Amazing beauty of Vietnam landscape through photo mosaics

A photo collection by Amity Smile Travel – features Vietnam landscapes like Ha Long Bay, Phu Quoc island, Sapa, Hanoi.... whose beauties resemble the world’s famous landscapes at some country as France, China, Thai Lan, Brazil....

8 Destinations in Vietnam You Should Go

The Cu Chi Tunnel, Mekong Delta region, Phu Quoc, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Mui Ne and Sapa are seen as favourite destination for foreign tourists coming to Vietnam, according to the world’s travel search engine.

Cu Chi Tunnels

Cu Chi tunnels built in 1948 were used by Vietnam soldiers during the reistance struggles against French colonists and American imperialists. They are an immense network of connecting underground tunnels located in the Cu Chi district of HCM City.

Mekong Delta region

Floating market is the highlight of the Mekong Delta region. Visitors can experience diverse activities like rowing through mango forests, trekking, visiting fish and snake farms, and riding along tracks.

Sapa

Sa Pa is a town in the Hoang Lien Son Mountains of northwest Vietnam. Popular with trekkers, it overlooks the terraced rice fields of the Muong Hoa Valley, and is near the 3,143m-tall Fan Si Pan peak, climbable via a steep, multiday guided walk. H’mong, Tay and Dao hill tribes make up much of the local population.

Phu Quoc

Phu Quoc is the biggest island in Vietnam, which is famous for beautiful beaches. This peaceful tropical paradise, floats in the warm turquoise waters in the Gulf of Thailand, 50kms from the Vietnamese mainland and a 50 minute flight from Ho Chi Minh City 

Hoi An ancient city

Hoi An is recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Hoi An Ancient Town is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century. Its buildings and its street plan reflect the influences, both indigenous and foreign, that have combined to produce this unique heritage site.

Mui Ne

With a long, palm-lined beach, Mui Ne has steady wind conditions (in the dry season) that make it a top destination for windsurfing, kitesurfing, sailing and other water sports. It’s also a popular weekend getaway from Saigon with a busy strip of hotels, restaurants and shops.

Nha Trang

Nha Trang is a coastal resort city in southern Vietnam known for its beaches, scuba diving and offshore islands. Its main beach is a long, curving stretch along Tran Phu Street backed by a promenade, hotels and seafood restaurants. Cable cars cross over to Hon Tre island and the Vinpearl Resort, with a golf course, water park and fairground.

Ha Long Bay

Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and a popular travel destination in Quang Ninh province. It features thousands of limestone karstsand isles in various sizes and shapes.

12 hidden gems of Vietnam tourist attraction

Vietnam is the top destination in Asia tourist attraction. Popular tourist destinations include Hanoi, Sapa, the former imperial capital of Hué, the World Heritage Sites of Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park, Hội An and Mỹ Sơn, coastal regions such as Nha Trang, the caves of Hạ Long Bay and the Marble Mountains.

1, Hanoi

Hanoi can charm you so effortlessly with its poetic and romantic feel, especially in autumn. It must be the reason why there are so many beautiful songs and poems written about the capital. This city is a must-go destination if you want to discover Vietnam’s historic and cultural delights. Take time to enjoy the unique blend of colonial and pre-colonial architecture, historical and cultural museums, local shows, concerts and various temples and pagodas.

While in Hanoi, try to explore as much exotic local cuisine as possible but be sure not to miss the delicious and authentic Pho, which is every local’s staple dish. Also don’t miss the unique and surprisingly pleasant tasting “egg coffee” – one of the 10 best drinks in the world. After that feast of flavors, you are ready to engross in the fascinating maze of streets in the Old Quarter – the heart of Hanoi.

In the heart of the capital city of Hanoi the One Pillar Pagoda was built in 1049 to resemble one seen in Emperor LyThai Tong’s dream, this dream like Buddhist temple appears to float above a lotus pond. It is built of wood and stands on a small single pillar, the temple is designed to look like a lotus blossom and has ornate beautifully painted carvings. The One Pillar Pagoda we see today is a reconstruction of the original which was destroyed in war.

