Vietnam

secondcap

Heading to Vietnam mid way through December on my own, Looking to do some tours but contacted Usit and all the tours they have are on tghe day that i arrive which is risky if the flight is dleayed I will miss them, Has anyone any ideas of other operators etc etc? any help much appreciated.

Theresalwaysone

Give us an idea of your itinerary and length of stay?

Tipperary animal lover

Hi, which ever city u fly into Hanoi or hcmc there are loads and loads of tour operators in the tourist district of each city and as you travel into the country you'll find them in every town and city, have a look around and see what's on offer and what suits your needs and price.
Don't forget you need a visa on entry plus $ for visa stamp. If you need any more help let me know, Vietnam is a brilliant country and lovely people.

secondcap

Thanks, yeah im there on the 15th of December for three weeks

solerina

secondcap wrote: »

Thanks, yeah im there on the 15th of December for three weeks

Don't worry about booking tours in advance, Vietnam is an amazing country and is very well set up for tourists. There are loads (and I mean loads) oen f tourist agencies all over the place and most seem to be decent enough. One large tourist operator is the singh tourist which have offices in all major areas (they have been copied my heaps of others though, mostly called the singh café as they were originally known)..they are cheap and reliable and even offer inter city buses etc. We did a 2 day guided tour of the Mekong for about 16 euro and that included the bus/tour guide/ dinner + bed and breakfast in a 4 star hotel with a pool
Oh and definitely contact the Hanoi Kids (free student guides) who are excellent, we had a fab half day with our Hanoi Kid...they are free but you pay for food, taxis, entrances where necessary

Cassimus

Hi secondcap, I would agree with the others. Just book them when you are there. Every hotel and hostel has tour booking facilities and prices are broadly similar everywhere.

My main recommendation for Hanoi would be to try and stay just outside the Old Quarter, so you can dip in and out. It's quite stressful there but is worth seeing so you want to be close by; but not quite in the middle of it. (a bit like Temple Bar).

Whatever you do, get to Hoi An. There's something magical about the place. Hoi An Garden Villas is a great place to stay and make sure and eat in Ancient Fiefo. Michelin Star quality food for less than $20.

In terms of internal travel I would fly with vietjetair or jetstar. Flights are around €30 and save you horrible overnight journeys.

I have €190 worth of Vietnamese Dong that I cannot change in Ireland. If you are in Dublin please get in touch and I'll give it to you for €170 if you like. I'm in the city centre.

secondcap

Thanks Cassimus appreciate that, Yeah I will defo buy that money from you, In Dublin this weekend also, Not sure were to get the Visa??

secondcap

Guys looking to find out were to get visa from but not having much joy, Does anyone know this?

gebbel

secondcap wrote: »

Guys looking to find out were to get visa from but not having much joy, Does anyone know this?

You can send your passport over to the Vietnamese embassy in London and they will stamp it then post it back. But this is quite expensive I'm told. A much cheaper way is to obtain a visa on arrival (VOA). For this, you will need to get a pre-approval letter. There are many online companies, hotel chains etc. who offer this. You apply online and pay a small fee (can vary from 8 USD - 20 USD), then a day or so later they email you with a form that you must fill out. Take it with you on the trip, and once you land then you head to the VOA counter with a passport photo and 45 USD (currently) for a single entry visa.

Main advantage of the VOA process is that it's much cheaper than applying directly to the embassy. Main disadvantage is that when you arrive in any of Vietnam's 3 international airports, you have to queue at the VOA counter. Depending on the airport (Saigon is meant to be the most unpredictable), and the time of arrival, this process can take up to an hour. People with their passport already stamped just walk on through. Also the Vietnamese have poorly developed queuing etiquette I'm told.

I am going to Vietnam myself for the first time in December and I have decided on the VOA process. I intend to use this company for the pre-approval letter:

http://www.cheapvietnamvisa.net/

Why them? Because I have read reviews that rate them highly.

Good luck.

rainbowtrout

secondcap wrote: »

Guys looking to find out were to get visa from but not having much joy, Does anyone know this?

