Vietnam travel question

Publius

I know a lot of people here have done the HCM, Hue, Halong Bay, Hanoi trip so please lend me your insight.

I am meeting SIL and a couple friends in Vietnam for 14 days total at the end of November.  In addition to the above listed locations we'll be flying to Siem Reap for a few days.  I am flying in and out of Vietnam on Air Asia (no free checked bags) and we're going to be moving quite a bit so I'd like to do this with only a carry on.  

People who have done this before, is this possible?  We're staying at the Hanoi Hilton (insert bad joke here), so I know I can get laundry done mid way through the trip when we're there, but given the apparent temperature differences between the northern part of the country and the southern part of the country at that time of year and the sweaty mess that SE Asia makes me, I am wondering if it is even possible to pack a week's worth of clothes in a carry on.  

For those of you who have done this trip (wise_rita and Leo, I'm looking at you) and those who have lived in Vietnam (coughazurecough), do you think I can get away with this?  How did you pack and what type of clothes do you suggest taking? 

neeps

Absolutely doable. The three times I've been to SEA I've only done carry on. One week worth of layers for me is 2-3 pairs cotton pants (convertible is better), 2 light weight long sleeve shirts, 3-4 tank tops or short sleeve shirts which ever you prefer to wear in hot weather and these can go under or over your long sleeve shirt up north, a windbreaker, a scarf, panty hose or silk long johns for under your pants, 2 or 3 pairs of socks (depending how long you're going to be in sock country), and underwear for 8 days.

Don't wash your clothes at any hotel. It's so, so cheap to have it done on the street that you could have it washed a couple of times for what the hotel is going to charge.

azure_azure

I think you can fit everything into a carry-on.

I would just bring one cardigan or light jacket. Hanoi in November isn't that cold (you'll probably enjoy it, averages about 15-25C). A shawl is good too.

Definitely avoid white clothing, its gets so dirty and whenever I've had laundry done outside of our own house, the whites would come back with new stains.

I wore a lot of dresses, I find they keep me cooler than anything else and are easy to wear.

I would basically bring what you normally wear in KL, the weather is similar, then wear the jacket or other long sleeved shirt if you find it cool in Hanoi and Halong. I was in Hanoi in November a few times and I don't remember it being cold.

I'm so jealous of your trip! 

neeps

Azure's mention of dresses reminds me, I bought oodles of dresses in Cambodia. For some reason Siem Reap is a dress Mecca.

wise_rita

I replied to your other post, but I wanted to add: Totally do the real Hanoi Hilton.  There are a few pics of McCain and I must say, day-um, he was a looker back in the day.

There are other reasons to go, of course, but that was the cherry on top for me. 

Publius

How long does it take to have laundry done at one of the little places on the street?

neeps

Publius:

How long does it take to have laundry done at one of the little places on the street?

Not long. We've dropped off in the afternoon picked it up the next day. We've also dropped it off in the morning and gotten it back the same evening.

Brit's Luna154

I did essentially the same trip (minus Siem Reap) including the stay at Hilton Hanoi Opera with just my big backpack. I was a bit tired of wearing the same clothes over and over by the end of the trip, but otherwise it was totally doable. Most of the hotels that I stayed at would do laundry for a really reasonable fee (um, except for the Hilton...$$$) and when that wasn't possible, I just washed my clothes in the sink with shampoo. Not perfect, but it did the trick.

One thing to look out for is if Air Asia (and any other airlines you are using) will allow you to carry on a big enough carry on. I didn't have any trouble at that time, but that was a few years back. Lately I have noticed Asian airlines really cracking down on the bag weight limits.

I was there in October, not November, so not sure about the weather difference there, but I brought maybe three lightweight dresses that were comfortable during the day but were reasonable to wear somewhere nicer at night, two or three t-shirts, one pair of running shorts, a long-ish pair of regular shorts, a light sweater, and a pashmina. For shoes, I brought flip flops, nicer sandals, and tennis shoes.

Publius

When I say carry on, I mean a proper carry on that fits every airline's standards.  All I have is a small rolling suitcase and a smaller hiking backpack that holds 30 liters.

Brit's Luna154

Publius:

When I say carry on, I mean a proper carry on that fits every airline's standards.  All I have is a small rolling suitcase and a smaller hiking backpack that holds 30 liters.

Not that you will have this problem, but the problem that I have been running into is not the size of the bagl but the airlines weighing the bag and holding me to the 5 kg for coach/10 kg for business class limit.

Leo713

Brit's Luna154:

Publius:

When I say carry on, I mean a proper carry on that fits every airline's standards.  All I have is a small rolling suitcase and a smaller hiking backpack that holds 30 liters.

Not that you will have this problem, but the problem that I have been running into is not the size of the bagl but the airlines weighing the bag and holding me to the 5 kg for coach/10 kg for business class limit.

Haven't been on the boards for a few days but everyone else pretty much said what I was thinking!  I did 1 carry on for 21 days in July and was fine, I would just bring layering clothes and do laundry.

Air Asia's cabin baggage limit is 7kg, which is pretty light.  I've found some airports are stricter than others in enforcing, but best to keep it under just in case.

Also, awesome trip.  You'll love it!