2, Halong bay

Halong within the still waters rise up out of the water 3000 island limestone formations in all manner of shapes and sizes. The water is often covered in mist giving it an eerie atmosphere. The Karst limestone formations can be seen by taking a cruise in a traditional wooden junk, you can also canoe or swim here. There are some beautiful caves in the small islands which are lit making the area even more mysterious.

3, Sapa

Sapa is one of the most breathtaking hill stations in Vietnam which reflects the signature of French architecture and colorful hill tribal cultures. This is home to stunning mountain landscapes, verdant rice terraces, unique stilt villages and Indochina peak, the Fansipan. Travellers are invited to enjoy the best of Sapa all the year round with different taste of seasons and exciting outdoors.

4, Hue

What makes Hue one of the best places to visit in Vietnam probably is its special look and feel. This ancient capital of Vietnam is the home of the emperor’s residence. The glorious time of Nguyen Dynasty is still impressively reflected today, in its culture, architecture and cuisine.

Hue is well known for delicate royal cuisines and the gentlest ladies in the country. Beautiful slim girls in traditional Ao dai riding bicycles along the Perfume river is the signature image of this city. If you are fascinated by historical and cultural discovery, the city is perfectly filled with palaces, royal tombs, pagodas and temples to explore and admire. And don’t leave Hue before you taste Bun bo Hue (beef noodle soup), Com la sen (rice with lotus seeds in lotus leaf) and various yummy rice cakes. Hue is famous in the country as the place that boasts the largest collection of various rice cakes. If you have some extra time to spare, explore an off the beaten track place not too far from Hue – Lang Co. It is a beautiful tranquil beach village.

Once the hub of the Nguyen Dynasty the tranquil collection of temples, ceremonial gates, streams, moats, pavilions, bridges, gardens and pagodas make this a beautiful site with plenty to see. The Thai Hoa Palaces and the Truong Sanh Residence are two of the most beautiful structures here as well as the ornate Thien Mu Pagoda isolated over the river. The beautiful city displays the essences of Vietnamese artistry.

The tombs are not far from Hue and are spread out along the banks of the Perfume River. It’s one of the most popular places to visit in Vietnam and I personally think the most beautiful of the tombs are Minh Mang, Khai Dinh, Tu Doc, Thieu Tri and Dong Kanh. The tombs were built according to religious outlines including symmetrically balanced geometrical angles and symbolic motifs. Each tomb has its own character with surrounding gardens, small bridges and walkways. In the Khai Dinh tomb you can see intricate ceramic and glass work and it is perhaps the most beautiful of the tombs.

5, Phong Nha – Ke Bang NationalPark

This nature reserve is recognized by UNESCO and is the location of Son Dong, the largest cave in the world as well as another 300 caves and grottos. Within Son Dong is a 13 meter long underground river and beautiful stalactite and stalagmite formations. Other significant and beautiful caves in the park include Tien Son Cave, Thien Duong Cave and the Von cave system. The unusual and beautiful rock formations are due to the area being in a 2000km square limestone zone. Enjoy the tropical vegetation and evergreen forests with 500 year old trees.

6, Hoi An

Dating back over 2000 years, little alluring Hoi An is a dreamland for those who wish to have an ancient town experience. Walking around its atmospheric Old Town’s winding lanes is one of the best ways to immerse yourself in the blend of Cham, Chinese and Vietnamese architecture and culture.

Filled with charming shops, traditional wooden houses, flower garlands and lanterns, this town boasts an elegant beauty and was voted one of the best cities in the world. Many consider it to be Vietnam’s culinary capital for its famous Cao Lau, various tasty street foods and plenty of cooking courses.

Lavish forested hills, rice paddle fields and fishing villages are just a bit outside the town waiting for you to discover. Also, golden sandy beaches in Cua Dai, An Bang and China Beach are not to be missed while you are here in Hoi An

7, Nha Trang

This favorite spot of “sun and fun” seekers is located on one of the most beautiful bays in Asia. Adorned with lush islands, beautiful turquoise coastline and colorful coral reefs, Nha Trang is a great fun place for various water sports and outdoor activities.