You can get the visa from the embassy in London. It costs about €60 I think. I was there in June. I didn't have to send them my passport just a photocopy.

http://vietnamembassy.org.uk/index.php?action=p&ct=Consular%20Services%20for%20Ireland%20residents


I had the visa back within a week, they were very efficient. It is about A5 in size so you wont be sticking into your passport. It means you won't have to queue when you land in Hanoi. The queues were mental at passport control/visa application when I got there in June and I was glad not to have to go through visa application as well.


Actually, I just looked up my email from last year and this is what they sent me when I was initially enquiring

Dear Sir/Madam,

Applicants from Ireland are NOT required to send their passports to the UK for visa process. To apply for visa please post the following documents to Embassy of Vietnam in London:

- Visa application form (downloadable from our website).
- 2 passport photographs
- Photocopy of passport page
- A cheque covers the appropriate visa fee and postage charge (£8) made payable to Embassy of Vietnam.

Address of Embassy of Vietnam: 12-14 Victoria Road, W8 5RD, London, UK

Visa fees are as followed:

Tourist Visa:
- 30 days, single entry: £49 (regular process takes 5 working days). Express service: £64 (2 day service), £70 (next day service).

- 30 days, multiple entry: £80 (regular process takes 5 working days). Express service: £100 (2 day service), £110 (next day service)


Regards,

Member of Staff

gebbel

OK so I received an updated price list from the Vietnamese embassy. Their prices have gone up.

Dear Sir/Madam,

Applicants from Ireland can apply for a loose leaf visa. To apply please post the following documents to Embassy of Vietnam in London:

- Visa application form (downloadable from our website).
- 2 passport photographs
- Photocopy of passport page
- 1 self-addressed envelope (no stamp needed)
- A cheque covers the appropriate visa fee and postage charge made payable to Embassy of Vietnam.

POSTAGE CHARGE and Handling fee for posting your visa: £8 for one VISA; between 2-3 VISA: £6/each VISA; between 4-7 VISA: £5/each VISA. Please note, sometimes posting to Ireland may take up to 2 weeks. We send by Royal Mail Special Delivery.

Address of Embassy of Vietnam: 12-14 Victoria Road, W8 5RD, London, UK

Visa fees are as followed:

Tourist Visa:
- 30 days, single entry: £59 (regular process takes 5 working days). Express service: £74 (2 day service), £80 (next day service).

- 30 days, multiple entry: £90 (regular process takes 5 working days). Express service: £110 (2 day service), £120 (next day service)

- 90 days, single entry: £90 (regular process takes 5 working days). Express service: £110 (2 day service), £120 (next day service)

- 90 days, multiple entry: £110 (regular process takes 5 working days). Express service: £130 (2 day service), £140 (next day service).

With those prices it is not surprising that the VOA process is being recommended so much on websites like Tripadvisor.

Using the embassy, the total cost for a 30 day single entry visa is £67 (including £8 postage).....say €80.

Using the VOA process, you will pay almost exactly half that if you use certain agents.

Funnily enough, the Vietnamese embassy UK website states:

We do not recommend visa-on-arrival and online visa. These types of visa are issued by un-recognised websites with no connections with the embassy. We cannot verify the validity of such visa and cannot provide assistances to travelers in case they are refused entry while using these types of visa.

However the VOA process works and is used every day by travellers worldwide who want to save some cash and don't mind putting up with a longer queue. The cynic in me says that the embassy people want to maximise the cash going into their coffers, and not to third party agents.

Tipperary animal lover

secondcap wrote: »

Guys looking to find out were to get visa from but not having much joy, Does anyone know this?

Hi, we always use myvietnamvisa.com, it works out about €50 cheaper than the London embassy, very easy to use and straight forward and you don't have to send your passport anywhere, if u need any more info just ask.

gebbel

gebbel wrote: »

Main advantage of the VOA process is that it's much cheaper than applying directly to the embassy. Main disadvantage is that when you arrive in any of Vietnam's 3 international airports, you have to queue at the VOA counter. Depending on the airport (Saigon is meant to be the most unpredictable), and the time of arrival, this process can take up to an hour. People with their passport already stamped just walk on through. Also the Vietnamese have poorly developed queuing etiquette I'm told.

Yea, queuing is ridiculous in VN but there aren't going to any of them in a visa queue!

