Hooked On Asia

I am of course too young to remember much about the Vietnam War but having been promoting the country to tourists for a number of years I do know a bit. For example I know that the Caravelle Hotel in Saigon (aka Ho Chi Minh City) is one of the, if not the, oldest in the city and was a favourite watering hole of foreign correspondents during that period.

This year is the Caravelle’s 50^th Anniversary and Peter Arnett, the award-winning journalist, is returning to the hotel to join in the celebrations 6 – 10 May 2009.

I am sure when he was filing his reports on the Vietnam War between 1962 and 1975 neither he nor anyone could have imagined the transformation of the country over the ensuing 30 years.

Today Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh City, is a vibrant, bustling commercial centre where the Caravelle sits, figuratively, alongside international brand names like Marriott (Renaissance Riverside), Starwood (Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers) and Accor Hotels (Sofitel Plaza Saigon).

Halong Bay

Vietnam has a growing tourist infrastructure with good quality hotels in all the key tourist destinations. Accor Hotels for example has properties in: Hanoi, Dalat, Phan Thiet, Ho Chi Minh City, Phu Quoc Island, Hue, Nha Trang and Halong bay. With more coming.

Another big brand name with a foot in the Vietnam tourism door is Hyatt Hotels and Resorts. In addition to the Park Hyatt in Ho Chi Min City, by 2010, there will be the Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and Spa. Set on the beach, close to Marble Mountain the hotel will have 258 guestrooms, 148 condominiums and 30 two-storey villas.

The hotel scene though is not just about the brand names and there is a host of good quality, independent hotels throughout the country. TripAdvisor is of course a good place to start looking for them.

Vietnam has a long way to go before it reaches mainstream tourism like Thailand and Malaysia but it is both readily accessible (albeit there are no direct flights from the UK) with good domestic flight schedules and of course comfortable accommodation. Road transport is adequate between the main centres while rail travel is slow and, in my opinion aside from short journeys, best avoided (unless you are back packing with plenty of time and then it’s fine).

You will require a visa for entry into Vietnam which is usually obtained in advance. If you are travelling as part of a pre-arranged tour then it is possible you can arrange for a Visa On Arrival: have a word with the organiser.

Vietnam then has come a long way in the last 50 years, and mostly in the last 10 or so: there is still plenty of scope for some, hopefully, good quality developments to join those that are already there. Vietnam is definitely worth one visit, if not more.