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Vietnam is a fascinating country of some 83 million people located in South Eastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and the South China Sea. The climate is tropical in the south; monsoonal in the north with a hot rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and a warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March). The countryside is low, flat delta in the south. The central highlands and the north are mountainous.
Travel in Vietnam is cheap by world standards and visas are now easy to obtain. Travelers are flocking to Vietnam, most start in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) in the South and make their way up to Hanoi and the mountainous regions near the Chinese border. On the way most stop in the backpacker's mecca of Hoi An then move on to Hue, which is a great base for touring the battlefields and remnants of the Vietnam war. The premier attraction in North Vietnam is Ha Long Bay, easily accessible by bus from Hanoi.
Vietnam has great beaches, good food, cheap shopping and affordable hotels throughout the country. The road network outside the main cities is appalling, the main north-south highway in particular is poorly maintained and dangerous. Travel by bus is cheap but uncomfortable and risky on Vietnam's ramshackle roads. Smart budget travelers take the train instead. There are flights between the main cities in Vietnam provided by Vietnam Airlines.
Hotelz Asia can assist with Hotel Reservations in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and 18 regional cities and towns across Vietnam.
The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Independence was declared after World War II, but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by Communist forces under Ho Chi MINH, who took control of the North.
US economic and military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese forces overran the South.
Despite the return of peace, for over two decades the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies and a lack of international aid.
Since 2001, Vietnamese authorities have committed to economic liberalization and enacted structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The country continues to experience protests from the Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands over loss of land to Vietnamese settlers and religious persecution.
Vietnam is a densely-populated, developing country that in the last 30 years has had to recover from the ravages of war, the loss of financial support from the old Soviet Bloc, and the rigidities of a centrally planned economy. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1997 in moving forward from an extremely low level of development and significantly reducing poverty. Growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997.
The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy and temporarily allowed opponents of reform to slow progress towards a market oriented economy. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth then rose to 7% in 2000-04 even against the background of global recession.
Since 2001, however, Vietnamese authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to economic liberalization and international integration. They have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. However, equitization of state-owned enterprises and reduction in the proportion of non-performing loans has fallen behind schedule.
Vietnam's membership in the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and entry into force of the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade in December 2001 have led to even more rapid changes in Vietnam's trade and economic regime/
Vietnam's exports to the US doubled in 2002 and again in 2003. Vietnam is working toward accession to the WTO in 2005. Among other benefits, accession will allow Vietnam to take advantage of the phase out of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, which eliminated quotas on textiles and clothing for WTO partners on 1 January 2005.
Vietnam is working to promote job creation to keep up with the country's high population growth rate. However, in 2004, high levels of inflation prompted Vietnamese authorities to tighten monetary and fiscal policies.
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HOTEL RESERVATIONS 
