Thinking about traveling to Vietnam but not sure where to go?
For those who want to compare 17 cities in a table and choose by purpose,A purpose-based comparison guide to 17 Vietnamese citiesas well.
Vietnam, stretching long and thin from north to south, is dotted with cities that each have their own distinct appeal. From vibrant big cities to quiet historic towns and beautiful beach resorts. For a first-time traveler, which city to choose is a major decision that greatly affects how satisfying the trip is.
This article introduces ten carefully selected cities, from Vietnam's major cities to hidden gems. By learning each city's features and appeal, you should find the ideal destination that suits your travel style.
What makes traveling to Vietnam appealing?
Right now, Vietnam is one of the most talked-about travel destinations in Asia.
日本からの直行便、運航都市、所要時間は出発空港と時期で変わります。ハノイ、ホーチミン、ダナンも毎日・全空港から運航するとは限らないため、旅行日の航空会社時刻表で確認してください。
物価を日本より一律に安いとは言えません。都市中心部、リゾート、輸入品、連休、為替で支払額が変わるため、宿・交通・食事をVNDの総額で見積もります。世界遺産に登録された歴史的な街並み、美しいビーチリゾート、そして温かいベトナムの人々のおもてなしが、訪れる人々を魅了し続けています。
1. Ho Chi Minh City: a vibrant economic hub
The city's features and appeal
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam's largest city.
ホーチミン市の人口は行政区分や統計年で変わります。旧稿の約1,370万人を固定値として使わず、国内最大級の都市圏・経済拠点として紹介します。街に出ると、絶え間なく走るバイクの流れ、高層ビルとローカル商店が混在する景色に圧倒されます。近代的なショッピングモールや高級レストランがある一方で、伝統的な市場や路地裏のフォー屋台など、ベトナムの伝統的な面も楽しむことができます。
French colonial buildings, back-alley eateries, cafe areas buzzing with young people. Each exists at once, and the line between sightseeing and daily life is blurred. Easy to approach even on a first trip to Vietnam, it's chosen by many travelers as a place to feel the city's energy firsthand.
Recommended sightseeing spots
The Reunification Palace is a must.
This building, the presidential palace during the Vietnam War era, is now open to the public as a museum, letting you feel Vietnam's history firsthand. The Notre-Dame Cathedral in the Gothic Revival style and the adjacent Central Post Office are both masterpieces of French colonial architecture.
At Ben Thanh Market, you can immerse yourself in a controlled chaos where the art of haggling comes alive. Colorful fruits and vegetables, spices, clothing, and even souvenirs for tourists, it has everything. Just walking through the market lets you touch Vietnam's varied food culture and crafts.
2. Hanoi: a cultural center with a thousand years of history
The appeal of the old capital
Vietnam's capital, Hanoi, has an appeal that contrasts with Ho Chi Minh City.
As the center of politics and culture, it has a certain calm air. Walk through the Old Quarter and you'll find commerce and daily life packed into narrow streets, with livelihoods carried on across many generations continuing even now. Historic buildings crowd the narrow lanes, spreading out a scene that feels as if time has stopped.
Around the lake, you'll see locals doing morning exercises or out for a quiet stroll. Even as a tourist destination, it feels like everyday life is laid bare, and simply walking the streets gives you a sense of layered history. Kinh Thien Palace, with its remains of the Later Le Dynasty (15th century) royal palace, and Hoan Kiem Lake, the symbol of Hanoi, are also highlights.
Access to World Heritage sites
Hanoi is also known as a gateway to World Heritage sites.
Ha Long Bay is accessible as a day trip. The countless jutting rocks rising from the sea create a dreamlike scene, like the backs of dragons lined up in a row. Take a boat cruise around the bay and the activities are plentiful too, stopping at limestone caves and floating villages or kayaking up close to the rock formations.
ニンビン省の「チャンアン景観複合体」はUNESCO世界遺産です。ニンビン全域を世界遺産と呼ばず、移動先、入場区域、ボート運航を確認してください。
3. Da Nang: a resort where beach and city merge
A modern resort city
Da Nang, located along central Vietnam's beautiful coastline.
It has developed rapidly in recent years, and its reputation as a beach resort is rising. The long sandy stretches represented by My Khe Beach are a place of relaxation for locals as well as tourists. White-sand beaches spread out, boasting gentle waves and clear water, and the activities like surfing and parasailing are plentiful too.
