Two Vietnam hotels among Asia’s best

Spread over 35 hectares, Four Seasons The Nam Hai overlooks Ha My Beach in the central province of Quang Nam and has three infinity pools, 100 villas and eight separate spa rooms all designed in traditional Vietnamese style in combination with feng shui architecture.

“The rooms of Four Seasons Nam Hai must have been conceived by a 19th-century poet: dark woods, large candles, mosquito-netted bed, a writing desk situated next to a bathtub,” wrote Fodor’s Travel editors.

Founded in 1901, Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi is one of the oldest hotels in Hanoi and used to serve former U.S. presidents, including Barack Obama, during their visits to Vietnam.

A restaurant inside Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi. Photo courtesy of the hotel

The hotel is home to a two-meter-high wartime bomb shelter discovered by chance in 2011. It was where many famous figures of the Vietnam War, including actress Jane Fonda and author Tom Hayden, both anti-war activists, took refugee as bombs rained down on Hanoi.

The American magazine advised tourists to try Vietnamese classics like spring rolls and pho (noodle soup) and Western standards like eggs benedict and French toast while staying at the hotel.

The top hotel list also included China’s Banyan Tree Yangshuo, Capella Singapore, India’s Evolve Back, Japan’s Hiiragiya, Cambodia’s La Résidence d’Angkor, Indonesia’s Samanvaya Luxury Resort & Spa and Thailand’s The Siam.