This seems to be the topic that most doubts cause among travelers who are preparing for their trip to Vietnam,. The lack of knowledge about what transport exist in Vietnam, how they are and how to book tickets often brings travelers to spend unnecessarily large sums of money on tours to places that could easily visit by themselves spending a half, a quarter and even less.

With this article I hope to help you get to know the different means of transport that exist in Vietnam and how to hire them, so you do not need to depend on agencies of tourism to plan your trip.

What company to use to fly to Vietnam?

I have travelled to Vietnam from Spain with Qatar, Emirates, Turkish Airlines, Vietnam Airlines + Iberia and Aeroflot (the latter is a Russian company that no longer operates routes from Europe to Vietnam due to the sanctions).

Both Qatar as Emirates and Turkish Airlines are very good companies and I felt completely satisfied after flying with each of them. The attention-board and the food was excellent, and the scale between 2h and 3h was enough to pass it without stress.

A combination that I’ve tried recently was Vietnam Airlines + Iberia. In this case, Vietnam Airlines fulfilled with a vengeance, but the experience with Iberia left much to be desired. scale in London was very short and confusing so it was a time of stress, the plane was basic, the prices on board quite expensive, I lost the suitcase, and it took them 6 weeks in indemnizarme after giving me a thousand and one excuses and have to report their lack of ethics in social networks.

Therefore, I would recommend flying with Qatar, Emirates or Turkish Airlines, and avoid Iberia as much as possible, by the lack of professionalism demonstrated. Skyscanner is, also in Vietnam, the best platform to find flights at the best price and I recommend using it during the preparation of your trip.

What company to use to fly in Vietnam? How Vietnam Airlines or ViejetAir?

Vietnam Airlines and Viejetair are the two companies vietnamese major, and therefore the more likely it is that you use any of the two if you fly in Vietnam.

►Vietnam Airlines is the airline with which you fly if you are looking for a quality service and smooth. planes are spacious and flights typically depart without delay. On the contrary, their prices are more higher than those of their competitors.

►Viejetair is the perfect companion if you are looking for the lowest price , and you accept that there may be changes in the schedule of your flights (the condition of the aircraft and the service is of quality).

► In recent years have branched out other companies such as Bamboo Airways , or Pacific Airlines you may want to consider also. These companies, especially Bamboo, offer a very good service at a price lower than Vietnam Airlines, but without change of times, or as many delays as Viejetair.

🏅 BONUS CONTENT: My experience with ViejetAir

I have flown with ViejetAir as 10 or 12 times, and of these I changed the flight and hour 3 times (I was notified a few days before by e-mail) and the other 3 the plane took off with a delay. As you can see, the lack of punctuality is something that characterizes this company, so I recommend you to avoid making connections that involve a flight of ViejetAir because you have so many chances to take a dislike.

If ViejetAir you have changed the time of your flight, don’t miss the article in which I will tell you what to do when ViejetAir you change the time-of-flight and it’s not going well.

How are the buses in Vietnam? How to book the buses in Vietnam?

►The buses in Vietnam do not comply with international standards in their majority, both because the driving in this country is quite chaotic (sometimes it may seem reckless) as by the fact that even sometimes get to more people who theoretically is allowed on the buses, and allow them to lie down in the hallways (for this reason, we recommend you to book your tickets in advance, for example on the web Baolau).

► The great majority of long distance travel in Vietnam can be carried out in buses bed, which is fantastic. In these buses, you’re lying, or sitting in hammocks folding that rise up early and go to bed according to your needs. These “jump seats” are quite comfortable for people with little in size, but you should know that if you’re great you can go quite right (I mido 1.84 and I say that I can sleep but not estirarme or anything like that).

►Where to book the bus? An easy question to answer

✅ Baolau is an excellent web page that was born from the dream of two pioneers of the technology Spanish, with the intention of making the transport in Vietnam more accessible. Offers fewer options than Vexere (more below), but only works with the best companies. If you have any questions regarding your trip, you can contact them by e-mail and, in my experience, respond the same day (sometimes even 1 or 2 hours after write).

✅ Vexere is a platform vietnamese very well-known for search, compare and book bus tickets, limousine, train or even ferry in Vietnam and, in some cases, to neighbouring countries. It works in a similar way to a “Booking.com” but for land transportation. Has very good customer service, but working with businesses better and worse, which makes the experience may not be always optimal.

👉 Finally, you can book your accommodation, which perhaps is the most comfortable, but keep in mind that in this case, you’re not going to be able to choose the bus company (the accommodation will choose it for you), the site where you are going to sit and it is possible to pay more, since accommodation usually receive a small commission.

¡¡PRO TIP!! — You can travel among the most important destinations in the north of Vietnam without going through Hanoi, so that you can save time and money. You can go from Hanoi to Sapa, and from there to Halong or Cat Ba, and from any of these, to the area of Tam Coc (Ninh Binh), from where you can follow in a night train to Hue or Da Nang, or go back to Hanoi is to fly to your next destination.

How are the trains in Vietnam? How to book trains in Vietnam?

