Things to Do in Vietnam with Kids

The easiest win of a Vietnam family trip. A cable car climbs from Da Nang to a French-built hill station at about 1,500 metres, where the air is far cooler than the coast and the Golden Bridge sits in its pair of giant stone hands. Up top there is a mock French village, indoor rides and a funicular, so a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old both find something. Full day from Da Nang or Hoi An, mostly flat walking, and it is crowded by late morning.

One night on a cruise boat is usually the highlight of the whole trip for children. Family cabins sleep three or four, all meals are included, and the day fills up with kayaking, a cave stop and swimming off the back deck. Two and a half hours by road from Hanoi. Lan Ha Bay is the quieter alternative if the crowds worry you. Skip December to February, when the north turns cold and misty and the views close in.

A walkable grid of low yellow shophouses with almost no traffic, which makes it the most relaxed place in Vietnam to let children run ahead a little. Wooden merchant houses, a covered Japanese bridge and a market all sit within a few hundred metres. Half a day, best from about 4 pm when the heat drops. The centre rains hard from September to January.

Just under 8 km of cable car from Phu Quoc across the sea to Hon Thom, holding a Guinness record as the longest non-stop three-rope cable car. The crossing takes about 15 minutes over fishing boats and stilt villages, and lands at a beach with a play area and a water park. Fine at any age that will sit still for a quarter of an hour. Half a day. Phu Quoc packages average around Rs 57,000 per person, which a family is multiplying.

After dark the river through the old town fills with paper lanterns floated from small rowing boats, which is about the most reliable way to hold a child's attention in Vietnam. Workshops nearby hand over a ready-made bamboo frame and teach the fabric and glue part, so a seven-year-old can finish one and carry it home. An hour for the class, an evening for the boats, and no real walking involved.

A full theme park on the north of the island with a water park, roller coasters and an indoor section for when the sun is too strong. It is the reason a lot of families give Phu Quoc three or four days rather than two. A whole day, and worth arriving early. The island's dry season runs November to March.

Puppets worked from waist-deep water by handlers hidden behind a screen, with a live band and a great deal of splashing. Shows run about 50 minutes, the story needs no Vietnamese, and it holds children from around three upwards. Thang Long theatre by Hoan Kiem Lake runs several shows a day and sells out, so book ahead. The Golden Dragon in Ho Chi Minh City is the southern equivalent.

A slow boat through narrow palm-lined channels, with stops at a coconut-candy workshop and a fruit orchard, is far easier on small children than a city day. The floating markets trade at dawn, so an early start is the price of seeing them busy. Day trip from Ho Chi Minh City, or stay a night in Can Tho to reach Cai Rang before the boats thin out. Driest from December to April.

Best Time: November to May

A rower takes four people through limestone karsts and low water caves, often working the oars with her feet. Ninh Binh is two hours from Hanoi and does well as a day trip or an overnight. The boat sits low and life jackets are provided. The ride runs close to two hours, which is the main thing to weigh up with a restless toddler.

A city park on the Han River with a large observation wheel, a monorail and gardens laid out as scaled-down Asian landmarks. It opens in the late afternoon, which makes it the obvious plan for a day when the beach was too hot. Two to three hours, flat throughout, and a short taxi ride from most Da Nang hotels.

A long flat stretch of sand at the edge of Da Nang, with lifeguards, gentle surf for most of the year and cafes set back behind the beach. Being in the city rather than an hour out of it matters when a swim has to fit around a nap. Mornings and late afternoons only in summer. The sea turns rough from September to January.

Reached by a cable car strung across the bay on lit towers, which children tend to rate above the park itself. On the island there is a water park, indoor rides and an amusement area, all covered by one ticket. A full day, and a good fallback for a wet afternoon. Nha Trang stays dry from about January to August.

The way to reach the top of Fansipan, at 3,147 metres the highest point in Vietnam, without a two-day climb. A cable car and then a funicular or a long flight of steps do the work for you. It answers the problem of a family that wants the mountain without the trek, though cloud can close the view completely and it is properly cold at the summit, so carry layers.

Known For : Fansipan Cable Car Fansipan Mountain Cat Cat Village

Rice terraces stacked up the valleys around Sapa, best seen green in the growing season or gold just before the harvest. The town is 350 km from Hanoi, an overnight train or a five to six hour road transfer, which is a long haul with young children. Village walks to Cat Cat or Ta Phin involve steep unpaved paths and are realistic from about ten upwards, not below. Clearest March to May.

Best Time: March to May, September to November

31 Sapa Attractions

Banh mi and pho are the two dishes most Indian children eat without argument, and both are on every second corner. Ask for them without fish sauce, or vegetarian, if that matters to you. Egg coffee is a Hanoi invention and closer to a warm custard than a coffee, so it works as a treat. Fruit shakes and sticky rice fill the gaps between meals.

Better with children than it sounds, because most of it is outdoors: full-size stilt houses and a Bahnar communal house from the highlands that can be climbed into, plus water puppet performances in the grounds. Two hours, plenty of shade, and about 20 minutes from the Old Quarter. A sensible plan for a wet Hanoi morning.

A guesthouse built to look like a hollow tree, with curling staircases, tunnels and animal-shaped rooms, and children read it as a climbing frame rather than as architecture. Supervision matters: several of the walkways are narrow and the railings are low. About an hour, and Dalat's hill weather makes the whole town a relief after the coast.

Five limestone hills with pagodas and caves cut into them, sitting halfway between Da Nang and Hoi An. A lift takes you to the first level, but the caves beyond involve uneven stone steps in poor light, so it suits confident walkers from about eight upwards. Ninety minutes, and go early because the caves get airless by midday.

The walled Nguyen dynasty capital, founded in 1802 and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Gates, moats and long courtyards give children room to move, and the sheer scale is the part they remember. It is also very exposed to the sun, so take half a day early in the morning rather than a full one. Two and a half hours by road or rail from Da Nang.

The observation floor of the Bitexco tower, 49 storeys up, where the spread of Ho Chi Minh City and the bend of the river finally make sense in a way they never do from street level. Half an hour, air conditioned, and an easy stop to slot between two heavier ones. Sunset is the busiest slot by a wide margin.

The Viet Cong tunnel network north of Ho Chi Minh City, with one widened section that visitors can crawl through. It is dark, tight and hot, and the site also displays booby traps in some detail, so treat it as a trip for about twelve and up rather than a family outing. Half a day including the drive. Younger children can wait in the shaded ground-level area.

Vietnam's most affecting museum and also its hardest. The war photography is graphic and unflinching, and the rooms on Agent Orange and on the Con Son tiger cages are genuinely distressing. Worth two hours with teenagers who have some context, and worth skipping altogether with anyone younger. If you do go, go before lunch and plan something light afterwards.