Vietnam Luxury Itinerary: 14 Days

Vietnam's luxury hotel scene has grown sharply since 2015. The country now has several genuinely world-class properties, most concentrated in five places: Hanoi, Ha Long Bay (boats), Hoi An, HCMC and the two islands Phu Quoc and Con Dao. This itinerary anchors at one outstanding property per region.

The shape of the trip

Hanoi 3 nights (Sofitel Legend Metropole), Ha Long 2 nights (Heritage Line cruise), Hue 2 (La Residence), Hoi An 3 (Four Seasons Resort The Nam Hai), HCMC 2 (Park Hyatt Saigon), Con Dao 2 (Six Senses) or Phu Quoc 2 (JW Marriott Emerald Bay). Total 14 nights with one internal flight per major move.

Day-by-day

Day	Base	Activity
1	Hanoi	Sofitel Metropole arrival, private city tour
2	Hanoi	Private Old Quarter walk, dinner at La Verticale
3	Hanoi	Free morning, transfer to Ha Long Bay
4	Ha Long Bay	Heritage Line Violet cruise, kayaking
5	Ha Long	Disembark, return to Hanoi, fly to Hue
6	Hue	Citadel and royal tombs by private guide
7	Hue	Imperial cooking experience
8	Hoi An	Drive Hai Van Pass, arrive Four Seasons
9	Hoi An	Tra Que cooking class, private dinner on beach
10	Hoi An	Free day at resort, spa
11	HCMC	Fly to HCMC, Park Hyatt arrival, square one for dinner
12	HCMC	Private city tour, Vespa night food tour
13	Con Dao	Fly to Con Dao, Six Senses check-in
14	Con Dao	Diving or spa, fly home via HCMC

Phu Quoc swap: replace days 13-14 with JW Marriott Emerald Bay at Khem Beach (Bill Bensley design, larger property, more amenities) if you prefer ease of access and more facilities over Con Dao's wilder remoteness.

The hotels in brief

• Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi. Colonial grand dame since 1901. Graham Greene, Charlie Chaplin, Joan Baez all stayed. The bunker tour is unique. Pool wing rooms are quieter.
• Heritage Line Ha Long. Multiple boats (Violet, Ginger, Ylang). The Violet has only 6 suites. Service is hotel-quality, food noticeably better than competitors.
• La Residence Hue. Former French governor's residence on the river. Art deco character, walkable to the citadel.
• Four Seasons Resort The Nam Hai Hoi An. Villa-only resort, 35 villas with private pools. The standard against which other Vietnam beach resorts are measured.
• Park Hyatt Saigon. Right on Lam Son Square next to the Opera House. Square One is among the best Vietnamese restaurants in the city.
• Six Senses Con Dao. Beachfront villas with private pools on Vietnam's most remote inhabited islands. Wilderness setting; service is exceptional.
• JW Marriott Phu Quoc. Bill Bensley's "Lamarck University" fantasy. Theatrical, photographic, slightly mad in the best way.

How to get between segments

Private cars for all road segments. Heritage cruise transfer is included from Hanoi. Domestic flights for the long jumps; business class is USD 80-150 extra per leg and not really necessary on flights under 90 minutes. For Con Dao, only Vietnam Airlines and VASCO fly; book directly or through the hotel.

Estimated cost

Per person sharing, mid-range luxury:

Item	USD
Sofitel Metropole 3 nights	900-1,500
Heritage Line Violet 2 nights (per cabin, shared)	1,200-2,000
La Residence Hue 2 nights	400-700
Four Seasons Nam Hai 3 nights	2,000-3,500
Park Hyatt Saigon 2 nights	700-1,200
Six Senses Con Dao 2 nights	2,000-3,500
Internal flights	250-450
Private guides, drivers, transfers	800-1,400
Restaurants, spa, activities	1,000-1,800
Total per person (excluding international flights)	9,250-16,050

True top-end (Four Seasons three-bedroom villa, Heritage Line owner's suite, business-class internal flights) pushes this to USD 30,000 per person.

When to do this trip

October-November and March-April. The luxury cruise calendar fills early; book Heritage Line 6-9 months ahead for December-March. Four Seasons Nam Hai and Six Senses Con Dao also need 4-6 months for prime weeks.

What it skips

• Sapa and Ha Giang. No top-tier luxury hotels yet (Topas Ecolodge in Sapa is the closest, and it is good but not in the same bracket).
• The Mekong at this level (Anantara Quang Binh and the Mekong cruise boats are options for an extension).
• Backpacker side of Vietnam. Worth a brief street-food meal in each city to balance the trip.

Practical notes

Use a local DMC (destination management company) like Trails of Indochina, Buffalo Tours or Audley Travel for arrangements; the price difference versus DIY at this level is small and the friction reduction is large. Book Heritage Line directly through their reservations team. Hotel-arranged airport transfers are usually overpriced; book a separate private car for half the cost via your DMC.

Related: honeymoon itinerary, Hoi An, Con Dao, Phu Quoc, cultural itinerary.