I’m looking for feedback from fellow “fastpackers,” like-minded backpacking travelers who cram as much as they possibly can into two or three days before moving on to the next destination. Here’s my itinerary for my 8-day solo backpacking trip for Vietnam, where I’ll be visiting Hanoi, Ninh Binh, Lan Ha Bay, Sapa, and I even get a 16-hour layover in Seoul, Korea on the way back:-) Everything is paid for, but refundable or cheap enough to take a loss, so changes can be made beforehand or on the fly.4/18 (Sat) Vegas to Hanoi, 11:50pm flight4/20 (Mon) Arrive 10:30am, explore Hanoi Old Quarter4/21 (Tues) Day trip to Lan Ha Bay at 7:15am, drop-off in Ninh Binh approximately 9:30pm4/22 (Wed) Explore Ninh Binh 4/23 (Thurs) Explore Nihn Bihn during the day, late night sleeper bus to Sapa 9:30pm4/24 (Fri) Arrive Sapa approximately 6am, explore Sapa4/25 (Sat) Explore Sapa 4/26 (Sun) Explore Sapa during early part of the day, bus to Hanoi at 4pm. Arrive approximately 10pm, drinks on Beer Street!4/27 (Mon) Explore Hanoi most of the day, catch plane back home 11:10pm4/28 (Tues) 16 hour layover in Seoul, South Korea from 5am to 9pm, explore the city, find street food!And even though I like to go with the flow and take things as they come, here are some things in each area I have interest in checking out: HANOI: Food tour, Beer Street, Bún Chả Hương Liên for Obama mealSAPA: Cat Cat Village, Muong Hoa Valley, Mt Fanispan gondola, Moana Sapa, Ô Quý Hồ PassNINH BINH: Tam Coc and Trang An boat rides, Mua Cave, explore Hoa Lu And before anyone says anything: No, I’m not going to slow it down, and no, I don’t think this is trying to do too much in too little of time. I’m a very experienced traveler and I do this 5-7 times a year. We all travel differently, and this is how I enjoy seeing the world: sleep maybe 4 hours and then get up and go, go, go… do and see everything I possibly can all day before I fall over, back to the hostel to take a nap for an hour or two, then head back out to get blitzkrieg’ed exploring the local nightlife. I get bored of any place after a few days, so after seeing the highlights, I simply move on to the next destination. I usually do 2-3 different destinations in 5 to 8 days; any more than that and I’ll start getting physically sick from exhaustion;-) It’s stressful, exhausting, and my body is just completely out of whack for the next week or two afterwards… but it’s quite the rush, and I love the adventure!But yeah, if anyone has any suggestions or recommendations, must-see sights or incredible restaurants, I’m all ears! Safe travels to you all, and thank you in advance!










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Looks like a good agenda, loved Tam Coc and the boat ride at Trang An – i recommend route 3 with the 1km long dot cave, it is the only one that goes through it. I do miss Hoi An and Hue in your list both of which I much preferred to Hanoi, partly because of the poor air quality there and partly the hecticness of getting about, not the best city for walking round, but ok in a vehicle instead I guess…
Can’t wait to see your pictures, Rudy!
Hi there 😊
So you’re a very experienced traveler and not open to anyone telling you to slow down at all.
Very doable. If u run out of time in sapa, you could easily skip moanasapa, i find that it’s just like an open door photo studio designed for tourist (very instagrammable tho 😅). Enjoyed touching the clouds at fansipan summit. Hope you have a blast man!