What to know before you come
Short answers, each with the date we last checked it and where it came from. Where sources disagree, we say so.
Visas
Every nationality can apply for an e-visa valid for up to 90 days, single or multiple entry. Citizens of about forty countries, including the UK, most of the EU, Japan and South Korea, can stay up to 45 days without a visa; the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland are not on the exemption list.
Sources consistently give the e-visa fee as USD 25 for single entry and USD 50 for multiple entry, paid online and not refunded if the application is refused, and a processing time of about three working days.
Apply on the Immigration Department’s own site: evisa.immigration.gov.vn. Check the address before you pay: lookalike sites charge more.
Last verified 29 October 2026 · medium confidence · Wikipedia, Visa policy of Vietnam; Emerhub, Vietnam visa exemption 2026 Secondary sources disagree on the exact list and on Belarus: check the official portal before you travel.
Last verified 30 October 2026 · medium confidence · Vietnam Immigration Department, e-visa portal; Emerhub, Vietnam e-visa Sources name different domains for the official portal, so check the address before you pay. The fees come from secondary sources, not the portal.
Money
The currency is the dong (VND). USD 1 = VND 25,834, EUR 0.897, GBP 0.752, AUD 1.420. We charge in US dollars, and show other currencies as approximate conversions.
Cash still matters at markets, street stalls and small shops; cards mostly work at hotels, larger restaurants and modern cafés. Use ATMs inside bank branches, since free-standing machines in tourist areas have had skimmers reported. Grab, booked in the app, is widely recommended over street taxis, and fake taxis and "torn note" change tricks are the common problems.
At today’s display rate USD 10 is about VND 258000.
Last verified 29 October 2026 · high confidence · ExchangeRate-API open rates, updated 29 Oct 2026 00:02 UTC Display conversions only; every charge is in USD.
Last verified 30 October 2026 · medium confidence · Eskimo, travel tips for first-time visitors to Vietnam; Vietnam Tourism, common scams in Vietnam Advice from travel sites, not rules. ATM fees were reported inconsistently: ask your own bank.
Getting around
The Old Quarter and the lake are for walking. For anything further, book a car or motorbike taxi in the Grab app rather than hailing one: the price is shown before you go. Our day trips start from the east bank of Hoàn Kiếm and use a small van, never a coach.
Crossing the street
To cross a busy street, walk at a slow, steady pace and do not stop suddenly or run: riders steer round a predictable walker. Give way to buses and cars.
Last verified 29 October 2026 · medium confidence · VnExpress International, crossing streets a fundamental lesson; Local Vietnam, how to cross the road like a local Common advice, not a rule.
Temples and the mausoleum
Cover your shoulders and knees at every temple and pagoda, wear shoes that slip off, and keep your voice low. The Hồ Chí Minh Mausoleum closes every year for maintenance (in 2026, from early September to 3 November). Outside the closure it opens in the morning on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday and is closed on Monday and Friday; hours change by season. Visitors cover their shoulders and knees, and photographs are not allowed inside.
Last verified 30 October 2026 · medium confidence · Tuổi Trẻ News, mausoleum to close for periodic maintenance; Asian Trails, closure schedule The start of the 2026 closure differs by a day between sources, and opening hours differ between travel sites. Check the official announcement before you go.
The weekend walking streets
The streets round Hoàn Kiếm close to traffic from Friday evening (about 19:00) to midnight on Sunday. Hours change around holidays.
Last verified 29 October 2026 · medium confidence · Vietnam Airlines travel guide, Hanoi walking streets; VTV, pedestrian zone extended No official 2026 notice found; the city adjusts hours for holidays.
Tết
Tết (Lunar New Year) falls on Saturday 6 February 2027. Public employees have 4 to 10 February off, and many shops, stalls and restaurants close for several days.
Last verified 29 October 2026 · high confidence · VnExpress, Vietnam picks 7-day Tet break for 2027; Timeanddate, Tết in Vietnam
Weather
Late October to December, and March to April, are the easiest months. June to August is hot and wet. Twelve months of normals, with what to book in each season, are on the seasons page.
Last verified 29 October 2026 · high confidence · Vietnam Institute for Building Science and Technology (QCVN 02:2022/BXD), via Wikipedia's Hanoi climate table