#  >  > Travellers Tales in Thailand and Asia >  >  > Vietnam, Nepal and Burma  Travel Forum >  >  Good morning, Hanoi

## extras

We got a good deal on Nok Air, so we went to Hanoi for 3 days.

Having read so many horror stories about scams going on out there, I planned to have my guard up at all times.

Didn't help much, really.



We had booked a hotel (40 USD) and airport pick-up service (12 USD) well in advance. When we landed at Noi Bai airport as scheduled, there was no one to pick us up. After a while we decided to grab a taxi to the hotel ourselves.

The taxi we got from the airport agreed on 12 USD flat rate from the airport to the hotel. When the taxi passed a toll-booth looking thingy, we saw his company (yes, he had a company!) paid something like 10,000 VND to someone before reaching the booth. But didnt pay anything at the booth.

He asked us how much we were paying the hotel, and one of us told him we hadnt paid yet. And he asked again how much, so I lied and told him 29 USD. He exclaimed Expensive! and started going on about 10 USD hotels, etc etc. None of his business really if we wanted safety and comfort. He was on the phone quite often while driving into town.

And he finally parked in front of the hotel (I think it was), and before we could get out, a guy opened the taxi and said Youve booked a room right? Sorry, the hotel is full now. But I will tell the taxi driver to take you to the other hotel of us with the same quality and same price. Its not too far. Its also in town.

I wasnt too sure, but this hotel does have a second one.

And off we went.

The taxi driver dropped us at some sort of hotel (its actually a travel agent with rooms upstairs). When I gave him 12 USD, he started making a scene and showed me a almost-A4 size paper - all in Vietnamese language with 300,000 VND on it. He demanded we paid this 300,000 VND also as it was government fee, referring to the toll-booth looking thingy.

Government fee my arse.

I asked him how come the toll booth fee was higher than the actual taxi fare. He didnt answer, but started making a scene again that we had to pay. Then, we told him we would look at the room first and would come back to deal with him shortly.

The room was ok. And the hotel receptionist said So that hotel charge you 29 USD right? Well charge the same rate.

So, how come you knew they were charging us 29 USD then, you cheeky twat? And it wasnt even the right amount!

We negotiated the price down, and done at 25 USD, including breakfast. And they confirmed they opened 24/7, e.g. not going to lock us out if we came back late.

And we went down to the taxi driver again. We decided to pay to end this hoo-ha as its a bloody waste of time. We gave him 300,000 VND with the take it or leave it 

remark. He took it while still complaining and drove off. I suspect the 300,000 VND thingy was in fact the car tax for the whole year. So, if you are sure you are safe from them, tell your taxi driver to fuck off.

We got changed and came down stairs to ask about one day tour to Halong Bay that we wanted to go the next day. The same receptionist quoted us 25 USD for ordinary tour and lunch. We negotiated down to 23 USD and couldnt be bothered to negotiate further.

It was a join tour (16 pax) and it shouldnt cost you more than 20 USD. So, again, if you are sure you are safe from them, tell them to fuck off. Or go to another travel agent. Someone will definitely start from 20 USD and you can probably get it at 16 - 18 USD.

After paying yet another overpriced tour, we went out to explore the city. Only took us 3 and half hours to get all this shit done.



Hanoi was very noisy. There were many many motorbikes. And everyone seemed to be going at the car/bike horn all the time. Madness.



We walked around a bit, using "Walking Tour" in Lonely Planet as our guide.



Name tag, anyone?



While we were making our way back to the hotel, we spotted a pub we had walked past earlier. So we went in for a cold one. Its called Le Pub.

My cold one (Bia Ha Noi) cost 16,000 VND (or 1 USD). Pho cost 20,000 VND here (7,000 VND on the street, but it wasnt very comfortable to sit).

When we walked into the hotel, we saw the taxi driver there chatting away with the hotel boys.

Cheeky bastard.

Anyway we got some rest as it was quite cold, it was a long day, and we had to get up early for the Halong Bay trip.

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## extras

We went down the next morning around 7.30 AM for breakfast. Some dodgy bread, butter and jam, and coffee or tea.

While waiting for the van to pick us up, we took a look around the area.



And the van finally turned up. So, we started our (approx) 3 hours journey to Halong harbour.

