Always remember the exchange rate before paying for anything. I have a friend who paid a few hundred dollars equivalent of Vietnam Dong for a taxi ride (Airport to City Center). The driver asked for the amount and they got confused with the exchange rate and just paid him the agreed amount (after bargaining) which was still ridiculously high. Don’t let your guard down even if you’re tired and worn out.

I tried to change Philippine Peso to Vietnam Dong but the exchange rate is so ridiculously bad. I suggest that you check the online exchange rate before you go to any money exchange shops. ATM is abundant in the cities and they give better exchange rates. Credit cards are widely accepted as well.

There’s a lot of cheap food available on the streets and accommodations are pretty cheap too compare to what I experienced in Laos. I’m usually paying $1-$2 for each meal and $3-$5 for accommodation.

Overall, Vietnam is a nice place to chill and relax without breaking an arm and leg. Did I mention that there’s an abundant supply of cheap backpacks and travel gears too. ;-)

Here are some of the interesting places that I went to:

Hanoi was my starting point in this Vietnam trip (Vinh was just my transit point from Laos). The old quarter is pretty slick with ton’s of shops that sells Vietnamese goods. For frequent travelers, I suggest you buy a silk sleeping bag sheet. It’s light weight and cheap, I bought one for only $2. A lot of historical monuments abound the streets of Hanoi. One thing that you shouldn’t miss is the Water Puppet show. It’s entertaining and amazing. The puppeteers are really good in making the wood puppets move on the water. This is also a convenient jump off point to Halong Bay. Make sure to cruise around for the cheapest deal.

Halong Bay
Halong Bay is indeed a wonder of this world. I hope it wins the Seven Wonders of the World award. There are hundreds or thousands of towering limestone islets dotting the sea. My tour package was about $35 dollars and it included full board meals, overnight stay in the ferry, entrance tickets to the park and islands and pickup from and to your hostel. I met a girl on the ship who paid only $28 for the same thing. By the way, it didn’t include drinking water or any drink at all so make sure to bring your own.

Hue
Hue was my first stop in my hop on and hop off Vietnam adventure. I only spent a day because I intended to stay longer in Hoi An. Hue is a historic city located in the central Vietnam. One of the things to see is the Citadel which is a World Heritage site. Inside the citadel was a forbidden city where only the concubines, emperors, and those close enough to them were granted access, the punishment for trespassing being death. Luckily, I didn’t live in that era because I love to trespass (LOL). I went around the Citadel and tried to sneak in for free to the Forbidden City to save some money but didn’t find any way to do it.

Hoi An
I love small towns and cities like Hoi an. I have never heard of this place until I came to Vietnam. Hoi An is a relaxing and charming place to go to. I rented a bike and toured around the city and cycled along the river banks. There are plenty of ways to burn your money here. I found out that Hoi An is famous for it’s tailors. You can have custom made shoes, dresses and suits for a very cheap price. Nightlife is abundant in the historic old town and there’s a beach nearby.

Nha Trang
It was a choice between the mountains of Da Lat or the beaches of Nha Trang. Since I missed the beaches so bad I decided to head to Nha Trang. Nha Trang is a highly commercialized beach area. It looks more commercialized than Patong beach of Phuket. I spent almost a week in Nha Trang because I was able to score a very cheap hotel accommodation. I was sharing a twin air conditioned room with another backpacker so I was paying only $2.5 a night. If you don’t intend to stay on the beach everyday, there are plenty of other things to do. I rented a bike and cycled around the city and then me and my friend went to this sulphur mud bath (my first time). Cheap baguettes made me survived the weak without starving myself to death. There were also sidewalk vendors selling grilled seafood at a very cheap price. I remembered paying only $5 for a grilled lobster and a piece of bread.

 Ho Chi Minh