The 14-hour sleeper bus ride from Da Lat to Hoi An wasn't too bad. I hopped on the bus around 5:30 pm and arrived in Hoi An the following day around 7:30 am. The sleeper buses in Vietnam are incredible! They are comfortable enough to relax and sleep throughout the night and are very clean.
Quick Facts
Safety: I felt safe every time as a solo female traveler. Overnight buses felt very safe. There is a driver, and another bus crew on board for same-day trips, and it seemed like there are at least two drivers and one bus crew for overnight buses. They don't speak English well, so I used Google Translator all the time.
Breaks: In most cases, both same-day and overnight buses take multiple breaks. Some buses depending on the bus company and duration of the travel time may have no bus breaks, so make sure to ask the bus driver if he will make stops, and if not, make sure to go to the bathroom before onboarding. There are no bathrooms on the bus.
Meals: Not provided. For overnight buses, they make dinner breaks, where you can purchase meals. For same day travels, you can buy snacks when the bus makes bathroom breaks.
Booking Tickets
You can book tickets online or in person. I recommend booking online and using 12Go, Bookaway, or Travelbus.vn. You can choose seats and time when you book. There are top seats and bottom seats. Go for the lower or the bottom one and try to stay to the front of the bus especially if you are solo traveling.
When I was passing by Ho Chi Minh from Phnom Penh to get to Mui Ne, I changed to an earlier bus from the same company and paid extra for the rate difference. If your itinerary changes and if you need to move to an earlier one, feel free to ask the bus company and see if they have extra seats. This should be done in-person.
Amenities
A pillow and a blanket are provided for every seat. There is also a USB Charging dock on board, and you are provided with a small bottle of water. There also was a TV screen but I didn't use it, so I am not sure if/how it works. WIFI is also provided, but not strong. Slippers are also provided when buses are on bathroom breaks because you will have to take your outdoor shoes off when you hop on the bus. Details to follow.
How It Works
As soon as you get on the bus, the first thing the bus driver would ask you to do is... take your outdoor shoes off. He will give you a plastic bag to put in your outdoor shoes so that their buses remain clean. When you go to the bathroom during the break, you don't need to worry about taking your shoes out of the plastic bag, put them on, run to the restroom, take them off once you are back, and put them back in the plastic bag. They provide you with slippers that you can wear while you head over to the restroom.
Once you hop on, the bus crew will take you to your seat. I loved the recliner seat since I was able to relax throughout the journey. I couldn't lay flat like I was on a bed, but still, I was able to lay pretty much flat, so I was able to sleep at night. Every seat has a curtain so it gives you some privacy too.
I traveled a lot using the sleeper bus while traveling in Vietnam (the shortest ride was 3 hours, and the longest ride was 14 hours) and I would recommend it to anyone! It was pretty cheap and comfortable. A lot of locals use the bus as well and the sleeper buses are very reliable mode of transportation in Vietnam.
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