The city itself is compact and easy to get around, making it well suited to a first stay in the central region. A defining trait is how urban convenience and closeness to nature coexist. Offering untouched beaches within minutes of modern shopping centers and excellent restaurants, this city's infrastructure rivals developed Asian cities with clean streets and efficient public services.
Nearby World Heritage sites
Da Nang is also ideal as a base for touring World Heritage sites.
ダナンからホイアンの所要時間は出発地点と渋滞で変わり、30分を固定できません。UNESCO登録名は「ホイアン古都」で、生活の場でもあるため、夜間も騒音・撮影・私有地へ配慮します。観光地として整備されていますが、過度な派手さはなく、歩く速度まで自然とゆっくりになります。川沿いを歩き、古い家屋や商館を眺めていると、かつて交易で栄えた港町の記憶が重なります。
Hue can also be visited on a day trip. In the former royal capital of Hue, palaces, temples, and imperial tombs are scattered about, quietly conveying Vietnam's dynastic culture.
4. Hoi An: a World Heritage town lit by lanterns
Go a little further from Da Nang and you arrive in Hoi An, where an entirely different flow of time runs.
旧市街は世界遺産にも登録されており、夜になるとランタンの灯りが街を包みます。ランタンの印象は個人差があり、「何千倍」「多くの旅行者」と根拠なく一般化しません。ホイアンの建築は、UNESCOが説明するように地域固有の要素と中国・日本・後世の欧州など複数の影響が重なっています。
Since the whole town is a World Heritage site, just walking gives you a nostalgic feeling. Cafes are everywhere in town, and spending a relaxed time at a stylish cafe is a fine choice too. Strolling along the river, gazing at old houses and trading halls, memories of a port town that once thrived on commerce overlap the scene. The way its face changes greatly between day and night is another of the town's charms.
ホイアンは徒歩で見学しやすい範囲がありますが、向く旅の形を性別や同行者で決めません。歴史建築、食文化、買い物、写真のどれを優先するかで滞在時間を選びます。
5. Hue: an old capital where you touch quiet history
If you want to feel history more deeply, the former royal capital of Hue leaves a lasting impression.
Palaces, temples, and imperial tombs are scattered about, quietly conveying Vietnam's dynastic culture. It's a tourist site, but overall it's calm, and the more time you take to tour it, the deeper your understanding grows. It's a place to enjoy the negative space and quiet rather than flash.
As the capital of Vietnam's last dynasty, it's dotted with historic structures, making it a valuable place to deeply understand Vietnamese culture and history.
Hue's complex of monuments is registered as a World Heritage site, conveying to this day the glory of Vietnam's dynastic age. It's a special city where, amid quiet moments, you can touch Vietnam's deep history.
6. Nha Trang: a beautiful beach resort
Nha Trang, located in Khanh Hoa Province in southern Vietnam.
Known as a beautiful beach resort, its marine activities are popular. With clear seas and white sandy beaches spreading out, you can enjoy various marine sports like diving, snorkeling, and jet skiing. Resort hotels are plentiful too, letting you savor a relaxed beach-resort stay.
Nha Trang is about a one-hour flight from Ho Chi Minh City, and travel plans combining it with Ho Chi Minh City sightseeing are popular. It's an ideal destination for anyone who wants to enjoy both beach relaxation and city sightseeing.
7. Phu Quoc Island: Vietnam's last paradise
Phu Quoc, Vietnam's largest island, floating in the Gulf of Thailand off the west side of Vietnam.
The island covers about 590 square kilometers, and with its white-sand beaches and beautifully clear, shallow shoreline it's also called "Vietnam's last paradise." Because you can spend relaxed time away from the bustle of the city, many tourists from home and abroad visit for resort purposes.
Its specialty products, fish sauce and pepper, are both reputed to be high quality, making them ideal souvenirs. There are no direct flights from Japan, so a travel plan enjoying both cities via Ho Chi Minh City is recommended. Beyond enjoying the quiet, beautiful natural environment, because it isn't yet very well known as a destination, you can spend relaxed time here.
8. Da Lat: a summer retreat called the city of flowers
Da Lat, a tourist city located in the highlands of central Vietnam.
Despite being in Southeast Asia, its year-round comfortable climate of 18°C to 23°C and its history of being developed as a summer retreat in the French colonial era set it apart. Its flower garden, spanning 7,000 square meters, makes Da Lat worthy of its nickname "the city of flowers."