Want to enjoy Nha Trang the local way? Sail to the ocean, catch fish, grill and enjoy them on board!

Here is a challenge for foodies, find the most special dish: Bo La (stewed beef in 5 spices over a sun dried egg served with Vietnamese baguette). It’s an amazing mix between French and local tastes. You can be very proud of yourself if you can have this delicious dish, not only because of the taste, but also because this rare dish is mostly unknown, even by the locals. A feast of fresh seafood cooked in spectacular local recipes is another must while you are here.

A bit further out from town, Cam Ranh Bay – one of the world’s finest deep-water harbors, is a hidden gem that is worth the 40 kilometers drive. And if you want to add a touch of romance to the trip, spend a night at Ninh Van Bay. It’s a golden sand paradise for honeymooners set along the bay with beautiful green hills.

8, Phu Quoc island

This tropical paradise is a perfect destination if you long for some peace and romance. Floating aimlessly in crystal clear lukewarm waters of the Gulf of Thailand is just the best way to calm your mind and ease your body. Walking barefoot on silk-soft white sands and emerald green waters or simply lying back in a hammock with a good book, are other great ways to immerse yourself in this beautiful and untouched marine environment.

PhuQuoc is as peaceful as it gets, and yet, this astonishing island is full of entertainment that will delight your adventurous side. Beach sports and water activities here are fantastic. Check out jet skiing, wind sailing, fishing, scuba diving and snorkeling. For more daring souls, don’t miss the chance to experience squid fishing. And when the night falls, the seafood night market is a must-go. Steamed wild fish and many local specialties found here definitely offer you a feast of heaven on earth.

Ladies, while here, check out the famous pearl farm. Properly adorned with the local accouterments, you will look so stunning after a wonderful trip to Phu Quoc.

The beautiful beaches of Vietnam deserve a place on this list. A few years ago Nha Trang was one of the most popular beaches in the country, but for a more pristine and tourist free beach try Phu Quoc Island. Apart from the dense inland forests the coast of Phu Quoc has long stretches of white sandy beaches and translucent water. The beauty continues under the water in the surrounding coral reefs. The 99 Peaks mountain range covered with unique plants, trees, waterfalls and inhabited by seldom seen indigenous animals are the best place to see the island from.

9, Saigon, Ho Chi Minh city

What makes Saigon so irresistible is its essential vitality. As the biggest commercial hub of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City has a special vibe that pulsates and refuses to rest. Thanks to its complex blend of different cultures, historical traits and Western influences, the city offers a mix of architecture, culture and street life that will at times fascinate and at other times thrill. While in Saigon, make sure you explore the Vietnamese coffee culture and experience the exciting nightlife, with plenty of street restaurants where you can have fruit, ice-cream, barbeque and hotpot, all late at night when the local Vietnamese finish their work and populate the lively streets.

In Ho Chi Minh City there are great opportunities to immerse yourself in the kitchens of Vietnam, with a wide range of cuisines that come from all over-the-country. Also, don’t miss the chance to enjoy the very affordable-luxuries you can’t find at home, such as romantic dining on a boat, healing therapy massage, a feast of fresh seafood, tailor-made suits and many other nice treats at surprisingly good prices.

10,Mekong Dalta

MekongDelta – the “Rice bowl of Vietnam” is a land of enchanting floating markets, lush green rice fields, bird sanctuaries, fascinating villages and endless fruit gardens. A typical one-day trip from Ho Chi Minh City is not merely enough for you to explore the most fertile region of the country. There is no place else in Vietnam where you can enjoy such an abundance of fruit, vegetables and river fish of all kinds. There is an endless list of treats to sample the local taste, but do your best to try the fish hotpot, grilled snails in black pepper sauce and the famous Ben Tre coconut.