The van stopped for 20 minutes at this place where you could buy (overpriced) souvenir.





And not too long, we arrived at Halong harbour. At long fucking last.



There were hundreds of boats here, heading to Halong Bay daily. Here, your tour guide will give you a ticket which you have to keep on you. They will check this ticket again at the cave. The ticket is included in the tour price.

It was quite an adventure walking through another boat, and hopping on the next one, trying not to fall off. Take your rucksack if you have stuff with you. Even if it was just a bloody book. Oh, and DO take your own drinks. It was expensive on the boat.

When everyone was ready, our driver started engine, bumping and pushing other boats to get out. And we were on the way to Halong Bay.



Not sure if this one was going to Halong Bay also.



And right on cue, there was a 7-eleven boat chasing us. Selling some fruit.



They got us.



.. and no sign of lunch yet. Everyone was starving. We were wondering why they were not serving lunch yet. After 45 minutes into the journey, we knew why.

We had to stop at this Seafood market.





Let's see what they got.



These buggers cost 200,000 VND per kilo. Thats 12.5 USD. A few of them were so big the dish would take up the whole table.

No, thanks.

After a long while, the boat started moving again. And not long, lunch was served!!



There were also two dishes (fish and.. I forgot) after this, but we were too hungry to wait. So, no pics of them.

Stomach was full and we were happy again so we started enjoying the scenery in Halong Bay.



Kissing or fighting chicken? These two chicken inspired the Vietnam Tourism and they use them as their logo.



Next stop was a cave. They did it nicely for tourists. They dropped us off here.



Lets take a look inside.





Your tour guide will tell you all the stories about it. Their accent might be a bit difficult to understand, though.

After the cave, the boat made her way to Cat Ba island to drop people who were staying the night in Halong Bay off. The rest went back with the boat to Halong harbour and took the van back to Hanoi. We arrived back in Hanoi around 8.30PM.



We then continued our journey and went to the night market.



Its located on Hang Dao street, and go all the way from Hoan Kiem Lake to Dong Xuan Market. Lots of cheap stuff you can get as souvenir and this is the best place to buy. But you have to be a bit patient, as the Vietnamese like to push their way. They probably dont even realise they do it. I mean.. all of them. We got pushed and pushed and pushed and pushed. Until we had enough, and decided to go back get some rest. The locals didn't see the funny side of it when we started pushing them back, though. :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## extras

The last day, we got our tickets for the Water Puppet at 2:45 PM. They do have an extra round on Sundays at 9.30 AM.



As it was our last day, we decided to go for a proper breakfast elsewhere. And here it is



This one cost 25,000 VND, and the tea cost 10,000 VND. Thats about 2.19 USD in total.

After breakfast was shopping time. Around Hoan Kiem Lake, there were thousands of shops. Very good prices for shoes, boots, and bags. And I popped over to the Huc Bridge over Hoan Kiem Lake.



Then, we went back to hotel to check out. And got on cyclos for an hour tour. They asked for 5 USD per hour. But we got the price down to 3 USD. You can try for 2 USD as many people got it at that price.









When an hour was up, we got something to eat, and headed to the Water Puppet Theatre. The tickets are 20,000 and 40,000 VND. Though they write they charge 15,000 VND for photographs during show, and 75,000 VND for video, no one bothers to pay or to ask someone to pay.



The show takes about 50 minutes, I think. All in their language, so it might be a good idea to google Water Puppet and see what they're on about.



After the Water Puppet, we walked around a little bit more and got back to hotel. We got a taxi to the airport via the hotel we stayed at 14 USD. And we made the guy promise us there would be no fucking extra fees this time. He did. So, although the fee was a little higher than it was supposed to be, we were okay with it.

And we had a pleasant journey back here.

Oh how I missed civilisation.  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## daveboy

nice report well done

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## Deus Ex

I really enjoyed that.

Thanks.

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## Marmite the Dog

What hotel had you booked and what hotel did you end up staying in?

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## Loombucket

Well done for that, thanks very much.

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## dirtydog

So your doing the tourist thing in Halong Bay, you stop at the seafood market,



Did they expect you to buy a fish to take back to your hotel? Seems a bit of a strange stopping point for a boatload of tourists, well, unless they want a pet fish I suppose  :Sad:

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## Propagator

Good report and Photos

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## Zavier38

Enjoyed that, thanks.

