Enjoy a VIP Vacation in Vietnam While on a Budget

If you're looking for an impressive vacation destination on a small budget, consider Vietnam, one of the most beautiful countries where you can actually live like a millionaire. Based on my recent travels, Vietnam by far has the best beaches, including a diverse range of breathtaking cities, plenty of cheap and tasty food and an awesome nightlife.

In fact, for a month, I spent $1,000 traveling to six different cities, which paid for all my trip and personal expenses. Not to mention I went all out in every city with my friends. I stayed in 5-star hotels for only $25 USD a night. An authentic Vietnamese meal was about $1 USD. Drinks were 50 cents. And if you wanna be pampered, haircuts, mani's or pedi's cost $1.50 USD with one-hour full body massages at $5 USD. Everything was stinkin' cheap. Basically, $1 USD can stretch a long way.

Still hooked? Now I'll share all the details to help you prepare for your trip, covering must-see cities along with reliable travel agencies I went through and package rates.

Here's a list of the 5 cities I toured for a month, as well as 3 other cities I explored separately.

Ho Chi Minh City > Nha Trang > Hoi An > Hue > Hanoi
Vinaday Travel in Ho Chi Minh
Travel by sleeping bus, where you get our own bed. Open tour bus.
Price: $10.74 USD or $228,000 Vietnamese dong

Halong Bay - 3 day cruise in Gulf of Tonkin
May De Ville Backpackers Hostel in Hanoi
3 days, 2 nights
Stay on a cruise ship the first night, in a bungalow the second.
Activities and entertainment: http://bit.ly/1aeLXuG
Price: $290 USD or $6,157,000 Vietnamese dong

Mekong Delta - A Taste of Vietnam's Countryside
TNK Travels in Ho Chi Minh
2 days, 1 night
Bus and boat tour, housing and meals included.
Activities and entertainment: http://bit.ly/18QukU7
Pictures from my trip: http://bit.ly/Wh4r8M
Price: $32 USD or $679,158 Vietnamese dong

Mui Ne - Beach and incredible sand dunes
Sinh Café
Regular bus
Pictures from my trip: http://bit.ly/XelWJo
Price: $12 USD or $254,672 Vietnamese dong

With these destinations in mind, next I'll share hotels and hot spots to check out. Towards the end of this article, you'll see "Traveling Tips That Helped Me," where I present all the important basics you'll need to know before and during your trip to ensure a safe travels.

I hope you have the time of your life like I did! - Ava

HO CHI MINH CITY

Also known as Saigon, this is the largest city in Vietnam. Widely recognized for its booming busy city and limitless energy, especially in District 1, you'll find all the quirky-fun shops, street vendors, travelers and nightlife here. Fasten your seatbelts. It's gonna be an exciting adventure.

HOTELS

• Stay at any hotels on Bui Vien Street.

• Graceful Saigon Hotel

• $25 USD a night for a deluxe suite

• Complimentary breakfast

FOOD

• Street food.

• Any restaurants.

• Local café shops: Try café sua da, a traditional Vietnamese iced coffee. They're so addicting.

• International restaurants are on Bui Vien Street and Pham Ngu Lao Street.

BARS AND NIGHTCLUBS

• Go 2 Bar: Bar, food and nightclub rooms upstairs.

• Crazy Buffalo: Bar, food and nightclub rooms upstairs.

ATTRACTIONS

• Ben Thanh Market: The biggest flea/street market in the city, selling clothes, souvenirs, and food.

• Saigon Square: Another flea market, but it has AC and better quality goods. Loved this place!

• Night Market outside of Ben Thanh Market. A lot of fun at night.

• Hai Ba Trung Street: Fashionable and westernized boutiques.

• Sky Garden: Grand pool and gym.

NHA TRANG

Famous for its gorgeous beaches, fresh seafood and beach parties, Nha Trang is also notable as the scuba diving center in the country. Its beach is very similar to Hawaii, but I personally think it's better and cheaper!

HOTELS

• Long Beach Hotel

• $15 USD a night for a nice room

•  The Light Hotel

• $20 a night for a good room

FOOD

• Any restaurants in the city.

• Street food.

• Fresh seafood on the beach. Thinking about it is making me drool!

BARS AND NIGHTCLUBS

• Why Not Bar: Best bar in city.

• Oasis bar.

• Red Apple Bar.

• Booze Cruise: Cheap buckets.

• Sailing Club: #1 bar and nightclub with extravagant beach parties. And they know how to throw a big spectacular party.

ATTRACTIONS

• Nha Trang beach!!!

• Snorkeling, scuba diving, fishing and touring nearby islands. Booked it for $10 USD through our hotel.

• Vinpearl Land, a resort island with a water and amusement park.

• Egg Mud Bath: For $25, immerse yourself in a personal mud bath. There's also a mineral water pool and other spa services. Perfect day to spoil yourself.

