Vietnam travel guide

PEOPLE

The majority of the population is comprised of the Viet or Kinh (87%) people who speak the Vietnamese language. The minority population is made up of 54 ethnic hill tribe people who mainly live in the extreme south, central and northern mountainous areas of the country. The best-known hill tribes are the TÃ y, Hmong, Zao, White and Black Thai, Muong (both mainly from the north), and the Hoa, Khmer in the South. Each hill tribe has its own unique customs and dialect and some are able to speak official Vietnamese language.

LANGUAGE

Vietnamese, the national language is tonal and monosyllabic, which means the meanings of the word change according to the pitch they are pronounced at. The accents and some words are quite distinct among the three regions of North, Central, and South.

Today, English, French and Chinese have replaced Russian as the most studied and spoken languages.

MONEY

The official currency, the dong and is non-convertible. There are coins 200, 1.000, 5.000 used in the local currency and the notes come in denominations of 100, 200,) 500, 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 (2 notes), 100,000 (2notes) and 500.000 dong notes.

The US dollar, preferably crisp clean bills, is widely accepted among major shops and restaurants. Travelers checks can be cashed at authorized foreign exchange outlets and banks, and require presentation of passport. There is normally a 2 to 5 percent transaction fee for cashing travelers checks. Visa and MasterCard are accepted in some of the bigger hotels and restaurants. Prices are usually quoted in USD so if you are paying in Dong check the exchange rate first.

ATM machines are available at major cities: Hanoi , Halong, Haiphong , Hue , Danang, Nha Trang and Saigon .

At the time of writing trades at approximately 16,000 dong to US$ 1 and 20,000 VND to 1 Euro.

HEALTH REQUIREMENTS

No vaccinations are officially required by the Vietnamese authorities, however immunization against cholera, hepatitis, typhoid, tetanus, polio and Japanese encephalitis is advised. Please consult your doctors for further medical advice.

You should carry a basic medical kit that includes anti diarrhoea tablets and re-hydration salts. Medical standards outside Hanoi and Saigon are lower that those found in western countries.

COMMUNICATIONS & BUSINESS HOURS

Vietnam is 7 hours ahead of GMT and does not observe daylight saving time.

Phones

Communication fees in Vietnam are quite high but impeccable. You can use pre-paid card phone services for your hand phone, the sim card costs around 15 US$. Prepaid card costs 100,000, 300.000 and 500.000 VND.

The best International rates are from the post offices that have a pay per call service and a fax service. The central post offices in Hanoi , Saigon and Hue also accept calling cards from various international telecommunications companies. It is not possible to make collect calls from Vietnam .

For lower cost, dial 171+00+ number you want.

Internet

Internet and e-mail services are readily available in most major places throughout the country. Some hotels will have this service available and there are many Internet cafes in the major areas. The speed of your connection will vary however depending on the time of day. Average charge for Internet usage is around 4.000 VND per hour in cyber cafe internet.

Several hotels for business travelers in Hanoi and Saigon are equipped internet with high speed access in business center and in room guest.

Trading Hours

Government offices and banks are open Monday to Friday. The banks close at 3:30 p.m. If you need to visit a government office do not do it during lunch periods. These usually last 1 to 2 hours. Post offices are open 7 days a week.

Most shops will be open until around 9 p.m. Snacks and bars will close around midnight however there a few new nightclubs in Hanoi and Saigon that stay open into the wee hours.

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Arrival in Vietnam

All visitors must complete an Entry/exit Card. This should be submitted together with passport and visa to the Immigration Department officials at the point of entry. The Exit portion will be torn off and returned to the visitor, who should retain this for presentation upon departure. It is a good idea to staple this into your passport on the page that has your visa stamp.

Customs procedures

All visitors must complete a Customs Declaration Form. Both the copy and the original will be stamped. The Customs officers will retain the original copy while the copy (so called yellow paper) will be given back to the visitor, who must submit it upon departure.

hese forms will be passed to you on your flight to Vietnam . Every form asks for your contact address in Vietnam .

Airport Departure Tax

There is a international departure tax of US$ 14 in Saigon and US$ 14 in Hanoi . Domestic departure taxes are included in air fare.

Getting There & Away

Ho Chi Minh City's (Saigon) Tan Son Nhat Airport is Vietnam 's busiest international air hub, followed by Hanoi 's Noi Bai Airpot. A few international flights also serve Danang. Singapore, Hongkong, Bangkok have emerged as the principle embarkation points for Vietnam but it's still possible to get direct flights from a number of major Asian and European cities and a few American, Australian cities. Departure tax is US$14 in Hanoi and 14 US $ in Saigon, which can be paid in Vietnam Dong or US dollars.