Good old fashioned crooked cab drivers. So he phoned his mate to stand outside your hotel to tell you it was full? 10 out of 10 for enterprise!

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## Wayne Kerr

Nice thread mate. Looks as though it was a bit cold up there?

I was Hanoi recently and checked out this restaurant. Definitely worth trying, especially if you like your mushrooms.

*Ashima Mushroom Hot Pot*
Address: 35A Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street, Dist 1, HCM City
Tel: (08) 9 824 1966

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## zipcode

Nice report and pics, and thanks for the pics.

Those girls didn't looked handicapped, looked like they had left arm under the table?

There is a large Vietnamese population here in Silicon Valley, and they too are victimized by scams when travelling "back home"; my Viet friends have warned me off making a trip, so doubly enjoyed your report and pics.

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## kingwilly

love Hanoi. enjoyed the pics and report, thanks,.

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## extras

cheers lads.




> What hotel had you booked and what hotel did you end up staying in?


we had booked Viet Anh Hotel ( http://www.vietanhhotel.com/ ), but looks like their website is down at the moment. we ended up staying at Gold Star Hotel on Hang Voi Street instead. got a couple of pics of the room. hot water was a bit unpredictable, though.  :Sad: 

Viet Anh Hotel emailed me on my Day 2 there asking why we didn't check in. got an earful.  :Smile:  and she got back to me apologosing for the mistake, as they wrote down our arrival time to be midnight, instead of midday.




> Did they expect you to buy a fish to take back to your hotel?


not really. they would cook it for your lunch on the boat if you bought it.  :Smile: 




> Good old fashioned crooked cab drivers. So he phoned his mate to stand outside your hotel to tell you it was full? 10 out of 10 for enterprise!


good work isn't it. buncha lying cheating twats.  :Sad: 




> Those girls didn't looked handicapped, looked like they had left arm under the table?


i was wondering the same when i saw the sign.  :Smile:  they sure had both their arms and legs. maybe they were deaf?




> Looks as though it was a bit cold up there?


yes, it was. high about 20C, low about 14C.

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## stroller

Any naughty areas in Hanoi, what about stimulants?

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## kingwilly

erm, plenty of availble lasses stroll, but naughty is frowned upon and u might just get robbed instead, (you cannot bring girls back into your room)

drugs, yes, plenty of low quality fuck u up herion abounds, and i think green is available also.

i should mention i dont like either.

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## rawlins

Great report... 

Do you reckon they attempt to scam the tourist more there compared to other nearby countries?

Did you need to sort out visas before going or is there any tourist visa on arrival there?

And would you go back?

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## kingwilly

visa first. and bring spare copies of entire application and passport photos (not really needed anymore, but used to be)

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## extras

> Do you reckon they attempt to scam the tourist more there compared to other nearby countries?


even uglier than thai scams, mate.  :Smile: 




> And would you go back?


yes, i would. although a lot of them are lying cheating twats, it's fun in a way.

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## Marmite the Dog

> we had booked Viet Anh Hotel ( http://www.vietanhhotel.com/ ), but looks like their website is down at the moment. we ended up staying at Gold Star Hotel on Hang Voi Street instead. got a couple of pics of the room. hot water was a bit unpredictable, though.


Should've done your research first mate.

https://teakdoor.com/cambodia-vietnam...ve-report.html

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## extras

^ have done quite a research (when i remembered i had bought plane tickets), but still not enough i suppose. those bastards are cheekier than i thought.  :Smile:

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## unkleblacky

exceleent report, was thinking of going there myself.

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## Cujo

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh)'s much more fun. Those Vietnamese taxi drivers are the worst.

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## Ping

Great story and pics Extras.  I did a similar one to Ho Chi Minh (sp?) anyway, Saigon, around ten years ago.  Same things tried on us down there (aside from the tollgate thing) and also with the cyclo pests.  We were supposed to stay a week, but gave it the flick after three days; at that time, there was feck-all tourist infrastructure in Saigon, although I'm aware that it has improved a lot since then.  No ambition of ever returning.  But at least you seem to have enjoyed yourself inspite of those pricks' best efforts.