HOI AN

Hoi An is widely acclaimed as the capital of tailoring in Asia, as well as Vietnam's most atmospheric and delightful town with its historical Old Town, culinary mecca and amazing beaches stretched along the coast. Did I mention the entire town is filled with colorful lanterns? Best place to take pictures!

HOTELS

• Stay in Old Town area.

• Thanh Binh Hotel

•  $15 USD a night for a decent room

•  Complimentary breakfast

FOOD

• Anywhere in the city.

• Street food.

• Cargo: Gourmet international food. One of my favorite western restaurants in Vietnam.

• Streets: Scrumptious Vietnamese food.

• Citronella: Chinese and Vietnamese food. Came here several times because it was that good.

BARS AND NIGHTCLUBS

• Meet Bar

• Then and Now bar

• Volcano Nightclub: Only good nightclub in the city.

ATTRACTIONS

• Old Town, historic area of town, where all the shopping, food and entertainment are.

• Minh Nhi or any of the tailoring shops. Have customized clothes and shoes made just for you.

• All the boutiques and souvenir shops.

• Cua Dai Beach: Stunning beach with restaurants right on the sand.

• Cooking school at Citronella restaurant: For $25 USD, learn how to make popular authentic Vietnamese dishes. Worth the money and you get a copy of the recipes.

HUE

Hue is acknowledge for its historic royal palaces, temples, and tombs of emperors. It's also commended for its exquisite Vietnamese cuisine. If you want good authentic Vietnamese food, you have to visit this gem. Literally, food heaven.

HOTELS

• Friendly Hotel or Than Thien Hotel

• $15 USD a night for a lavish room

FOOD

• All of the local Vietnamese restaurants.

• All of the street vendors!!!

P.S. I think I gained 5 pounds here in what was only a few days.

BARS AND NIGHTCLUBS

• Why Not? Bar and Restaurant

• DZM Bar & Café.

• Brown Eyes: Best nightclub in town. Actually, in Vietnam.

ATTRACTIONS

• Citadel of Hue: $5

• Thien My Pagoda: Free

• Khai Dinh Tomb: Free

• Tu Duc Tomb: $4 USD

(All four were booked through a private tour and car from our hotel for $45 USD)

HANOI

As the capital of Vietnam, it's almost identical to Ho Chi Minh's busy city, but much more concentrated and notorious for its barhopping at Hanoi Backpackers Hostel. Also where pho, the popular noodle soup originated from, Hanoi is well-known for its dog delicacy, which is believed to bring you good fortune. Dare to try?

HOTELS

• May de Ville Backpackers Hostel

• $25 USD for a high-end room

FOOD

• Any of the restaurants.

• Street food.

BARS AND NIGHTCLUBS

• Hanoi Backpackers Hostel: Every night at 11 p.m., a huge crowd of travelers barhop around the city until the break of dawn.

• Hair of a Dog. One of my favorite nightclubs in Vietnam.

• Mao's Red lounge

ATTRACTIONS

• Vietnam Military History Museum

• Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

• The Hoa Lo Prison museum

• Night Market in Old Quarter

HALONG BAY

Located in the Gulf of Tonkin, Halong Bay is renowned for its scenic ocean karst topography, where it has over 2,000 islands and islets. Its been named one of "Asia's top five tropical island paradises" and the "World's New Wonders of Nature."

CRUISE INFORMATION

• May De Ville Backpackers Hostel in Hanoi

• 3 days, 2 nights

• Housing, meals and activities included

• Trustworthy and safe tour

HOUSING

• First night on the cruise ship. Second night in a bungalow on a private beach.

ACTIVITIES

• Cruise around Halong Bay.

MEKONG DELTA

This southern charm is thee perfect spot for those who wanna explore the countryside of Vietnam, where it's mainly a landscape of beautiful green fields with friendly locals.

TOUR INFORMATION

• TNK Travels in Ho Chi Minh

• 2 days, 1 night

• Bus and boat tour, housing and meals included

• Price: $32 USD or $679,158 Vietnamese dong

HOUSING

• Homestay with a local family in the countryside of Con Tho.

ACTIVITIES

• Cruise around on the Mekong Delta.

• Visit a rice noodle factory.

• Pass through the floating market.

• Stop by a local Vietnamese restaurant. Listen to traditional folk music sang by locals over tea and fruits.

• Check out the coconut candy factory.

• Make a stop at a tropical fruit farm.

• Row on the Mekong Delta with rice hats.

• Tour a local Buddhist temple.

MUI NE

In this coastal resort town, it's popular for kitesurfing and windsurfing due to its strong sea breezes. While you're there, check out their mesmerizing White Sand Dunes.

