Silver wind vietnam

[harbormaster]

We have just booked another Silversea cruise, this time December 12 on the Wind Hong Kong to Singapore doing Vietnam. Can someone who has done this trip please tell us where the Wind "docks" outside Hanoi and how long the drive would be to the city. The ship overnights there (and Ho Chi Mihn City) and we are considering getting our own Vietnam Visa and booking independent tours.

Also we know a number of you have had excellent trips to Vietnam and although I have read the "ports" section of CC, would appreciate any tips on must dos.

Lastly, does anyone know who the CD, Hotel Director and Captain will be in December? Thanks much.

[57 varieties]

The port for Hanoi is Haiphong. The drive is about three hours. We did a Silversea tour of the city which was listed at 10.5 hours. It is a wonderful cruise and I would go back to Vietnam any time.

 

 

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[57 varieties]

P.S. The trip to the Mekong delta is a must do and we enjoyed the evening out in Ho Chi Minh City which included drinks at the rooftop bar of the Majestic Hotel. It was a privilege to be docked right in downtown Saigon.

 

 

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[Zimmy]

We did Singapore to Hong Kong in 2008 with another couple. It was a fabulous trip with much to do in both Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Hanoi. We used a private tour company arranged by our TA for all of the ports. Wish I could tell you the name, but it has been too long. As 57 notes, it is a long, long drive between Haiphong and Hanoi. And there is nothing to do in Haiphong. When we got off the ship, we were in a "city" of shipping containers. The Vietnamese infrastructure leaves a lot to be desired, at least it did 6 years ago. The "highway" is two lanes in each direction and you drive as fast as the vehicle in front of you. That vehicle might be a bus, a truck, or a farmer on a motorbike taking his hog to market. I kept looking at my watch all the way back to the ship. The private guides know what to show you. The War Museum, Ho Chi Minh's tomb, the Hanoi open-air market. Don't know if you will be doing Halong Bay, but stopping at one of the islands and going inside the cave is fantastic. We did it on a private tour, but the ship's tour did not stop at the cave.

 

Things may have changed, but we did not need a visa as Americans. Our passports were stamped on the ship upon our arrival at Saigon. (That's what it says on the stamp.)

 

A couple bits of advice. Do your meals on the ship unless you really don't care what you eat, where it came from, or how it was prepared. We saw several restaurants where the cooking was done over a fire in the alley in back. It was nice to come back to the ship every evening. Also, Singapore is really hot and humid. If you plan to tour, do it in the morning so you can nap at the pool or in your room in the afternoon. While in Hong Kong, consider taking the hydrofoil to Macau for an afternoon/evening.

[Keith1010]

All of the cruise lines will arrange for your Vietnam Visas. I would only get one yourself if you plan to not return to the ship if you have an overnight in Vietnam or if you will be returning to the ship 11:00 PM or later in Ho Chi Minh City.

 

If you have two full days in Ho Chi Minh City then consider one day doing a full day tour of Ho Chi Minh City and another day going to the Mekong Delta River.

 

I would do these privately.

 

Keith

[derbylane]

Harbormaster, we did Vietnam a few years ago. The SS offered a helicopter flight to Hanoi, which my partner took, and then returned to the ship by taxi. They had a tour of the Hanoi Hilton and other sites of interest. In Saigon we docked downtown. If you can, have a beer at the Majestic roof top bar. I was stationed in Vietnam in 1972 and when in Saigon would have a really cold beer (or more than one) on the roof. On our return trip, I found the hotel and had a beer. I hope you have a really wonderful cruise!

[harbormaster]

Thank you all for your comments. We appreciate the information. We have just filled out our multiple visit visa applications online and will drive in DC to get them finalized That way, as you say, we can tour independently and leave the ship as we want.

Keith, do you have any names of tour companies you recommend in Vietnam? Your experience is extremely helpful to us.

Thanks

John

[Keith1010]

Hi John, we used a tour guide who goes by Zoom for our most recent visit to Ho Chi Minh City. His e-mail address is: dungzoom@gmail.com

 

If you decide not to do Hanoi when you are in Halong Bay on our most recent voyage Zoom arranged a several hour tour for us on a private junk boat of Halong Bay. We did it with one other couple and the size boat we had would have accommodated 30 to 40 people. They did an amazing job and we got into the caves which typically is not done on cruise tours.

 

Keith

[Zimmy]

That was our experience, too, in Halong Bay. A large junk for the four of us. When we returned to the ship and talked to the people who were on the excursion to Halong Bay, they had no idea what we were talking about when we said how magnificent the caves were. I think the company our TA used was Asiana Travel, but not sure. Guides were terrific and fluent in English. Comfortable vehicles, too.

Edited October 3, 2014 by Zimmy