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Category Archives: Hue Vietnam

March 2, 2011 · 5:34 am

Motorbiking on Hai Van Pass!

On the bike with Hue Easy Riders

Hue Easy Riders

You’d never get me on a motorcycle at home. But here in Vietnam there are more motorbikes than cars, so it feels much safer. It’s the most common mode of travel.

We needed a ride from Hue to Hoi An (about 3 hours by car) and we heard from some other travelers they had done the pass on motor bike over the Hai Van Pass (the highest pass in all of Vietnam) & said it was nice.

We went with a tour guide company called www.HueEasyRiders.com, they take people on a tour, stopping at destinations along the way so the usual 3.5 hour motorbike ride takes all day from 8a.m. to 4p.m. Here’s a clip of us first meeting with the Hue Easy Riders:

One of our stops along the way to Hoi An was at a place called Elephant Springs, an amazing spot. It’s a hidden trek, we wondered where they were taking us at first! But you have to trust your guides and go with the flow. We took a dip in the water, it was cool & refreshing. Here’s a few pics:

Elephant Springs 1

After resting and refreshing here for about an hour or so, we resumed our trek. Here are some pics from the pass itself, the scenery was breathtaking:

Hai Van Pass 3

We finally made it to the other side, tired after a long day, but it was the best way for us to see the sights and also make our destination in Hoi An. Multi-tasking at its best! 🙂

The ride itself was very safe, the Easy Riders went easy on the bumps and curves, and we felt safe the entire way. We highly recommend this trip for anyone coming this way. Our guides, Loc & Nho were wonderful, and they were very passionate about showing us their country.

Hue Citadel (Imperial City) Exploration

We debated whether we should see the Citadel before leaving Hue. With limited time in each town, it’s hard to decide what’s worth doing & what to skip. We could see the Citadel from our hotel, it was right across the river and easy to walk to by crossing the bridge a few blocks down. We were getting tired of sight seeing, it’s been non-stop since we left LA…but then again, that’s what we came for. So we decided to wander over, thinking we’d be in and out in an hour.

Turns out, the place is huge and it took us 2 hours to explore (would have stayed longer, but they were about to close the place + we were starving). We were amazed how interesting it was. I think we were more intrigued by this than Angkor Wat, maybe because we didn’t know what to expect inside.

It was a fascinating place, many areas to explore, something new to discover with every doorway and archway. Here are a few pics: