|
| |
|
MONEY AND COSTS |
| |
|
|
| |
Despite what you might have heard, travelling in Vietnam needn't be
much more expensive than in its Southeast Asian neighbours. By eating
and sleeping at the simplest places and travelling on local buses, you
should be able to manage on a daily budget of $12-15. Upgrading to more
salubrious lodgings, eating good food followed by a couple of beers in a
bar, and signing up for the odd minibus tour would bring it to $25-30.
Vietnam maintains a two-tier pricing system , with foreigners paying
many times more than locals for transport and accommodation. The system
is, however, rumoured to be on its way out, and there are signs of some
standardization of prices, though it will probably be a while before two-tier
pricing disappears completely. For the moment, it remains something of a
grey area and the amount you pay may well depend on the person you
happen to be dealing with.
Vietnam's unit of currency is the dong, usually abbreviated as "d"
(occasionally "VND"). Notes come in denominations of 200d, 500d, 1000d,
2000d, 5000d, 10,000d, 20,000d and 50,000d; there are no coins. The
American dollar operates in parallel to the dong as unofficial tender
and most travellers carry some dollars as back-up for when banks won't
change travellers' cheques. Because dong amounts tend to be more
volatile, we've given prices in US dollars ($) throughout this chapter.
At the end of your trip you can change leftover dong back into dollars
if you have an exchange certificate. At the time of writing, the
exchange rate was 22,000d to £1 and 14,000d to $1.
US dollar travellers' cheques are the easiest method of carrying money
around in Vietnam. They can be cashed at major banks (Vietcombank
usually charges the lowest rates), but often not at banks in smaller
towns. Dong are not available outside the country at present, though if
you take in some small-denomination American dollars you'll have no
problems getting by until you reach a bank. Banking hours are Mon-Fri
8-11.30am and 1-4pm, though in major cities you can change cash outside
these hours at registered exchange counters and hotels. A black market
of sorts exists in Vietnam, but is best avoided, especially as the
markup is tiny.
Major credit cards - Visa, Mastercard and, to a lesser extent, American
Express - are slowly becoming more acceptable in Vietnam. You can
withdraw cash from 24-hr ATMs (in the Visa, Plus, Mastercard and Cirrus
networks) in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Even outside the major cities,
banks will now advance cash against cards (generally Visa and
Mastercard) for a small commission.
If you need to have money wired , contact the Vietcombank in Hanoi or Ho
Chi Minh, though some provincial branches can also now handle
telegraphic transfers. Vietcombank has arrangements with selected banks
across the world, including Lloyd's Bank in London; the Commonwealth
Bank in Sydney; the Royal Bank of Canada; and the Chase Manhattan Bank
and Citibank in New York (Vietcombank has a full list). Payment can be
made to you in dong or dollars, but hefty charges are levied at both
ends. Vietcombank and major post offices also accept the faster, but
even more expensive, Moneygram; again this has to come from a designated
bank, but charges are levied at the sender's end and to collect the
money all you need is the sender's eight-digit reference number.
|
| |
|
