Vietnam Travel Information

Reference guide for traveling in Vietnam.

Vietnam Travel Information – Main Cities

• Hanoi / Hà Nội - the capital - Hotels in Hanoi
• Dalat / Đà Lạt - Hotels in Dalat
• Da Nang / Đà Nẵng - Hotels in Da Nang
• Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon - Hotels in Saigon 
• Hoi An -  the ruins of Mỹ Sơn - Hotel in Hoi An
• Hue / Huế - Hotels in Hue
• Nha Trang - Hotels in Nha Trang

Vietnam Travel Information – Climate

Vietnam is large enough to have several distinct climate zones.

• The North has four distinct seasons, with a comparatively chilly winter (temperatures can dip below 15°C in Hanoi), a hot and dry summer and pleasant spring (March-April) and autumn (October-December) seasons. However, in the Highlands both extremes are amplified, with occasional snow in the winter and temperatures hitting 40°C in the summer.

• In the Central regions the weather is somewhere in between, only just to confuse things here the rainy season is in the summer, not the winter.

• The South is hot, humid and tropical, with temperatures hovering in the 25-30°C all year round, but it rains the most from May to November.

Vietnam Travel Information – Tourist Visa

Most visitors to Vietnam, except citizens of Nordic or ASEAN countries, South Korea and Japan, require a visa in advance. A single-entry tourist visa valid for 30 days costs around €35 (although exact fees vary depending on issuing country) and takes around 4-7 days to process; express visas take 2-3 days at twice the price. Visas are now generally valid for all entry and exit points.

Vietnam Travel Information – Language

Vietnamese, spoken by most of the population, is a tonal language and definitely not easy to master. It is written in a Latin-based script, making maps and signs relatively easy to understand. More than 20% of the modern Vietnamese vocabulary originally came from Chinese, so travelers fluent in other East Asian languages may find some similar words.
Many young people have a basic grasp of English. It is not uncommon to meet young people who learned English in school, especially in the South. French, although not widely spoken anymore, is still used by many older Vietnamese people who were educated in French. If not English, young people may study Japanese, Thai or Chinese.

There can be difficuties when traveling in Vietnam with out speaking the language. A common solution is hire tour guides to better explain the sites.  

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