🗓 Best time: October to April for the south and centre; March–May for Hanoi and Ha Long Bay.
💰 Realistic budget: ₹60,000–₹95,000 per person for 8 nights including flights.
🛂 Visa for Indians: Vietnam e-visa for Indians: $25 (~₹2,100), 90 days, apply online 2 weeks before travel.
Vietnam is what Thailand was fifteen years ago — spectacular, cheap, and not yet completely overrun. Direct flights from Delhi and Mumbai to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City on VietJet and IndiGo have collapsed the cost of getting there, and once you land, the Indian rupee behaves like a strong currency. This guide covers the routing, the real costs, and the handful of things that separate a good Vietnam trip from a great one.
The classic mistake is attempting all three regions in one week. Vietnam is 1,650km top to bottom; treat it as three countries.
The north (Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, Ninh Binh, Sapa) is landscapes and old-world atmosphere: limestone karsts rising from jade water, thousand-year-old streets, mountain rice terraces. Cooler, mistier, more Vietnamese.
The centre (Da Nang, Hoi An, Hue) is beaches, imperial history and the lantern-lit old town of Hoi An — the single most photogenic town in Southeast Asia. Da Nang's beach strip is the country's resort row, and the Ba Na Hills Golden Bridge is here.
The south (Ho Chi Minh City, Mekong Delta, Phu Quoc) is energy and contrast: war history and rooftop bars, floating markets, and a proper island with direct international flights.
Fly into Hanoi (2 nights) → Ha Long Bay overnight cruise (1 night) → Ninh Binh day trip → fly to Da Nang (2 nights incl. Ba Na Hills) → Hoi An (2 nights) → fly home from Da Nang. No backtracking, and the two most photogenic places — the bay and the lantern town — bookend the trip.
Days 1–2, Hanoi: Old Quarter on foot, egg coffee at a hidden café (Giảng Café is the original), the Temple of Literature, water-puppet theatre, and the weekend night market if your dates align. Eat pho for breakfast like the locals — the good pots sell out by 9am.
Day 3, Ha Long Bay: Board an overnight cruise around noon. Kayaking through karst caves, sunset on the top deck, squid fishing after dinner, tai chi at dawn. Book a mid-tier or premium boat (₹6,500–₹12,000 per person) — this is the one place in Vietnam where the cheap option genuinely ruins the experience.
Day 4, Ninh Binh: Back on land by noon; afternoon Trang An boat ride through river caves and the 500-step climb to the Mua Cave viewpoint — the dragon-spine ridge photo every Vietnam feed features. Night train or early flight south next morning.
Days 5–6, Da Nang: Beach morning on My Khe, the Marble Mountains at golden hour, and a full day at Ba Na Hills for the Golden Bridge — go on a weekday, arrive at opening, and you'll beat the tour buses by two hours.
Days 7–8, Hoi An: Bicycle through the rice paddies to An Bang beach, get clothes tailored (24-hour turnaround, world-famous, ₹2,000–₹4,000 for a fitted suit or dress), take the lantern-boat ride after dark, and eat cao lau noodles that legally can only be made with water from one local well.
| Item | Cost in ₹ |
|---|---|
| Bowl of pho, street stall | ₹120–₹180 |
| Banh mi sandwich | ₹80–₹120 |
| Seafood dinner for two, Da Nang | ₹1,200–₹1,800 |
| 4-star hotel with pool, Hoi An | ₹3,000–₹4,500/night |
| Ha Long overnight cruise (good boat) | ₹6,500–₹12,000 pp |
| Internal flight (Hanoi–Da Nang) | ₹2,500–₹4,000 |
| Grab ride across town | ₹100–₹250 |
| Tailored outfit, Hoi An | ₹2,000–₹4,000 |
Across hotels, food and tours, Vietnam runs roughly 20% cheaper like-for-like, and the gap widens at the luxury end. Flights from India are now comparable. See our full head-to-head comparison in the Stories section.
Less each year — cards and Grab cover most spending in cities — but markets, street food and small-town Vietnam remain cash economies. Withdraw dong from bank ATMs rather than exchanging at home.
Phu Quoc for a resort-only beach week (it also has its own visa-free entry regime for many nationalities); Da Nang if you want beach plus Hoi An plus mountains in one base. For a first trip, Da Nang wins on variety.
One of the safest countries in Asia for tourists. The main risks are petty: phone-snatching from scooters in Ho Chi Minh City (keep phones away from the kerb) and taxi meter games at airports (use Grab or the official taxi queue).
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A day-by-day Vietnam itinerary for Indian travellers — Hanoi, Ninh Binh and an overnight Ha Long Bay cruise in one unhurried week, with costs in rupees and the logistics that make it work.
What a Vietnam trip genuinely costs from India in 2026 — direct flights from Delhi and Mumbai, the 90-day e-visa, hotel rates by city, internal travel, and complete seven-day budgets in rupees.
Same budget, same flight time, two very different trips. We break down costs, visas, food and crowds — with a verdict.
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