Vietnam biking adventure
Discussion
I envy you, looks like you're having a great time.
Its a long way to get there of course, but I've never experienced anything like the eerie emptiness and also the surprising quality of the roads in Northern Laos. They were immaculately surfaced, often fast and flowing, and the only company you had was the odd Elephant, school kids in the road in the villages and maybe a monkey or 2.
We were there as they were doing their yearly burn, and the sound of bamboo popping was like a warzone in places.
It was extremely dusty when the tarmac did disappear, to the point that you either had to ride within 2 metres of each other, or 500 metres apart, lest you lose sight of anything beyond your own handlebars.
The dust managed to completely obscure an enormous (and illegal) Chinese logging truck on my side of the road, which threw me off my bike and crushed both my feet. Getting home from that is another story entirely.
Grade A, 5 star travel insurance is not to be sniffed at!
Its a long way to get there of course, but I've never experienced anything like the eerie emptiness and also the surprising quality of the roads in Northern Laos. They were immaculately surfaced, often fast and flowing, and the only company you had was the odd Elephant, school kids in the road in the villages and maybe a monkey or 2.
We were there as they were doing their yearly burn, and the sound of bamboo popping was like a warzone in places.
It was extremely dusty when the tarmac did disappear, to the point that you either had to ride within 2 metres of each other, or 500 metres apart, lest you lose sight of anything beyond your own handlebars.
The dust managed to completely obscure an enormous (and illegal) Chinese logging truck on my side of the road, which threw me off my bike and crushed both my feet. Getting home from that is another story entirely.
Grade A, 5 star travel insurance is not to be sniffed at!
Register1 said:
Me and my wife did this a few years ago.
Started in Hanoi.
Rode out to Cat Ba (Ha Long Bay) by taking the ferry from Hai Phong.
Stayed there a few days.
Same ferry back
Then all the way South to Saigon, over the following month, Hue, Hai Van, etc,
Fantastic.
Do it again in a heartbeat.
We rented out 110cc Honda Waves
£30 each for the month.
Petrol was generally a top up each day, costing about £1.00 to £2.00 each bike.
At Saigon, we took our 2 bikes to Ga Saigon train station.
Took them to freight, and they crated them up and sent them back to Hanoi for us.
Cost about £23 each.
Few days later we arrived Hanoi, after staying and playing in Saigon for a few days.
Love to do it again.
R1.
.
.
I lived in HCMC from 2007-2010. Loved it. I had a Chinese made 125cc bike which I rode all over the place, including via the Ho Chi Minh trail from Saigon to Hanoi, with a few detours on the way. Didn't have any problems riding in Vietnam. I still have a Vietnamese driving licence, which I used to rent cars with in Australia Started in Hanoi.
Rode out to Cat Ba (Ha Long Bay) by taking the ferry from Hai Phong.
Stayed there a few days.
Same ferry back
Then all the way South to Saigon, over the following month, Hue, Hai Van, etc,
Fantastic.
Do it again in a heartbeat.
We rented out 110cc Honda Waves
£30 each for the month.
Petrol was generally a top up each day, costing about £1.00 to £2.00 each bike.
At Saigon, we took our 2 bikes to Ga Saigon train station.
Took them to freight, and they crated them up and sent them back to Hanoi for us.
Cost about £23 each.
Few days later we arrived Hanoi, after staying and playing in Saigon for a few days.
Love to do it again.
R1.
.
.
Edited by Register1 on Tuesday 12th December 18:01
HTP99 said:
Love this thread so far, I'm not a biker at all, however me and the wife are hoping to visit Vietnam next year and we aren't resort types, we like to explore and see the country properly.
Why not do your CBT for £100 or less? get a bike and ride around and then you could ride out there.Excellent thread op, please keep the pics/updates coming!
Scobblelotcher said:
HTP99 said:
Love this thread so far, I'm not a biker at all, however me and the wife are hoping to visit Vietnam next year and we aren't resort types, we like to explore and see the country properly.
Why not do your CBT for £100 or less? get a bike and ride around and then you could ride out there.Excellent thread op, please keep the pics/updates coming!
civiclegend said:
I envy you, looks like you're having a great time.
Its a long way to get there of course, but I've never experienced anything like the eerie emptiness and also the surprising quality of the roads in Northern Laos. They were immaculately surfaced, often fast and flowing, and the only company you had was the odd Elephant, school kids in the road in the villages and maybe a monkey or 2.
We were there as they were doing their yearly burn, and the sound of bamboo popping was like a warzone in places.
It was extremely dusty when the tarmac did disappear, to the point that you either had to ride within 2 metres of each other, or 500 metres apart, lest you lose sight of anything beyond your own handlebars.
