Riding the length of vietnam on a scooter

>>1232988
Yeah the trip is good. Lots of interesting things to see, diverse scenery, and the people are generally very friendly outside major tourist spots. Lots of potential for online self-aggrandizement (just make sure you get the bike in absolutely every shot). You could potentially get a bit lonely but there are a lot of other foreigners riding all over the country so it would be easy to pick up a buddy for a while.

The roads are dangerous and the drivers bad, but a lot of accidents happen to foreigners who overestimate their riding abilities and don't drive to conditions. If you drive to your level of experience you should be alright. In practice that means avoiding high-traffic areas, not driving too fast, using extra caution in adverse conditions (e.g. rain, fog, night) and allowing yourself plenty of time so you aren't forced to drive through fatigue or dangerous conditions to meet your timings.

I think riding a moped scooter for hours on end would get pretty uncomfortable and you might have problems riding on highways, but you probably want to avoid them anyway. That said the alternative used by most backpackers is a shitty Honda Win copy which isn't much better.

If you're still unsure you could always test the waters by renting for a few days or doing a short trip contained to a certain part of the country.

watch the top gear vietnam special where they ride through vietnam on old bikes. pretty cool episode.

If you do the trip beforehand you'll probably have plenty of interesting stories to tell your family when you get there.

>>1232988
To be honest don't bother if you don't have a good few weeks to do it in. Almost everyone who rushes through the drive just to say they've done it doesn't enjoy it because they're just exhausted all the time and don't actually get to explore any of the places they go to.

>>1233070
This. I laugh my ass off at people who think they're gonna do the trip in three weeks and have a great time.

I've lived in Vietnam for over 3 years and travel frequently for my business. I've done the drive for leisure and for travel more than once.

If you don't give yourself at least 2-3 weeks you're just going to be pissed off, dirty and sore. I love to drive and I love to ride but Vietnam is a different beast. Between the traffic, road conditions and weather you need to give yourself time for whatever may pop-up. And trust me, something always happens here.

If you only have a week then pick a shorter segment. The coastal and mountain roads from Saigon - Vung Tau - Phan Tiet - Cam Ranh - Nha Trang - Tuy Hoa - Qui Nhon - Quang Ngai - Hoi An - Da Nang - Hue

Is perfect for a week and you'll get a chance to see some amazing things. The old colonial french fortifications up in the mountains between Hoi An and Da Nang are worth it alone. Don't try the length of the country unless you really have the time to enjoy it.

IMO it's better if you bus/train in between the major cities and then take a bike and explore the surroundings, that way you will drive way less and still enjoy the scenery as it will get boring pretty fast if you're doing it cross country.
To put you in the general picture hanoi to saigon is 1600km more or less, and if you drive more than 2 hours on a bike you will start feeling it, it's not like driving a car it's much more tiring given the fact that you will be going slower than you're used to in a car (if you ride a bike, at 70km/h you will feel like you're doing 200km/h in a car), and don't forget about the traffic and the rain, so i wouldn't do it if i were you, if you have the chance you should check out laos, plenty of biking opportunities there, i did a bike loop to and from Thakek in 4 days, took 470 km more or less and saw a shitload of stuff that you will see more or less in vietnam but probably over longer distances, so it's up to you

>>1232988
>Cheap to add on to my Thai trip
It really isn't, street food in Thailand is way cheaper even when you don't factor in associated costs. For example, a bowl of noodle broth, sewer oil and pork bones that will give you liquid and bloody shits every 15 minutes, muscle pain, fever, severe dehydration and a few other lovely symptoms averages around 40k Dong (excludes the cost of antibiotics, having to find the nearest hotel, doing laundry lots because you keep shitting yourself and so on).

>Who will help me if I die
Nobody

>Will I get lonely
Not if you stay in hostels

>Is the trip itself actually good
It really isn't, the scenery is beautiful but the culture (or lack thereof) completely ruins it. Go to Burma instead and thank me later.