A typical day on tour in Vietnam - 24hrs in South East Asia

Name - Kate Hudson
Job title- Sales Team Leader at the Imaginative Traveller
Length of time in job- 2 years
Best thing about your job- Travel!
Worst thing about job- The periods of time between travels!

Day 7 of the Vietnam Highlights Tour

07:30 I wake up to the sound of local singing in the lovely fishing town of Hoi An. I have to go to my final fitting and pick up my new trousers and silk skirt from the Nah Li tailors which are famous in Hoi An. There were late typhoons this year and the village was flooded so the tide is still very high and I have to jump the puddles to get into town! Most of my group are still asleep after a night drinking ‘mojito’ rum cocktails and shooting pool in a local bar.

10:30 Grabbed a lovely late breakfast of fresh pineapple, melon and some amazing red fruit that I have never seen before. Today my group of fellow travellers are going to Whale Island, a tiny secluded island just off the coast of Vietnam, so I have to pack my backpack today – it’s amazing how much you can fit into 70 litres!

12:00 Our tour leader Kat has arranged a really comfy mini-bus to get us to Whale Island - it is going to be a long drive so we are all equipped with MP3 players, books and cameras for any photo opportunities along the way. I fall asleep in about 10 minutes and annoyingly miss lots of fabulous views along the road.

14:00 We stop for a late lunch of rice noodles and spring rolls at a little resort with an amazing view of the South China Sea - a great chance for a quick dip in the big rollers that crash against the beach.

1800 We hop on our boat to take us the short journey to Whale Island. The place is amazing, a beautiful small bay, clear blue sea and with no other inhabitants- hmmm heaven!

1900 We are all shown to our beach huts- well, hardly huts - ours has running warm water, a marble ensuite and great views over the beach and sand dunes beyond. I get changed and hit the beach for the last 35 minutes of sun!

2000 My roomie and I go & explore the island and discover a huge rock with amazing views of the surrounding area - it is really windy and that coupled with my fear of heights gives me jelly legs but it is so worth it!

2100 The whole group hit the bar for a local supper of fresh fish, rice and fruit. We discover that there is a walk that takes about 2 hours around the island and 4 of us decide to go and explore it the next day, booking snorkels and flippers to swim in the bay.