Self-Launched Vietnam & Cambodia: Hanoi to Phnom Penh (21 Days)

Land at Noi Bai and take the airport bus #86 or a Grab (~£3-4) to a hostel in the Old Quarter. Settle in, then book a cyclo tour of the Old Quarter directly at any hostel desk or on Klook (~£5-7 for a 45-min ride). In the evening join a small-group Vietnamese cooking class (GetYourGuide/Cooking Class Hanoi, ~£22-28) — the DIY way to instantly meet other travellers.

🚌Airport bus #86 ~£1.20 or Grab ~£4

🛏Old Quarter hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Cyclo ride through Old Quarter (~£6)
• →Small-group Vietnamese cooking class (~£25)
• →Bia hoi corner people-watching with your hostelling crew (optional)

Book the women-led Hanoi Motorbike Food Tour on GetYourGuide or Klook (~£30-40, the same style of tour G includes) — you'll be pillion on a scooter hitting Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Long Bien Bridge, Huu Tiep Lake, egg coffee and bun cha. In the afternoon, pay the ~£2 entry to Hoa Lo Prison and grab a family-style home dinner at a local spot in the Old Quarter (~£6).

🚌Motorbike tour transport included; walking locally

🛏Old Quarter hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Women-led motorbike food tour (~£35)
• →Hoa Lo Prison entry (~£2)
• →Egg coffee & bun cha tasting

Book a 2D/1N Ha Long (or quieter Lan Ha Bay) junk boat trip directly via your hostel or GetYourGuide — budget boats run ~£80-110 all-in with transfers, meals, kayaking and a cave visit. Shared minibus from Hanoi Old Quarter takes ~3-4 hrs. Spend the afternoon swimming and kayaking beneath the karst towers, and watch sunset from the top deck.

🚌Shared minibus Hanoi-Ha Long ~3.5 hrs (included in boat trip)

🛏Overnight junk boat, twin/dorm cabin (included in trip price)

• →Kayaking and swimming in the bay
• →Cave visit (Hang Sung Sot or similar)
• →Sunset on deck

Optional sunrise Tai Chi on deck, breakfast, then the minibus back to Hanoi (~4 hrs). Store your bag at the hostel or a left-luggage kiosk near the station, eat a cheap bun cha dinner, then board the Reunification Express (SE3/SE19) overnight to Hue in a soft-sleeper 4-berth (~£25-35 booked on Vietnam Railways or baolau.com). Note: no boat-to-station private transfer — just a Grab.

🚌Minibus back to Hanoi; overnight train Hanoi-Hue, ~13 hrs, ~£30

🛏Overnight train, soft sleeper 4-berth

• →Morning kayaking/swimming
• →Old Quarter street dinner (~£5)

Arrive early, drop your bag at the hostel, then visit the Imperial Citadel (~£5), Tien Mu Pagoda (free) and one Royal Tomb — Khai Dinh or Tu Duc (~£5 each) — by rented bicycle (~£2/day) or Grab. Afternoon option: the Hue countryside motorbike loop with a local driver booked via Klook or your hostel (~£20-25), stopping at the incense village and Thien Mu sunset.

🚌Bicycle or Grab around town

🛏Hue hostel dorm, £7-11

• →Imperial Citadel entry (~£5)
• →Royal Tomb entry (~£5)
• →Optional: countryside motorbike tour with local driver (~£22)

The classic DIY option is a shared minibus or the local bus along the Hai Van Pass (~£6-8, 3-4 hrs with a photo stop), or hire a motorbike rider via Klook for the full coast-hugging experience (~£25). Arrive in Hoi An, dump your bag and wander the lantern-lit Ancient Town (day ticket £5, optional).

