Laos to Vietnam: 16-Day Self-Launched Adventure

Land at Wattay International Airport and take a taxi or the airport shuttle into the city centre (roughly 60,000-100,000 kip / £5-8). Check into a guesthouse near the Mekong riverside, then spend the evening wandering the night market on the riverbank and grabbing your first Beerlao and laap (Lao minced-meat salad) at a riverside spot. Pick up a local SIM at the airport or a shop in town (Unitel or TPlus, ~£4 for a data bundle).

🚌Airport taxi or shuttle to city centre (~£5-8)

🛏Riverside guesthouse or hostel dorm, Vientiane (e.g. around Fa Ngum Road / Nam Phu)

• →Settle in near the Mekong riverside
• →Evening night market stroll
• →Buy a local SIM card

Do a self-guided walking and tuk-tuk day through the capital. Start at Wat Si Saket (oldest temple, ~10,000 kip), then across the road to Haw Pha Kaeo. Head north by tuk-tuk to the golden stupa of Pha That Luang (~10,000 kip). In the afternoon take a songthaew or tuk-tuk about 25 km out to Buddha Park (Xieng Khouang, ~15,000 kip entry, transport ~£4-6 return). Stop at the COPE Visitor Centre (free entry, donations welcome) on the way back to learn about unexploded ordnance in Laos. Finish with a sunset beer by the Mekong.

🚌Tuk-tuks and songthaew, ~£8 total for the day

🛏Riverside guesthouse or hostel dorm, Vientiane

• →Wat Si Saket
• →Haw Pha Kaeo
• →Pha That Luang
• →Buddha Park
• →COPE Visitor Centre
• →Sunset along the Mekong

Take a morning VIP minibus or local bus from Vientiane's Talat Sao/Dong Dok bus station to Vang Vieng (~2-3 hrs, ~£5-7). After checking in, rent a bicycle or scooter (~£3-5 per day) and ride to Tham Pou Kham (elephant cave) and the Blue Lagoon 1 for a swim, then on to Tham Jang cave with its river views. On the way back, stop in Ban Na Khae village to see rural Lao life. Evening tubing or riverside drinks on the Nam Song if you're up for it.

🚌Minibus Vientiane to Vang Vieng (~£6); bicycle or scooter hire (~£3-5)

🛏Riverside guesthouse or hostel, Vang Vieng

• →Tham Pou Kham cave
• →Blue Lagoon swim
• →Tham Jang cave
• →Ban Na Khae village
• →Nam Song river sunset

Book a seat on the Laos-China high-speed railway express train from Vang Vieng to Luang Prabang on the LCR app or via a local agent (2nd class roughly 160,000-220,000 kip / £13-18, about 1 hour). The night before, catch a sunrise balloon or viewpoint walk if you want an optional start. Arrive in Luang Prabang, check into a guesthouse in the old quarter, then spend the afternoon strolling the peninsula and getting a feel for the temples.

🚌LCR express train Vang Vieng to Luang Prabang (~£15); tuk-tuks locally

🛏Old-quarter guesthouse, Luang Prabang

• →Lao-China express train
• →Old-quarter orientation walk
• →Mount Phousi sunset viewpoint (~20,000 kip)

Start early (5:30am) to watch the alms-giving ritual of monks along Sisavangvong Road — keep a respectful distance and don't buy sticky rice from touts. Then wander the morning market, visit Wat Xiengthong (the most beautiful temple in the city, ~20,000 kip) and the former Royal Palace Museum. Around 9am, take a shared tuk-tuk or minivan out to Kuang Si Waterfall (about 45 mins, ~£6-8 return shared, entry ~25,000 kip) for the turquoise pools and the Tat Kuang Si bear rescue centre. Slot in a stop at Ock Pop Tok weaving centre on the way back if you're interested.

🚌Shared tuk-tuk or minivan to Kuang Si (~£7 return); walking/tuk-tuks in town

🛏Old-quarter guesthouse, Luang Prabang

• →Monk alms-giving ritual
• →Morning market
• →Wat Xiengthong
• →Royal Palace Museum
• →Kuang Si Waterfall
• →Ock Pop Tok weaving centre

Book the half-day Living Land Farm experience directly online or via a local agent (roughly £30-40, includes pick-up, rice-planting, water-buffalo ploughing and a Lao lunch in the Rice House). Beyond the tour, it supports a real community farm, so it's well worth it. After the farm, fly Luang Prabang to Hanoi on Vietnam Airlines or Lao Airlines (book early on the airlines' own sites or Skyscanner; roughly £100-160 one way). Cheaper but far slower: a bus to the Vietnam border and onwards — not recommended for this itinerary. Check into an old-quarter hostel in Hanoi and eat bun cha for dinner.

