Has anyone been to Vietnam?? Help!!!?

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Zen Master D

Hello!

I've been through Viet Nam, although in January of last year. The weather may be a tad wet. Make sure to bring some windproof coat and an umbrella.

I have five main pieces of advice I would give about traveling in and about Viet Nam:

1.) Learn to enjoy bargaining from everything that you want to buy. From food to clothes to taxi rides; everything. Learn to bargain. It's a way of life there. Being a tourist, the price automatically goes four or five times the regular. My buddy and I traveled through Viet Nam and I negotiated for him as I saw other tourists being taken for much more than they knew. Just because it's cheaper than in your homecountry doesn't mean it's a bargain. A final tip on negotiating: Whatever the first offer is, don't take it. Cut the price 1/4 or 1/5 or even 1/6 the asking price. They will refuse and you must walk away, this is very important. They will grab you and depending on how they treated you, you have the option to raise your offer just a little. But only a little. Make sure you stick to your price Remember to go to other vendors before settling down on a final product and a serious negotiation.

2.) Take tours from legitimate tour guides. There will be handfuls of tour guides asking for your patronage. The best thing is to see what the hotel, or guesthouse has to offer and check with a price with a tourist booking spot just down the road and reserve a spot. You can save a lot of money this way. Make sure you get yoru money's worth before tipping the tour guide.

3.) Research the food and try it! I came across so many travelers who weren't enjoying the fantastic cuisine just because they hadn't heard of it! There are many great types of food. Pho (beef soup) Bun Bo hue (another beef soup), Banh Cuon (rice noodles) and many more! If you're brave, there are many places that locals go to for dog meat. Look for Thit Cho. If you're on a group tour where they take you to eat at place as a group, the food may be dolled up to meet western tastes. The food here is not that great, compared to local restaurants.

4.) Watch your belongings at all times and never leave any valuables in your hotel room, in the pockets of unattended or unlocked or suitcases. I say so because they went through my trousers.

5.) Enjoy!

fluffer

i was there last sept. in hanoi
was great, weather was a bit bad one day really poured down
but soon clears up and still around 25 to 30 degrees
she will love it

nicole

last year i visited vietnam and this year we are going to phuket thailand.I got all info first from net or using website like http://www.myvisualtravel.com before planning any trip.

sk8ingchic710

I've been to Vietnam twice. The first time northern vietnam and the second southern vietnam. Both times it was hot and humid. I'm not sure when i went but i think it was around the spring time. It is a third world country there so you have to be careful, but there are lots of people and lots of things to do there. I think the most dangerous part is the streets in the cities. Everyone rides motercycles and bikes b/c no one can afford cars. There are mainly no street lights and to cross the street u have to just walk really slowly all the way across and everyone will go around u. It's really fun to see all the temples and stuff. I recommend to ur mom to go see ho chi minh city. It has historical sites there from when the vietnamese war occured. Anyway. Theree is way to much there to explain but im sure ur mom will have fun and i don't think u should worry about monsoons.
tell ur mom to have fun!

Novice

hmm, Mr. Bob is pretty pessimistic there :-). Yes September weather in Vietnam might reduce the time she can spend touring around (unless she doesn't mind running in/out of the rain or wearing raincoats.) If there is another time, I'd recommend either December (best), March/April, or even July/August. I just visited there in late July early August (same time two years in a row), and the weather has been nice both time (70-85F with overcast, slightly humid but not terribly bad.)

Either way, it is fairly convenient to get around in Vietnam's major cities, so even bad weather wouldn't ruin anyone's trip. It might prevent the touring of such places as Ha Long Bay (boat trip) or Mekong River tours.

Enjoy!

dplast55

Yes, could be a bit of rain but normally it will rain really hard for a bit than it's over until it rains again. Ponchos are available every where and different than here people are used to being out in the weather. So life just goes on, rain or no rain, you can walk into a restaurant sopping wet and no one will even look at you.

Funny but I spend a few months there most years and I never think about the weather. That is other than how hot and humid it is or chilly at night it gets in Dalat.

Have you mom take a look at Doug's Vietnam - http://vietnam-now.com and wish her a good trip from Doug.

justme

last I heard rain had never hurt anyone. I wouldn't worry too much about the weather. I was there for 4 weeks at christmas and it rained most of the time, but it didn't stop me enjoying the country.

It is a fantatic country with some great culture and history.

steve r

hi im from australia and yes i have been there. but only in february . i loved it so much that im going back. as your mum i am going in september again and have asked also about if it will be hot. and what to take. i hope your mum likes it and maybe we mite bump into eatch other.

mr. Bob

When I was there the weather was the last thing I had to worry about. Staying alive was more important to me at that time

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