BUS INFORMATION

• Sinh Café

• Regular bus

• Price: $12 USD or $254,672 Vietnamese dong

HOTEL

• Mui Ne Backpackers Resort

• Nice pool in the center of the resort

• A big deck looking over the ocean with plenty of beach chairs

• $60 a night in a suite bungalow

• ($20 for 3 people)

FOOD

• Any of the local restaurants. Great seafood.

• Lam Tong - Affordable and fresh seafood.

• Jibes Beach Club - Good westernized breakfast.

• Nha Hang Khoi - Seafood BBQ and Vietnamese cuisines.

BARS AND NIGHTCLUBS

• Pogo bar

• (There's not much of a nightlife here)

ATTRACTIONS

• Mui Ne Beach.

• Kitesurfing.

• Windsurfing.

• White sand dunes.

• Red sand dunes.

• Local boutique shops.

TRAVELING TIPS THAT HELPED ME

MONEY AND CREDIT CARDS

• Before you fly to Vietnam, I suggest carrying a $200-300 USD with you along with your credit and debit cards. There's plenty of ATMs all over the city.

• To exchange cash, go to a local bank or a local jewelry shop.

• Instead of keeping all your credit cards and debit cards in your wallet, put it in different places like your wallet, luggage, purse, backpack or safe. That way, if you lose your wallet or it gets stolen, you only lose one rather than all of it.

• Carry enough cash on you. If you run out, you can withdraw money from an ATM with a $1-2 USD interest rate ($21,000-42,000 Vietnamese dong).

MEDICINE AND BUG SPRAY

• Get all your shots up to date, including the Typhoid and Hepatitis B. You can get this by going to a local Rite Aid pharmacy.

• You could also purchase malaria meds at Rite Aid pharmacy, but I found that I didn't need it. I was overly cautious because I'm very prone to mosquito bites, but I ended up getting sick from the meds. I had severe headaches and I was constantly nauseous. If you're staying in the city, you have nothing to worry about.

• Pack diarrhea meds. No matter how careful you are, at some point, you will get traveler’s diarrhea. I got it not from eating Vietnamese food, but an Australian burger, sadly.

• Buy Advil, Tylenol or ibuprofen to help you when you have headaches, which is bound to happen as you adjust to the drastic heat change. Medicine in Vietnam aren’t as effective. Plus, the pharmacies are kind of sketchy.

• Always carry sunscreen and aloe vera. Almost everyday, it’s in the high 90s.

• To avoid mosquito bites, buy a local bug spray called Soffiel. American bug sprays didn’t work on me, even with 99% DEET!

SANITATION AND CLEANLINESS

• Bring a roll of toilet paper and hand sanitizer everywhere you go. Locals don’t use toilet paper.

• If you want to stay on the safe side, only drink bottled water. Carry a water bottle with a filter helps, too, in case you desperately need water and you can’t find a local store. As far as the ice, it's pretty safe to drink. I never got sick from it.

HOTELS AND HOSTELS

• Most hotels in big cities will have a website. Book it at least 1-2 weeks in advance.

• Don't worry if the receptionist asks to hold onto your passport until you leave. They're required by the government to do this in order to keep track of where foreigners stay in their country.

• Put any expensive valuables in a safe, located inside the closet.

• If you the hotel to clean your room, but worried about your stuff being stolen, be in the room when a staff member cleans it. After all, it’s still a third world country. Moreover, there's been dozens of stolen cases reported.

TRAVELING BY BUS

• The most comfortable way to travel is to book a sleeping bus. If you wanna sleep you can lay down. If you want to enjoy the view, you can sit up. And you get your own bed with a generous amount of leg room.

• Travel at night time, especially if it's going to be an eight hour bus ride of more.

• If you're traveling by bus at night, take sleeping pills to help you sleep. The bus shuffles a lot, swaying back and forth, making it very difficult to sleep. P.S. You can easily purchase them at a local pharmacy for $1 USD ($21,000 Vietnamese dong). Trust me, you'll thank me when you wake up.

IN PUBLIC

• When crossing the road, don’t panic, run, or turn back, as much as you want to. Walk slowly. The bikes and buses will weave around you.

• Girls, carry your purse and bags in front of you at all times. There’s still a lot of pick pocketers.

• Bargain whenever you buy anything on the street or at a shop. Whatever the price is, ask for $1.50-2 USD less ($30-40,000 Vietnamese dong). Give them that amount in cash until they take it. Most of them will. If not, pay the price they asked or leave. There's plenty of other vendors that sells the same thing - most likely at cheaper prices.

EVERYDAY TRANSPORTATION

• Need a taxi? Only ride on Vinaday or Mai Linh Taxi, the most reliable companies.

• If you want to ride on a motorbike with a local, it's not something I highly suggest even though it's cheaper than a taxi, because it's not as safe. Additionally, most of these guys know you're a foreigner, so they'll scam you. If you want to try it, don't pay more than $20,000 dong ($1 USD) for a 5-minute ride.