► Both the trains as the pathways are fairly old, not to say old, and it obviously shows. On the one hand, it seems to me that you have a lot of charm but, at the same time, van hitting boats (the slip is not exactly fluid). These movements are at first surprised, and the first reaction is sometimes the thinking that it’s not going to get a paste eye. Believe me that just sleeping in a loose leg, in addition to that you are going to live an experience culturally very eye-catching.

Train in Vietnam you’re going to go a lot more comfortable in@ in bus. There are different types of seat: seats normal, bed in a cabin of 6 beds (2 bunk beds 3 beds) and a bed in a cabin of 4 beds (2 bunk beds, 2 single beds). I went on the 4-bed, and I was very comfortable, had a capacity of estirarme without a problem and, as you can see in the photo, until I had a couple of beer in complete relaxation (really, a lot more comfortable than the bus).

The trains are a really good alternative to the plane.

Most travelers probably think of first that the transfer in plane lis going to save you time, but often this is not so. For example, if you fly from Hanoi to Hue is very likely that you spend at least a morning or afternoon if you include the flight and transfers to airports. However, if you are going on an overnight train, you will go to bed on a train in the center of Hanoi or Ninh Binh , and you’ll wake up in the center of Hue in the morning. And the best thing is that you probably also have lived an experience like I said before, culturally interesting, the tickets you will come out cheaper than the plane and in addition you may have saved a night in a hotel!

► You can book trains from the Internet. I recommend you book some time in advance, so that you can choose the seat you want to do You have curiosity? Take a look at the prices at Baolau.

How to travel within the cities or places of interest in Vietnam?

Grab

In the cities, almost always the better option is to use Grab. These applications are similar to Uber or Cabify , and, like them,to allow you to request a car with driver in almost all the major cities of Vietnam to make trips in the car by the different cities of Vietnam, but, in addition, through this application you can also ask for moto-taxi, request qeu to move your backpacks from two points of a city (without your having to go into the transport) or order food to your accommodation.

The biggest advantage of Grab in comparison with companies like Uber, is that it’s a lot cheaper and, therefore, is the transport perfect to move around through the cities of economical way and without losing time (to give you an idea, a 10-minute ride in a car can easily cost between 1€ and 3€).

Be or Gojek is an application similar to Grab, and can be a good idea to download them to compare pricing, or if one gives you problems. In addition, a new application is Xanh SM. This application works only with cars and motorcycles electric company Vinfast. These transports are very comfortable, and sometimes the price of this application is cheaper than that of other companies such as Grab, Be or Gojek.

¡¡WARNING!!!! — To be able to use Grab (or other apps similar) it is necessary to have a SIM card in vietnamese with calls and Internet.

Urban Buses

If you want to move between two points in a city can be an interesting option. The buses in Vietnam are very very cheap (for example, a single ticket in Hanoi is 7000 dongs, 0.3€). In addition, the buses are una good option from a cultural point of view, because you’ll be able to see how many vietnamese people move through the city, and what do they do (and how do they differ buses in Vietnam on your country). You can find buses using Google Plus.

In bike

In Vietnam motorcycles are the most common means of transportation , and, although not I recommend you to Vietnam to learn, if you already know riding a bike rent a can be something very recommended in some places. The bikes typically cost between 100,000 dongs (4€) and 200,000 dongs (8€) per day and the more days you rent the more you’ll be able to negotiate a lower price by day. The bikes are the most common scooter 110cc in both automatic and semi-automatic and manual, but you can also find motorcycle 125cc. The model escooter in to rent most common in Vietnam, is the Yamaha Nouvo, usually pretty easy to handle. This option can be very good in locations as Cat Ba, Tam Coc, Ha Giang, Hue, or Sapa.

In bike

The bike is a very good option to browse by sites such as Hoi An, Tam Coc or Mai Chau, where you can find attractions are a bit scattered, which can be easily visited on a bike. The day price of the rent of bikes is usually to 50,000 dongs (2€), although some hotels allow guests to use free of charge.

How do you go from the airport to the cities?

By Bus – The bus is one of the best ways to go from the airports of the cities of vietnam to the center because (1) they are cheap (and there is no negotiation), 2) they are quick and will often but not always 3) are comfortable,. For example, in Hanoi the bus number 86 does it cost 35.000 dongs (1.4€), it has Wifi and air conditioning, happens like every half hour and takes about 55 minutes to the center (and the milk).

In the Grab – it Is a service very similar to that of the taxi, but you’ll save all kinds of negotiations and, in addition, in general it costs cheaper than taxis.
¡¡WARNING!!!! — To be able to use Grab (or other apps such as Be) , it is necessary to have a SIM card in vietnamese calls and the Internet.

Book a private transfer. – This option is probably the most convenient, because it means that they will have a driver waiting for you upon your arrival, you know where to take you, which is very comfortable. This option can be more expensive than the Grab, but it is not always so, and it is worth looking at prices.

In a taxi – I would not recommend this because of the fact there is a risk that you ripped. This is not as common as it may be in other countries, but I have read cases in first person in groups of Facebook of expatriates and in addition, recently, it happened to me. Therefore, do not recommend taking a taxi in Vietnam nor at the airport or on the street.

Do you already have everything you need for your trip to Vietnam?

Make sure to take advantage of the resources travellers helpful in Vietnam tested and recommended by Adventures with Alberto!