Hi everyone!

I’m a local student in Hanoi, and my team is currently exploring the idea of offering a free walking tour around the Old Quarter for international travelers. The concept is pretty simple:

• A casual 1–2 hour walk
• Exploring street food spots, hidden corners, and some local/historical stories
• Completely free (just doing this for the experience.)

Before actually doing this, I’d really love to hear your perspective as travelers:

• When traveling solo, what are the biggest struggles you usually face, especially in Hanoi?
• Do you think something like a free walking tour with a local could help with that?
• Would you personally be open to joining one? Why or why not?
• What would make you feel comfortable (or uncomfortable) in that situation?
• Would you prefer something more structured, or just a chill “walk & talk”?
• What would you expect to get out of it? (food, culture, history, meeting people, etc.)
• Any red flags that would make you say no immediately?

Also, realistically, do you think this idea actually works or brings value to travelers?

We know trust and safety are big factors when meeting someone new in a foreign country, so we really appreciate any honest thoughts. You don’t have to answer everything — just share whatever comes to mind 🙏

Thanks a lot!

I applied for the 5 year visa exemption with my birth certificate stating my mom was born in vietnam as well as her naturalization papers for the US. The embassy is saying that since she is not a Vietnamese citizen that I dont qualify? Does anyone have any experience with this?

Edit: The embassy said that since her parents are not Vietnamese since she was adopted that I dont qualify???

It will be my first time traveling to Vietnam, and I’ll be staying for 17 days. My route is: HCMC → Dalat via overnight sleeper bus (4 days) → Hue (3 days) → Hanoi (3 days) → Ninh Binh (2 days) → then fly back to HCMC before my flight home.

Is this route doable? I’m okay with long bus rides and I’m pretty chill when it comes to traveling 😌 I chose these places because I really want to immerse myself in the culture and enjoy more mountain/countryside scenery rather than beaches.

I also don’t know how to ride a motorbike, so I’ll mostly rely on buses, trains, Grab, or tours.

What should I expect as a first time traveler in Vietnam? Also, which bus companies do you guys prefer for long distance trips? Any suggestions or tips would be appreciated. I’ll be traveling from May 28 to June 12. Thank you! 🙏🏻

Guys I'm leaving for Phu Quoc in few days from. I've Espresso setup ( Lelit Bianca) at home and like medium light beans preferably.

Which cafe should I explore in Phu Quoc? Which coffee beans to bring back home and from where for 3 months of non-stop coffee? :) and of course best one and cheap?

PS: I have layover of 8 hours in HCMC. So, if something isn't available in Phu Quoc, what should I get from HCMC and from where? Mainly if time permits, will explore District 1 for couple of hours and lunch before heading back to airport for return flight. Or should I order the same to airport via Grab?

Hello, I would like to take 2 days/1 night trip outside of Hanoï.

Any recommendation?

Agents, please don’t come to me directly, I want customer feedback, not promotion (I understand you want to sell packages, but I wait for direct feedback first)

Destination: anything culturally / food / seightseing interesting. Open to idea.

Thank you!

Hello good day everyone!

I will be travelling to HCMC in the first week of june and will be staying there for 1 week :)

I have searched for some activities to do and some places to go, but I'm wondering if any locals or anyone experienced have some suggestion on maybe events or your own favourite places to go to?

I would really appreciate it. Below are some of the activities I have listed out during my search. Thank you in advance to anyone who will share <3

P/S: I want to maybe go shopping + i love coffee + looking for places to just chill and vibe + love arts and crafts

1 Book Street

2 Saigon Central Post Office

3 Notre Dame Cathedral of Saigon

4 War Remnants Museum

5 Night Bus Tour

6 Bui Vien Walking Street

7 Motorbike Food Tour (anyone went before? - was it fun?)

8 Tan Dinh Church

9 Landmark 81

10 Cafe Apartments

11 Central Park

12 Bach Dang Quay Park

13 Saigon Japan Town

14 Saigon Opera House

15 Tao Dan Park

16 Independence House

17 Cong Cafe

18 Me Coffee & Tea

19 Ben Thanh Market

20 Saigon Centre

21 King Koi Coffee

22 Ho Chi Minh Square

23 Tan Dinh Market

24 Mekong River

25 Cuchi Tunnel

Hello :)

Planning a SE Asia trip with 4 people looking for feedback from people who’ve done similar/live - mainly around logistics, whether anything is overrated/underrated, suggestions etc.

We enjoy

• nightlife
• good food
• unique experiences
• nature/scenery
• less “super touristy packaged tour” vibes where possible
• not being constantly exhausted from travel

We’re okay with flights/sleeper transport, but don’t want the whole trip to feel like airports and buses.

Current Route

Sydney → Ho Chi Minh City → Cat Tien (&back to HCMC)→ Da Nang → Hanoi → Sa Pa → Siem Reap → Phnom Penh → Singapore → Sydney

Singapore is already locked in (we’ve already been before), so after feedback on the Vietnam/Cambodia sections.

Vietnam Plan (11 Nights)

Ho Chi Minh City – 4 nights

Planned/things I've currently flagged as potential -

• Cu Chi shooting range (not interested in tunnel crawling)
• Bui Vien
• D-Rave nightclub
• Frolic Bar
• Ben Thanh Market
• Buu Long Pagoda
• Long Buu Buddhist Temple
• Oasis Cafe
• Suoi Tien Theme Park
• Night street food tour

Questions:

• Any underrated HCMC nightlife/daytime recommendations?
• Any areas/bars better than Bui Vien for nightlife?

