Mark Twain once said “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
Make sure, you use your chances to travel while you can and push yourself towards your personal limits.
And what could be a better place for that than Vietnam?
2016 is your year to visit Vietnam. There have been many improvements in the past years allowing it for travellers to travel more conveniently in the country. At the same time, Vietnam managed to stay just as authentic as it used to be, giving you the full experience.
See for yourself, why it is 2016 to cross Vietnam off your bucket list.
#1 Improved infrastructure
Due to the country’s economical growth in the past years, the infrastructure is constantly improving, allowing an easier access to remote areas. The newly build highways from Hanoi to Sapa and to Mai Chau will save you much travel time and in return, give you more time to connect with the locals at the destination.
#2 Authenticity
We have all seen or heard of overcrowded destinations, where one resort comes right after the next. Luckily, Vietnam is a country that can still give you an authentic experience as you can find many remote areas, which are off the beaten track and less travelled by tourists, such as the Pu Luong national reserve, the Ha Giang area, Kon Tum and Ben Tre. You name it. Read our other blogposts for more inspiration.
Whilst some floating markets in Thailand are now focussing on tourism instead of local trading pattern. If you want to avoid tourist hotspots and see the last authentic small floating markets, visit the Mekong Delta as soon as you can since the trade is shifting to a land-based market.
If that isn’t enough, think of the numerous authentic shows you can see in Vietnam (and I’m not talking about the water puppet show). Recently, there have been some great efforts made to preserve other traditional genres which are under the threat of being lost. We recently posted about the traditional CaTru music show, but there is way more than that; the Cheo and Cai Luong traditional music show are definitely worth a visit.
#3 You will help the locals
Next to homestays giving you a very authentic experience, they do also help the local communities making it an ultimate win-win situation. Vietnamese homestays increased significantly in the past years proving a successful potential. Moreover, the Vietnamese are very interested in other cultures, so you will get the chance to actually meet and talk to the locals, when staying at their house.
#4 Loosened Visa regulations
Not only did the Vietnamese government launched the rule of a visa free entrance for many European countries such as the U.K., Germany and Italy, it also cut its visa fees down to 25 USD for a one month single entry visa. Some regulations however (such as the visa free entrance), are for now limited until the 30th of June 2016. Let’s hope that these regulations will stay or loosened even more.
Passport (Jason Matthews, 2007)
#5 Higher English speaking skills
Next to having a growing economy, the Vietnamese understand the importance of English skills. The English proficiency index ranked Vietnam fifth as the best English speaking countries in Asia. With a result of 53,81%, Vietnam tops other popular South East Asian countries such as Thailand, Indonesia or Cambodia.
#6 Still one of the cheapest countries in South East Asia
Whilst other South East Asian countries like Cambodia and Thailand become more and more expensive, Vietnam is still very cheap. A bowl of traditional Pho or a coffee in a cosy coffee shop can cost you as little as 1USD. Price of Travel has even called Hanoi as 2nd and Ho Chi Minh City as 3rd cheapest cities in South East Asia.
What are you waiting for? If you haven’t set Vietnam on your bucket list as your New Years resolution, you should do now. If you still need arguments to convince you, what about Hanoi being ranked fourth in the Top Destinations Worldwide by Tripadvisor? Or Vietnam having the largest cave in the world, which only opened up for tourism 3 years ago? Well, if that isn’t enough, take a look at these pictures and start packing your bags.
See you soon in Vietnam!
