FAQs

General FAQs

I am travelling with my laptop. Will I be able to access WiFi?

WiFi is becoming increasingly common in the major cities of Vietnam where it is available in cafes and other WiFi hotspots. WiFi is also offered in some hotels, either in-room or in certain public areas such as the lobby. Check with your travel expert for availability of WiFi at your chosen hotel/s before departure

Are there many internet cafes in Vietnam?

You will find internet cafes in almost every town and city, although the service can be slow in regional areas. Rates are generally reasonable. Most hotels offer an internet service however rates are generally higher than in internet cafes.

Will I be able to use my mobile phone?

Mobile phone networks cover much of the country and global roaming is available. Please check with your service provider before leaving home.

Will I need wet weather gear?

We do advise you bring wet weather gear however raincoats and umbrellas can easily be purchased in Vietnam

What should I pack for a holiday in Vietnam?

Please refer to the following checklist as a guide. You may need to carry your own bags at certain stages during the trip so you should be able to lift them! Laundry service is available in most hotels but can be expensive.

  • Travel documents – passport, visas, travel insurance certificate, air tickets,
  • Money – traveller’s cheques/cash/credit card and money pouch
  • Day pack and/or shoulder bag that can be slung across the body for security
  • First aid kit
  • Medication/prescriptions (it is a good idea to have a doctors letter if you are carrying a large amount of medication), travel sickness tablets if required
  • Torch/flashlight
  • Travel plug/international adapter
  • Insect repellent
  • A range of comfortable, quick dry, loose fitting clothes
  • Sunscreen, hat and sunglasses
  • Swimming costume
  • Lightweight travel towel
  • Ear plugs/eye mask
  • Comfortable walking shoes
  • Camera, film and/or memory cards with spare batteries (or battery charger)
  • Raincoat/umbrella
  • Waterproof jacket
  • Clothes for temples – long pants or long skirts, long sleeve tops, shoes which are easy to slip on/off
  • Warm clothes for the winter months (Nov to Feb)

What is the baggage allowance on domestic flights?

The baggage allowance in economy class with Vietnam Airlines on domestic flights is one piece of checked luggage weighing no more than 20kg (44 pounds), plus one piece of hand luggage weighing no more than 7kg (15 pounds).

Should I take a suitcase or a backpack?

We recommend one piece of medium-sized lightweight luggage with wheels and preferably a soft cover. If you are travelling on a train during your stay, bear in mind that you will need to travel with your luggage in your compartment, where space is limited, as there is no separate baggage car.

Is it safe to catch a taxi or cyclo at night?

We generally advise against taking cyclos at night unless they are registered with a hotel. Taxis are safe and metered provided you use a reputable company. To assist in finding your way back to your hotel, make sure you obtain a hotel address card, to show drivers where you want to go.

Are the domestic flights safe and reliable?

Most domestic flights within Vietnam are with Vietnam Airlines. The fleet is modern and comfortable, with most flights using Airbus A320 or Fokker 70 aeroplanes, however schedules frequently change and this can result in alterations to your itinerary.

What are the trains like?

Train travel can be a great way to experience Vietnam. The most common routes are the overnight journeys between Hue and Hanoi and Hanoi and Sapa. We book our travellers in 4-berth soft sleeper compartments, which are clean and comfortable. Most luggage stows easily under the bottom berth or in racks above the top berth. We recommend bringing earplugs as the train is quite noisy and it can be difficult to sleep at night.

Are western toilets available?

All hotels and guesthouses, including home-stays, are equipped with western toilets. Overnight trains usually have the options of Asian squat-style toilet at one of the carriage and a western-style toilet at the other. On long bus drives, we endeavour to time stops according to acceptable and hygienic toilet facilities which will, in most cases, include a western toilet. We recommend that you carry hand sanitizer and toilet paper.

What insurance is treferring to? And is it mandatory to have this insurance?

