Travel to Vietnam

 Flying to Vietnam

The national airline is Vietnam Airlines (VN) (www.vietnamairlines.com) who run direct flights from London Gatwick to Hanoi. It is served by many airlines via nearby hubs, including Cathay Pacific (www.cathaypacific.com) and Thai International (www.thaiairways.com). Flights to Vietnam are at their most expensive around Christmas, New Year and Tet (January/February).

Air notes:

A new international terminal was opened at Ho Chi Minh City in 2007 but plans have already been approved for an out-of-town airport which will relegate Tan Son Nhat to domestic flights only.

Flight times:

From London to Hanoi takes approximately 17 hours and from Los Angeles 20 hours.

Departure tax:

Included in the price of the ticket.

Airport guides

Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport

Airport Code: SGN. Location: The airport is located within the Hồ Chí Minh city limits, about 8km (5 miles) north of the... Money: ATM service and bureaux de change are available.Read more

Other airports in Vietnam

Noi Bai International Airport

Airport Code: HAN. Location: The airport is around 35km (21 miles) north of the city. Website: N/A.Public transport description: Vietnam Airlines operates a bus service into the city and its office on Quang Trung Street and there is a public bus to Kim Ma Bus Station. Metered taxis are also available.

 Travel by rail

It is possible to cross into Vietnam from China by rail from Beijing- Dong Dang-Hanoi and back. Contact Vietnam Railways (tel: (04) 3942 3949; www.vr.com.vn) for details.

A very useful number in Vietnam is 1080 where English-speaking operators can give information on timetables.

Driving to Vietnam

There are routes to China through Lang Son, Mong Cai and Lao Cai, to Cambodia through Moc Bai and Xaxia and also to Laos through Lao Bao, Nam Can, Na Meo, Tay Trang and Cau Trieu.

There is a regular bus service from Phnom Penh, Cambodia, operated by the Saigon Passenger Transport Company (tel: (08) 3920 3623; www.saigonbus.com.vn). There are bus services from Vientiane, Laos to Hanoi and Savannakhet, Laos to Hue and tickets for these must be bought in person from the bus station and neither journey is the most comfortable of rides. There are no buses travelling from China that cross into Vietnam. Passengers have to change buses at the border.

Getting to Vietnam by boat

The only international arrival point into Vietnam with a regular ferry service is Chau Doc in the Mekong Delta. There are daily speedboat ferries from Phnom Penh along the Mekong River taking 4.5 – 5 hours. Cruise ships call at Ho Chi Minh City, Nha Trang, Danang and Haiphong.

Blue Cruiser (tel: (08) 3926 0253; www.bluecruiser.com) operate a daily speedboat service between Chau Doc in the Mekong Delta and Phnom Penh. Guests of the Victoria Hotel in Chau Doc can use their daily service to Phnom Penh (tel: (076) 386 5010; www.victoriahotels-asia.com).

Cruise ships:

Cruise ships call at Ho Chi Minh City, Nha Trang, Danang and Haiphong.

Ferry operators:

Blue Cruiser (tel: (08) 3926 0253; www.bluecruiser.com) operate a daily speedboat service between Chau Doc in the Mekong Delta and Phnom Penh. Guests of the Victoria Hotel in Chau Doc can use their daily service to Phnom Penh (tel: (076) 386 5010; www.victoriahotels-asia.com).

River routes:

Travelling along the mighty Mekong River from Phnom Penh to Chau Doc is a very special way to arrive.

Vietnam Shopping and nightlife

Shopping in Vietnam

For anyone who likes handicrafts and a bargain, Vietnam is nirvana. Wooden water puppets, with ingenious mechanisms, silk, lacquerware, ceramics, colourful hill-tribe bags, clothing and hand-painted silk greetings cards are all a must-buy. Clothes are particularly good value and tailors can make up clothes within 24 hours in many places, particularly Hoi An.

Each town and city has one or more markets and these are always worth visiting as much for the experience as for the shopping. Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have seen the arrival of upmarket shopping malls selling leading international and domestic brands.

In small shops and markets have a go at bargaining for any items that catch your eye, but remember to keep it good-natured. Many of the souvenir shops in major towns and cities don't budge much on prices and some are even fixed price.

Shopping hours:

Shops are generally open seven days a week from 08h00 to 20h00; some are open until 22h00 hours.

Nightlife in Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City is packed with bars and clubs ranging from dingy bars to some very upmarket venues. Most of the nightlife is concentrated in District 1. Hanoi's nightlife is much quieter and the streets can appear quiet after 22h00 hrs. The venues tend to be small here and are concentrated in the Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem lake.

