Viet nam, officially Socialist Republic of Vietnam, covers an area of 332,000 square kilometers. It share borders with China in the north, Laos and Cambodia in the West and the Pacific Ocean in the East. With population of more than 80 million, it is the most populated country in Southeast Asia. Mainly of population is Vietnamese living with others 54 ethnic groups including Chinese, Muong, Thai, H’mong, Khmer, Meo, Cham, Tay, Nung. Vietnam’s geography varies from low, flat delta in the south and north to hilly, mountainous terrace in the central, far in the northwest. Three – quarters of Vietnam is hilly and Mountainous, there are 2 large delta are Red river delta in the north and Mekong delta in the south, this is 2 main rice basket of Vietnam.Vietnam, once a forbidden country for tourists, now attracts millions visitor every years. Rich culture, strong tradition and friendly people make characterize of country. This exotic destination offers such wonders as magical islands set in pristine waters as well as historic, cultural sites likes temples pagodas and a listed of world heritage. Travelling to Vietnam will be an unforgettable experience and will leave visitors deeply impressed. 

Airport tax: All the airport tax and fees are included in the flight ticket from November 2006  
 
Customs and Formalities: All visitors when arrival to Vietnam must fill the declaration forms and show their luggage to customs officials on request. Visitors can bring unlimited amounts of foreign currency, objects made of gold, silver, precious metals and gemstones or plated with silver or gold, all of these things must be declared in detail on the customs forms.

Entry: Tourists are authorized to bring in the following items duty-free: Cigarettes: 400, Cigars: 50-100, Tobacco: 100 gram, Liquor: 1.5L, Gift: small gift items valued at not more than US$ 500.

Note: There is no limit to the amounts of cash, precious metals and gems people can bring in, but amounts of over US$ 7,000 must be declared.

It is prohibited for any visitor to bring into Vietnam the followings: 
1. Weapons, explosives and inflammable objects. 
2. Opium and other narcotics. 
3. Cultural materials unsuitable to Vietnamese society.

Exit: Goods of commercial nature and articles of high value require export permits issued by the Customs Office. Antiques, some precious stones and animals listed in Vietnam's red-book may not be brought out of the country.

Registration: Hotels and private hosts must register your presence to the police. You will be expected to hand over your passport, together with your visa number. It is suggested to photocopy your passport details several times and than hand this copy in instead of your original passport.

Courtesy: Vietnamese people are very friendly, polite and generous in general and will make every effort to have foreign guests feel comfortable. In the cities and country towns alike, do not be surprised to be invited home to meet the family of someone you have just meet, these are the experiences that will enrich your visit to Vietnam.

We are conservative in our dress. Wearing shorts are tolerated, unless you enter a culturally sensitive area such as a temple or pagoda. Keep in mind that, although tolerant, people may be judgmental.

Unfortunately, there are still some problems with petty theft and pickpockets. This is more prevalent in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Nha Trang. You should not be paranoid about this but just be aware of your surroundings

Food: The Vietnam cuisine would bring a surprising gift for visitors and definitely a part of Vietnam experience not to be missed. One of the characteristics of Vietnamese food is that it is always fresh being purchased the same day from market. Food is usually prepared with minimum of oil and served with Fish sauce. Some typical Vietnamese dishes you can expect to try include Pho ( a kind of rice noodle + stock with beef or chicken), Cha gio ( Pork pie or Beef pie), Deep fried spring rolls, Goi ngo sen ( a kind of salad including lotus root, shirms, peanut, herb). Vietnamese is influence by Buddhism so vegetarian food is widely available.

Electricity:  Mainly 220V but in some areas 110V is also used. The 2 prongs plug is suggested to bring.

Telecom:  International phone charges are cheap in Vietnam in post office or at internet café, it is better if you can buy a Vietnamese simcard (around 5usd and you get around 10usd in your pre paid account). And a cheap cell phone (20usd) to use during your stay.

Faxes can be sent from hotels bussiness centers and post offices. Rates are vary. You will be able to use your mobile phone as long as it is programmed for roaming internationally. You may also rent a mobile phone, which may be easier, or buy a pre-paid phone card. There are several mobile telecom company got widely cover like Vinaphone, Mobiphone, Viettel
 
E-mail and Internet services are available in most hotels and posts in Vietnam. Free wifi internet are available at many Café and restaurant, In major cities, there.  

Useful Telephone Number 

0	National Domestic Direct Dialing Access Code
00	International Direct Dialing Access Code
1080	Social and Cultural Information Clearing up Queries Service
113	Police
114	Fire Brigade
115	Ambulance
How to make long - Distance calls To provinces and cities within Vietnam: - 0 + Area code + Tel. Number or - 171 (177, 178) + 0 + Area code + Tel. Number (economic call) To other countries: - 00 + Country code + Area code + Tel. number - 171 (177, 178) + 00 + Country code + Area code + Tel. number (economic call) or - 171 + 1 + Waiting for connective tone + Country code + Area code + Tel. number

Water: It is not advisable to drink the tap water in Vietnam, but bottled mineral water is safe and available everywhere. Ice in drinks is generally Ok in good standard hotels and restaurants but it is best to avoid it on street stalls or in country areas.