Travel Insurance is insurance that is intended to cover medical expenses and financial (such as money invested in non refundable pre-payments) and other losses incurred while traveling, either within one’s own country, or internationally. Travel insurance often offers coverage for a variety of travelers. Student travel, business travel, leisure travel, adventure travel, cruise travel, and international travel are all various options that can be insured.

  • The most common risks that are covered by travel insurance are:
  • Medical expenses
  • Emergency evacuation/repatriation
  • Return of a minor child
  • Repatriation of remains
  • Trip cancellation/interruption
  • Accidental death, injury or disablement benefit
  • Overseas funeral expenses
  • Curtailment
  • Delayed departure
  • Loss, theft or damage to personal possessions and money (including travel documents)
  • Delayed baggage (and emergency replacement of essential items)
  • Legal assistance
  • Personal liability and rental car damage excess.

The travel insurance is compulsory for traveler who makes booking with us according to local authority’s policy.

Insurance and vaccinations

Regarding your travel insurance, if you wish we can undertake contacting your insurance company on your behalf in the very unlikely event of your needing to make a claim and being unable to notify them yourself. If this would be helpful, please let me know your insurance company’s contact details and the reference number of your policy.

I expect you’ve already attended to it, but just in case, don’t forget your medical precautions and vaccinations. It’s important to visit a doctor or a specialist travel clinic as early as possible before your flight to Vietnam to allow time for any side-effects of the recommended courses of vaccinations to settle down.

What general food and water precautions should I take?

We advise you to use bottled water, even to clean your teeth. Always wash your hands thoroughly, particularly after handling local money. Ensure meats are thoroughly cooked. It is not necessary to avoid salads and herbs out of hand but remember uncooked foods do carry a greater risk. In general, establishments that cater to Western tourists make their own ice on the premises from bottled water. Elsewhere, ice is made from filtered water that is delivered in blocks from local factories. If in doubt as to the origin of ice, it’s a good idea to ask.

Is there vegetarian food and western food available?

Vegetables and vegetarian dishes feature prominently in Vietnamese cuisine, though even vegetable dishes may use fish sauce as a base so if you are a strict Vegetarian it’s a good idea to ask about the ingredients used. Western food is widely available in major centres though is generally more expensive than Vietnamese.

Reservation FAQs

Can i transfer my tour ticket to another person?

Yes. You may contact us with the Full Name of the guest who will be replacing you on the tour. Please note that if the tour includes airfare, which is non refundable, there will be the extra fee necessary to purchase the air tickets for the new guests along with the applicable amendment fee.

How do I pay for the optional tours?

Your guide will introduce all the optional tours to you during the trip. And you may choose to participate in the optional tours depending on your preference. Once you decide which optional tours you are willing to join, you will only need to pay the optional tour fees to your guide. Please consult with your tour guide about the optional tours during your trip.

Can you confirm the hotel information that I will be staying in for all the orders I have booked?

Please refer to your E-Tickets for hotel names. The hotel names listed on your E-Tickets are normally the hotel accommodation that you will be staying at. The hotels may change depending on hotel availability, size of group and many other factors. We try to arrange all of our customers to stay at the same hotel. However, sometimes we will not know until 1 to 2 days before departure date. Please trust us that we will guarantee to arrange hotels similar in quality to the ones listed on E-Ticket for you. You may contact our office 1 to 2 days before departure for hotel information.

Can I change my reservation after I submit it online?

You are able to make changes after booking by informing us via email or live chat. But your purchase will initiate a reservation process and the cancellation fee will take into effect once you submit your deposit payment. If your purchase can not be confirmed for any reason, we will fully refund your purchase without any additional charges.

  • No refund shall be given for any portions of the tour unused by the customer after departure of the tour regardless of any possible reasons.
  • For tours that include airfare, airfare is completely non-refundable.
  • All cancellations must be made directly with AsiaTourAdvisor, not with providers.
  • Some tours may require a minimum number of people to operate. The affected customer will be fully refunded or may choose a similar tour product as a substitute. However, please keep in mind that should this happen, it would be under very special and rare circumstances, because we will try our best to accommodate our customers travel needs.
  • We will process your cancellation/refund request within 1-7 business days.

