Dragon is a beloved local guide who has spent nearly 25 years helping Backroads travelers experience Vietnam through its culture, history and people. Known for his energy, local connections and hospitality, he creates authentic experiences that help guests form meaningful connections with the country and its communities.
If you’ve traveled with Backroads in Vietnam, chances are you remember Dragon.
Maybe it was the way he effortlessly shifted from answering thoughtful questions about Vietnam’s complex history to screaming with passion over a game of Chinese checkers. Maybe it was his willingness to track down an entire karaoke setup because someone mentioned over lunch that they liked to sing. Or maybe it was simply the feeling that, wherever Dragon went, you belonged there too.
For nearly 25 years, Nghia Xuan Nguyen, known simply as Dragon after his Chinese zodiac sign, has been introducing Backroads guests to the country he loves. Along the way, he’s earned a place in the hearts of guests and Trip Leaders alike.
His journey as a guide began with a little less experience than guests might imagine today. When Dragon first started guiding outdoor adventures, he didn’t know how to swim or paddle, and he could ride little more than a basic bicycle.
“On my first biking trip, the Trip Leaders gave instructions to guests and turned to me in shock and said, ‘Dragon, can you please wear a helmet?’” he recalls. “Back then, we didn’t do that.”
He quickly learned the merits of helmets, clip-in pedals, drop handlebars and gear shifting.
“Now I’m very good, and I love to ride,” he says.
Seeing Vietnam with Dragon
On Backroads trips through Vietnam, guests move from the kinetic streets of Hanoi to quiet roads through villages and rice fields, then south toward Hué, Hoi An and the climb over Hai Van Pass.
Whether climbing the pass, talking through Vietnam’s history and customs or introducing guests to a food they’ve never tried before, Dragon has a gift for making people feel at home.
“He adds a layer of electricity to the everyday,” says Field Manager Shauna Pugliese. “He is so uninhibited, he gives people permission to be a little more wild and free.”
Dragon is also quick with a joke. He claims fluency in five languages in addition to Vietnamese: “English, American, Canadian, New Zealander and Australian.”
Wherever Dragon Goes, You’re In
Backroads Trip Leaders in Vietnam often say Dragon seems to know someone everywhere he goes. More importantly, he has a way of making the people traveling with him feel like they’re in on it too.
One afternoon, a group of guests mentioned over lunch that they loved karaoke. Dragon slipped next door to a neighborhood pedicure shop, where he knew the women working there and knew they had a karaoke machine. Minutes later, they’d wheeled it into the restaurant. Another friend arrived to DJ. Dragon grabbed the microphone, guests joined in and an ordinary lunch became a karaoke party.
“He’s friends with everyone,” Shauna says. “Wherever you go with him, you’re in.”
That sense of welcome doesn’t end with the day’s ride. Over the years, Dragon and his wife have opened their home to Backroads Trip Leaders, their families and friends from around the world. For big gatherings, they’ve been known to push their mattress against the wall to make room for everyone to sit cross-legged on the floor.
Then comes the food: chicken feet, snails, goat, duck and other local specialties, along with beer and rice wine sourced from the mountains.
Shauna remembers bringing her own parents to one of these gatherings. Soon enough, they were simply part of the group. It’s a familiar pattern with Dragon. His friends meet his family. His colleagues become his friends. Before long, the distinctions don’t seem to matter much.
Committed to the Bit
Dragon rarely stops at making an idea happen. He keeps going until everyone else is pulled in too.
At a Christmas party at his house, someone suggested turning the room into a winter wonderland. Dragon took the assignment seriously. He disappeared to find artificial snow, then covered the walls of a bedroom, which had been converted into the party space, with it.
The transformation was perhaps more permanent than intended. Some of the snow proved impossible to remove and remained on the wall long after the party ended.
“He’s so committed to the bit,” Shauna says.
The same thing happens on trips. Dragon sings. He dances. He gets intensely competitive over Chinese checkers. He introduces guests to foods they might otherwise never think to try. And because he throws himself into all of it without much concern for looking silly, other people tend to follow.
It’s part of what makes traveling with Dragon feel different. A meal can become karaoke. A bike ride can turn into a conversation about history. A stranger down the street might suddenly become someone you’re laughing with.
Pride, Passion and a Spirit of Welcome
For all the chaos, there’s something much simpler underneath it: Dragon loves sharing Vietnam.
He’ll happily dig into the country’s complicated history, explain a local custom or talk food. He can help guests make sense of the controlled chaos of a Vietnamese street and then encourage them to try something they’ve never eaten before.
Shauna has a particularly fitting comparison for him.
“He is literally like Vietnam street traffic,” she says. “He is like crossing the road in Vietnam.”
Dragon’s pride in his home country comes through everywhere, from the stories he tells to the people he introduces and the meals he shares. And after nearly 25 years, he still seems delighted to bring someone new into the fold.
It’s often said that great Trip Leaders are at the heart of every Backroads trip. It’s equally true that they don’t do it alone.
Alongside them are local guides like Dragon. They know the roads and the history, of course. But they also know the woman next door with the karaoke machine, which foods you should try, what questions are worth asking and how to make a place that was unfamiliar yesterday feel a little less so today.
After nearly 25 years of working alongside Backroads, Dragon isn’t just someone our Trip Leaders work with. He’s shown up at Backroads Staff Rides, welcomed staff and their families into his home and become part of the Backroads community himself.
One guest captured Dragon’s impact best:
“Through Dragon’s pride and passion, we learned so much about Vietnam and, perhaps, even more about ourselves.”