The dust managed to completely obscure an enormous (and illegal) Chinese logging truck on my side of the road, which threw me off my bike and crushed both my feet. Getting home from that is another story entirely.
Grade A, 5 star travel insurance is not to be sniffed at!
I'd love to visit Laos again, did Luang Prabang to Vientiane in the south close to the Thai border. Actually did some two up Honda Wave riding with my Mrs there and it made getting around the capital easy, we rode to the friendship bridge but decided against gong back to Thailand as our passports weren't with us and I need to re-enter Thailand by air for visa reasons Its a long way to get there of course, but I've never experienced anything like the eerie emptiness and also the surprising quality of the roads in Northern Laos. They were immaculately surfaced, often fast and flowing, and the only company you had was the odd Elephant, school kids in the road in the villages and maybe a monkey or 2.
We were there as they were doing their yearly burn, and the sound of bamboo popping was like a warzone in places.
It was extremely dusty when the tarmac did disappear, to the point that you either had to ride within 2 metres of each other, or 500 metres apart, lest you lose sight of anything beyond your own handlebars.
The dust managed to completely obscure an enormous (and illegal) Chinese logging truck on my side of the road, which threw me off my bike and crushed both my feet. Getting home from that is another story entirely.
Grade A, 5 star travel insurance is not to be sniffed at!
HTP99 said:
Scobblelotcher said:
HTP99 said:
Love this thread so far, I'm not a biker at all, however me and the wife are hoping to visit Vietnam next year and we aren't resort types, we like to explore and see the country properly.
Why not do your CBT for £100 or less? get a bike and ride around and then you could ride out there.Excellent thread op, please keep the pics/updates coming!
I think in the UK going for a 50cc bike or less is a bit risky as many of our roads are too fast for them. For me a 125 or up is far safer.
Good luck either way!
Currently in the Mekong Delta (Cat Tho) and tomorrow will be moving to Vinh Long for 2 days to o to a home stay among the rice paddy's.
To get to Cat Tho was 165km and today I did 140km exploring the Delta and farms in the area. Was good fun and got lost in a coconut farm which was interesting. Total now 969km.
I am struggling with the Wave to be honest as it is super uncomfortable after about 50km, and the fuel range is really not good. I have a few more days riding it to give it a chance but may swap for something different when I get back to Saigon, before the long haul north. It feels defeatist but I will see what the next few days bring. I really don't want a Honda Win but maybe that's the best bet?
To get to Cat Tho was 165km and today I did 140km exploring the Delta and farms in the area. Was good fun and got lost in a coconut farm which was interesting. Total now 969km.
I am struggling with the Wave to be honest as it is super uncomfortable after about 50km, and the fuel range is really not good. I have a few more days riding it to give it a chance but may swap for something different when I get back to Saigon, before the long haul north. It feels defeatist but I will see what the next few days bring. I really don't want a Honda Win but maybe that's the best bet?
Lewis
Avoid a Win like the pox infested plague. They're shyte and will be nothing but grief.
Have a word with John at Tigit Motorcycle rental in SGN. He sells the bike then buys back at the end of the trip. Currently has brand new Honda XR 150's. Good little bike and honest 400km tank range.
Might be a little more front end spend but cost ends up the same after buy back and better than a clapped out scooter.
Avoid a Win like the pox infested plague. They're shyte and will be nothing but grief.
Have a word with John at Tigit Motorcycle rental in SGN. He sells the bike then buys back at the end of the trip. Currently has brand new Honda XR 150's. Good little bike and honest 400km tank range.
Might be a little more front end spend but cost ends up the same after buy back and better than a clapped out scooter.
te in city traffic, but out on the open road it was brilliant!This really interest me few questions =
1 how does insurance work do you even need it if so how do you get it
2 do you need a motorcycle licence did you take your British one
3 how safe is the place, are you likely to be stiffed for some fake crime trying to get home ?
4 how safe is it in terms of the people is mugging \ theft an issue ? Do you need to lock bike up loads on a night ?
5 do you plan a route or play it by ear ?
6 do you find lodgings as you go . Hotels or random rooms ?
Thanks
1 how does insurance work do you even need it if so how do you get it
2 do you need a motorcycle licence did you take your British one
3 how safe is the place, are you likely to be stiffed for some fake crime trying to get home ?
4 how safe is it in terms of the people is mugging \ theft an issue ? Do you need to lock bike up loads on a night ?
5 do you plan a route or play it by ear ?
6 do you find lodgings as you go . Hotels or random rooms ?