JustAThought

When I went to Vietnam a few years back the Local currency was practically worthless - I swapped a few hundred dollars & literally got over a MILLION back. The girls hands were shaking as she counted it out in the hotel. I would not be buying it off a stranger over the Internet

The locals when you are white will not charge yiu or accept the local currency - EVERYTHING is re-priced for you in either "dollar " or pound. When I was there the dollar was more favourable to buy so I used that. They won't give you change so pretty much everything - shops, stalls, local " restaurants", markets, Locdl guides/tours etc us charged to you in foreign currency rounded up. On the rare occasion I got change or was due it they would try to insist that they give it back in pretty much worthless Dong. I made sure that I always had lots of small denomination notes - single dollars & at highest fives. Everything then seemed to cost either one or three dollar - Vietnamese coffee ( yum) one dollar, coke ; one dollar, huge meal of crayfish & rice - two dollar, sandwich - huge baguette of fried eggs on French baguette - two dollar, cheap clean room for the night - three dollar ( no guns allowed please leave at reception!) ... etc. never local currency - & we were off the beaten tourist track totally!!! I gave someone in a very fancy Japanese restaurant In a five star hotel a ten dollar tip and I was literally fawned at out the door and followed to my room to make sure I got "home " safely.

Re the tours there are official Vietnamese government places where you can get very cheep but very soviet outlook tours ;" how we won the war & beat the yanks by torturing & cleverly mutilating them - look - see how " but this seemed to be only in major cities. They were simply astonishing from the perspective given & total lack of any political correctness! There are always lots of others on the streets that will offer pretty much whatever you need - shop around & haggle a bit. I booked an airport pick up & city tour in advance from Ireland & it was a real rip-off . I remember it cost 45 dollars & they spent the whole time trying to get me to buy other mega expensive tours & pay cash in advance ... Still very glad I didn't tip them or buy others . I was glad to be in the back of a jeep & to be brought straight to my hotel & not have to do the chaos at the airport tbh! It was a mega rip-off thou!!! Atthat stage my suitecases had already been opened & robbed as it came through on the carousel - locked rugsack zip peeled back & tiny hand got in to grab stufff & drag it out through the small gap in the still locked up bag!! Don't put anything you don't want robbed in your case!!!

I remember the hotel ( v. Fancy) that I started off in also sold enormously expensive trips - we would meet them at the same places that we paid a tenth for from agencies/shops on the street!!!

I used my Dhong to casually tip with - unless I got an exceptional service like a full day motorbike tour - they are extremely money focused & are very quick to call out for more or to demand dollar : once you are white or buying they are very quick to stand with the hand out beside you, or to literally demand or shriek for for more . You need to decide your budget & stick with a strategy or you will be followed & pestered unrelentingly by both children & adults pestering you.
I found by tipping in Dhong they pushed off quickly after the dollar payments & I wasn't hassled half as much as the others !

I also used the old inner zipped pocket for larger notes ( a ten or a five) which I didn't go near in public - it really was so much money over there ) I kept my single dollars elsewhere & would often see people looking at it for the pay-out & kids pointing at it & demanding dollar.

All that said , I travelled alone for ten days & then met up with a small touring group to go off the beaten track for a few weeks , & then alone for a few days at the end & never had any real or serious problems.

P.S . The banks had bizzarely hours & did a shocking bad rate of exchange for international currency - don't go near them!! Make sure you bring your money/currency with you!!

Having lived in Ha Noi for over three years, I can pretty much guarantee that 90% of the above post just is complete bollucks.

The worthless dong and pricing in dollars? I've never been asked for dollars.. Literally never. I've been to every corner of the country and it's never happened. Jesus, I get my paychecks and even bought my big motorbike in "worthless" dong.


