Five reasons you should be planning a trip to Vietnam
Vietnam is a country with a complicated history, one that has been far too tumultuous at times. Yet, it remains a place of extreme beauty, kind people, and a cultural heritage that would take lifetimes to explore. So you should probably get started.
In the first half of 2024, nearly nine million tourists made their way to Vietnam. Still, there are many people who don't have this country on their bucket lists. There are a lot of reasons you should change that but here are just a few of them.
Landscape and natural beauty
When you talk to anyone who has travelled Vietnam extensively, you will inevitably hear about the landscape. Words do not do it justice. Heck, photos barely do it justice. Mountains peek out over jungles which give way to rice paddies and coconut groves. The gorgeous natural beauty of this place ranges from the epic beaches to the mangrove swamps almost effortlessly.
Generous, welcoming people
Without question, the Vietnamese people are some of the most welcoming in the world when it comes to tourists. Yes, there are certain cultural traditions that you should understand and respect while you're there. At the same time, Vietnamese people are generally quite tolerant of foreigners, and forgiving when it comes to the occasional social faux pas.
Astonishing food culture
You will never eat better than you will in Vietnam. Well, unless you go to Mexico. This is a place where the traditional and the modern create a perfect blend of flavors unlike anywhere else in the world. Working with locally-sourced ingredients is a way of life here. Vietnam is the country where chefs and the world's culinary elite go to eat for good reason, a food scene best described as balanced.
Affordable travel experience
Travel is never cheap, particularly these days. And the costs associated with making your way around the world are not likely to get lower. Still, Vietnam remains one of the most affordable destinations around. Sure, you could go all in and have an incredibly extravagant experience. But you don't have to smash your piggy bank with a hammer to have the time of your life.
Rich heritage and history
One of the first things that comes to mind when thinking of Vietnam is the war fought there by the United States in the 1960s. There is so much more to Vietnam than that. The history of this region can be traced back more than 40,000 years, meaning there is so much to learn and experience. It has been built brick by brick over the millennia, and is defined by more than one conflict.