🚌Airport/town transfers (~£8) + flight Luang Prabang–Hanoi (~£130 typical)

🛏Old Quarter hostel dorm or budget hotel, Hanoi

• →Living Land Farm half-day experience
• →Rice planting and buffalo ploughing
• →Lao farm lunch
• →Flight to Hanoi
• →Old Quarter food wander

A free day in Hanoi. Walk the circuit of Hoan Kiem Lake, visit Ngoc Son Temple and the Temple of Literature, then head out to Ho Tay (West Lake) for Tran Quoc Pagoda. Do the Back Streets of Hanoi motorbike food tour on your own terms by booking a GrabBike or a local street-food tour via GetYourGuide (roughly £25-35), or simply eat your way around Dong Xuan market. Book your Halong Bay junk cruise for tomorrow through GetYourGuide or directly with a budget operator — 2D/1N set-menu cruises start around £100-140 all-in.

🚌Walking plus Grab rides (~£4)

🛏Old Quarter hostel dorm or budget hotel, Hanoi

• →Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son Temple
• →Temple of Literature (~30,000 VND)
• →Tran Quoc Pagoda
• →Dong Xuan market
• →Optional street-food motorbike tour

Get picked up from your hostel around 8am by your junk cruise operator (most budget cruises include Hanoi-Halong transfers). Board the boat, cruise out among the limestone karsts of Bai Tu Long or Lan Ha Bay, lunch on deck, then kayak and swim at Trinh Nu cave area and try a Vietnamese cooking demonstration on the sundeck. Seafood dinner and overnight on board. Budget overnight junks with private or twin cabins typically run £100-140 per person including meals — book via GetYourGuide, Klook or direct.

🚌Shared minibus Hanoi-Halong (usually included in the cruise)

🛏Overnight on a mid-range junk boat, Halong/Lan Ha Bay

• →Junk boat cruise
• →Kayaking
• →Trinh Nu cave
• →Swimming in the bay
• →Cooking demonstration
• →Seafood dinner on deck

Wake early for optional Tai Chi on the sundeck, then visit Sung Sot (Surprise) cave before the boat returns to port. Minibus back to Hanoi for the afternoon: take a cyclo ride through the French Quarter and walk the 36 streets of the Old Quarter. Then head to Hanoi's main railway station for the Reunification Express sleeper train to Hue (soft-sleeper 4-berth, roughly 700,000-1,000,000 VND / £22-32, ~13 hrs, departing around 7-10pm). Book on dsvn.vn or via 12Go Asia several days ahead.

🚌Minibus back to Hanoi (included) + sleeper train Hanoi–Hue (~£28)

🛏Soft-sleeper berth on Reunification Express train (Hanoi–Hue)

• →Sung Sot cave
• →Cyclo ride, French Quarter
• →Hanoi Old Quarter 36 streets
• →Overnight sleeper train

Arrive in Hue in the morning and drop your bags at a guesthouse in the riverside area. Explore the walled Citadel and the Imperial Purple Palace (combined ticket ~200,000 VND), then cross the Perfume River to Thien Mu Pagoda. In the afternoon hire a scooter or Grab a car out to the Royal Tombs of the Nguyen kings — Emperor Tu Duc's mausoleum is the most atmospheric (each tomb ~100,000-150,000 VND). Optional sunset longboat cruise back down the Perfume River, and poke around Dong Ba market in the evening.

🚌Grab cars or scooter hire around Hue, ~£8

🛏Riverside guesthouse, Hue

• →Citadel and Imperial Purple Palace
• →Thien Mu Pagoda
• →Tu Duc mausoleum and royal tombs
• →Dong Ba market
• →Optional Perfume River longboat

Get from Hue to Hoi An either by taking a local bus/train to Da Nang (train Hue-Da Nang ~£4, 2.5 hrs — the coastal stretch is stunning) or by hiring a motorbike or private car with driver to do the Hai Van Pass properly (car with driver ~£35-45 split; a motorbike ~£12-15 per day if licensed). Stop at the viewpoint and at China Beach on the way in. Arrive in Hoi An, check into a guesthouse in the old town, and do a self-guided walk of the UNESCO old town — Chua Ong Pagoda, the Chinese Assembly Hall (Fujian), Tam Ky house and the Japanese Covered Bridge (old-town ticket ~120,000 VND covers all five). Evening lanterns by the river.