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## terry57

I done that exact same trip but we stayed on cat ba island for 2 nights and it was well worth it as its a long day trying to do all that in the one day.

Did'nt fancy staying on the boat though after being on them for hours as its enough for me.

Regards those taxi drivers and the airport scam.  These guys are experts at this game,  pull it on to every round eye who enters  and make a bloody killing out of it especially with young female backpackers as they intimidate them into paying the money.

I was very pissed off as ive been around and thought i knew every scam going but they got me on that exact senerio you explaned.

Friggin hotel was full and they took us to another where we booked a halong tour and got ripped off so you are no orphan mate.

Great photos and trip report.

cheers. 

PS  Next time you go back jump on the train and head up to sapa.

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## extras

cheers all




> But at least you seem to have enjoyed yourself inspite of those pricks' best efforts.


yeah, i mean, it's not nice to be scammed but i wasn't going to argue for a bloody hour over, what, 150 bht. all of us was of the same opinion that, if the price was acceptable to us at the time, it's not a big deal if it turned out to be slightly overpriced. no happy with price, no pay. simple. the only exception being the taxi twat! :Smile: 




> I was very pissed off as ive been around and thought i knew every scam going but they got me on that exact senerio you explaned.


that shit did annoy me for a few hours, but i ain't gonna let it ruin my holiday. :Smile:

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## Ban Saray

Great strory and pics.
Ho Chi Mihn 2006 same story, but I refused to pay as the deal was $12, he tried for 1200,000 dong.
Anyway I stood my ground outside the hotel, and told him to go and get a cop if he didn't want the $12.  He took it and left.
My Thai wife was very embarrassed at the commotion it caused, but after so many years in Thailand being ripped off I was dammed if I'd let it happen again.
I never did any tourist trips there, my family and I preferred to walk around and shop.   My misses bought a skirt for the daughter for some stupid price that later worked out at 500 baht, but she refused to haggle.
As with other posters, will not be returning in a hurry.

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## terry57

I must say that its disapointing that many tourists get turned off by the blatant scams of the vietamese and they leave the thais for dead in this department.

I think i got really bent and twisted because i've travalled a shit load of miles and to many countries and they where better than i was.  :Smile: 

I mean',  i never rip people of but im always on my game watching for the scams but i even got ripped off by a 10 year old girl selling food in sapa and i must say that im a very cool character on the road but vietnam pushed my buttons when i first went there in 1993. and then again in 05.

My last trip was in  2005 and they still managed to rip me off so all i can say is i salute you vietnam and ill kick your arse next time.  :Smile: 

cheers " ho che min " even though he's dead.

Ok punters i realise my spelling is foked but ive had a few changs, im in mukdahan on the thai lao border and its all good except i have to go pee pee.

cheers, from your top mate clarence.  :France:

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## English Noodles

> nice report well done


Agreed, spot on Extras, realy enjoyed it. 

Cheers for that. :Smile: 

Noodles.

5 stars :Wink:

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## extras

cheers




> Anyway I stood my ground outside the hotel, and told him to go and get a cop if he didn't want the $12. He took it and left.


good on you, mate. would of loved to do the same, but problem was we didn't know where we were, and didn't think we could trust the hotel either. so better play safe.  :Smile:  one of us reckon some twat made an attempt to open their locked luggages when we were out and about too.




> all i can say is i salute you vietnam and ill kick your arse next time.


i'll try to go back too. just to tell some taxi driver to fuck off.  :Smile:

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## sabang

The Viet's are master scammers. Fortunately the Thai are lazier and nowhere near as creative, so the scams are basic and easier avoided here.

Good report.

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## stroller

> My misses bought a skirt for the daughter for some stupid price that later worked out at 500 baht, but she refused to haggle.


This sounds awefully familiar, except is was some silly scarf and she couldn't work out it was the equivalent of 30$. Too embarrassed to negotiate after all the fuzz the farang made before. :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic): 
Our birds must be related...

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## Bruce

Good stuff. Lots of tips I'll keep in mind for a trip there I'm planning. Well done.

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## gos

great story and pictures ,thanks we now all know what to exspect when we go to vietnam and they want to encourage tourists :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## Marmite the Dog

I'm prolly of to Hanoi in March for a rugger trip. I wonder in Milky fancies going out on the piss with a bunch of brainless alkies?

