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What I Packed: Vietnam

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Packing

What I Packed: Vietnam

SmarterTravel

Caroline Morse Teel is the Managing Editor for SmarterTravel Media. Follow her on Instagram @TravelWithCaroline.

Caroline joined Boston-based SmarterTravel in 2011 after living in Ireland, London, and Manhattan. She's traveled to all seven continents, jumped out of planes, and bungeed off bridges in the pursuit of a good story. She loves exploring off-the-beaten path destinations, anything outdoorsy, and all things adventure.

Her stories have also appeared online at USA Today, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Yahoo, Boston.com, TripAdvisor, Buzzfeed, Jetsetter, Oyster, Airfarewatchdog, and others.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: "Earplugs. A good pair has saved my sleep and sanity many times!"

Ultimate Bucket List Experience: Hiking Mount Kilimanjaro.

Travel Motto: "Don't be boring."

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: "Aisle (when the first class private suite isn't available)."

E-mail her at cteel@smartertravel.com.

See recent posts by Caroline Morse Teel

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I traveled to Vietnam with Friendly Planet on their Taste of Vietnam tour. Full itinerary here.

Where: Vietnam: Saigon, Da Nang, Hoi An, Halong Bay, and Hanoi.

When: March 24-April 2.

Weather: Hot and sunny with occasional rain. Average high temperatures between 80 and 90 degrees.

Type of Trip: Guided tour. Lots of city walking and sightseeing.

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How Long: Seven nights on the ground.

Mouse over the photos below for detailed explanations of the items I packed. Any time you see the Thinglink icon on a photo (bottom right), you can mouse over it to interact with the image.

""""""""""""What I Should Have Left Behind: I was concerned that the nights would get cool, but they were never chilly enough to need the jeans or even the very lightweight rain jacket. The sweatshirt came in handy for plane rides and over-air-conditioned airports. I also overestimated the number of t-shirts and tank tops that I needed—I would have left behind two or three.

What I Should Have Packed: I forgot earplugs, and had trouble sleeping from the street and hallway noise in my hotel. I couldn’t find anywhere in Saigon to purchase them—pharmacies and convenience stores didn’t have them, and neither did my hotel. Luckily, a kind member of my tour group had a spare pair to give me.

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We hand-pick everything we recommend and select items through testing and reviews. Some products are sent to us free of charge with no incentive to offer a favorable review. We offer our unbiased opinions and do not accept compensation to review products. All items are in stock and prices are accurate at the time of publication. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a commission.

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