VISA CONDITION AND FEES:
Visitors must obtain visa approval prior to entry. A tourist visa for Vietnam can be obtained from any Vietnam Embassy or consulate office world wide. Visas are valid for 30 days and can be extended through our head office in Vietnam.
Notes:
Vietnam exempts visa for Asian Citizens, Scandinavia citizens as well as Japanese, South Korean tourists.
Visitors can obtain a visa upon arrival in Vietnam. We can apply for you to get a visa upon arrival at Tan Son Nhat Airport, Ho Chi Minh City, at Danang airport or Noi Bai international airport, Hanoi. The visa is done by us, an urgent visa on arrival (3 days before arrival) at 75 US$ and a normal 50 US$ both needs 2 passport sized photos.
Please provide the following information for us to apply for your visa.
1. Full name on passport
2. Passport number
3. Date of birth
4. Nationality
5. Date of arrival
6. Flight number and time
7. Fax number where we can fax you or your email address forward to you.
If we receive the above information we will process the visa within 3 working days
ARRIVAL IN VIETNAM:
All visitors must complete an Entry/exit Card. This should be submitted together with passport and visa to the Immigration Department officials at the point of entry. The Exit portion will be torn off and returned to the visitor, who should retain this for presentation upon departure. It is a good idea to staple this into your passport on the page that has your visa stamp.
CUSTOMS PROCEDURES:
All visitors must complete a Customs Declaration Form. Both the copy and the original will be stamped. The Customs officers will retain the original copy while the copy (so called yellow paper) will be given back to the visitor, who must submit it upon departure.
These forms will be passed to you on your flight to Vietnam . Every form asks for your contact address in Vietnam .
AIRPORT DEPARTURE TAXES:
There is a international departure tax of US$ 14 in Saigon and US$ 14 in Hanoi . Domestic departure taxes are included in air fare.
GETTING THERE & AWAY:
Ho Chi Minh City's (Saigon) Tan Son Nhat Airport is Vietnam 's busiest international air hub, followed by Hanoi 's Noi Bai Airpot. A few international flights also serve Danang. Singapore, Hongkong, Bangkok have emerged as the principle embarkation points for Vietnam but it's still possible to get direct flights from a number of major Asian and European cities and a few American, Australian cities. Departure tax is US$14 in Hanoi and 14 US $ in Saigon, which can be paid in Vietnam Dong or US dollars.There are currently six border crossings for travellers coming to Vietnam, but more may open soon. All crossing points suffer from heavy policing and often requests for 'immigration fees'.For getting to from China, it's become very popular to cross the border at Friendship Pass or Dong Dang, 20km (12mi) north of Lang Son in northeast Vietnam , to get to/from Namning. There is a twice-weekly international train between Beijing and Hanoi that stops at Friendship Pass. The other popular border crossing with China is at Lao Cai (near Sapa) in northwest Vietnam, which lies on the railway line between Hanoi and Kunming in China 's Yunnan Province. There's also a seldom used crossing at Mong Cai, Quang Ninh Province.It's possible to enter Laos from Lao Bao in north-central Vietnam; there's an international bus from Danang to Savannakhet ( Laos ). The other crossing is at Keo Nua Pass/Cau Treo, west of Vinh.The only crossing to Cambodia is via Moc Bai; an international bus links Phnom Penh with Ho Chi Minh City .
PEOPLE:
The majority of the population is comprised of the Viet or Kinh (87%) people who speak the Vietnamese language. The minority population is made up of 54 ethnic hill tribe people who mainly live in the extreme south, central and northern mountainous areas of the country. The best-known hill tribes are the TÃ y, Hmong, Zao, White and Black Thai, Muong (both mainly from the north), and the Hoa, Khmer in the South. Each hill tribe has its own unique customs and dialect and some are able to speak official Vietnamese language.
LANGUAGE:
Vietnamese, the national language is tonal and monosyllabic, which means the meanings of the word change according to the pitch they are pronounced at. The accents and some words are quite distinct among the three regions of North, Central, and South.
Today, English, French and Chinese have replaced Russian as the most studied and spoken languages.
CURRENCY:
The official currency, the dong and is non-convertible. There are coins notes.
The US dollar, preferably crisp clean bills, is widely accepted among major shops and restaurants. Travelers checks can be cashed at authorized foreign exchange outlets and banks, and require presentation of passport. There is normally a 2 to 5 percent transaction fee for cashing travelers checks. Visa and MasterCard are accepted in some of the bigger hotels and restaurants. Prices are usually quoted in USD so if you are paying in Dong check the exchange rate first.ATM machines are available at major cities: Hanoi , Halong, Haiphong , Hue , Danang, Nha Trang and Saigon .At the time of writing trades at approximately 16,000 dong to US$ 1 and 20,000 VND to 1 Euro.
TRADING HOURS:
Government offices and banks are open Monday to Friday. The banks close at 3:30 p.m. If you need to visit a government office do not do it during lunch periods. These usually last 1 to 2 hours. Post offices are open 7 days a week.
Most shops will be open until around 9 p.m. Snacks and bars will close around midnight however there a few new nightclubs in Hanoi and Saigon that stay open into the wee hours.
WEATHER:
Vietnam's elongated shape stretching from the tropics to the subtropics zone accounts for the varied climate in the country. Vietnam is an year round destination, when one part of Vietnam is cloudy and rainy, there are other parts of the country that can be sunny and warm. North Vietnam enjoys 4 seasons, meanwhile Central and South have 2, rain and dry seasons. Heat and humidity are typical weather of Vietnam.
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