Tourist traps in Vietnam

Jatinder05 wrote:

Hi All,

As with any other country, there are some things which first time travelers need to be aware of.

But are there any tourist traps which could be life-threatening or detrimental to a person?

Yes, bar/massage girls as well as gold diggers. 

Haha! Yes, these gold-diggers are omni-present in south-east asia.

Anyway, was reading on one website (http://johnnyvagabond.com/featured/poker-scam-saigon/) that there is a Poker scam there in which the foreigner will be lured to the home and then later on he would be slowly pushed into betting and playing the Poker.

And of course the people involved in the game are all hand-in-gloves. So, it's kind of scary. But rest are all good reviews. Mostly there are reviews about Mobile phones getting snatched on bikes...

Just leave when they ask you to play cards, many of these card scams were done by Fillipinos.

Same as anywhere, just keep your wits about you and you'll be fine.

At the airport (SGN), only use Vinasun or Ma Linh (sp) as the taxis will rip you off without a doubt if you don't get one of them.

A lot of the designer stuff you can buy in Vietnam is snide, but then that's expected due to the price, if you're expecting to get genuine gear for the price on offer, you're sadly mistaken.

In terms of life-threatening, not heard anything of the sorts

Good post - wish I could contribute more.

* INTELLIGENCE is making the difference. Expats need to know things like the correct fare, which bus company to trust and which service to use.

- A USB cable for tthe phone can be bought for 10,000 d or for 100,000 d.
- I had no idea of food delivery by motorcycle from traditional restaurants or pick-up of dry cleaning.
- Can't honestly share horror stories for Vietnam regarding taxis, unlike Laos and Thailand. But communication remains an issue. Do download Google Maps!
- Avoid Western food to save and slim down 
- There was a warning of crime by the ACS. I read it on Thaivisa.com but don't want to cross-post to another forum. Sexual attacks, kidnapping attempts? TBH, it sounds a bit dramatic. While I see the locals fearing thieves, I have yet to feel in danger. But yes, there were times when rogue van or bus operators tried to extort a wildly inflated fare. Even on a bus which I was tayking almost daily, it happened many times!!

Get the right SIM card deal

Shop around.

From what Yogi's observed , the main tourist traps here are themselves.
Delusion, Ego, Lust , & fools punching above their weight in most things they take on.

They bring themselves undone.

And they blame the guy that sold them a coconut for $3 for all their problems.

Jatinder05 wrote:

As with any other country, there are some things which first time travelers need to be aware of.

1. Taxi touts at Saigon airport. Just say no to anyone who approaches you. You will be overcharged. There is a taxi queue at international terminal at door 1, far left end. Also a taxi queue at domestic terminal, on the traffic island. And insist on Vinasun taxi.

2. One day tourist visit to Mekong takes you to islands off Mỹ Tho ("mee taw"). Typical tourist trap gift stores as you are guided along like a herd of cows. The fish lunch was pretty good though.

3. Bến Thành market. To find non-tourist markets (food, wet, clothing, fabric, tools, jewelry, chinese herbs, etc) just open google maps to Ho Chi Minh city, and put Chợ in the search bar.