I'm pretty sure you have a hangover and are thinking of Cambodia.

rainbowtrout

JustAThought wrote: »

When I went to Vietnam a few years back the Local currency was practically worthless - I swapped a few hundred dollars & literally got over a MILLION back. The girls hands were shaking as she counted it out in the hotel. I would not be buying it off a stranger over the Internet

The locals when you are white will not charge yiu or accept the local currency - EVERYTHING is re-priced for you in either "dollar " or pound. When I was there the dollar was more favourable to buy so I used that. They won't give you change so pretty much everything - shops, stalls, local " restaurants", markets, Locdl guides/tours etc us charged to you in foreign currency rounded up. On the rare occasion I got change or was due it they would try to insist that they give it back in pretty much worthless Dong. I made sure that I always had lots of small denomination notes - single dollars & at highest fives. Everything then seemed to cost either one or three dollar - Vietnamese coffee ( yum) one dollar, coke ; one dollar, huge meal of crayfish & rice - two dollar, sandwich - huge baguette of fried eggs on French baguette - two dollar, cheap clean room for the night - three dollar ( no guns allowed please leave at reception!) ... etc. never local currency - & we were off the beaten tourist track totally!!! I gave someone in a very fancy Japanese restaurant In a five star hotel a ten dollar tip and I was literally fawned at out the door and followed to my room to make sure I got "home " safely.

Re the tours there are official Vietnamese government places where you can get very cheep but very soviet outlook tours ;" how we won the war & beat the yanks by torturing & cleverly mutilating them - look - see how " but this seemed to be only in major cities. They were simply astonishing from the perspective given & total lack of any political correctness! There are always lots of others on the streets that will offer pretty much whatever you need - shop around & haggle a bit. I booked an airport pick up & city tour in advance from Ireland & it was a real rip-off . I remember it cost 45 dollars & they spent the whole time trying to get me to buy other mega expensive tours & pay cash in advance ... Still very glad I didn't tip them or buy others . I was glad to be in the back of a jeep & to be brought straight to my hotel & not have to do the chaos at the airport tbh! It was a mega rip-off thou!!! Atthat stage my suitecases had already been opened & robbed as it came through on the carousel - locked rugsack zip peeled back & tiny hand got in to grab stufff & drag it out through the small gap in the still locked up bag!! Don't put anything you don't want robbed in your case!!!

I remember the hotel ( v. Fancy) that I started off in also sold enormously expensive trips - we would meet them at the same places that we paid a tenth for from agencies/shops on the street!!!

I used my Dhong to casually tip with - unless I got an exceptional service like a full day motorbike tour - they are extremely money focused & are very quick to call out for more or to demand dollar : once you are white or buying they are very quick to stand with the hand out beside you, or to literally demand or shriek for for more . You need to decide your budget & stick with a strategy or you will be followed & pestered unrelentingly by both children & adults pestering you.
I found by tipping in Dhong they pushed off quickly after the dollar payments & I wasn't hassled half as much as the others !

I also used the old inner zipped pocket for larger notes ( a ten or a five) which I didn't go near in public - it really was so much money over there ) I kept my single dollars elsewhere & would often see people looking at it for the pay-out & kids pointing at it & demanding dollar.

All that said , I travelled alone for ten days & then met up with a small touring group to go off the beaten track for a few weeks , & then alone for a few days at the end & never had any real or serious problems.

P.S . The banks had bizzarely hours & did a shocking bad rate of exchange for international currency - don't go near them!! Make sure you bring your money/currency with you!!

I was there only 6 months ago and had the exact opposite experience. I paid for everything in dong, and had no problem getting change anywhere.

In terms of the OP buying currency off another poster on this thread, the OP is well capable of looking up the exchange rate for euro to dong before making the transaction and seeing if it is worth their while.

Personally I chose to pay for everything in dong over there because that's how everything was priced and I didn't have to keep doing conversions in my head to see what it was worth in dollars or euro or to see if I was being charged a tourist price instead of the local price.


I booked a number of my tours through my hotels and never had an issue. I paid in dong and they weren't any more expensive than anything I had looked up online. The tour guides I had spoke excellent English, were polite and did not harass us for tips.

Re: suitcases, that can happen in any airport in the world. Lock your cases wherever you go.


I was a female travelling alone and didn't receive any hassle. Sure, there were plenty of guys on street corners calling out trying to sell tours, rent mopeds, but no different to what you would see in a Spanish resort. I would actually say I felt safer travelling around Vietnam on my own for a few weeks than I have felt in some European cities.

solerina

We used myvietnamvisa.com to get our VOA...don't even think about getting it through the embassy in London as its far more expensive !!
We paid for everything in DNG and never had a problem, got brought enough dollars to pay for the VOA stamp and then withdrew DNG from ATMs whenever we needed them

Gatica

got visa with http://www.starvietnamvisa.com/, very straightforward process. And one of the cheapest I saw out there.

secondcap

Thanks Gatica, I just go it there, they are sending me a letter? Is this all I need?

