Meetup Travel
Travel Guides
Honest costs, real routes, and the people who plan them. Written by the local experts who run these trips every week.
Things to do in Sapa: cable car, treks and villages
Things to do in Sapa: Fansipan cable car at 3,143 m, Muong Hoa Valley rice terrace treks, hill tribe villages from Cat Cat to Ta Phin, and how to get there from Hanoi.
Ho Chi Minh City districts: a local's guide to each area
Ho Chi Minh City district guide: District 1 (tourist center), District 3 (local escape), Thao Dien (formerly District 2, expat hub), District 7 (Korean quarter). Covers the district map, navigation, and where to stay.
Hanoi weather: month-by-month guide and best time
Hanoi weather by season: Oct-Nov best (17-24°C, dry). Dec-Jan cold and misty (13-22°C). Mar-Apr spring (20-28°C). Covers Hanoi Train Street schedule tips and the overnight train to Ho Chi Minh City.
Things to do in Hanoi: Old Quarter, temples and food
Hanoi top sights, street food, nightlife and day trips in one guide. Covers Hoan Kiem Lake, Temple of Literature, Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, Bia Hoi Corner and the best routes to Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay.
Phu Quoc snorkeling: reefs, islands, and dive sites
Phu Quoc snorkeling guide: best spots in the An Thoi archipelago (Hon Thom, Hon Roi, Hon Mong Tay), best time November-April, snorkeling vs scuba, and how to book day trips.
Ho Chi Minh City nightlife: bars, Bui Vien and rooftops
Ho Chi Minh City nightlife guide: rooftop bars at Landmark 81, Bui Vien Walking Street, live music venues, night markets and how to get around safely after dark.
Best time to visit Vietnam: by region and month
Best time to visit Vietnam depends on your priority: rice terraces, beaches, cool trekking weather, or avoiding Tet crowds. Sorted by what you actually want, with a pointer to full climate data by month.
Vietnamese street food: dishes, prices, and where to eat
Vietnamese street food guide: pho, banh mi, broken rice (com tam), bun cha, and breakfast foods. Covers regional differences by city, food safety tips, and how to find the best stalls.
Mua Cave Ninh Binh: steps, viewpoint and visitor guide
Mua Cave in Ninh Binh: around 500 steps to a panoramic hilltop viewpoint over the Tam Coc rice paddies. Entry 100,000 VND, 20-30 min climb, 90 km from Hanoi. Best September-October for golden rice.
Ho Chi Minh City weather: a month-by-month travel guide
Ho Chi Minh City weather guide: best time is December-April (dry, 25-33°C). April is the hottest dry month; January the coolest. Covers wet season May-November and the train from HCMC to Da Nang.
Hanoi vs Ho Chi Minh City: which city to visit first?
Hanoi vs Ho Chi Minh City compared for a first Vietnam trip: how the weather differs, what to eat in each, where to stay, how to move between them, and which city to land in first.
Vietnam outlet plug: socket types, voltage and adapters
Vietnam uses Type A and Type C sockets at 220 V / 50 Hz. US and UK travelers need an adapter; EU travelers usually plug straight in. Covers socket types, voltage, converters and where to buy locally.
Still deciding on the route?
Tell a local expert what you have in mind. They will send back a route built for your dates, pace and budget, not a template.