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## EmperorTud

The same taxi drive scam happens frequently in Thailand too, most notably on Phuket from the airport.

No difference.

It was tried on with me first time I was in Hanoi but I had prior knowledge of this kind of scam (from Phuket) and was prepared. The Viet guy at the hotel (same one as the OP I think) was very persistent and became aggressive and almost turned violent when I refused to get out of the taxi. The driver eventually and reluctantly drove me to my hotel.

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## Happyman

Been to Ho Chi Min many times but as I was working on a JV with the HCM  city council  had a "Minder" to hand to sort out any scam problems during the day. For my spare time I was given a few buisness cards from the Head Honcho and told to wave them about whenever I had a problem.
From the number of times I used them I can just imagine what problems I could have had without them !!! :Smile:

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## babygirl

Great pics, and story. Besides the obvious charging more for things, what other scams did you encounter? I've had friends that have been robbed there, and didn't like it because of that experience. Don't blame him. 




> Saigon (Ho Chi Minh)'s much more fun. Those Vietnamese taxi drivers are the worst.


Why is Ho Chi Minh more fun? If I had to choose between one or the other to visit.

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## hillbilly

I love these kinds of reports! Thanks and where are you going to next?  :Smile:

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## William

extras, thank for the memories.  It brought so many back, I hope you don't mind:

Gooooooood, morning - where





That famous and fab puppet show






the, now famous, HB





never did work out what this was...





and the lovely fishy people..





and then there's the temple itself



followed by the house



and the 'granny' annex





communist live well, but the darlings are always the people

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## Wayne Kerr

> never did work out what this was...




Believe it or not mate, that is a fishing boat. Have some video somewhere of a fisherman paddling one around on the sea fishing.

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## peterpan

A mate of mine (Honest) got caught up in one scam where by they ended up in a brothel, They negoitated  a price for activities with mamasan, before they set to it they were offered some beers, also were asked to buy a couple of beers for the girls, they thought no problem. after they finished, offered another couple of beers, also "girl want another beer", no problem until they decided to leave and asked for the bill, about 300 USD!! yes, the dancing activities with the girls was well priced but the beers were 35 USD  a bottle. 
Of course they started to argue the toss until 4 Viet guys turned up with base ball bats, one of the two made a run for it and got way but my mate caught a bat around the back which floored him, he paid.

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## barbaro

> A mate of mine (Honest) got caught up in one scam where by they ended up in a brothel, They negoitated  a price for activities with mamasan, before they set to it they were offered some beers, also were asked to buy a couple of beers for the girls, they thought no problem. after they finished, offered another couple of beers, also "girl want another beer", no problem until they decided to leave and asked for the bill, about 300 USD!! yes, the dancing activities with the girls was well priced but the beers were 35 USD  a bottle. 
> Of course they started to argue the toss until 4 Viet guys turned up with base ball bats, one of the two made a run for it and got way but my mate caught a bat around the back which floored him, he paid.


Never end up in situations like this.  Always ask the price for anything.  PAY AS YOU GO.  

I just read that Marmite might be in Hellnoi in March.  I'm on the other end.

Stop by and say "hi" any time.

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## Marmite the Dog

> I just read that Marmite might be in Hellnoi in March. I'm on the other end.


I'm not going now, as I'll be in Korat instead.

I may pop over later in the year though. You about in May?

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## barbaro

> Originally Posted by Milkman
> 
> I just read that Marmite might be in Hellnoi in March. I'm on the other end.
> 
> 
> I'm not going now, as I'll be in Korat instead.
> 
> I may pop over later in the year though. You about in May?


I'll be here in May.   :guitar:  :beer:

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## Marmite the Dog

Jolly good.

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## sunderlandstephen

Very good pics.
Have heard a few people tell of very similar experiences,with rip offs abounding.
One expat who spoke the language,reported a tannoy message in a Hanoi market to only gouge tourists that day as it was a national holiday.

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## barbaro

> Very good pics.
> Have heard a few people tell of very similar experiences,with rip offs abounding.
> One expat who spoke the language,reported a tannoy message in a Hanoi market to only gouge tourists that day as it was a national holiday.