There are currently six border crossings for travellers coming to Vietnam, but more may open soon. All crossing points suffer from heavy policing and often requests for 'immigration fees'.

For getting to from China, it's become very popular to cross the border at Friendship Pass or Dong Dang, 20km (12mi) north of Lang Son in northeast Vietnam , to get to/from Namning. There is a twice-weekly international train between Beijing and Hanoi that stops at Friendship Pass. The other popular border crossing with China is at Lao Cai (near Sapa) in northwest Vietnam, which lies on the railway line between Hanoi and Kunming in China 's Yunnan Province. There's also a seldom used crossing at Mong Cai, Quang Ninh Province.

It's possible to enter Laos from Lao Bao in north-central Vietnam; there's an international bus from Danang to Savannakhet ( Laos ). The other crossing is at Keo Nua Pass/Cau Treo, west of Vinh.

The only crossing to Cambodia is via Moc Bai; an international bus links Phnom Penh with Ho Chi Minh City .

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Traveller facts on Vietnam

Weather

Vietnam's elongated shape stretching from the tropics to the subtropics zone accounts for the varied climate in the country. Vietnam is an year round destination, when one part of Vietnam is cloudy and rainy, there are other parts of the country that can be sunny and warm

North Vietnam enjoys 4 seasons, meanwhile Central and South have 2, rain and dry seasons. Heat and humidity are typical weather of Vietnam.

Weather is often a determinant factor in travel planning. Since Vietnam covers several climatic zones, the weather can change significantly traveling north to south. The chart below provides average daily minimum/maximum temperatures in degrees Celsius and average rainfall in millimeters. Please refer to this chart and our suggested packing list later in this document when deciding what to pack for your trip.

Clothing

Light, comfortable, easy to launder clothing is recommended. Winter months in Hanoi and rainy season in the central region can get cool so a sweater or light jacket will come in handy. Good walking shoes and sandals that can be easily removed are recommended especially when visiting temples and people's homes. Ensure you have suitable clothing packed for visiting temples and pagodas that you can cover up with. E.g. Shirts and long pants. No dresses, shorts, singlets, string tops or revealing clothing should be worn to temples and pagodas.

What to Pack

Vietnam is generally a casual country by western standards although people do like to dress in their Sunday best whenever the opportunity arises therefore simple and casual clothes are appropriate for almost any occasion.

The year round heat and humidity in the south, especially Ho Chi Min City makes lightweight quick dry clothing the most appropriate. The north and central highlands get cool enough for sweaters or light jackets for much of the year but the northern highlands will require cold weather clothes in the winter.

If you are not participating in any trekking tours sandals and lightweight shoes are sufficient. If trekking is included in your itinerary you will need trekking boots.

Food/Cuisine

The cuisine of Vietnam is excellante. Rice and noodle dishes are the staple of Vietnamese food and are garnished with aromatic lemon grass and/or fresh coriander. Fish, chicken, and/or pork dishes along with cooked vegetables and rice form a typical meal.
Asian and European food are available throughout the country.

Drinks

Drinking tap water or ice is not recommended. Bottled water is readily available but remember to check the seal for possible tampering. You should be drinking a minimum of 1.5 liters of water per day. This should increase as the temperature increases or you are engaging in physical activities.

Vietnamese coffee is usually very strong and has a punctuated mockup aroma and flavors. It is usually served in a small glass or cup with a drip filter and additional hot water in a thermos. As the filter empties you top it up from the thermos until you have the required amount of coffee. Condensed milk is added as a whitener and sweetener as it is usually not possible to find fresh milk away for the main cities.

Beer is available just about everywhere. Most places stock a selection of local and some imported brands. Draught beer comes in two varieties, Beer Hoi or Beer Tuoi. Beer Hoi is draught beer found on the street stalls and poured straight from the keg. Vietnamese quite often add ice to their beer when drinking. Beer Tuoi is found in the bars and restaurants and is chilled and served under pressure from the keg in a more conventional method.

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Miri, Sarawak

Miri, the second City of Sarawak, is situated in northern Sarawak, close to the Sarawak-Brunei border on the legendary island of Borneo. The City has grown phenomenally since oil was first discovered in the early 1900s, burgeoning into the modern and dynamic business, commercial and educational centre it is today.

It is also the stepping-off point to many of Sarawak's world-famous national parks such as the UNESCO World Heritage Site Gunung Mulu, Niah National Park, Lambir Hills National Park and Loagan Bunut National Park, as well as other major tourist attractions. A state-of-the-art Marina attracts the international yachting community, and divers who are keen to explore the ‘under water jungles’ below.

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