Business hours: Offices are usually open from Monday to Friday from 07.30 or 08:00 until 16:30 or 17:00 and often close for lunch between 11:30 to 13:00. Some offices are also open on satuday morning or whole day. Shops and Restaurants open early and close at about 18:00 and 22:00. Most of the shops open 7 days a week.

Currency and exchange: Vietnam currency is Dong (VND) bank note are available of  500vnd; 1000vnd; 2000vnd; 5000vnd; 10,000vnd; 20,000vnd; 50,000vnd; 100,000vnd; 200,000vnd; 500,000vnd. The exchange rate at this time of typing (June 2010) is vnd 19,500vnd to one US dollar.
 
Please click on this link for daily exchange rate: Vietcombank
      
Most of hotel and restaurant in main city are accepted credit card, you also can use your credit card to withdraw money at ATM in all the main city in Vietnam.

What to bring: One medium sized back pack and a day pack bag will provide enough room for you to carry during the trip in Vietnam. There are plenty of goods available at all main city so don’t be worry about running out of somethings. You can follow some demo check list as below.

- Wearing: Lightweight and quick dry clothing for summer months and warmer clothing for the winter months, sun hat, swimming suite, raincoat or umbrella, good hiking shoes
- Travel documental: Passport, visa, travel insurance, air tickets, a torch, alarm clock, sunglasses, Sunscreen, insect repellent, personal first aid kit, cable lock, personal toiletries.

- Money: US dollars or travelers cheque or credit card, most of hotel and restaurant in vietnam accept credit card.

Language: Vietnamese is the only official language of Vietnam and spoken by great majority of the population (around 90%), those who do not speak it is largely ethnic minorities in the rural highlands. vietnamese itself was originally written in Chinese characters, which is adapted to fit the indigenous vocabulary, the Chinese transcrition was called Nôm. in Seventeenth century French Jesuit misionary Alexandre de Rhodes adapted Vietnamese to Latin alphabet, using  an ingenious system of diacriticals to transcribe the tonal qualities of words. The result call Quoc Ngu (National language) and today it is exclusive written form of Vietnamese.

Foreigner languages: Special for English is popular among young people. Tourist guides are available for English, French, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, German, Russian, Spainish, Thai.

* Some useful words and phrares when you travel to Viet nam 
 

English	Vietnamese	English	Vietnamese
Hello	Xin chao	I am sorry	Toi xin loi
Thank you	Cam on	It is too expensive	Dat qua
Goodbye	Chao tam biet	Discount	Giam gia
See you again	Hen gap lai	Menu	Thuc don
Yes	Da, Vang	Bill please	Tinh tien
No	Khong	Im vegetarian	Toi an chay
I do not know	Toi khong biet	Im tired	Toi bi met
Im feeling sick	Toi bi om

  
 Public holiday 
1. International new year (1days)
2. TET holiday or Lunar new year (4days)
3. Hung King’s Day: 10^th March lunar month
4. Liberation day 30^th April (1 day)
5. International Labor day 1^st May (1day)
6. National day 2^nd September

Weather: Hanoi and the north of Vietnam have a distinct winter and summer season with the mainly dry winter lasting from November through to April with average temperatures of 18-20ºC. Summer lasts from May to October and is hot and humid with temperatures around 30ºC. Hue and Danang in the center of the country have very hot, dry weather from February to August with temperatures reaching the mid 30s-Celsius, but can experience some quite heavy rainfall between September and January. Ho Chi Minh City and the south have a hot, dry season from December till April with average temperatures around 28ºC and a rainy season lasting from May through till November. It rarely rains for long periods even in the rainy season with most rain coming in short, heavy bursts

Insurance and Hospital: It is advise to buy the travel insurance at your country before your trip start.

Useful telephone and address of Vietnam Hospital  

IN HANOI
Bach Mai hospital Add: Giai phong street, Hanoi Tel: (84-4) 8693731	Sait Paul hospital Add: 12 Chu Van An str. Hanoi Tel: (84 -4) 8233071/8233075
Viet Duc university hospital Add: 40 Trang Thi str. Hanoi Tel: (84-4) 8.253.531	Vietnam – France hospital Add: 01 Phuong Mai str., Hanoi Tel: (84-4) 5771100
IN HO CHI MINH
Cho Ray hospital Add: 201B Nguyen Chi Thanh str, HCM Tel: (84-8) 8554138	Vietnam – France hospital Add: 6 Nguyen Luong Bang str. HCM Tel: (84-8) 4113333
Hung Vuong hospital Add: 128 Hung Vuong str. HCM Tel: (84-8) 8558532	Sai Gon general hospital Add: 125 Le Loi str. HCM Tel: (84-8) 8297709
IN DA NANG
C Hospital Add: 122 Hai Phong str. Danang Tel: (84 -511) 823643

 

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