Vietnam: What a Dollar Can Buy You
Vietnam would be a dirt-cheap country – if visitors could only pay the local prices. But more often than not, tourists are charged inflated rates for pretty much everything. With this in mind, we had to really kick it up a notch and work the Vietnamese with our superb bargaining skills.
And even with that, we stayed just within budget. I have to admit, we put out a lot more money on upgrades: a deluxe Halong Bay cruise, more polished hotels, and fancy sleeper trains. And our fabulous Food-Venture set us back a bit which, I’m ecstatic to say, was worth every dong. (Oh, dong jokes – we’ve heard them all.)
Overall, Vietnam is still very affordable and there are plenty of things you can get for 20,000 dong or about a buck:
- 1 day of bicycle rental
- 2 Vietnamese coffees with sweet condensed milk
- 15 minutes of air time on a Mobifone sim card
- 1 bowl of pho bo
- 1 small load of laundry
- 250 grams of candied ginger
- 1 Chinese lantern made of bamboo and fabric
- 40 quail eggs
- 1 Vietnamese conical hat (non la)
- 7 liters of drinking water
- 2 tickets to the Temple of Literature in Hanoi
- 2 chilled Halida beers
- 1.25 liters of gasoline
And that’s why lads you should move to Vietnam and live there. Just don’t mine the kidnappings and crime there and you “should” be fine
I can live where I just the country
2020 every cost 3 times .
Thanks Stephen for sharing your experience. I can only imagine how much Vietnam has changed in the last 10 years.
I am renting a very nice 1 bedroom apartment in Da Nang, 5 mins to the beach for 6M vnd ($260) per month + elec. Water, cable, & internet included. Crime is low here. My wife and I fell very safe, safe enough that my wife can walk down the street in the middle of the night if she wanted and not get hassled. Oh, btw, there is no community spread in regards to covid19. Vietnam has basically eradicated it twice now. All restaurants, beaches, gyms, bars, clubs open with no restrictions.
From Philippines what we need from CEBU city , Philippines or Manila to Da nang ,Vietnam for tour 2 weeks?
We are looking forward to traveling to Vietnam in the spring if 2022. My husband was born there. Can you recommend a hotel to stay in?
Thank you
Laycee & Thanh