Thanks
Ilovejapcrap said:
This really interest me few questions =
1 how does insurance work do you even need it if so how do you get it
2 do you need a motorcycle licence did you take your British one
3 how safe is the place, are you likely to be stiffed for some fake crime trying to get home ?
4 how safe is it in terms of the people is mugging \ theft an issue ? Do you need to lock bike up loads on a night ?
5 do you plan a route or play it by ear ?
6 do you find lodgings as you go . Hotels or random rooms ?
Thanks
Insurance????1 how does insurance work do you even need it if so how do you get it
2 do you need a motorcycle licence did you take your British one
3 how safe is the place, are you likely to be stiffed for some fake crime trying to get home ?
4 how safe is it in terms of the people is mugging \ theft an issue ? Do you need to lock bike up loads on a night ?
5 do you plan a route or play it by ear ?
6 do you find lodgings as you go . Hotels or random rooms ?
Thanks
License is recommended. But your home license would suffice. If you get stopped by the Police it's nothing to do with an infringement rather an impromptu tax collection point.
Safe as houses. Physical crime is very rare especially Viet on foreigners. Beware though. The Viets are a spiky bunch. Ask the Americans.
Bikes are generally very safe as there's bike guards everywhere. Muggings are unheard of. Theft isn't a problem but it can happen. At worst a simple lock will suffice.
Route choice is dictated by what you fancy seeing. Avoid the QL roads as much as possible. They're truly awful. Back roads are the key. Vietnam is as much about the journey as the destination.
Lodgings or rooms are everywhere. Easy and cheap and with so many backpackers here the web is a great resource. EVERYWHERE has Wi-Fi so no issues connecting. You can even pull into a coffee spot and crash in the hammocks overnight. Locals are very chilled about that kind of thing.
With 100 million people buzzing around on bikes you're never far away from a tyre repair place or basic mechanic. Never hurts to carry some bits though.
Riding here takes some getting used to however. Locals pull out without looking. Comes from a combination of you being behind them and if they don't look they don't have to deal with you. Police are same. They'll look away so they can say they didn't see you rather than lose face.
Fantastic place with incredible scenery. It's become very popular since THAT TG episode but there's far more than that.
131km back to Ho chi Minh for Christmas. Glad I am staying put for a week as it looks like there is tropical storm heading here.
Now to a nice round 1100km total and the Wave is up for sale to try and find something bit more comfortable, or at least bit nicer so I can forgive some of its foibles.
In the Mekong Delta I did get the seat rebuilt with new foam and cover but it did not make a great improvement unfortunately. Worth a shot for 70,000 dong though (£2.30)
I also met santa. Quite short and rode as scooter but I'm 99% sure it was the real deal
And less bike related but I went to a beautiful Buddhist temple and got fed some strange food by a crazy old lady
I'm here for a while now so will post up if I manage to swap the bike for something else.
Now to a nice round 1100km total and the Wave is up for sale to try and find something bit more comfortable, or at least bit nicer so I can forgive some of its foibles.
In the Mekong Delta I did get the seat rebuilt with new foam and cover but it did not make a great improvement unfortunately. Worth a shot for 70,000 dong though (£2.30)
I also met santa. Quite short and rode as scooter but I'm 99% sure it was the real deal
And less bike related but I went to a beautiful Buddhist temple and got fed some strange food by a crazy old lady
I'm here for a while now so will post up if I manage to swap the bike for something else.
I will also try and get some photos of the more interesting bikes round here. I have seen a few Suzuki RGV120 scooters which are a sporty 2 stroke and look like a hoot!
I was talking to an American expat the other day as well and he said with the import duties you can pay up to 100,000 dollars for a factory Harley here!
I was talking to an American expat the other day as well and he said with the import duties you can pay up to 100,000 dollars for a factory Harley here!
AceOfHearts said:
131km back to Ho chi Minh for Christmas. Glad I am staying put for a week as it looks like there is tropical storm heading here.
Now to a nice round 1100km total and the Wave is up for sale to try and find something bit more comfortable, or at least bit nicer so I can forgive some of its foibles.
In the Mekong Delta I did get the seat rebuilt with new foam and cover but it did not make a great improvement unfortunately. Worth a shot for 70,000 dong though (£2.30)
You'd be better on that green Honda Cub (A pre 80s one with the round headlights) or that Honda CD90 in the background!Now to a nice round 1100km total and the Wave is up for sale to try and find something bit more comfortable, or at least bit nicer so I can forgive some of its foibles.
In the Mekong Delta I did get the seat rebuilt with new foam and cover but it did not make a great improvement unfortunately. Worth a shot for 70,000 dong though (£2.30)
Also, if you are not used to riding motos for any length of time everything will feel uncomfortable.
Edited by bongtom on Saturday 23 December 13:20
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