People cannot be trusted when it comes to money.  Be it .01 cent or more.

Even at KFC the cashier tried to rip me off 2 weeks ago.

Integrity is lacking many people.

But when you stand up and challenge them, you will do OK.

And yes, after being here for a few years, I will bargain for 1 thousand dong, as a matter of principle.

The tourists are soft.  Tourists don't like to bargain, as they are not used to it, and they don't know the true costs of things.

But I know where to shop and what folks provide good, quality, honest service, so my cost of living is very cheap here.

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## Lady Hawk

Great pics and write up brought back good memories thanx

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## Bruce

Well, we had 4 days in Hanoi and it was a very mixed experience.
First the good things. We loved Halong Bay. We had 2 nights on a Chinese junk and I definitely recommend going for 2 nights as the one day and one night packages are not long enough to really experience it. For instance, the one nighters only go out a short way, after passengers board at midday, then anchor for the night, and next day cruise a little and go back, so you only get to see the area near the port. But on our 2 nights we went a lot further, where there were few other boats, and it was magic. Also went to a floating display of village life. And went kayacking in an area where we went thru one cave to an enclosed lake, then through another cave to a second enclosed lake, which boats can't enter. 
I loved the junks and said I could quite happily live on one as a floating house. Our junk was booked through Halong Bay Travel who were very helpful with visas etc.
The one downside was there was quite a lot of floating rubbish in some areas, mainly plastics. We did see a boat going around scooping up rubbish so that was good. Our guide said alot of the rubbish is not actually from the boats, but is washed down nearby rivers.
Another good thing was our hotel, the Golden Sun, in the old quarter, where the staff were excellent, really fussed over us, were super friendly and helpful, and even found two of our group a room in an adjacent hotel when they were full one night. Breakfast was in a small top floor restaurant with good views. Thoroughly recommend it.
The old quarter was also very interesting. Motorcycles everywhere and they don't stop so you have to become brave to edge out with your hand up and they just flow around you, which is unnerving but works. Many more motorcycles and fewer cars than in LOS. They're also nuts with their horns, everyone rides the horn all the time, which is rather self-defeating as no-one has any idea which horn is intended for them. 
The Water Puppet theatre opposite the lake was also very good, although jam packed with foreigners. Make sure you buy tickets ahead of time or you may be disappointed.
We did some bargaining but its not actually much cheaper than LOS and the quality of the goods varies greatly. I bought a computer bag and the first time I put it over my should the clips for both ends of the shoulder strap pulled completely out of the bag. Still useful without the strap though.
One of our group was deaf and he had a wonderful finger signing conversation with a street vendor who was super friendly even though he didn't buy anything.
The staff in some of the restaurants were pretty slow, particularly one overlooking the lake, but others were fine.
The airport officials who processed our visas were typical bureaucrats-slow and surly. Note you have to get a viss before you arrive - you can't get one at the airport. We just Googled Vietnam visas and found a place to apply on line. They sent us a reply. We paid online and then they sent a form which we printed and presented at the airport on arrival. Don't arrive at the airport without it. Or your travel agent should do it for a fee.
We flew AirAsia from KL, but then flew direct on AirAsia to Bangkok on return.
Also, watch the money changers. The one at the airport diddled us by not handing over the right amount of notes to match the receipt and we didn't realise until later because their notes for various amounts are very similar. I recommend you buy some dong in Bangkok and then use ATMs in Hanoi. I particularly recommend the ANZ Bank (an Aussie bank) atm opposite the lake as they have 2 guards on duty next to the ATM so people feel safer using it. Get rid of your dong before leaving Vietnam as they wouldn't accept it at Suvanabhumi.
Also watch when credit card payments are being made as a staff person accidentally (we think) tried to debit one of our credit cards for US$11 million !!! instead of a much smaller amount. Fortunately the bank stopped the payment and froze the card. 
We took a tour to Cam Toc (I think thats right from memory) but I wouldn't recommend it because the vendors were outrageously persistent and hassled us a lot. You get in a rowboat to be paddled thought the landscape, which is described as Halong on land because of the uplift formations and is quite interesting. But then the rowers try to sell you stuff and then they take you to floating vendors who hassle you to buy stuff. "Buy the rower a drink" they say, although its obvious the rower doesn't want a drink. I just refused and only bought myself a coffee. Then I gave the rowers a tip at the end. An American couple of Chinese appearance got really angry with their boat people for hassling them. At the end the rowers asked for a 200,000 dong tip and the Americans just laughed at them and stalked off.
Also, book your hotel to have you met at the airport as the taxi drivers have a bad reputation for attempting to overcharge. They will tell you there is no meter in their cab although there is. Sounds like Bangkok! The airport is about 45km from the centre of the city so they can charge quite a lot. Get your hotel to also arrange a taxi back to the airport when leaving as they will fix the amount to pay so at least you know it in advance. 
If you go to Halong Bay its several hours from Hanoi so get a transfer through the booking agency, as the driver should be reliable, don't try to travel independently.
The airport is huge and dark inside and is obviously under utilised. When leaving make sure you get to the airport earlier than you normally would because we got stuck in a huge queue and they only had a small number of gates open for processing and the officials were really slow. Also, they give you a customs declaration to fill in on arrival and you have to keep it and present it on leaving and they're supposed to collect it, so don't lose it, but they didn't actually keep some of our party's so we still have them. It appears to be an unnecessarily bureaucratic and muddled process. By comparison, Suvanambumi airport is a fast-track dream.
Finally, the coffee in Hanoi is really good but very strong. I recommend the Little Hanoi restaurant in the Old Quarter - very good food. But the department stores are not cheap by Thai standards. Better to haggle on the street. The beer I had was pretty ordinary.
The food was OK but not as good as I expected. I've had better Vietnamese food in Thailand. In Hanoi it was too much psueudo-western and not enough real Vietnamese. Thai food is much better.
Inflation is 20% in Vietnam and prices are rising rapidly which fills up the local papers with official promises to restrain inflation, but obviously its still rising.
We enjoyed some parts of Hanoi, particularly Halong Bay and the Old Quarter, but were underwhelmed with the rest. Still, go and see for yourself.