If you have a chance to stay with a local family then don’t be surprised (and shouldn't refuse) when the host just gets everything they can find in the house (or in the market) to treat you to a proper feast. Warm and sincere hospitality is the core nature of Mekong people. Pamper yourself with cruising the delta at dusk, dining with grilled fish and enjoying a refreshing beverage while watching the sunset - it’s about as good as it gets.

The fertile land around the delta has allowed plant life to run wild, apart from the agricultural opportunities the delta offers untouched nature reserves. Explore the river life of floating markets and small villages as well as the islands close to the delta mouth. The beautiful landscape includes rice paddies, small rivulets and water channels meandering through the countryside towards the sea.

11, Street foods

  A collection of the best and most delicious recipes from the streets of Vietnam. Stepping onto the streets of Vietnam is like entering a big, bustling kitchen - everywhere, something is being rolled, boiled, steamed, or fried; pots of hot, fragrant pho sit over coal burners and balls of peanut-studded sticky rice are steamed and wrapped in newspaper. The food is fast, fresh, fragrant, and second to none in terms of its diversity and availability. Vietnamese Street Food represents everything enticing there is to eat on the streets of Vietnam. It contains more than sixty well-loved and authentic recipes from Prawn and Rice Paper Rolls to Crab Wontons, from Classic Noodle Soup with Chicken to Salt and Pepper Squid, and Crunchy Baguettes Filled with Skewers of Lemongrass Beef. Alongside these recipes are the stories of people who run some of the most legendary street stalls, providing a glimpse into their lives and daily routines. The variety of dishes and cooking methods, be it rolled, boiled, steamed, or fried, combined with gorgeous photographs of every dishful will have you creating unpretentious, fresh, and flavorsome food for any occasion.

12, Nigh market

When coming to a certain region of Vietnam, you will surely want to visit the night markets, the most prominent landmarks where culture and food exchange... of those areas. Some night markets that can not be ignored in all parts of the country such as: Night Market in Old Quarter in Hanoi, Hoi An Night Market in Quang Nam, Nha Trang night market, Ben Thanh night market in Ho Chi Minh...

20 Items Every Girl Should Bring When Traveling

No matter on  what kind of trip you are going, and whether it is you’re going for a weekend, a week, a month or a year.. there are some items a girl is just allowed to bring with her, wherever it is you’re going and whenever you are going!
The Amity Smile Travel suggest 20 items girls shouldn’t forget to bring with her when going away, so after reading this article you won’t get the chance to ever.. ever forget any of these items anymore!
1. Daycream – to avoid dry skin in airplanes and take care of your skin when you are away
2. Good shampoo and conditioner – even while traveling we can’t afford bad-hair days!
3. A pocketknife – when there is no man with us to save the day we should bring a pocketknife with us.. always comes in handy!
4. Tv series – to keep up with everything we follow at home
5. Lipstick – for a night out or during the days, don’t forget to pack up at least one pair of lipstick!
6. Sunglasses – you always need them when you forget them, so to prevent moments like this you better pack up your sunglasses too
7. Good walking shoes – I know those boots look amazing with that outfit – but you’re going to regret if you don’t bring good walking shoes with you, trust me
8. Razors  – I’m that girl who always forget to pack a razor and I always end up thinking ‘god, I wish I packed that!’
9. Make-up remover – again something you easily forget!
10. Tampons – you know why.. better bring them
11. A notebook & pen – always useful
12. A good book – during flights, during hotel nights and during (when traveling solo) dinner.. a good book is your friend
13. Lip balm – I also tend to forget this a lot but I always end up needing it!
14. Portable battery charger – you don’t want to end up alone in a foreign country with a dead phone battery
15. Flip-flops – useful when sleeping in a hostel or hotel with shared bathrooms, useful when you have painful blisters, useful when the weather is good.. actually flip-flops are always useful!
16. Magazine – catch up on the latest trends while waiting for your flight at the airport
17. Activewear – you never know when you end up on a beautiful location where you feel like jogging
18. Travel-size straightener, curling iron, or hairdryer – again; no need for bad hair days
19. One dress outfit – you never know if you end up going out, having fancy dinners or maybe end up having a date!
20. The usuals – and of course we know to bring our camera, phone, chargers, daily make-up items, clothes, underwear and maybe our laptop

