About this episode

Joshua Zukas discusses the intricacies of writing a guidebook about Vietnam, focusing on its cultural aspects and tourism challenges.

Today’s guest is Joshua Zukas, a travel writer who has been based in Vietnam for over a decade, writing guidebooks, creating audio tours, and contributing stories to publications like The Economist. His latest Vietnam guidebook, for Bradt Guides, will be published later this month. We discussed the process of writing a comprehensive guidebook on such a fast-changing country; unique aspects of the book, such as its focus on Vietnamese myths; the risks of overtourism in places like Hoi An and Sa Pa; favorite lesser-known spots to visit; and more. Join the waitlist for Joshua’s guidebook to get 25% off the physical or digital version, and check out his website for more examples of his writing. Related links: Tourism is breaking records in Vietnam. Is that all it’s breaking? (Adventure.com) Subscribe to the Vietnam Weekly here . Support the podcast by Buying Me a Coffee . Get full access to Vietnam Weekly at thevietnamweekly.substack.com/subscribe

Topics covered

• travel writing
• guidebooks
• Vietnam
• overtourism
• cultural myths
• lesser-known spots

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