Popular sightseeing spots abound, such as Linh Phuoc Pagoda, characterized by a distinctive construction blending Chinese and French cultures, and the powerful Datanla Falls. A night market is also held every evening, bustling with locals and tourists. Located about a one-hour flight or a 5- to 6-hour bus ride from Ho Chi Minh City, it's recommended to visit alongside Ho Chi Minh City sightseeing.
9. Mui Ne: a port town where the desert spreads
Mui Ne, a port town located in southeastern Vietnam.
Facing the South China Sea, its development as a beach resort has been active in recent years. Even so, compared with places like Da Nang, a still-idyllic atmosphere remains, and you can catch glimpses of the locals' unpretentious lives.
There are also vast sand dunes, whose grandeur is stunning. You can even enjoy the activity of sledding down the dunes. Beyond that, you can head to the small stream called "Fairy Stream," and the Cham towers and Po Shanu ruins built by the former Champa Kingdom. About a 5- to 6-hour bus ride from Ho Chi Minh City, so a 1- to 2-night short trip in between Ho Chi Minh City sightseeing is recommended.
10. Sapa: a mountain town where ethnic minorities live
Sapa is a mountain village about 300km further north of Hanoi, at an elevation of around 1,600 meters.
Vietnam is a multiethnic nation made up of 54 ethnic groups, and many of the ethnic minorities live in lands far from the cities. Sapa is a town where such minority people gather. Everywhere in town you can see people dressed in vivid ethnic costumes.
The scenery of beautiful terraced rice fields spreading out is stunning, and trekking tours are popular too. Loved by many travelers as a precious place to touch the cool climate, the natural beauty of the mountains, and minority culture. Accessible from Hanoi by train or bus, a travel plan combining it with Hanoi sightseeing is recommended.
Tips for a successful trip to Vietnam
Know the best season
Because Vietnam is a country long from north to south, the best season differs by region.
過ごしやすい時期は暑さ・雨・海・大気質など目的で変わり、月の区切りも年ごとにずれます。平年値を候補選びに使い、旅行直前は公式予報、台風、洪水、海況、AQIを確認してください。
Safety and points to watch
Vietnam's public safety is relatively good, but you need to watch out for pickpocketing and overcharging.
Caution is especially needed in places where many tourists gather. Keep valuables spread across different places, avoid walking alone at night, and observe basic safety precautions. When using a taxi, we recommend always using a legitimate taxi company.
Food and culture
Vietnamese cuisine has distinctive traits by region.
In northern Hanoi there's pho and banh mi, in central Hoi An there's cao lau, and in southern Ho Chi Minh City there's goi cuon (fresh spring rolls), letting you taste dishes distinctive to each region. If you dislike cilantro, telling them in advance can get it left out of your dish. Enjoying food at street stalls and local eateries is also a way to have fun that's unique to Vietnam.
10都市を選ぶ5つの比較軸
- 移動：直行便の有無ではなく、自宅から宿までの総時間
- 季節：雨量だけでなく暑さ、台風、海況、大気質
- 目的：歴史、食、海、山、買い物の優先順位
- 体力：徒歩、階段、船、山道と休憩の取りやすさ
- 予算：航空券、宿、現地移動、入場料の総額
初回旅行で都市を増やしすぎると、空港・駅・ホテル移動に時間を使います。3〜4日の旅なら一都市と近郊、1週間なら南北または中部など一地域へ絞ると、天候変化にも対応しやすくなります。
Summary: find the Vietnamese city that's perfect for you
Vietnam's cities each show you the country of Vietnam from a different angle.
If you want energy, Ho Chi Minh City; if you want to feel history and daily life, Hanoi; for a balance of nature and city, Da Nang; to savor atmosphere, Hoi An; to touch quiet history, Hue. If you want to enjoy a beach resort, Nha Trang or Phu Quoc Island; to spend relaxed time at a summer retreat, Da Lat; to enjoy stunning desert scenery, Mui Ne; to touch minority culture, Sapa is recommended.
Whichever city you choose, there's no right or wrong answer.
The appeal of Vietnam's tourist destinations lies not in the famous spots themselves but in the daily life spreading around them. The bustle of markets, a single cup of coffee drunk on the roadside, the flow of people that grows toward evening. The form differs by city, but in every town daily life is right next to sightseeing. That closeness is why a trip stays in memory as an experience, not mere movement.
By touring the cities, Vietnam's multilayered appeal gradually comes into three-dimensional view. Choose the city that suits your travel style and savor Vietnam's appeal to the fullest. I hope your first trip to Vietnam becomes an unforgettable memory.
