A Hanoi tour operator that also owns cameras
TourVlog is a small brand operated by Alotour in Hanoi. Three trips, twelve guests maximum, and an optional filmmaker. This page says who is behind it and where we are weak.
What this is
TourVlog runs three trips in northern Vietnam and films them if you want it filmed. It is operated by Alotour, a licensed tour operator based in Hanoi, which means the vehicles, the guides, the insurance and the legal responsibility for your trip sit with an established company rather than with a new brand.
The reason the brand exists separately is narrow and worth stating plainly. Filmed trips need a different kind of planning: light matters, so departure times change; a filmmaker needs a seat, so group sizes shrink; consent has to be handled before day one rather than assumed. Bolting that onto a general tour menu produces a worse version of both. So it is its own thing, with its own three trips.
How it is structured
| Trips | Three, all in northern Vietnam, all departing Hanoi |
| Group size | Two to twelve guests; the filmmaker takes a seat |
| Operator | Alotour, Hanoi |
| Guides | Vietnamese, English-speaking, employed for the trip not the day |
| Filmmakers | A small freelance pool in Hanoi, briefed and used repeatedly |
| Languages | English only |
Guides and filmmakers are separate people, always. This costs more than the common arrangement where the guide carries a camera, and it is the single structural decision this brand is built on.
What we do badly
Every about page claims strengths. This is the other list, and it is the one worth reading.
- We are new. TourVlog has no archive of past films to show you, no reviews, and no track record under this name. Alotour has a history; this brand does not. If that matters to you, and it reasonably might, book something older.
- We only cover the north. No Hue, no Hoi An, no Mekong, no multi-country routes. If you want three weeks from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City we are not it, and we would rather say so than sell you a stitched-together itinerary.
- English only. We cannot run a trip in French, German, Spanish or Korean, and a filmed trip in a language the filmmaker does not speak produces a film assembled from guesswork.
- We are not good value at the bottom of the market. The Ha Giang loop can be done from a Hanoi hostel for a third of our price. That is a real option and for a lot of travellers it is the right one.
- We do not do commercial production. No brand campaigns, no usage rights negotiations, no approval rounds with a marketing team.
Why there are no reviews on this site
Because there are none yet, and the alternative is inventing them. Fabricated testimonials are easy to write, hard to disprove, and the reason nobody believes a five-star wall on a tour website any more.
What we offer instead, and it is a better offer: before you pay, we will put you in touch with someone who has travelled with the operator, by email or on a call, and you can ask them whatever you like without us in the conversation. Ask for it on the contact page. It only works once there are people to introduce you to, and we will tell you honestly if there are not yet.
Responsibility on the road
Ha Giang involves mountain roads, and if you ride yourself, a motorbike. We do not pretend that is risk-free. Every guest is required to hold travel insurance that covers motorcycling, we check the policy number before departure, and we will refuse to let you ride without it. You can still travel — you sit in the car or ride pillion with a local driver, at no extra cost.
Helmets are provided and are not optional. Guides are instructed to end a riding day early for weather or fatigue without asking the group's opinion, and that instruction is not overridden by a guest who wants to push on.
What people ask before booking
Is TourVlog a real company?
TourVlog is a brand operated by Alotour Travel Company Limited, a licensed tour operator in Hanoi. Your contract, invoice and insurance are with that company. Details are in the footer of every page.
How many people will be on my trip?
Between two and twelve guests, plus a guide, a driver and, if you booked it, a filmmaker. Most departures run with four to eight.
Do you run private trips?
Yes, all three trips can be run privately for your group at a different price. It is the most common request we get and it is on the prices page.
Can I hire just the filmmaker?
No. The film package only exists attached to one of our trips, because the whole approach depends on the filmmaker knowing the route, the light and the guide. Standalone filming is production work and we do not do it.
Read next
Tell us your dates and we will send a plan with a price
Dates, how many of you, and whether you want the film package. You get an itinerary and a total in writing, not a brochure.