Overview
Vietnam runs north to south and travels the same way. Hanoi and Ha Long Bay carry the north, with the mountain terraces at Sapa and Ha Giang above them. The centre is the heritage belt: Hue, Hoi An and the Cham ruins at My Son, all within an hour of Da Nang. The south opens into Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta, where the roads give way to water. Domestic flights link the three in about two hours each, and the Reunification railway takes the slow version along the coast.
1 Vietnam city guide
Fun fact
One number worth knowing
Vietnam cut its map from 63 provinces to 34 on 1 July 2025, the largest administrative reorganisation since reunification. Quang Nam province, which held Hoi An, was merged into Da Nang city.