found all over Vietnam…

Slurp and suck: this should be every traveller’s primary objective when sitting down to enjoy a bowl of one of Vietnam’s famous noodle soups. Here is my guide to why you should embrace local etiquette and leave your preconceived table manners at home….

Rising from the rice paddies of north-central Vietnam, the impressive ruins of this 14th century former royal capital were designated a World Heritage site in 2011, yet few foreign travellers pay a visit to Ho Citadel.

Monsoon downpours & tropical storms are the quintessential expression of the tropics, representing the exotic & the mysterious. For me, the monsoon embodies the excitement & romance of living far from home….

In the winter of 1941, Ho Chi Minh returned to Vietnam for the first time in 30 years. For several weeks he lived in Pac Bo Cave. Right on Vietnam’s northeastern frontier with China, Pac Bo is an important historical site in an enchanting location…

Sometimes referred to simply as ‘The General’, Võ Nguyên Giáp is a giant of Vietnamese history. Following his death, in 2013, millions have made the pilgrimage to his tomb in Central Vietnam, myself included…

By making some simple changes to way I travel & live in Vietnam, I’m trying to reduce the amount of single-use plastic I consume. Here’s my experience….

Vietnam is an extraordinarily beautiful country, but thousands of scenic areas across the nation are increasingly ruined by trash. A major catalyst for litter in beauty spots are picnickers, who neglect to clean up after themselves….

Throughout human history, the sea has been both dangerous and generous: a cause of destruction and death, but also a source of food, fun, wealth and beauty…

In the misty forests on the slopes of the B’lao mountains, the young Buddhist monk, Thích Nhất Hạnh, came to build a retreat in the late 1950s. Now a world-famous spiritual leader, Thich Nhat Hanh was forced to abandon the retreat in the 1960s, but the site still exists….

The colours, shapes, sizes, smells & variety of flora in Vietnam is mesmerizing. In this guide I’ve compiled an illustrated index of some of the flowers, plants & trees I regularly see in Vietnam’s countryside & cities….

Dawn is the best time of day in Vietnam. Yet most travellers and expats never experience it. Wake up before sunrise and you’ll witness exquisite skies and the ‘roots’ of Vietnamese daily life. Rising early should be on everyone’s list of things to do in Vietnam….

Weather is an important consideration when planning a trip to Vietnam. Here’s a month-by-month guide to weather conditions across the nation, including recommendations of where to go (and where to avoid) at different times of year…

A categorized reading list including personal reviews of over 50 books about Vietnam, ranging from Vietnamese authors in translation to travel writing, journalism, history, poetry, politics & more…

Midway between the coast & the mountains, the La Nga River runs clean & clear with dozens of potential campsites on its banks & opportunities for wild swimming

A period of ideal weather conditions for sleeping outside in the varied landscapes of the south, Camping Season lasts from December to March…

One of the best travel experiences in Vietnam’s Central Highlands is wild camping under a canopy pine trees in the misty mountains north of Dalat….

Sleeping on the sands of the beautiful & deserted northern beaches is a real adventure & an experience that will stay with you for a long time…

One of the most rewarding & deeply satisfying travel experiences I’ve had in over a decade of travelling in Vietnam, motocamping (‘motorbike-camping’) is thrilling, challenging, fulfilling & still a fairly niche activity…

To mark the end of 2020 (the ‘Lost Year’), my friends & I went on a wild camping trip in the pine forests of the Central Highlands: an activity that’s possible in Vietnam, even as many countries continue to endure lock-downs & social-distancing

Pitch your tent under a coconut palm just metres from the surf & enjoy Vietnam’s south coast sleeping in the open air: This is my guide to camping on the beaches along the Ocean Road from Saigon to Nha Trang….

With luxury safari-tents & lakeside bungalows spread over a lush hillside on the shores of Lake Lak in the Dak Lak highlands, Lak Tented Camp is an atmospheric accommodation with a deep attachment to the natural environment…

Lunar New Year (Tết) is a time of gathering: of family & friends; of people & parties. But this year, I undertook to spend my Tết holiday in peace & solitude: I took my motorbike, my tent & my guitar & set off for 11 days on the road & under the sky…

Thinking about riding the length of Vietnam by motorbike? Here are 5 great routes between Saigon and Hanoi, each one specifically designed to suit the needs of different travellers, based on scenery and time frame among other things….

