Trip to Vietnam

The list adapts to you

When you add it, the checklist asks a couple of questions and keeps only the items that fit your situation.

• Traveling with kids? NoYes
• Planning to rent a scooter? NoYes

What's inside

1. Check your passport validity

   Vietnam requires at least 6 months of passport validity from the date of entry.

2. Check visa: exemption or e-visa

   Some nationalities get 15–45 days visa-free; others need the e-visa from evisa.gov.vn (issued online in a few days). Rules change — double-check for your passport before booking.

3. Buy travel insurance

   Check whether the policy covers scooter riding — most basic plans exclude it, and scooters are the top source of tourist injuries in Vietnam.

4. Save tickets and bookings offline

   Immigration may ask for a return ticket. Keep booking screenshots plus your first hotel's address handy.

5. Bring some US dollars in cash

   Cards work in cities, but markets, street food and rural areas run on cash. Gold shops and city banks beat airport exchange rates; crisp bills get better treatment.

6. Learn the dong banknotes

   One dollar is roughly 25,000 dong, with notes from 1,000 to 500,000. The 20,000 and 500,000 notes look confusingly similar — count your change slowly.

7. Make copies of your documents

   Photograph passport, visa and entry stamp to cloud storage. Hotels often keep passports «for registration» — collect yours back the next day.

8. Check your region's climate for your dates

   Vietnam stretches 1,600 km: Hanoi, Da Nang and Phu Quoc have different weather in the same month — northern winters hit +15°C while the south sits at +32°C. Check your specific region, not «Vietnam».

9. Pack a first aid kit

   Sorbent, oral rehydration salts, anti-diarrheal, fever reducer, antiseptic, plasters. Pharmacies are everywhere, but you'll be explaining symptoms in sign language.

10. Buy repellent with 30%+ DEET

    Dengue circulates year-round, worst in the south during the rainy season. Apply at dusk, in greenery and near water.

11. Sunscreen SPF 50

    You can burn through the haze on a beach or a Ha Long Bay deck. Pack panthenol or aloe for after-sun.

12. Drink bottled water only

    Skip the tap water. Iced coffee and tea at proper cafés are fine — they use factory ice, the cylindrical kind with a hole.

13. Pick street food stalls with a queue

    Simple rule: eat where locals queue and food is cooked fresh over fire in front of you. Skip empty stalls with pre-cooked trays.

14. Light clothes + a layer and rain poncho

    Cotton and linen by day, a layer for AC and northern evenings, and a rain poncho — downpours arrive fast, and locals ride scooters in ponchos whole families at a time.

15. Sandals + closed shoes

    Sandals for city and beach; sneakers for Sapa, Phong Nha caves and trekking. Shoes come off entering homes and many cafés.

16. Chargers: check your plug type

    Vietnamese sockets take both round European and flat US pins — most travelers need no adapter. UK plugs do.

17. Set up an eSIM or buy a local SIM

    Viettel has the best coverage; tourist packages sell at the airport. An eSIM (Airalo and similar) skips the counter queue.

18. Install Grab

    Rides and moto-taxis with upfront pricing — cheaper and calmer than street haggling. In Saigon traffic a GrabBike beats a car twofold.

19. Learn the road-crossing rule

    The scooter stream won't stop — it's not supposed to. Walk slowly and predictably, no darting or freezing mid-step: bikes flow around you like water. Sudden moves are the only danger.

20. Download offline maps and a translator

    Vietnamese diacritics defeat intuition, and English is rare off the tourist trail. A camera translator for menus is a must.

21. Check in online for your flight

    Opens 24–36 hours out. Free seats together go right at opening.

22. Kids' documents Yes

    Their own passport (6-month validity) and their own e-visa if you need one. Birth certificate if surnames differ.

23. Kids' first aid kit Yes

    Child-dose fever reducer, kids' tummy remedies, thermometer. Child-formulated repellent — adult DEET strength isn't for kids.

24. Kids' sun protection Yes

    Kids' SPF 50+, a UPF swim shirt, sun hat. Kids' skin burns in 15 minutes.

25. Snacks and entertainment for the road Yes

    It's a long flight, often with a layover. Offline cartoons, new toys, familiar snacks — pho takes kids time to appreciate.

26. Bring an IDP with motorcycle category Yes

    Without an International Driving Permit with motorcycle category you're uninsured and technically illegal. Get the IDP at home.

27. Helmet — always Yes

    Even locals get fined for riding helmetless. Ask the rental for an intact helmet with a working strap.

28. Video the scooter at pickup Yes

    Scratches, mirrors, mileage — all on camera before riding off. Never leave your passport as deposit — cash or a copy.