Problems encountered by foreign visitors.

1. Airport taxi scams.

At the airport, our driver will hold the pick up signboard with our guests’ names, some taxi drivers may copy the names and write them down in his own paper, and then quickly stand far away, then pretend to be your own driver. Be careful! The following are some situations that can happen:

- On the way to the hotel, if the taxi driver inform you that your hotel is having problems or he drives you straight to another hotel, please do not believe him. What you should do is to contact the hotel reception or call Hanoi VIP Transfer hotline +84(0)982804399 (or WhatsApp - same hotline number) and ask for information.

- The scam driver tries to take your money every time you pass bridges and blames it for toll fees. Don’t pay him anything as the toll fee is included in the price which should be paid once you reach the hotel with the help of the reception.

- The scam driver drops you off in front of your hotel and if there is a person running to you, tell you that "the hotel is full, please follow me to the second hotel”, please do not believe him. You should come in and ask the reception for exact information.

- If the taxi driver asks for any additional payment, just ignore him.

2. Money

The official currency in Vietnam is Dong. US Dollars and Euro are also accepted in many of big shops and restaurants. Various other currencies are easy to exchange in banks and even at the reception desk of your hotel.

3. Electricity

Electricity is 220 volts and 50Hz. Plugs are often either two squarepins or two roundpins. Three-pin plugs can be found in some certain places.

4. Shopping

You should bargain when you shop in local markets. For example, if the shop owner says 100 dollars, you should ask for 40, and then work for an agreement from there. If negotiations are not working, start to walk away and in the vast majority of cases, the shop owners will call you back and give you their best price.

5. Traffic

The traffic in Hanoi is amazing and strange. It also seems scaring. There is plenty of traffic particularly during rush hour (07:00 to 09:00 and 16:30 to 18:30). When you cross the road, just walk slowly and carefully.