Hello, i have made the journey to Mai Chau, Son La, Dien Bien Phu and Sapa by motorcycle and can comment on those. I however haven't stayed in the mentioned hotels but i do know that the Vietnamese method of self rating their hotels means you can usually knock off about a star and a half. The trip to the north west was pure heaven. For the most part road conditions were accessible by jeep and moderately difficult by motorcycle but they really depend on the latest weather so try going during the dry season. Each city is about a hard days drive from the last with great wilderness and villages in the midst. Have any questions about the above let me know.

To travel in the far northwest on motorcycle (don't try on a motorbike which won't be able to handle the roads) it takes about a day's ride to reach each new town large enough for small hotel. There are many small villages and sites of interest inbetween but they aren't large enough to stay in. If you take the train straight to Sapa there are great sites around the town that will take all day to see but won't require a day's travel. From Hanoi the trip to Ninh Binh is only about three hours by bus and worth every minute. The actual town of Ninh Binh is an ugly highway stop but the great cliffs beside it are more impressive than those of Halong Bay. There are two river systems to see the cliffs in Ninh Binh, they are both great but the northern one is much better. To get to Cao Bang takes about 4 or 5 hours only by bus. Perfume Pagoda is about 70 km from Hanoi. Travel agencies in Hanoi will offer trips to all three of these, while you may want to make your bus ticket reservations there i would not take them up on package tours. Have fun.

Option 1 is the best choice. You can travel to both
Halong and Sapa that are two of the greatest places.

No, if you have experience you will not need a guide, just a map and some adventure. Depending on season the trail can get tough though so be cautious. The places on the way arent the kind of places that take reservations until you get up near sapa. Its not all street touring, a lot is on dirt and mud track so it may be different from what you are used to.

hi what will it cost to hire a 250 honda ,wheres the best place to start/finish
how much to stay in the hotels,we are looking at going in nov this year and have looked at tour companys but im sure we can do this ourselves we plan on doing the northern routes ,all help would be appreciated are there plenty of gas stops etc cheers ox

The 1st option sounds great! For hotels in Hanoi, Hanoi View hotel is my recommendation, it’s new 3 stars hotel. They took only 30usd per night , got breakfast, and private internet in room. I was satisfied.

Hi angela
You can join Cu Chi Tunnels 1/2 Day (to discover tunnels under the land), Cu Chi and Cao Dai Temple 1 Day, you also join HCM City - Vung Tau 1 Day (include before and behind beach, Jesus Statue, Big Pagoda...)