seeking Vietnam excursion opinions

[Unibok]

Getting excited for my February sailing from Singapore to Hong Kong, especially now that the ship's list of included excursions has been released. I have narrowed my choices to the ones below, and would love to hear from anyone who has experienced these options. I am equally interested in all of them, but won't be able to do them all in one trip. At other ports I will be doing some active hiking and snorkeling, as well as visits to assorted temples and big Buddhas. As I make my choices, I'm interested in your experiences and opinions.

In the Danang/Chan May area, I've narrowed my choices to 3, but can only do 2: Hoi An exploration, Cham Civilization and My Son, and/or Hue and the Perfume River. Which two would you choose, and why? 

In Ho Chi Minh City, there is a street food experience. Has anyone done this excursion? Has anyone gone on their own to the FITO museum of traditional herbs and pharmacy?

In Halong Bay, I have the choice of a junk boat ride or a visit to an inland Zen monastery. Which would you do, and why?

And finally, in the first of our 2 days in Hong Kong, I can do the Central Foodie Adventure (which seems to be very popular), or a new excursion that includes Tai Chi, Dim Sum, and a tea tasting.  Again, which would you choose, and why?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts, with thanks in advance,

[gnome12]

7 minutes ago, Unibok said:

Getting excited for my February sailing from Singapore to Hong Kong, especially now that the ship's list of included excursions has been released. I have narrowed my choices to the ones below, and would love to hear from anyone who has experienced these options. I am equally interested in all of them, but won't be able to do them all in one trip. At other ports I will be doing some active hiking and snorkeling, as well as visits to assorted temples and big Buddhas. As I make my choices, I'm interested in your experiences and opinions.

In the Danang/Chan May area, I've narrowed my choices to 3, but can only do 2: Hoi An exploration, Cham Civilization and My Son, and/or Hue and the Perfume River. Which two would you choose, and why? 

In Ho Chi Minh City, there is a street food experience. Has anyone done this excursion? Has anyone gone on their own to the FITO museum of traditional herbs and pharmacy?

In Halong Bay, I have the choice of a junk boat ride or a visit to an inland Zen monastery. Which would you do, and why?

And finally, in the first of our 2 days in Hong Kong, I can do the Central Foodie Adventure (which seems to be very popular), or a new excursion that includes Tai Chi, Dim Sum, and a tea tasting.  Again, which would you choose, and why?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts, with thanks in advance,

IHalong Bay is gorgeous. The mist and the small rocky islands are incredibly beautiful. I can't imagine that the monastery could possibly surpass it. We did this as an overnight on a river cruise extension, and I wouldn't have missed it.

[Unibok]

gnome12, thank you! We will be in port only from noon to 8:00 pm, and my instinct has been to spend as much time as possible on the water in that gorgeous bay. 

[Bpos]

13 hours ago, Unibok said:

Getting excited for my February sailing from Singapore to Hong Kong, especially now that the ship's list of included excursions has been released. I have narrowed my choices to the ones below, and would love to hear from anyone who has experienced these options. I am equally interested in all of them, but won't be able to do them all in one trip. At other ports I will be doing some active hiking and snorkeling, as well as visits to assorted temples and big Buddhas. As I make my choices, I'm interested in your experiences and opinions.

In the Danang/Chan May area, I've narrowed my choices to 3, but can only do 2: Hoi An exploration, Cham Civilization and My Son, and/or Hue and the Perfume River. Which two would you choose, and why? 

In Ho Chi Minh City, there is a street food experience. Has anyone done this excursion? Has anyone gone on their own to the FITO museum of traditional herbs and pharmacy?

In Halong Bay, I have the choice of a junk boat ride or a visit to an inland Zen monastery. Which would you do, and why?

And finally, in the first of our 2 days in Hong Kong, I can do the Central Foodie Adventure (which seems to be very popular), or a new excursion that includes Tai Chi, Dim Sum, and a tea tasting.  Again, which would you choose, and why?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts, with thanks in advance,

Well I would certainly rule out My Son as there is very very little to see there as most of the ruins that remain are either very small or most a just a pile of bricks, even though the area is quite nice.  When we were there the guides were more intent on showing us the craters left from the bombing during the Vietnam War which apparently did a lot of damage to the ruins as well.

Hoi An is a very old historic settlement which has been overtaken by tailor shop (over 600 I believe) but very nice to walk around and it is shops shops shops.  There are some good restaurants in the town and the beer is cheap.

Hue is the old imperial city which had the crap bombed out of it during the War but the Emperors palace is going a lot of restoration and the city walls and moats are nice.  Some of the Emperors tombs which are situated in different areas just outside of the city are nice to visit as well.  It will be quite a drive to and from the port to Hue.

So, if into shopping and having a good feed and some cold cheap beer, go to Hoi An.

For a more cultural experience and you are prepared for a bus ride, go to Hue

[Mtngirl2]

Halong Bay is gorgeous, so do take a boat ride on the bay, no matter what length!  I've not done a food tour in Hanoi, but wandering around the old quarter is quite interesting!  Enjoy your trip!

[AndWe]

In Saigon went on Pham Tours and had a great time.  Much better and less expensive than the cruise excursions. Get 10 people together and do this!!

phamtoursvietnam@gmail.com

Feb 24 at 1:04 AM

 

 

[MudderMom]

My husband and I were on the 12 day Southeast Asia and Japan tour on Princess Feb. 2-14, 2019.  We took a tour from Phu My to Ho Chi Minh City on one day and a tour of Nha Trang the second day, both from phamtours.com.  Mr. Dung Pham is the owner and we were provided with excellent guides who showed major sites in the cities as well as local craftspeople (making reed mats, or the typical conical hats).  The guides were very personable and with a group of 8 to 10 people it was much easier to get around and ask questions.  Highly recommend putting together a group and contacting Mr. Pham . 

[Ashland]

I agree with those suggesting private tours for some of your ports...avoid ship booked excursions when you can.

[ROCruiser]

We also did the HCMC tour from Phu My with Pham Tours. It was very well planned and we had a great day there. On another cruise we did My Son and Hoi An on one day. Personally I enjoyed our visit there at My Son and liked that better than the Cham Towers at Nha Trang. 

[dani negreanu]

We were very pleased with Asia Authentic Travel in Vietnam.

https://asiaauthentictravel.com/

 

All the tours were arranged through our roll call, in groups ranging between 12-16 people.

[Unibok]

Thank you all for your advice and feedback. I have just disembarked, and your guidance helped me make choices that were just right for me.

 

 

[Ref4e]

We used Pham Tours in Ho Chi Minh City and Na Trang.  In both cases our tours could not have gone better.  The tour leaders spoke very good English.  Used nice 15 passenger vehicle that could go any where and got us to places we never expect like private home -  to observe making rice cakes, conical hats, sleeping mats, on the Mekong River, etc.  Loved it.  Pham Tours was all inclusive and an excellent value!!!

[Expat Cruise]

On 4/1/2019 at 8:39 AM, Ref4e said:

We used Pham Tours in Ho Chi Minh City and Na Trang.  In both cases our tours could not have gone better.  The tour leaders spoke very good English.  Used nice 15 passenger vehicle that could go any where and got us to places we never expect like private home -  to observe making rice cakes, conical hats, sleeping mats, on the Mekong River, etc.  Loved it.  Pham Tours was all inclusive and an excellent value!!!

I agree with Ref4e  Pham tours is the way to go in both ports. My wife and I have used Pham Tours three times within the last year, his tours are always great. In Phu My he charges less for a four day guided tour with lunch than what Princess was charging for a transfers only to from the city. 

 

Also they use a driver and guide the guides have prefect English and really know the area.  Ref4e  was on the same cruise with us, in March, we had 47 people in Phu My and 37 in Nha Trang from our CC Roll Call and friends on the cruise. Everyone who took the tours was very happy with them.