🚌Train or private car over Hai Van Pass (~£15 share)

🛏Old-town guesthouse or hostel, Hoi An

• →Hai Van Pass drive
• →China Beach
• →Hoi An old town ticket sights
• →Japanese Covered Bridge
• →Lanterns on the Thu Bon river

Cycle out to Tra Que vegetable village (about 3 km, bike hire ~£2) and book a half-day farming and cooking class on GetYourGuide or direct with a Tra Que family (roughly £20-30 including a market visit, farming, and lunch you prepare yourself — pho, cao lau and fresh spring rolls). Learn about traditional herb medicine too. Spend the afternoon on An Bang beach or by the pool, and grab a tailor fitting if you've ordered clothes.

🚌Bicycle hire (~£2)

🛏Old-town guesthouse or hostel, Hoi An

• →Tra Que vegetable village
• →Farming experience
• →Cooking demonstration and lunch
• →An Bang beach afternoon

Your pick today. Option A: join a sunrise My Son Sanctuary tour or take a Grab/minivan out yourself (~£15-20 tour, entry 150,000 VND) to see the UNESCO Cham temple ruins. Option B: day trip to Ba Na Hills with the cable car (~£30-35 ticket) and the Golden Bridge — busy and touristy but genuinely photogenic. Option C: slow-travel day of beach, river and food — rent a rowboat on the Thu Bon or just eat your way through Hoi An's market. This is a buffer day to keep the itinerary realistic.

🚌Grab or tour minivan (~£10-15)

🛏Old-town guesthouse or hostel, Hoi An

• →My Son Sanctuary (optional)
• →Ba Na Hills and Golden Bridge (optional)
• →Beach day
• →Hoi An market food crawl

Fly Da Nang (about 45 mins from Hoi An) to Ho Chi Minh City on VietJet or Vietnam Airlines (roughly £30-55 one way booked a few weeks ahead). From the airport, take a Grab or bus into town, then book a shared Mekong Delta minivan or do the bus route to Cai Be/Can Tho (roughly £10-15). Better still, book a 2-day Mekong Delta shared tour via GetYourGuide or Klook (~£45-70 including sampan, meals and a homestay or budget hotel). Cruise the canals by traditional sampan between Cai Be and Can Tho, visit coconut-candy and rice-paper cottage industries, and lunch in a traditional wooden home on Dong Hoa Hiep island.

🚌Flight Da Nang–HCMC (~£40) + shared minivan to Cai Be/Can Tho (~£12)

🛏Can Tho budget hotel or Mekong homestay

• →Fly to Ho Chi Minh City
• →Sampan cruise Cai Be to Can Tho
• →Cottage industries visit
• →Lunch at a traditional wooden home, Dong Hoa Hiep island

Rise early for a boat trip to Con Son Islet and a floating fish farm on the Hau River (~£10-15 as part of a local tour or boat hire) — optional fish massage if you're brave. Travel back to HCMC by shared minivan or bus (~£8). In the afternoon, do a self-guided city walk: Notre Dame Cathedral (currently under restoration, exterior only), the Old Post Office, and the excellent War Remnants Museum (~40,000 VND). Evening on Bui Vien for backpacker street food and beer.

🚌Boat to Con Son islet (~£12) + shared minivan to HCMC (~£8) + Grab rides

🛏Backpacker hostel or budget hotel, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City

• →Con Son Islet boat trip
• →Floating fish farm on the Hau River
• →Notre Dame Cathedral exterior
• →Old Post Office
• →War Remnants Museum

If your flight allows, take a half-day Cu Chi Tunnels tour (book on GetYourGuide or Klook, ~£15-20 including transport, entry ~35,000 VND) — craw through the tunnels, see the trap doors and booby traps and try the firing range if you like. Alternatively stay in town: Independence Palace with its secret bunker and military command centre (~65,000 VND), and last-minute shopping at Ben Thanh Market. Then airport bus (bus 109, ~20,000 VND) or Grab (~£6) to Tan Son Nhat for your onward flight.

🚌Cu Chi tour transport (included) + airport bus or Grab (~£3-6)

🛏None — departure day

• →Cu Chi Tunnels half-day (optional)
• →Independence Palace
• →Ben Thanh Market
• →Airport transfer