Sept 12 – 22 · Saigon → Mekong Delta → Siem Reap → Hanoi (pho finale) · Party of 2
✈ Multi-city YVR→SGN / HAN→YVR ~$650–900 CAD🛺 SGN→Siem Reap→Hanoi ~$190–270 USD🌏 ~8 nights on the ground💰 Est. $1,900–2,500 CAD/person all-in
Why this route
Last trip was Hanoi, Hoi An, Da Nang — the north and center. This one flips entirely to the south:
Saigon's street-food scene (a different cuisine from Hanoi's), dawn floating markets in the Mekong Delta,
and a hop into Cambodia for Angkor Wat and Khmer food. All-new places, same food-first philosophy.
September is the cheapest month of the year to fly YVR→Vietnam.
One deliberate exception to "all-new": the trip ends with two nights in Hanoi for a return pilgrimage to
Phở Gia Truyền Bát Đàn (49 P. Bát Đàn, Old Quarter) — the pho from last time.
Phu Quoc is ruled outskip Those $25 island flights are cheap for a reason — September is Phu Quoc's single wettest month:
rough seas, suspended boat trips, 20–25 rainy days. Elsewhere the rainy season just means short, hard afternoon
downpours — mornings are usually clear, so temples and markets happen early, pool and food happen at 3pm.
Flights
International — book MULTI-CITY: YVR → SGN, returning HAN → YVR
Open-jaw into Saigon, home from Hanoi — no backtracking, and it's how the Hanoi pho night fits without
losing a day. On China Airlines (Taipei), EVA Air (Taipei), or Cathay Pacific (Hong Kong) both cities are hubs, so
multi-city usually prices within ~$50 of a round trip: expect ~$650–900 CAD.
Depart Sept 12 → land SGN evening of Sept 13 (dateline). Return from Hanoi Sept 22 lands in Vancouver the same day.
Use the "Multi-city" tab on Google Flights.
Fly YVR → SGNOne stop via Taipei or Hong Kong. Land Saigon evening Sept 13, taxi to District 1/3 hotel, first bánh mì within the hour.
Sept 14–15
Ho Chi Minh City — eat everythingBánh mì Huỳnh Hoa · Cơm tấm Ba Ghiền (Michelin Bib) · Bánh xèo 46A · snail-and-seafood night on Vĩnh Khánh St, District 4 · hidden apartment cafés on Nguyễn Huệ. Between meals: War Remnants Museum, Bến Thành, Củ Chi tunnels half-day.
Sept 16
Mekong Delta → Cần Thơ overnightHead down for the night so you can hit Cai Rang floating market at dawn — breakfast noodles served boat-to-boat. Orchards + noodle workshops after.
Sept 17
Back to SGN → fly to Siem Reap1-hr hop. Check into a pool hotel ($40–80/night wet-season rates are a steal). Sunset at Phsar Chas old market, first fish amok.
Sept 18–19
Angkor — temples at dawn, food afterAngkor Wat sunrise · Bayon · Ta Prohm jungle temple. Wet season = lush moats, thin crowds. Afternoons (rain window): pool, Khmer BBQ, num banh chok, dinner at Marum. One silly Pub Street night.
Sept 20
Fly Siem Reap → Hanoi (direct, ~1h45)Land midday, check into the Old Quarter. If the evening shift is on, first Bát Đàn bowl tonight (~6–8:30pm) — otherwise bún chả and bia hơi corner stools.
Sept 21
Hanoi — the pho pilgrimagePhở Gia Truyền Bát Đàn, 49 P. Bát Đàn — arrive before the ~6am open or expect a 30-min line; cash only, order tái nạm, find a stool. Then: egg coffee at Café Giảng, Hoàn Kiếm loop, Train Street, second Bát Đàn round at the evening shift if you dare.
Sept 22
One last bowl → fly home from HANMorning pho if the flight allows, then HAN → YVR lands in Vancouver the same day.
Backup options
Option B — Saigon + Bangkok alt
HCMC + Mekong (5 nights) → SGN→BKK ~$70 → Bangkok (3–4 nights): Yaowarat street food, Jay Fai-tier stalls, Or Tor Kor market. Cheaper hops than Cambodia; pick if food density beats Angkor Wat. Check YVR open-jaw (into SGN, home from BKK).