All cancellations must be received in writing, sent to us via fax or email. You do not have to pay any cancellation fee if you cancel your reservation more than 45-days before the check-in date.

  • 30-45 days before arrival: 10% charge
  • 15-29 days before arrival: 30% charge
  • 7-14 days before arrival: 50% charge
  • Within 7 days before arrival: 90% charge

How to complete my online reservation?

In order to complete your online reservation, it’s just a few clicks away. The following is directions on how you can reserve your fun trip:

Step 1: On the right upper side of the tour page, select: click “Book this tour”.

Step 2: You will be redirected to the “Tour Booking” page including 5 steps inside

Step 3: Fill in all fields with your detail and click “Next” to complete all steps

Once you have completed Step 5, you will see a message: “Thanks for your booking. We just want to inform that we have received your request. One of our staff will look into it and then get back to you as soon as possible!

You will receive a Receipt of Reservation instantaneously in your email. Please review details pertinent to your reservation, in your email, including tour departure date, time and location, number of room(s), price, and etc. If you see any incorrect information, you should reply to that email quickly so that we can give you a correct quote.

Tips: If your tour package includes airport pickup and/or drop-off, we strongly recommend you book your flights after you receive a confirmation email from us within one to two business days after you making your online booking. Thus, you can leave the flight information blank and provide it to us at a later time after we confirm your reservation. On the checkout page, you may choose different payment methods such as: credit card, wire transfer, Paypal, money order, or cash deposit. Please keep in mind we need to receive your deposit payment in order to confirm you booking. Our complete checkout process is security-enabled with SSL.

Payment FAQs

Do you have a cancellation policy?

All cancellations must be received in writing, sent to us via fax or email. You do not have to pay any cancellation fee if you cancel your reservation more than 45-days before the check-in date.

  • 30-45 days before arrival: 10% charge
  • 15-29 days before arrival: 30% charge
  • 7-14 days before arrival: 50% charge
  • Within 7 days before arrival: 90% charge

How long in advance must we book and pay for everything?

We recommend that you book your tour as soon as all of your travel dates are set. This way we can secure your seats for your reservation as soon as possible. Many times our tours can become sold out. Tours that may show availablility online, can easily become sold out, depending on when the full payment for the reservation has been made.

Is it secure to send my credit card information online?

AsiaTourAdvisor.com takes every precaution to protect your information. When you submit sensitive information via the website/email system, your information is protected both online and off-line. When our registration/reservation form asks you to enter sensitive information (such as your credit card number), that information is encrypted and is protected with the best encryption software in the industry-SSL. Our SSL technology is the most advanced 128bit encryption. We use a credit card processing company to bill users for purchases and services. These companies do not retain, share, store or use personally identifiable information for any secondary purposes. AsiaTourAdvisor.com will only disclose personally identifiable information when required to by law. We take every precaution to protect our customers’ information. When you submit sensitive information via the website, your information is protected both online and off-line.

Do i have to put a deposit or make a partial payment for a reservation?

You are required to make deposits or partial payments for your reservation. Until AsiaTourAdvisor receives full payment for your reservation, your seats will not be secured. Please make your complete payment as soon as possible so that we can confirm your seats for your reservation.

What are the possible reasons for my credit card declining?

A credit card can decline due to an invalid credit card number, expiration date, daily limit, insufficient credit, home address used instead of billing address, or other reasons. Sometimes banks put a limit or a restriction on a credit card charge. In this case, you may need to contact your credit card company for more information. Sometimes the card number itself is input incorrectly. Please check online to make sure the available credit card information is correct. Your are welcome to give us a call to go over the credit card information by phone.

Why us?

  • Lowest rates for group booking
  • We are local people
  • You can book hotel with us in Vietnam with best prices
  • Lowest rates for early bird booking
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