Our favourite places in Malaysia

Whiter-than-white sands, bluer-than-blue seas, a vivid green jungle backdrop and otherworldly coral gardens: Redang is barefoot luxury against a luminous tropical backdrop in the ever-warm, ever-beautiful Gulf of Thailand.

With its thatched villas concealed amongst tumbling boulders, sandwiched between the jungle and the glittering sea, our visit to Ninh Van Bay felt like stumbling on a hidden paradise.

Did you know that Vietnam has Southeast Asia’s top kitesurfing destination? Well, now you do. Though it’s long been popular for its busy beach bars and sand dune scenery, Mui Ne’s real appeal lies in its stupendous conditions for wind and water sports.

Buzzing with longtail taxi boats and crowded with barges piled with mangoes, pineapples and fresh fish, a Mekong Delta tour is all about getting to know the rhythms of life on the water.

The yin to Hanoi’s yang, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon to its friends) offers a more internationally minded counterpoint to that northern bastion of tradition — not to mention an exciting base from which to explore Vietnam’s most interesting war sites.

A short flight south from Ho Chi Minh City brings you to the remote and spectacular Con Dao Archipelago, a chain of 16 islands ringed with white sand beaches, coral reefs and sparkling azure seas.

This coastal city in south Central Vietnam and its stunning surroundings are – for now – one of the country’s hidden gems, with a 42km stretch of coastline dotted with secluded alcoves of white sands that crunch beneath your feet, licked by turquoise waters.

Covering nearly 3,000 square kilometres of jungle-covered mountains, beautiful and unspoilt Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park conceals some of the most spectacular caves in the world.

As the former capital of the last royal dynasty of Vietnam, Hue is easily the best place in Vietnam to soak up a bit of imperial history – and it’s a great jumping-off point for visiting the war sites at the former border of North and South Vietnam.

It may be best-known for its lantern festival and World Heritage architecture but, for us, Hoi An’s true appeal lies in its charming rural outskirts and mouth-watering foodie experiences.

The misty mountains of Sapa are Northern Vietnam’s premier hiking destination and the best place in the country to meet people of the Hmong, Dao, Tay and Thai ethnic minorities decked out in their traditional regalia.

Deep in the limestone mountains southwest of Hanoi, Pu Luong’s landscape of rippling rice terraces and thatch-roofed stilt villages is so perfect we’re tempted to keep it all to ourselves.