Cat Tien – 1 night

Main reason:

• Free the Bears / Sun Bear sanctuary (I'm a Vet Nurse & volunteer Carnivore Zoo Keeper so this is of great interest and love for me)

Current idea:

• HCMC → Cat Tien transfer
• Overnight stay?
• Return to HCMC next day?
• Evening flight to Da Nang

Questions:

• Ability to get there for the 8:30am tour and spend the day? Or have to stay o/night?
• Best place to stay? (is this possible?
• Better transfer method than private car/shuttle? (I will of course contact places directly aswell for information, however some people may have done this)

Da Nang – 2 nights?

Considering/planned

• Golden Bridge / Ba Na Hills
• Sky36
• Dragon Bridge show
• My Khe Beach
• An Thuong area

Questions:

• Is 2 nights enough?
• Best bars/nightlife in Da Nang?
• Worth adding Hoi An or would that overload the trip?

Hanoi / North Vietnam – 4 nights total

Planned:

• Hanoi Old Quarter
• Trang An day trip
• Overnight VIP sleeper bus Hanoi → Sa Pa
• Fansipan
• Cat Cat Village
• Ta Van

Current idea?

• Sleeper bus TO Sa Pa
• Limousine van RETURN to Hanoi
• Evening flight Hanoi → Siem Reap

Questions:

• Is this realistic or too much movement?
• Better transport option than sleeper bus?
• Is Trang An worth keeping if doing Sa Pa?
• Trang An vs Ha Long Bay?

Cambodia Plan (4 Nights)

Siem Reap – 3 nights

Planned:

• Angkor Wat
• Ta Prohm
• Pub Street
• Chill/cafes

Phnom Penh – 1 night

Planned:

• Killing Fields
• Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center
• Riverside/Bassac Lane

Questions-

• Any major things we’re missing in Cambodia?

Main Questions Overall

• Does this route make logical sense?
• Any parts feel overrated or not worth the effort?
• Better alternatives for nightlife/nature balance?
• Anything we absolutely should add?

Thanks so much! <3

I want to take a bus from the Vietnam side of the Friendship Pass （Huu Nghi border gate) to Hanoi. I expect to clear customs around 4 p.m. Will there still be public transport to Hanoi at that time?

I was thinking of getting sleep train or bus to da Nang. Only issue is check out at 11 am bus is at 8pm... Does train office let you store bags or should I just leave hotel day early to get there for 8?

Thanks 🙏

As someone who is quite well travelled this is the first time I’ve run into visa trouble.

Vietnam is certainly not a country that you can go to at the drop of a hat.

I was granted some last minute annual leave from my work. I booked my flights on Thursday 14th May to depart the following Thursday 21st May (today).
I did my visa online, thinking it would be a three business day turn around (with most visas I have encountered being processed significantly quicker than the time frame.

Come 4pm Aus time yesterday 20th May I still didn’t have my visa. I was apprehensive to pay some random to expedite it but other than delaying my flights I didn’t have much other choice.

I contacted Emily Visa yesterday afternoon at approx 4:30pm and she and she had my visa to me by 6pm.

I don’t know how long it would have taken if I hadn’t used a visa service. $135usd (for two visas in two hours). They expedited our applications they didn’t submit new ones.

Next time I will certainly try to plan further in advance so I don’t have to use such service, but can certainly recommend and Emily visa and it’s a legit service.

Hi friends, I'm looking forward to visiting Vietnam. Is December a good time to visit? me and my partner want to do activities when we visit, instead of just watching sceneries, which part of Vietnam has good places to do activities (hiking, theme park, etc)

Does December month have any weather problems in Vietnam, such as rain or windy?

Thank you.

Edit: the things I have listed under "where/agenda" are just things that we can do/go to, we are likely not going to all those places. This is also our first-ever international trip that we're planning! Any additional tips or really anything Vietnam related that we need to know pls comment!

Hi. My partner and I are planning a 2-week trip to Vietnam in mid to end of January. Do you think this is too much hassle, given all the transfers and flights? Should we just stick to 2 regions (central and south or north and central) if we're only going for 2 weeks? Pls give some suggestions on what I should change or leave for next time. Also, give us some food places to try (we're huge foodies and love shopping).

WHAT	WHERE	Agenda	Activities
Day 1	Hanoi	Airport to hotel ~1hr Check in Eve: Explore Old Quarter Street food/cafe
Day 2	Shopping
Day 3	Old quarter exploring HCM Masoleum Temple of Literature Train Street Cafe Hoan Kiem Lake	Cooking class
Leave Hanoi 0800 to Ha Long Bay (2-3hr travel time)
Day 4	Ha Long bay cruise	Kayaking Sunset deck Cave visits
Day 5
Cruise ends at 1100. Travel to Ninh binh (3-4hr travel time)
Day 6	Ninh binh	Morning Trang An Afternoon Tam coc Late Afternoon Bich Dong Pagoda
Travel to Hue via sleeper train (9 hr travel)
Day 7	Hue	Imperial City
Day 8	Explore try food
Travel to Hoi An (3hr travel time)
Day 9	Hoi An	Coconut forest Hoi An old town An bang beach Lantern Festival	Pottery Cooking Class Tailored clothes
Day 10
Day 11
Fly to HCM - depart 1000 (2hr flight) arrive noon
Day 12	Ho chi minh	Cafes Explore city	Cooking class
Day 13	Spa day Shopping	Savor the night (Saigon river cruise)
Day 14	Free day wait for flight
Fly back home

I’ll be traveling solo to Phong Nha next month and trying to decide whether I should pre-book tours or just figure things out when I arrive.

For those who’ve visited:

• Did you use Viator/Trip.com/GetYourGuide/etc.?
• Or did you just book directly through local tour operators or homestays?
• Are the cave tours there generally easy to organize independently?

I’m mainly interested in Paradise Cave, Phong Nha Cave, and Dark Cave.

Any tips or recommendations would be super helpful!