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## klongmaster

Cheers for the info Bruce...




> Note you have to get a viss before you arrive - you can't get one at the airport.


Because some of our members are Scandas it's worth noting that


> Swedish,              Norwegian, Danish, and Finnish              citizens will be exempted from requiring  visas              when they enter, exit or stay in Viet Nam for less than              15 days


.

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## Up2U

I'm living and working in the South of Vietnam.

Arriving in HCMC I was supposed to be met by a taxi from my (previously booked) hotel, but gave up after an hour or more. Very luckily a Japahese guy, working in HCMC, was waiting fior some of his senior people to arrive and he took pity on me and explained the score, told me what to pay the taxi, phoned my new employer and got the name of the hotel and address, so on. But I still had an argument with the taxi driver who had started at US $ 20 (No, put on the meter) went to US $ 15 (no, put on the meter) and we eventually got to the hotel for US $ 12 (by the meter). He had driven around a bit, but not too much, so I paid that US $ 12. He then got annoyed that there was no tip, but the hell with it. Let him get pissed.

Here in Ca Mau things are different - seem to be no scams - or they are very, very clever. Bread rolls I buy hot from the oven ae the equivalent of 2 baht (1,000 VN Dong). Down the road are filled sandwiches (crisp rolls - not sliced bread) of pate, chicken, assorted cut meat, tuna, etc., at around 15 baht each. In Pattaya the same thing in Friendship costs 65 baht.

I have a good Western-style meal most evenings with a beer or two for about 300 baht. Internet cafes I used before my computer was set up cost 1,000 dong (2 baht) for about 10 minutes.

But we are having power cuts for up to 12 hours a day on alternate days at the moment. There is a distinct lneed for power here, which we are trying to fill. Yesterday (Sunday) even the TV was off for the day because they obviously didn't have a back-up generator.

On Saturday Vietnam put a satellite into orbit, but they didn't say whose rocket they used (probably Russian, maybe French).

With regard to traffic, yesterday I was counting cars outside the restaurant while I was dining. One truck, 303 motorbikes, one car, about 35 motorbikes, one more car and approx. 350 motorbikes until a truck came along. So here the proportion is nearly 700 motorbikes to four closed-vehicles. And probably 100 push-bikes in the same time.

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