🚌Shared shuttle/bus over Hai Van Pass ~£7

🛏Hoi An hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Hai Van Pass photo stops
• →Hoi An Ancient Town evening walk (ticket ~£5)

Recreate G's 'Oodles of Noodles' moment by booking a Cao Lau / noodle-making cooking class directly (~£20-25) — several family-run options in Cam Nam island or via GetYourGuide. Afternoon is your own: rent a bike (£2) to An Bang or Cua Dai beach, get measured for a tailored shirt (~£20-30), and eat cao lau and white rose for dinner (~£6).

🚌Bicycle rental ~£2

🛏Hoi An hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Noodle-making cooking class (~£22)
• →Beach bike ride
• →Optional tailor visit

Book a cheap morning flight Hoi An (Da Nang airport) to HCMC on VietJet/Bamboo (~£25-40 one way) or take the overnight train if you're on a tighter budget. Afternoon: join a small-group Cu Chi Tunnels tour (~£18-25 via GetYourGuide/Klook, half-day). Evening: rooftop bar on Bui Vien or Nguyen Hue walking street, plus Ben Thanh night market noodles (~£5).

🚌Grab to Da Nang airport ~£4; flight ~£32; Grab into town ~£3

🛏District 1 backpacker hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Cu Chi Tunnels half-day tour (~£22)
• →Ben Thanh market food crawl

Book a Mekong Delta 2D/1N homestay tour direct with a Ben Tre operator or on Klook (~£45-60 including transport, boat rides, cycling, rice paper workshop and meals). This covers G's Ben Tre coconut plantation, the Cai Thia rice paper visit and homestay night — just book it independently instead of as part of a group trip. Evening: home-cooked dinner with the host family and a lantern-lit night walk.

🚌Shared bus from HCMC to Ben Tre ~2 hrs (included)

🛏Mekong Delta homestay, shared room (included in tour)

• →Coconut plantation & sampan boat ride
• →Cai Thia rice paper workshop
• →Cycling through waterways
• →Night walk with host family

Morning: visit the local market with your homestay host, then boat to Mang Thit ('Red Kingdom') and cycle through the pottery brick village, rice fields and workshops (included in the 2-day homestay tour). Afternoon bus back to HCMC (~2 hrs). Free evening: Bui Vien street food and a £1-2 beer.

🚌Boat + bicycle (included); shared bus back to HCMC (included)

🛏District 1 backpacker hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Mang Thit brick village cycle
• →Local market visit

Cross into Cambodia by bus — the Giant Ibis or Mekong Express HCMC-Phnom Penh service takes ~6 hrs and costs ~£15-20 including border assistance (book on 12Go or direct). Arrive in the afternoon, walk the riverside, and grab dinner at a Khmer barbecue spot (~£6). Sort your Cambodia e-visa (£30, official site) before you travel.

🚌Giant Ibis / Mekong Express bus ~£17

🛏Phnom Penh riverside hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Riverside walk
• →Khmer BBQ dinner

Morning bus Phnom Penh to Siem Reap (Giant Ibis ~£10-13, ~5-6 hrs) or a cheap domestic flight if you're short on time. Afternoon: book a Cambodian cooking class direct (~£20-28, e.g. with a local NGO-run school) covering fish amok, chicken curry and mango sticky rice — a direct replacement for G's included dinner party. Tuk-tuk to the night market afterwards (~£2).

🚌Bus ~£12; tuk-tuk ~£2-3

🛏Siem Reap hostel dorm with pool, £8-13

• →Cambodian cooking class (~£24)
• →Night market wander

Buy the Angkor Pass directly at the ticket office — 1-day £28, 3-day £44 (better value if you stay three days). Hire a tuk-tuk driver for a full-day small circuit (~£15-18 split between 2-4 people) covering Angkor Thom, Bayon, Ta Prohm and Banteay Srei. Start at dawn if you're chasing the sunrise shot at Angkor Wat.