Live music is mainly restricted to international acts from the Philippines and Thailand performing in international hotels, with a few bars hosting local jazz and rock bands. Elsewhere, the nightlife is generally restricted to small bars and hotels but there is a particularly good bar/café scene in Hoi An in central Vietnam. For visitors seeking out something more cultural a visit to the water puppet theatre is entertaining. The bia hois (pavement pubs) also offer a fun social experience and the friendly locals will often talk to visitors. Food and snacks such as boiled quails’ eggs are also usually available. Traditional music and dance is performed in some restaurants in the main tourist areas, particularly Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Danang and Hue.

Vietnam Food and Drink

Vietnam Food and Drink

Vietnamese cooking is varied and usually superb, as the profusion of Vietnamese restaurants in New York, London and Berlin contest. It is a mixture of Vietnamese, Chinese and French traditions, with a plethora of regional variations. As in all countries of the region, rice or noodles usually provide the basis of a meal. Not surprisingly, fish is plentiful. Pride is taken in the fact that the freshest of vegetables are used and the vegetables and fruit served is seasonal.

Specialities:
• Breakfast is often congee (rice porridge) or a meaty noodle soup locally known as pho.
• Nem (spring rolls: pork mixed with noodles, eggs and mushrooms wrapped in rice paper, fried and served hot).
• Banh chung (glutinous rice, pork and onions wrapped in large leaves and cooked for up to 48 hours, to be eaten cold at any time).
• Nuoc mam (Vietnamese dishes are not complete without this fermented fish sauce).
• Bun cha, (grilled pork, cold rice noodles, deep fried rolls and a big bowl of salad leaves).

Tipping:
Tipping is now quite customary, especially in tourist areas, and is much appreciated in a country where salaries are still low. Upscale restaurants and hotels may add a 5-10% service charge to the bill.

Regional drinks:
• Soda chanh is a refreshing lime soda served with freshly squeezed lime juice, sugar and ice mixed into club soda.
• Vietnamese coffee grown in the Central Highlands is served thick, strong and black through a drip filter. Sometimes it is served with condensed milk to sweeten it.
• Vietnamese green tea is light and refreshing and served at the end of meals.
• Ruou can (rice wine) is made by members of the Vietnamese hill tribes and drunk straight from ceramic fermentation jars through bamboo straws.
• Bia hoi or fresh beer is produced daily and served ice cold in small, local bars. It is not particularly alcoholic but very refreshing.

Drinking age: None

Vietnam things to see and do

Beautiful beaches

The beaches of Vietnam are superb. Nha Trang is the perfect combination of a long sandy beach for relaxing days under the palm trees and a town with restaurants and bars to pass the balmy evenings. Boat trips take you out to nearby islands and divers can explore the nearby coral reefs. Alternatively, try Vung Tau, southeast of Ho Chi Minh City for some superb snorkelling around the many offshore islands or head east of Phan Thiet to the sand dunes of Mui Ne, which stretch for miles. Whatever your budget there'll be a resort to suit you. Relax on the white-sand beaches or have a go at many of the water sports on offer.

Cao Dai Temple

Head out to Tay Ninh to view the colourful midday service of the intriguing Cao Dai sect held in a large temple almost Disney-esque in style. The followers wear red, blue and yellow robes and chant to the accompaniment of a traditional orchestra. En route, scramble through the tunnels at Cu Chi, from where the Viet Cong successfully launched attacks against US forces.

Central Highlands

Dalat is as far as most people go into the Central Highlands but head further into the mountains for stunning views and waterfalls. You are assured of a warm welcome in Buon Ma Thuot, a coffee growing region and home to the Montagnards. The Ho Chi Minh trail is easily reached from Kontum.

Cooking lessons

Learn the subtleties of Vietnamese cookery at a class in ancient Hoi An. Submerge into the hustle and bustle of the market to buy provisions before retreating to the calm of the kitchen. The best part of the day – you get to eat what you have helped prepare!

Dalat

To escape the heat of the plains, head for Dalat, a former colonial hill station, reminiscent of a French town, with faded, elegant villas evocative of another era. Colonists from Saigon headed to its cool climes as well as the emperor and his entourage. The romantic lakes and alpine scenery are magnets for Vietnamese honeymooners.

Halong Bay

Sure it is touristy, and if you take a boat trip you'll be among a flotilla of dozens of old converted junks, but Halong Bay still remains one of the most impressive sights in the world. Take the opportunity to borrow a kayak (all boats should do this) and paddle through the limestone karsts dramatically rising up out of the sea. Or spend the night on one of those junks and explore the caves hidden deep in the islands, pass floating villages and at night enjoy a sundowner on the top deck and look out for shooting stars.

Hanoi

Hanoi is a city of contrasts with the wide, leafy boulevards lined by beautiful colonial buildings in the French quarter, the maze of narrow streets of the Old Quarter and the tranquil lakes. Wherever you are, the background noise is the buzzing of the motorbikes that crowd the streets of the capital.

Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City by train

A trip on the Reunification Express is a must. However, the trains between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are certainly not express. It can take between 30 and 40 hours to travel between the two cities so best to do one section only. Popular is the 18-hour journey between Hanoi and Hue.

Hiking

There are hundreds of long distance hiking trails around the country, and a significant infrastructure for visitors wanting guided hiking tours. Head south from Hanoi into Cuc Phuong National Park, a wilderness of forest-covered limestone mountains which rise up from the green rice paddies, home to many rare species and the primate rescue centre. Spend the night with a family from the Muong hill tribe in their traditional stilthouse.

Ho Chi Minh City

Gleaming skyscrapers sit side by side with ramshackle buildings and crumbling colonial houses. Monks pass deluxe car showrooms collecting alms and walk along sun-baked streets crammed with honking motorbikes. The Saigon River is constantly crossed by small boats and ferries weaving through larger boats.

Ho Chi Minh Trail history tour

See some of the Vietnam War sights by walking part of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, used as supply routes by the North Vietnamese during the war. You can't fail to be intrigued by the network of tunnels excavated by the Viet Cong from which they launched regular attacks on the US forces. For a taste of life underground scramble through one of the narrow tunnels, specially widened for Western visitors.

Hoi An

Meander the narrow streets with their tiny shop houses, relax in a riverside bar and savour tasty local dishes. This is the place to buy souvenirs, silk items, T-shirts and ceramics. Whatever you do make sure you treat yourself by having clothes made at one of the many tailors.

Huế

The former imperial city of Hue is crammed with wonderful sights. The Imperial Citadel, suffering from the ravages and war and the tropical weather, is slowly being painstakingly renovated; riverside is the Thien Mu pagoda where novice monks peek shyly at the visitors; and the mausoleums of the Emperors, each unique in style.

Meet the locals

The best way to meet the locals is to pull up a low plastic chair in the pavement bar order some beer, order fresh peanuts and quails eggs and chat to the locals. Even with a language barrier, you'll be clinking glasses long into the night.

Mekong Delta

Explore the watery world of the Mekong Delta where channels of the might Mekong Delta crisscross the land and provide a fertile place to grow vast swathes of rice and fruit. Discover riverine towns, floating markets and small riverside industries and spend the night in a homestay with a farming family.

Motorbiking

It is becoming increasingly popular to hire a motor bike - invariably a Russian made 125cc Minsk - and ride it from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City. Riddled with all sorts of dangers, not least the vast amount of bikes in the cities, it is nevertheless an exhilarating way to see the country.

River markets

The river markets on the Mekong Delta are an unmissable sight. Life here is dominated by the mighty Mekong and much of Vietnam's rice crop is grow, and the floating markets are still an essential part of life in the south. Get up early to experience Can Tho floating market at its best. Dozens of wooden boats, many that have seen better days, carry the freshest fruit and vegetables. Smaller boats weave through them perusing the wares and the morning air is filled with the sound of good-natured haggling over price.

Sapa hill tribes

Sapa's stunning alpine scenery is home to several hill tribe villages where life continues pretty much unchanged. Many can be reached by jeep but to get to the more remote villages be prepared to hike. The reward is an overnight in a stilthouse with a family resplendent in riotously colourful traditional costume.

Things to do Jade Emperor Pagoda

Things to do Jade Emperor Pagoda

 Ho Chi Minh City , Vietnam

 Address

Street 73 Ð Mai Thi Luu

 Opening hours

7am-6pm, on 1st & 15th of lunar month 5am-7pm

Built in 1909 in honour of the supreme Taoist god (the Jade Emperor or King of Heaven, Ngoc Hoang), this is one of the most spectacularly atmospheric temples in HCMC, stuffed with statues of phantasmal divinities and grotesque heroes. The pungent smoke of incense (huong) fills the air, obscuring the exquisite woodcarvings.

Its roof encrusted with elaborate tile work, the temple's statues, depicting characters from both Buddhist and Taoist lore, are made from reinforced papier mâché. Inside the main building are two especially fierce and menacing Taoist figures. On the right (as you face the altar) is a 4m-high statue of the general who defeated the Green Dragon (depicted underfoot). On the left is the general who defeated the White Tiger, which is also being stepped on.

Worshippers mass before the ineffable Jade Emperor, who presides – draped in luxurious robes and shrouded in a dense fug of incense smoke – over the main sanctuary. He is flanked by his guardians, the Four Big Diamonds (Tu Dai Kim Cuong), so named because they are said to be as hard as diamonds.

