Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Do you have a Cambodian trip report you want to share? Post it here, and feel free to link to your blog if it's a travel blog for Cambodia, South East Asia, or anywhere really. You can ask and answer questions about travel advice in Cambodia or just share your pictures and videos with us. Most people who live in or visit Cambodia have also checked out nearby countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, and you can get to most of these countries by traveling overland, so put any travel plans, reviews or questions here. Discussions about dirt bike trails in here as well.
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hanno
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by hanno »

Da Lat used to be such a lovely place, spent many days bird watching there. But all the good birding spots have been turned into golf courses or resorts. A place I stayed at recently, not to far from Da Lat, is Di Linh. Very nice and tranquil.
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by sigmoid »

Life in Vietnam is colored by three main factors:

1) Socially and culturally, it has more in common with the countries to the north. A simple example would be Tết (lunar new year) instead of the mid-April New Year of the neighbors.

2) VN has the third highest gender gap in the world. Vietnam Has 3rd-Highest Sex Ratio Imbalance in the World, Report Says: https://saigoneer.com/society/19380-vie ... eport-says

3) It is one of the world's most densely populated countries (ranked 15th by population, but 66th by area, much of which is mountainous jungle).

In terms of places, VN has no large monuments or historical cities, no particularly great beaches or islands (other than maybe Phu Quoc?), the cities are overcrowded, overbuilt and lack much charm or nightlife, and less developed towns/areas don't usually have much in the way of amenities. There are also environmental issues similar to other countries.

On the other hand, there are some quite scenic destinations, hotels, restaurants, transportation, etc. are usually good value, and many VNese make an effort to assist foreigners. Also, the development of the country is proceeding fairly well. So, you can have a pleasant time in VN but there always seems to be a dull disappointment lurking underneath and then you start to nod off in front of your soggy bland bowl of phở.

Regarding Vũng Tàu, it is a pretty dull place but comfortable, pleasant and kind of amazing with the right view.

Image
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by kagi »

Ha Tien small town on south coast set on good sized river. Fresh seafood. Western owned restaurant. Friendly, helpful locals. Six kms from Cambodia border.

Can get busy on vacation periods. Often hot.
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by oasisbarhatien »

I completely agree with the last poster.I first came to Ha Tien over 12 years ago,and liked the place so much ,we moved here a year later from Thailand,where we had run a hotel/bar/restaurant in Pattaya for 4 years.It has changed a lot here in that 12 years,the road to the border on the Cambodian side then was little better than a farm track, there was only one boat a day to Phu Quoc island (an old fishing boat that had been converted to carry passengers)no supermarket,just typical mom and pop shops.Now there at least are ten car ferries and five fast passenger boats, with plans for more,many large developments in infrastructure,and the roads are much better. The town still hasn't lost its charm though.It can get busy at weekends and public holidays, although Covid has obviously affected that significantly,and the border has been closed for over a year now, We ran the bar here (Oasis Bar Ha Tien) for ten years, but when the border closed we moved (just off the main road to Rach Gia, 4km out of town) and have built a homestay operation with bar, which hopefully we can open again once the borders re-open :beer3:
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by hanno »

I quite like Ha Tien too. When I worked in Chau Doc back in 2002/3, I did frequent weekend trips to Ha Tien. It was a nice bike ride back then and Ha Tien was very laid back. Haven't been in a while though.
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by ExPenhMan »

sigmoid wrote: Thu May 13, 2021 5:12 pm Life in Vietnam is colored by three main factors:

1) Socially and culturally, it has more in common with the countries to the north. A simple example would be Tết (lunar new year) instead of the mid-April New Year of the neighbors.

2) VN has the third highest gender gap in the world. Vietnam Has 3rd-Highest Sex Ratio Imbalance in the World, Report Says: https://saigoneer.com/society/19380-vie ... eport-says

3) It is one of the world's most densely populated countries (ranked 15th by population, but 66th by area, much of which is mountainous jungle).

In terms of places, VN has no large monuments or historical cities, no particularly great beaches or islands (other than maybe Phu Quoc?), the cities are overcrowded, overbuilt and lack much charm or nightlife, and less developed towns/areas don't usually have much in the way of amenities. There are also environmental issues similar to other countries.

On the other hand, there are some quite scenic destinations, hotels, restaurants, transportation, etc. are usually good value, and many VNese make an effort to assist foreigners. Also, the development of the country is proceeding fairly well. So, you can have a pleasant time in VN but there always seems to be a dull disappointment lurking underneath and then you start to nod off in front of your soggy bland bowl of phở.

Regarding Vũng Tàu, it is a pretty dull place but comfortable, pleasant and kind of amazing with the right view.

Image
I can't say I disagree very much with what you have summarized. The only thing I would point out is that Vung Tau's "dullness" is a strength, e.g., it keeps the (dare I say, Pattaya) riff-raff out and leaves YouTubers turning tourists away. :good: Its shopping shortcomings mean a pleasant trip to Saigon for a night or two.
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by Ryan754326 »

Unless you’re expecting a Vietnamese version of Pattaya, I don’t see why Vung Tau is so boring. What are people looking for in a place to live?

I’ve seen a few people mention shopping. What is everyone looking to buy? I can’t think of anything that I need on a regular basis that I wouldn’t be able to find in Vung Tau. Saigon is close by when I need western sized clothes or weed.

Maybe I’m just boring and don’t know it.
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Re: Living in Vietnam - Places You Like, or Dislike

Post by Cambo Dear »

I spent a good chunk of time in Hai Phong and I would say, whilst not the most aesthetically pleasing city, it is pretty cool. I found the locals much friendlier there, it is a short bus ride to Ha Noi, quite close to Ha Long Bay and does have a few good (local) restaurants. It's also Vn's third largest city and it is a port city so quite a lot going on in terms of industry. Definitely worth considering.

*My information is at least a decade old and I know a lot may have changed in terms of restaurants, etc - someone else may have more up to date info.
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