Vietnam by bike, from Saigon to Hanoi

Vietnam is a country of bicycles and motorbikes. Until the 1990s, the bicycle was the main way of getting about for most Vietnamese, and even now, with motorbikes in their millions, cycling is part of everyday life in the countryside: children riding to school in white shirts, farmers carrying sacks of rice or crates of ducks on the back, women in conical hats pedalling along the dykes. To ride through it on a bike is to join in, at a pace that lets you see, hear and smell everything, and to stop when something catches your eye.

The full length of the country, from Ho Chi Minh City in the south to Hanoi in the north, is well over fifteen hundred kilometres by road. Few cyclists ride every kilometre of that, and it is worth checking each itinerary for how much is ridden and how much is covered by vehicle.

The south: the delta and the highlands

The Mekong Delta, south of Ho Chi Minh City, is perfect cycling country: completely flat, crossed by small roads and paths along canals and between orchards, rice fields and villages, with ferries across the many channels of the great river. The heat is the main challenge, and riding in the early morning is the answer.

North of the delta, the land rises into the Central Highlands. Dalat, a hill town founded by the French as a cool retreat, sits at about fifteen hundred metres among pine forests, lakes and flower farms, with villas that look as if they belong in the Alps. From the highlands, the road down to the coast, by passes such as Hon Giao, makes one of the great descents of a cycling trip, dropping from the cool pines into the heat of the coastal plain.

The central coast

The coast of central Vietnam is a long string of beaches, fishing villages, bays and headlands, with the mountains never far inland. Doc Let and Van Phong Bay are quieter stretches of sand and sea. Quy Nhon has the brick towers of the Cham, the Hindu kingdom that ruled this coast before the Vietnamese arrived. Further north, Hoi An, the old trading port of wooden houses and Chinese assembly halls, is surrounded by countryside that is ideal for gentle cycling. There is the woodcarving village of Kim Bong, the pottery village of Thanh Ha, and the organic vegetable gardens of Tra Que.

From Da Nang, the road climbs over the Hai Van Pass, the mountain spur that runs into the sea, a stiff climb rewarded by one of the finest views in the country. Beyond it lies Hue, the capital of the Nguyen emperors, with its citadel, royal tombs and pagodas along the Perfume River.

Food is one of the great rewards of a cycling trip in Vietnam, where every region has its own dishes and a long day in the saddle justifies a large appetite. In the delta there are fresh spring rolls and grilled fish. In Hoi An there is cao lau, thick noodles with pork and herbs, and on the central coast, plenty of seafood. In Hue there is bun bo, a spicy beef noodle soup from the old imperial city. A bowl of pho and a glass of strong iced coffee at a roadside stall make a good start to any day.

The tours

Explore Worldwide's Cycle Saigon to Hanoi, thirteen nights, covers much of the length: Ho Chi Minh City and Cu Chi, the Mekong Delta, Dalat and the Hon Giao Pass, Doc Let and Van Phong Bay, Quy Nhon, Hoi An, the Hai Van Pass and Hue.

Explore Worldwide's Cycle Vietnam, thirteen nights, concentrates on the north and centre. Its places include Hanoi, Cat Ba Island and Lan Ha Bay, Ninh Binh with Hoa Lu and the Van Long reservoir, Hue, Hoi An and the villages of Kim Bong, Thanh Ha and Tra Que. Explore Worldwide's Upgraded Cycle Vietnam, thirteen nights, covers the south-east coast instead, from Ho Chi Minh City and Cu Chi to Mui Ne and its dunes, Nui Chua National Park and Nha Trang.

Vietnam's weather varies along its length, and the central coast has heavy rain and the risk of typhoons from about September to December. That is worth bearing in mind when choosing a departure. The roads can be busy and chaotic, especially near cities, and a steady line and a ringing bell help. But away from the main roads, the cycling is some of the most rewarding in Asia.