Out the door on the left-hand side of the Jade Emperor’s chamber is another room. The semi-enclosed area to the right (as you enter) is presided over by Thanh Hoang, the Chief of Hell; to the left is his red horse. Other figures here represent the gods who dispense punishments for evil acts and rewards for good deeds. The room also contains the famous Hall of the Ten Hells, carved wooden panels illustrating the varied torments awaiting evil people in each of the Ten Regions of Hell. Women queue up at the seated effigy of the City God, who wears a hat inscribed with Chinese characters that announce 'At one glance, money is given'. In a mesmerising ritual, worshippers first put money into a box, then rub a piece of red paper against his hand before circling it around a candle flame.

On the other side of the wall is a fascinating little room in which the ceramic figures of 12 women, overrun with children and wearing colourful clothes, sit in two rows of six. Each of the women exemplifies a human characteristic, either good or bad (as in the case of the woman drinking alcohol from a jug). Each figure represents a year in the 12-year Chinese astrological calendar. Presiding over the room is Kim Hoa Thanh Mau, the Chief of All Women. Upstairs is a hall to Quan Am, the Goddess of Mercy, opposite a portrait of Dat Ma, the bearded Indian founder of Zen Buddhism.

The multifaith nature of the temple is echoed in the shrine's alternative name Phuoc Hai Tu (福海寺; 'Sea of Blessing Temple'), whose message is clearly Buddhist. Similarly, the Chinese characters (佛光普照: Phat Quang Pho Chieu ) in the main temple hall mean 'The light of Buddha shines on all'.

Outside, a small pond seethes with turtles, some of which have shells inscribed with auspicious inscriptions.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com

Things to do in Ho Chi Minh city War Remnants Museum

One of the historical site that you can not miss  when you visit Ho Chi Minh city that is War Remnants Museum

War Remnants Museum was opened on September 4, 1975. At present, it is a member of Vietnamese Museum System, of Museum for the Word Peace, and of International Council of Museums.

The Museum is specialized in research, collecting, preserving, and exhibiting the remnant proofs of Vietnam War crimes and their consequences. Through these, the museum intends to call the public to say no to war - yes to peace for wold people solidarity.

Actually, to serve Vietnamese and foreign tourist public, the museum show numerous remnant proofs for eight current exhibitions inside the museum, and other exhibitions in locations other than museum, peace and friendship delegations, help exchanges between visitors and war witnesses. With the annual rate of more than 500,000 visits,  the museum has become one of the well-known, cultural and tourist sites, attracting both Vietnamese and foreign tourists.

List of themes

1. Historical Truths

2. Requiem - collection of war documentary photos taken by 134 journalists from 11 nationalities, killed during Indochina War

3. The collections of documentary photos of Japanese photographers: Bunyo Ishiiikawa and Nakamura Goro

4. Imprisonment conditions during the War

5. Aggressive War Crimes

6. " DOVE" Children Education room

7. The World people in support of Vietnam's Resistance.

Open hours:

Morning: 07.30am - 12.00am

Afternoon: 13.00 - 17.00

Entrance fee: 15.00vnd/ person

Kindly contact Daily Travel Vietnam for arranging a visiting to this historical site through this email address: info@dailytravelvietnam.com

Things to do Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum

Things to do Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum

In the tradition of Lenin, Stalin and Mao, Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum is a monumental marble edifice. Contrary to his desire for a simple cremation, the mausoleum was constructed from materials gathered from all over Vietnam between 1973 and 1975. Set deep in the bowels of the building in a glass sarcophagus is the frail, pale body of Ho Chi Minh. The mausoleum is closed for about two months each year while his embalmed body goes to Russia for maintenance.

The roof and peristyle are said to evoke either a traditional communal house or a lotus flower, though to many tourists it looks like a concrete cubicle with columns.

The queue, which moves quite quickly, usually snakes for several hundred metres to the mausoleum entrance itself. Inside, adopt a slow but steady pace as you file past Ho’s body. Guards, in snowy-white military uniforms, are posted at intervals of five paces, giving an eerily authoritarian aspect to the slightly macabre spectacle of the body with its wispy white hair.

Note that wearing shorts and tank tops is not permitted so dress modestly, and maintain a respectful demeanour at all times; no talking. It's also forbidden to put your hand in your pockets. Hats must be taken off, and you may also be requested to store day packs, cameras and phones before you enter. Photography is strictly prohibited in the mausoleum.

Most of the visitors are Vietnamese and it’s interesting to watch their reactions. Most show deep respect for Ho Chi Minh, who is honoured for his role as the liberator of the Vietnamese people from colonialism, as much as for his communist ideology. This view is reinforced by Vietnam’s educational system, which emphasises Ho’s deeds and accomplishments.

If you’re lucky, you’ll catch the changing of the guard outside Ho’s mausoleum – the pomp and ceremony displayed here rivals the British equivalent at Buckingham Palace.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com