What’s more fun than getting off a plane and immediately being hit up for cash just to step foot outside the airport? (I’ll answer my own question. The answer is: getting the seat next to the lavatory for your 16-hour flight. Oh the stories you’ll tell.) The fact is, visas [...]

I never saw the movie “Indochine.” According to its summary, the flick was released in 1992, and is about a French naval officer and his young Vietnamese lover who are escaping banishment. They seek refuge in the labyrinthine crags erupting from the sea in Ha Long Bay. Those of you [...]

As synonymous with Vietnamese food as the country’s signature dish, pho, it turns out banh mi is actually quite a new invention for this very old culture. What, did you think the rice farmers along the Mekong Delta were munching on French baguettes back before the 19th century? As the [...]

Meet Nguyen Thi Thanh, or better known in these parts as the “lunch lady.” Due to the relentless coverage of television (Bourdain visited her last year on No Reservations) and the blogosphere, Saigon’s own Nguyen Thi Thanh has become the David Chang of Ho Chi Minh, creating legions of foodie [...]

Most cruise lines seek to provide its customers with what I call the “Best Of” trip (e.g., “See the Best of the Mediterranean: From Scenic Livorno to the Seascapes of San Tropez”). While this is probably a very lovely way to sail and explore, I often want to experience all [...]

This week the NYT headed off-the-beaten-path in Vietnam in search of a little respite from the hustle and bustle that is the rest of the country, and where they found it may be a little surprising: Con Dao — the infamous island chain known more for their prisons than for [...]

In case you haven’t noticed, we’re big on starting travel groups on sites we like. Jon started up our flickr group for us a little ways back for photos, and I started a travel video group on Vimeo, aptly titled: “Travel Videos” (it was a less than creative day for [...]

Your guide to the five must-see beaches in Vietnam. By Justin Calderon Vietnam, a country reminiscent of a war-torn epic that rang of rock-and-roll, decadence, and destruction­ was, up until recently, visited by only the adventurous traveler. Though late in its arrival as a member of part of the Southeast [...]

We’re going to be running a piece on Monday about the five must-see beaches in Vietnam, but in an effort to get everyone in a Southeast Asia state of mind (my first and likely last Billy Joel reference ever on this site) we’re taking a look at Budget Travel’s top [...]

I arrived in Hanoi airport after a white-knuckle roller coaster courtesy of the lingering typhoon in the area. I had no idea what to expect, really. My idea of Southeast Asia was something along the lines of a ramble through Cambodia and Laos. Like the good relationship maintainer that I [...]