🚌Shared tuk-tuk day hire ~£5 per person

🛏Siem Reap hostel dorm, £8-13

• →Angkor 1-day pass (~£28)
• →Angkor Thom, Bayon, Ta Prohm
• →Banteay Srei

Return with your 3-day pass or buy a single day for the sunrise at Angkor Wat (~£28 if not already held). Book a cycle tour to a local village (~£15, including village lunch cooked by a family) or a Khmer cooking class in a rural village. Afternoon: recover by the hostel pool and eat fish amok in town for dinner (~£5).

🚌Bicycle or shared tuk-tuk

🛏Siem Reap hostel dorm, £8-13

• →Angkor Wat sunrise
• →Village cycling & home lunch (~£15)
• →Old Market shopping

Bus back to Phnom Penh (~£12) or, if you skipped it on day 11, do the capital now. Book a Choeung Ek (Killing Fields) and Tuol Sleng half-day tour direct or via GetYourGuide (~£15-20 including audio guide and transport). Evening: Royal Palace exterior stroll and riverside dinner (~£7).

🚌Bus ~£12; tuk-tuk ~£3

🛏Phnom Penh hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Killing Fields & Tuol Sleng tour (~£18)
• →Riverside walk

Recreate G's Cardamom Mountains stay: travel by local bus from Phnom Penh to Koh Kong (~£8-10, 6 hrs) then a shared songthaew to Chi Phat (~£3-5) — book a Chi Phat Community-Based Ecotourism guesthouse in advance (~£8-12/night incl. meals priced separately). Afternoon: rent a kayak or mountain bike (~£5-8) and settle in with the community project.

🚌Bus Phnom Penh-Koh Kong ~£9; shared songthaew ~£4

🛏Chi Phat community guesthouse, £8-12

• →Community ecotourism check-in
• →Optional kayak or bike rental

Book activities directly with the Chi Phat community office: half-day trek or bike to the Chhay Chrey rapids and waterfall (~£10-15 with a local guide), plus an afternoon moto-taxi ride up to a Cardamom Mountains viewpoint for sunset (~£8-12). Dinner at the community kitchen (~£4).

🚌Moto taxi ~£10

🛏Chi Phat community guesthouse, £8-12

• →Trek to Chhay Chrey rapids & waterfall (~£12)
• →Moto-taxi sunset over the Cardamoms (~£10)

Take a sunrise riverboat wildlife-spotting trip with the Chi Phat community (~£8-10) — hornbills, kingfishers and the odd otter. Then travel west to Sihanoukville (~£10 bus) and take the speed ferry to Koh Rong (~£12-15 return, book with Speed Ferry Cambodia or Buva Sea). Find a beach hostel and watch the plankton glow at night.

🚌Bus to Sihanoukville ~£10; speed ferry ~£14 return

🛏Koh Rong beach bungalow/dorm, £10-16

• →Sunrise wildlife riverboat (~£9)
• →Beach time & night plankton swim

A proper Me Day. Hike to the Koh Rong waterfall (~£0, self-guided, 1-2 hrs), snorkel or kayak off Long Set beach (~£8-12), or just lie on the sand. Sunset boat trips run from the pier (~£10) if you want to see the island from the water.

🚌Walking / bicycle

🛏Koh Rong beach bungalow/dorm, £10-16

• →Waterfall hike
• →Optional kayak or snorkel (~£10)
• →Beach laziness

Morning ferry back to Sihanoukville (~£7-8), then bus to Phnom Penh (~£9-12, 4-5 hrs). Final evening: Russian Market souvenirs, a rooftop drink, and a last Khmer dinner (~£8). Sort your onward transport or airport transfer for tomorrow (~£8 tuk-tuk to the airport).

🚌Ferry ~£8; bus ~£10; airport tuk-tuk next morning ~£7

🛏Phnom Penh hostel dorm, £8-12

• →Russian Market
• →Rooftop farewell

Breakfast, then tuk-tuk to Phnom Penh airport for your flight home. If you fancy it, squeeze in a Royal Palace visit (£8) or a final Cambodian coffee before check-in.

🚌Tuk-tuk to airport ~£7

🛏—

• →Optional Royal Palace (entry ~£8)