Vietnam is such a beautiful country. It offers so much diversity and so many things to do. You really could spend months there and still not be able to see and do everything. From a big city like Ho Chi Minh, the beaches in Da Nang, or the historic charm of Ha Noi, there is really a place for every type of traveler. I recently went for a couple weeks over the summer and had an amazing time, but there are always learning experiences when it comes to traveling.
The first one is being a US resident; we are required to get a visa to visit Vietnam. When you apply for this visa, you can do it yourself online through a portal, or you can pay a travel company to take care of it. It costs less than $50, and for me it took about two to three weeks. You can also get one very last minute, but you pay a lot more because there you go through a company, and expedite it for you. I only recommend it if you find yourself in a bind, that is going to be your saving grace. If for any reason you have to get a new passport between the time that you have applied for your visa and you show up to the airport, you will need to have applied for a new visa and have gotten it approved even if everything matches. If you’re already traveling or if you lost it or you had a lot of stuff going on, maybe it is something that you don’t think about in the moment. There are resources and companies that will do it for you very quickly, but just remember to always double-check your passport numbers and your visa numbers.
Even if you are traveling from city to city in Vietnam, double check the airport and look online to see recommendations from other people for when to be at the airport. People have been known to miss flights because it takes so long to get through immigration. The lines can wrap around check-in encounters, if you’ve never seen those videos it’s actually a sight to see. So be very mindful not to show up to the airport last minute and give yourself enough time so hopefully you don’t miss your flight. Unfortunately I don’t know of any tips or tricks to get through immigration any quicker. Hopefully if someone finds one it’ll go viral for the rest of us!
Also, fun fact make sure y our middle name is on your flight ticket or they will have you pay a fee to add it. A lot of foreigner make this mistake and they usually have a line for name changes.
In Vietnam, a lot of places are very accepting of credit cards, and they want you to pay with a card, but if you want to eat some street food or go to a market? Make sure to bring some cash with you. If you’re trying to pay with cards, sometimes they can take too long, or sometimes they just don’t accept it overall, so always make sure you have cash on you because the local people are always going to appreciate that more than using your card. Make sure that you always have some cash on you because you never really know if you’re going to need a snack or something. If your cards get lost, or your phone dies so you don’t have electronic pay, having cash on hand will always be there.
The biggest tip that I can give you is to watch how the locals walk across the street and mimic them, and yes, that sounds crazy. You’re probably thinking, “I walk across the street all the time. What are you talking about?” There are millions, and I mean millions, of scooters in Ho Chi Minh. Because there is such a dense population in this city, people rely on scooters to get places faster. You may think that you can cross the street because it is a red light, but there are scooters that are going to be going too. It’s a bit overwhelming at first because you’re like, “Oh my gosh, how am I going to get this? Like, they’re going to hit me.” They’re not going to hit you. You just have to keep going. You have to walk and keep walking and do not stop. They’re not going to hit you; they’re used to weaving in and out of people. It’s actually something that I found really interesting to watch and see how other people maneuver across. Walking across the street is definitely a challenge at very busy intersections because you have scooters going all types of ways, so just make sure to take a breath, watch how other people cross, and just follow them or just go with other people that are crossing as well. If you live somewhere that is similar you’ll likely have no issues. Coming from the states it’s a much different atmosphere.
The last thing that I would say about Vietnam is to try all the restaurants that you can and all the little coffee shops. Go to the little mom-and-pop shops. Go to a cute little corner one and skip the chain places. I promise you the coffee that I had at the local stores all throughout Vietnam were a hundred times better than anything you could ever get at Starbucks or Highland. Also, the restaurants, the local ones there, their food is better; you can feel the love in the food. You can feel the difference in the atmosphere of the people that are going there. Make sure that you’re trying the food that you’re not used to at home; don’t go and only eat food that you’re used to. Really try to expand. Take a food tour if you need to try little portions. Look up Michelin-guided restaurants online because there are so, so many in Vietnam that are Michelin-guided, and they’re amazing. At these restaurants, the menu is beautiful and abundant, and the food is delicious. You never know what will come from eating local either, I’ve heard many stories from people that started at a local shop.
These are only a few things I came across during my short time. I will definitely be going back, I feel like I barely even touched the surface. I personally really enjoy the food. I love the coffee there; it is so amazing, and they have different specialties that they make in Vietnam that are worth trying. I hope that this helps bring things to your mind as you’re thinking about coming to Vietnam or going to Vietnam. I highly recommend it!