The Best Travel Blogs in Vietnam

Travelling to Vietnam can be pretty daunting for even the most seasoned travellers. There are some amazing places and vibrant cities here but getting to know more about them can be hard. 

An explosion in the number of good travel blogs has helped travellers to Vietnam immensely.  Here are some of the best online travel blogs and guides to help make it easier for you to find more authentic places and things to do in Vietnam.  

City Pass Guide 

City pass brands itself as Vietnam’s Premium travel guide and it’s easily one of the biggest. It’s jam-packed with comprehensive articles on travel and cultural aspects to life in Vietnam. The comprehensive travel sections highlight what the most popular destinations in Vietnam are and what makes them unique. It has a host of other articles on some of the more local aspect to life here which makes it popular for expats as well as those visiting Vietnam. 

Recommended article

https://www.citypassguide.com/travel/ho-chi-minh-city

XO Tours Blog

(Source: en.tripadvisor.com.hk)

The XO Tours provides informative local perspectives on its popular travel blog. They also provide a range of female-led and exciting motorbike tours from the same platform. 

XO Tours runs several different tours in Vietnam to give people the experience and insight into real local lives. This aspect gives XO a slightly different insight into life here than others in this Vietnam blog list. XO’s site has an array of blog articles that shines light onto food, culture and advice on places and activities of interest in Vietnam. Their main site is also where you can book onto one of their amazing motorbike tours.

Recommended articles

https://xotours.vn/blog/street-food-culture-in-saigon/

https://xotours.vn/blog/planning-a-trip-to-vietnam/

https://xotours.vn/blog/the-best-tours-in-vietnam/

Vietnam Coracle

Coracle is a proudly independent travel guide and is a go-to blog for anyone riding a motorbike across Vietnam. Finding your way around while sitting atop a motorbike makes travelling Vietnam even more difficult than travelling by bus. Riders need to be a bit more prepared but it can be more rewarding. This blog provides a great resource for maps, finding alternative and more beautiful routes across Vietnam and what can be expected along the way. It also highlights good street food, restaurants, hotels and tourist spots which are always being updated. The blog also has an extensive library that introduces you to towns slightly off the beaten tourist trail. For the more popular cities, you’ll be able to access Coracle’s extensive city guides and local attractions.

Recommended article

http://vietnamcoracle.com/best-times-of-day-to-ride-inout-of-saigon-hanoi-by-motorbike/

Nomadic Notes

This travel blog is very low key but has lots of great insight into the travel guides and notes of the author. The travel writer who owns and writes this blog is currently based in Vietnam and the blog is a relevant insight into Vietnam. There is some excellent travel information and the travel blog is incredibly interesting. Blogs focus on Vietnam travel but provide a more personalised insight of the author and the rapid changes he has witnessed with development and tourism in Vietnam. 

https://www.nomadicnotes.com/dong-hoi-like-da-nang-10-years-ago/

Rusty Compass

(Source: twitter.com/rustycompass)

Rusty Compass is an informative blog that provides honest and consistently entertaining content. This blog has a huge amount of Vietnam travel information and utilises excellent photos and vlogs to portray their messages. 

Rusty Compass originally began as a basic travel blog for Vietnam and Cambodia. This blog prides itself on giving honest and transparent recommendations and reviews of Vietnam’s best places. They provide in-depth guides and vlogs giving ‘local’ advice on different destinations. 

What sets this blog apart from the other is that it has a very socially minded focus. A lot of the stories here outline the economic and political realities and how local Vietnamese enjoy life here. However, they also give good general travel advice of cafes, green spaces, historical locations and Vietnamese food and culture. The Rusty Compass brand also has a travel service and one of the coolest cafes in Saigon.

Recommended article

https://www.rustycompass.com/blog/is-the-tide-turning-against-heritage-destruction-in-vietnam-313

The Broke Backpacker

This blog is (obviously) aimed at Backpackers in Vietnam who want to travel the country even cheaper! The site gives recommendations on where to go, where to avoid, Vietnam travel tips and rough costs all along the Vietnamese backpacker trail. This blog isn’t huge but it’s informative and great for the information on custom itineraries and travel planning guides. Ironically, the ‘broke backpacker’ also offers an array of advice and blogs on getting a job yet maintaining a nomadic lifestyle. 

Recommended article

https://www.thebrokebackpacker.com/vietnam-backpacking/

Tigit Motorbikes

(Source: tigitmotorbikes.com)

Tigit Motorbikes’ Vietnam travel blog is almost as synonymous with travelling Vietnam as their huge range of quality motorbike rentals. 

This blog is relevant to anyone riding a motorbike in Vietnam. Tigit introduces and discusses itineraries, the bike you may want to ride and the places you should visit on the way. The blog also provides good information on what and where to eat, stay, and offers a glimpse into Vietnam’s motorbike culture. Most of the blog’s content is written by locally-based bike enthusiasts which has helped Tigit become a leading authority on travelling by motorbike in Vietnam. Tigit also runs one of the country’s most popular motorbike rental services for foreigners wishing to rent a bike. All Tigit’s bikes are near-new, reliable and relatively cheap motorbikes to rent in Vietnam.

Recommended article

https://www.tigitmotorbikes.com/what-to-eat-in-vietnam/

Nomadic Matt

The writer of this blog is simply focused on making sure his audience can travel further and experience more for a lot less. While there’s not an extensive amount of information on travelling Vietnam it’s well laid out and concise. This blog ensures that travellers to Vietnam know how much things cost and receive unfiltered and genuine travel advice of where to go and how to navigate their way. This blogger is one of the few who left with a negative view and portrays it in an article of why he’ll never return to Vietnam. To understand this country, it’s also good to be able to hear one person’s bad travelling experiences in Vietnam.

Recommended article

https://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-blogs/why-ill-never-return-to-vietnam/

Adventurous Kate

(Source: adventurouskate.com)

Adventurous Kate is a well-seasoned traveller whose travel blog discusses the world. She has an obvious passion for sharing her experiences and blogging about Vietnam, as well as supporting female solo travellers with a huge amount of advice. 

This talented travel writer has travelled to over 82 countries and wants to share how she did it with the world. This blog is full of interesting travel articles which nicely blends the authors’ unique perspective with sound advice on places she has travelled in Vietnam. This blog has an entire section dedicated to solo female travel. It has a wealth of insight and advice on what women should expect and be extra cautious depending on the regions and culture. While it is not specifically aimed at solo women travelling in Vietnam, it provides some good advice which could really help female travellers. 

Recommended article

https://www.adventurouskate.com/saigon-we-were-meant-for-each-other/

Two Wandering Soles

This blog is written by a couple of self-proclaimed adventure seekers, nature lovers, and a few amateur foodies. They provide a good range in travel information of Vietnam from their backpacker and digital nomad perspectives. The couple who write this blog shares their own travel experiences with others so that they too can experience the life they are living. The blogs’  photos are spectacular and they have tonnes of easy-reading Vietnam travel content. This blog, like a few others, also has specific sections explaining how to work abroad or even to start your own travel blog.