Vietnam in November

[supermohit]

Also any travel insurance ?

 

[card_wizard]

Also any travel insurance ?

yes carrying a 15 day insurance from tata aia, when are you going vietnam?

 

[supermohit]

yes carrying a 15 day insurance from tata aia, when are you going vietnam?

on 6 DEC to 20 DEC

 

[nithin1992]

Any hotel recommendations in Hanoi folks? For anyone taking the IndiGo flight to Hanoi, it lands at 2am so we'll unfortunately have to book an extra room for the day we arrive as hotels will mostly likely not let us check-in at 5-6am in the morning.

 

[supermohit]

If you are solo then I must recommend you to book a good hostel, you will enjoy it very much

 

[card_wizard]

If you are solo then I must recommend you to book a good hostel, you will enjoy it very much

yes I have booked hotel+ hostel combination

 

[card_wizard]

Any hotel recommendations in Hanoi folks? For anyone taking the IndiGo flight to Hanoi, it lands at 2am so we'll unfortunately have to book an extra room for the day we arrive as hotels will mostly likely not let us check-in at 5-6am in the morning.

the normal checkin time in Vietnam is 11AM-12PM, I had to book an extra day as well because my flight is also landing at 2 AM in the morning

 

[nithin1992]

the normal checkin time in Vietnam is 11AM-12PM, I had to book an extra day as well because my flight is also landing at 2 AM in the morning

I ended up doing the same.

Any Halong Bay cruise recommendations?

 

[silent.night]

Guys I am planning a 9 days trip to Vietnam, it is my first foreign trip( November 11 morning land hanoi---November 20 morning flight to india).

I'm planning a Vietnam trip around the same time. Decided to do just north and central Vietnam over 12 days, keeping South for another time.

Why are you not using a Forex card for the cash component? Wouldn't that work out cheaper than converting INR->USD->VND?

PS: From everything I've heard, a lot of places in Vietnam including most budget hotels and hostels, restaurants, other services charge 3% extra for card swipes, so cash is definitely preferred there.

 

[card_wizard]

I ended up doing the same.

Any Halong Bay cruise recommendations?

I haven't booked yet, planning to land in Hanoi first then see what locals are charging and then compare with KLOOK prices then book whatever is chepaer

 

[card_wizard]

I'm planning a Vietnam trip around the same time. Decided to do just north and central Vietnam over 12 days, keeping South for another time.

Why are you not using a Forex card for the cash component? Wouldn't that work out cheaper than converting INR->USD->VND?

PS: From everything I've heard, a lot of places in Vietnam including most budget hotels and hostels, restaurants, other services charge 3% extra for card swipes, so cash is definitely preferred there.

Suppose I am left with some Vietnamese Dong and I am flying to India back soon then can I just exchange the currency at local gold shop to US dollar? I know they give good rate for US Dollar to Dong conversion but just wanted to know how is the case for reverse

 

[arjun697]

Guys I have made this itinerary, can you guys please review it and give feedback if I need to change anything.
View attachment 31819
View attachment 31820

I did Vietnam as my first solo trip abroad too. From Nov 6 - 23 (2019). Ideally, if you are landing in Hanoi, you return should be from HoChiMinh. You can either cover Vietnam South to North or North to South. All the bike riders just used to buy one for $100 and sell it off for around the same price at the final destination.

Good you are prepared so well, I left for Chennai to Kolkata with 30 bucks in cash and rest in my account. Due to super long layover, I visited some money exchange there and took about 75L VND in cash. I had like 2 envelopes full. This lasted me around 2 weeks and I ended up withdrawing from the ATM twice including on the last day for minor amounts. I got my sim on the 1st day after reaching the city. For travel within cities, I used Grab for taxi or 2 wheeler drops. For me, flights were super cheap (<1500 INR). I always ended up booking flights after reaching the airport since there were plenty of domestic options.

My whole itinerary as such was just ensuring I reached the North for my return flight on time.
HoChiMinh - Cuchi Tunnels day - Mekong Delta day - Mui Ne (I planned for 1 day but extended my stay every morning 4 days) - HoChiMinh - War Musuem Day - Da Nang beach day - Hoi An 3 days - DaNang to Hanoi - Hanoi to Cat Ba Islands (3 days on a private island of 29 ppl) - Hanoi chill till the end. It was super relaxed and comfortable, I ended up leaving so many places so that I have to visit again. From this, all I can say is take Cat Ba instead of Halong Bay to avoid the crowds. Mui Ne (Lot of deserts and beaches too) is also a quick drive away from HoChiMinh. I skipped Bana Hills as I didn't want to wake up early. Ninh Binh also you will get to experience before me 🙂 I'm guessing my itinerary is an ideal example of one not to follow 😀


For yourself since it's all to be done within 9 days. On each day, you should ideally be also booking the tour to take the next day or the following day. Vietnam is also super cheap when it comes to food and accommodations. It's only the tours which you need to pay a bit.

 

[Deleted member 9785]

Which accor hotels are VFM in hoi chi minh city for solo travellers

 

[Deleted member 9785]

plz suggest 3 day itinerary for hoi chi minh city. I prefer island tours etc. My arrival and departure will be from HCMC

 

[CARDBITRAGE]

plz suggest 3 day itinerary for hoi chi minh city. I prefer island tours etc. My arrival and departure will be from HCMC

For island tours, you need to consider spending more time near Hanoi(North of Vietnam). If you haven't booked your flights, consider flying into HCMC and flying out of Hanoi, or vice versa.

 

[Deleted member 9785]

For island tours, you need to consider spending more time near Hanoi(North of Vietnam). If you haven't booked your flights, consider flying into HCMC and flying out of Hanoi, or vice versa.

Thanks pal. But tickets are already booked.

Was thinking of this property for 2 days - ibis Styles Vũng Tàu to enjoy the nearby beach. Not too sure, about the nearby attractions though


Also, confused which accor hotel to book in the city which is suitable for booking group tours (where tour operators can pick me and drop) without any issues. Will IBIS saigon south be appropriate.

 

[CARDBITRAGE]

Also, confused which accor hotel to book in the city which is suitable for booking group tours (where tour operators can pick me and drop) without any issues. Will IBIS saigon south be appropriate.

I stayed in District 1 and most of the attractions were accessible by foot. Ibis Saigon South should be fine, but it is a bit far from the main attractions. You can go ahead with it as cabs aren't that expensive.

 

[Deleted member 9785]

For island tours, you need to consider spending more time near Hanoi(North of Vietnam). If you haven't booked your flights, consider flying into HCMC and flying out of Hanoi, or vice versa.

Query - My flight from India first goest to Hanoi and then in another connecting flight it takes to HCMC. Can i just drop off at Hanoi and not go to HCMC ? In this case for Visa point of entry will be Hanoi?

 

[CARDBITRAGE]

Query - My flight from India first goest to Hanoi and then in another connecting flight it takes to HCMC. Can i just drop off at Hanoi and not go to HCMC ? In this case for Visa point of entry will be Hanoi?

Depends. If it's on a single PNR, then your luggage will reach HCMC. So no point in doing that. Moreover, your point of entry should be as per your visa. So you cannot enter through Hanoi unless you apply for a fresh e-visa.

 

[Deleted member 9785]

Depends. If it's on a single PNR, then your luggage will reach HCMC. So no point in doing that. Moreover, your point of entry should be as per your visa. So you cannot enter through Hanoi unless you apply for a fresh e-visa.

Thanks buddy , no point then. With hotels booked via accor already, i guess 8k INR per day should be sufficent as daily expense or 25k for 3 days