7 Ways to extend your trip when the money runs out

Backpacking overseas is the dream of many 20-something females. Truth is that you’ll fall in love with all that you see and want to do nothing more than stay longer and longer, and to see more and more. Other truth is that your credit-card probably has a limit just as your savings. We all want to travel as long as we can, and as much as we can but sometimes it is just not possible. However: obviously there are a few tricks you should know so you can travel more. Amity Smile Travel would like to suggest 7 ways to you as below!

1,Volunteer – I never heard of this (form of volunteering) before, but it was a big thing at the hostel I stayed at in Budapest: you volunteer in a hostel and work during the pub-crawls the hostel organizes. For doing that you can stay at the hostel for free. Fun, easy and cheap! Other forms of volunteering that will save you money: animal care in Costa Rica, building houses in Africa, cleaning in hostels and hotels and teaching English in Asia. The best thing about volunteering (and working; see below) is that you are able to stay longer in one specific destination and learn much more about it!

2, Work – Obviously you can also just work for your money so you can travel longer. However, you do need to know whether you are going to work before leaving on a road trip, because that requires you to have another visa. So, be careful with working when you don’t have a work-visa. You could seriously get in trouble for that.  You can basically work in a lot of places. Like on a farm, as a cleaning lady or in a restaurant. The more fun things are the seasonal jobs like a summer camp in the USA, working in an apres-ski bar in Switzerland or Austria or working on a ski resort in Canada or work in tourism during summer in New Zealand.

3, Budget – Obviously. As fun as it is to eat out every night, to do everything imaginable and to splurge on hotels, it isn’t the best thing to do when you want to travel longer. So keep the budget: stay in hostels, couch surf, or stay at a friends house and prepare meals at home, make choices in what you want to do and what not and fly with budget airlines only or go by train and bus.

Set a budget as well. This is basically the best thing to do when you travel. It makes it so much more easy to stick with a budget and to make choices in what you want to and don’t want to do.

4, Work from your laptop – Accept freelancing jobs, maintain a blog or fill in surveys to make money. It all are small amounts of money but hey.. everything helps if you want to travel! This is also easier said than done, but the earlier you start looking for freelancing jobs the more you will earn in a year time.

5, Find promotions and discounts – A lot of museums have free opening hours. For example, museums in New York are free at Friday morning or Friday night and museums in Budapest are free to enter every third Saturday of the month – every city has benefits like this and they will save you a lot of money if you know these free opening hours! Also, check your hotel for free city maps, folders and city guides. These are mostly filled with promotional discounts for restaurants, hotels and entree fees! Google also knows a lot of discounts;-)

6, Get rid of monthly payments – Already traveling for 6 months and still have your mobile phone subscription? Get rid of it! You probably don’t call anyone anyway because of the additional fees with oversees calls. As long as you have a phone number and wifi you are ok! Also: choose the cheapest deal for travel insurance, lend your car to someone or sell it, or even rent out your house!

7, Ask locals and other backpackers – 1+1 = 3 and every local and every backpacker has tips on how to save money and travel longer. Learn from each other and find out how you can lengthen your own stay!

Cu Chi Tunnels in Vietnam world’s most surprising tourist attractions

The UK's second biggest-selling daily newspaper Daily Mail has named Cu Chi Tunnels among world’s spookiest and most surprising tourist attractions beneath the surface.

Cu Chi Tunnels: According to the website, the tunnels’ manhole-size entrances, hidden under fallen palm fronds, have currently been widened for the tourists.

The newspaper noted the tunnel, built by the Viet Cong (South Vietnamese liberation fighters), are famous for its tiny dimensions.

‘Parts of the tunnel system were like little subterranean cities with factories, kitchens and hospitals’, says Daily Mail.

These pitch-black tunnels were used as living quarters, hospitals, supply routes and storage during the war.