Theresalwaysone

secondcap wrote: »

Thanks Gatica, I just go it there, they are sending me a letter? Is this all I need?

Yeah print it out and bring it with some photos and 5dollar stamp fee I think.

You'll get it with a load of names on it, yours should be there. Funny out, very Vietnamese the way its done. They couldnt give a ****e about Data Protection.

Gatica

there is an option on that site to get a private visa if you want.

But yes, you get a visa order confirmation and then when it's ready your Visa on Arrival Approval letter, which comes attached as a pdf with a stamp on it.
You print that and bring it with you and pay the fee at the airport to get the actual visa.
The stamping fee last year was $25. You'll also need 2 passport size photos but they can take them there with a digital camera at small fee if you don't have them.

The stamping fee has gone up I think.

Tipperary animal lover

It's $45 per person now

g5fd6ow0hseima

For anyone travelling on land to Vietnam through Cambodia or Laos, I'd recommend getting your visa through a travel agency in either of the two countries. If you have a few days to spend in any of the cities, just drop in your passport and wait for a day or two. I applied for my visa in Phnom Penh - a single entry one - back in December last paying $42. IIRC, I handed in my passport at 10am on the Tuesday and it was dropped back to my hostel the following afternoon.

sam keane

Alright lad,
Myself and my girlfriend are going to Thailand for a month but we're going to travel to Vietnam for 10 days. Grab one have a10 day trip advertised for 499 pp. I'm just wondering if its good value?

rainbowtrout

sam keane wrote: »

Alright lad,
Myself and my girlfriend are going to Thailand for a month but we're going to travel to Vietnam for 10 days. Grab one have a10 day trip advertised for 499 pp. I'm just wondering if its good value?

Well it depends on what is included in the trip really doesn't it?

sam keane

For the 499 u get 10 nights accommodation, travel in Vietnam, meals and guided tours.

solerina

sam keane wrote: »

For the 499 u get 10 nights accommodation, travel in Vietnam, meals and guided tours.

Its possibly good value if you want a totally hassle free experience (although we didn't have any hassle when we were there)...but if your question is could you do it cheaper, then you certainly could....but it depends on your available time and whether you want to DIY or not

pa990

I got my loose leaf visa, its stapled into my passport, but i've one question..

Do I sign it on the dotted line , or is that for the immigration officer to sign ?

marl88

pa990 wrote: »

I got my loose leaf visa, its stapled into my passport, but i've one question..

Do I sign it on the dotted line , or is that for the immigration officer to sign ?

Hi just wondering how you got on with the loose leaf visa? Did you get it from London embassy? Did you email your details to an account where they respond through a Gmail account? I don't want to post my passport from Ireland to London but this Gmail account is looking strange also? Any advise appreciated!! Thanks ☺

marl88

I had the visa back within a week, they were very efficient. It is about A5 in size so you wont be sticking into your passport. It means you won't have to queue when you land in Hanoi. The queues were mental at passport control/visa application when I got there in June and I was glad not to have to go through visa application as well.


Actually, I just looked up my email from last year and this is what they sent me when I was initially enquiring[/quote]

Hi just wondering how you got on with this and if the email came back from embassy through a Gmail account? I took the email from embassy website but they respond through Gmail looking for payment. Strange! !

rainbowtrout

marl88 wrote: »

I had the visa back within a week, they were very efficient. It is about A5 in size so you wont be sticking into your passport. It means you won't have to queue when you land in Hanoi. The queues were mental at passport control/visa application when I got there in June and I was glad not to have to go through visa application as well.


Actually, I just looked up my email from last year and this is what they sent me when I was initially enquiring

Hi just wondering how you got on with this and if the email came back from embassy through a Gmail account? I took the email from embassy website but they respond through Gmail looking for payment. Strange! ![/quote]

To be honest I don't remember what account they replied from as it was 3 years ago