Anthony Bourdain felt a special attachment to Vietnam. Over the course of his TV career, he filmed multiple episodes in the country. I’ve pulled together & reviewed all 8 of his Vietnam shows…

Ha Giang, Vietnam’s northern-most province, is home to a mythical landscape of conical limestone peaks & craterous valleys. Over the years, it has gained an almost legendary status among travellers. This motorbike loop is perhaps the most thrilling road trip in the country…

Saigon is arguably the best place to explore Vietnam’s extraordinary street food scene. The city boasts so many street food outlets that it feels like a gigantic open-air restaurant. This is my guide to 7 of the best streets for street food in Saigon…

Vietnam has some incredible riding roads: possibly some of the most scenic in the world. Based on my experience of riding around Vietnam for the last decade, I have compiled a list of what I consider some of the greatest riding roads in Vietnam…

With a coastline of over 3,200km & thousands of islands lying offshore, Vietnam is a great beach destination. Blue bays, hidden coves, white sands, swaying palms & dramatic cliffs, Vietnam has it all….

Known as the ‘Roof of Indochina’, Mount Fansipan is the highest mountain in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. At 3,143m (10,312ft) it’s a ‘real’ mountain. But Fansipan can be climbed independently, without a guide or porters or any specialist climbing equipment, in one day…..

One of the most famous roads in Vietnam, the Hai Van Pass weaves around a mountainous stretch of coastline in Central Vietnam, linking Danang & Hue

The colours, shapes, sizes, smells & variety of flora in Vietnam is mesmerizing. In this guide I’ve compiled an illustrated index of some of the flowers, plants & trees I regularly see in Vietnam’s countryside & cities….

A halo of sand encompasses this green & forested island in the Gulf of Thailand. But Phu Quoc is currently undergoing major development, so now is the time to visit its beaches, before it’s too late (in some cases, it already is)…

Stretching almost 2,000km along the mountainous spine of Vietnam, the Ho Chi Minh Road is fast becoming famous as one of the finest motorbike rides in Asia. Now fully paved from Saigon all the way to Hanoi, this is my updated and extended guide to the entire Ho Chi Minh Road….

After nearly 9 years, I’m leaving my neighbourhood in Saigon’s Binh Thanh District, where I have many memories of many people, places & experiences…

To celebrate the Lunar New Year, I put several questions to all members of the Vietnam Coracle team to find out their thoughts about Vietnam in the Year of the Cat…

The fastest, cheapest & most reliable boat connection from the mainland to the islands, the Sóc Trăng→Côn Đảo ferry takes just 2 hours…

I reflect on a significant year, focusing on post-pandemic travel and life in Vietnam…

On a secluded, sweeping bay on the south-central coast, Timothe Beach Apartments is a tropical paradise at affordable, mid-range prices…

Travellers often neglect their fitness. I practice exercise routines, methods & activities that are suitable for travel & help to maintain my fitness while on the road…

Nowhere in Vietnam is there such variety of landscape & richness of culture as in the central provinces, a region best explored by motorbike…

Vietnam’s last imperial line left behind a rich legacy of cultural attractions in and around the former royal capital of Huế…

Over the years, I’ve written ‘odes’ in praise of aspects of Vietnam: from natural phenomena to types of food to specific places & personalities…

A wide variety of noodle dishes from across Vietnam all within a few steps of each other on a tree-lined street in District 2, Ho Chi Minh City…

Vietnamese cuisine utilizes edible flowers in myriad ways. Flowers are healthy and aromatic, adding colour, flavour and texture to many dishes…

An up-and-coming beach city on the south-central coast, Quy Nhon has a vibrant dining scene, featuring fresh seafood & a host of local specialities…

A period of ideal weather conditions for sleeping outside in the varied landscapes of the south, Camping Season lasts from December to March…

A guide to essential daily costs & how much to budget for your road trip in Vietnam…

One of the most pristine natural environments in Vietnam, several hiking trails traverse the Con Dao Islands offering sensational views…