12 Things Indian Tourists Should Avoid in Vietnam (2026)
✅ Last verified on-the-ground: 17 July 2026
Cross-checked against the Vietnam Immigration portal (25 June 2026), the current MEA India advisory, and published Vinasun meter-rate information. Planning the wider region? Our Southeast Asia backpacking hub covers the full multi-country route.
Quick Answers
| What | Answer | Price (INR) |
|---|---|---|
| E-visa fee | ₹2,410 (~25 USD), applied online | ~₹2,400 (~$24.90) |
| Max stay on tourist e-visa | 90 days, multiple entry | , |
| Apply at | Official portal | , |
| Tourist SIM (14 days) | Viettel or Mobifone at the airport | ₹479 (~130,000 VND or ~$4.97) |
| Grab Bike (short trip) | ₹37-₹92 (~10,000-25,000 VND or ~$0.38-$0.96) | ~₹40 (~$0.41) to ~₹90 (~$0.93) |
| Grab Car (across town) | ₹147-₹295 (~40,000-80,000 VND or ~$1.53-$3.06) | ~₹150 to ~₹300 |
FX rate as of 17 July 2026: 1 VND ≈ ₹0.0037, 1 USD ≈ ₹96.33.
1. Don’t Apply for Your Vietnam Visa on a Google Ad
Searching “Vietnam visa” returns a wall of paid ads for agencies charging ₹18,000 (~$186.71) to ₹25,000 (~$259.33) for a “service fee” on top of the ₹2,410 (~25 USD) government fee. The official portal is free, takes 3 business days, and accepts Indian debit cards and credit cards on the international card rails (Visa, Mastercard). UPI is not currently supported on the portal. The URL ends in .gov.vn, not .com.
The official site is evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn. Paid search results may lead to middlemen, so verify that the application URL ends in .gov.vn. Travellers report paying ₹7,000 (~$72.61) above the actual fee, then waiting longer because the agency had to forward the application anyway.
For the full step-by-step on the e-visa (photo specs, processing time, what to do if the portal rejects you), see the Vietnam e-visa guide for Indian passport holders.
2. Don’t Get into an Unmetered Taxi
Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City both have a taxi mafia problem that comes and goes in waves. The pattern: a driver waves you over at the airport, claims the meter is “broken,” quotes a flat ₹1,842 (~500,000 VND or ~$19.10) to your hotel, and the real fare is closer to ₹442 (~120,000 VND or ~$4.58).
Two fixes that work:
- Use Grab. The app shows the fare before the bike or car arrives. A Grab Bike across District 1 in HCMC is ₹37-₹92 (~10,000-25,000 VND or ~$0.38-$0.96); a Grab Car is ₹147-₹295 (~40,000-80,000 VND or ~$1.53-$3.06). Set the pickup pin before you walk out of arrivals, because airport pickup zones sometimes have drivers who block app pickups.
- Use the airport taxi queue at Tan Son Nhat or Noi Bai. The official Mai Linh and Vinasun cabs at the marked counter use meters and run on regulated fares. If a guy offers you a “discount” before you reach the queue, walk past him.
If Grab is showing surge pricing during a rainstorm, the airport taxi queue is the safer fallback. Don’t negotiate with anyone who approaches you indoors.
3. Don’t Eat the Raw Herbs You Can’t Identify
This is the one health risk most lists get wrong. The danger in Vietnam isn’t the pho or the banh mi. It’s the plate of raw herbs, lettuce, and pickled leaves that arrives alongside almost every meal. Street vendors wash them in tap water, not boiled water, and raw, unwashed greens are a common route for traveller’s stomach bugs.
What to do:
- Eat cooked vegetables first. Stir-fried morning glory (rau muong xao toi) and eggplant in claypot (ca tim kho to) are safe bets.
- If you want a salad, eat at a sit-down restaurant that tourists review, and ask how the greens are washed.
- Skip the raw herb plate at plastic-stool street stalls. The herbs are the soul of Vietnamese food, but the water they’re washed in is the most common route for a 24-hour stomach bug.
For strict-veg travellers, ask the restaurant whether the kitchen is fully vegetarian with separate prep from meat dishes; cross-check current practices on recent traveller reviews before ordering.
4. Don’t Ride a Motorbike Without a Vietnamese Licence
Vietnam’s traffic looks survivable after you’ve watched it for five minutes. It isn’t. The first hour on a scooter is when most accidents happen.
Vietnam does not recognise the Indian driving licence, even with an IDP. If you’re stopped without a Vietnamese licence and you’re on a bike over 50cc, the on-the-spot fine is ₹2,946-₹4,420 (~800,000-1,200,000 VND or ~$32-$49), and your travel insurance won’t cover the medical bills if you crash.
The real risks on two wheels:
- Helmet quality is inconsistent. The rental shop helmet is sometimes a ₹289 (~3 USD) foam shell. Buy or rent a proper half-face helmet for ₹552 (~150,000 VND or ~$5.73) at any bike shop.
- Roads in the Central Highlands and around Ninh Binh have gravel patches after rain. Slow down on corners.
- Don’t ride after dark in Hanoi or HCMC. The street lights are poor and the trucks don’t dip their beams.
If you’ve never ridden a geared scooter before, do not start in Vietnam. Stay on Grab Bike (the rider is a local, you sit behind) for the first few days. It costs ₹37-₹92 (~10,000-25,000 VND or ~$0.38-$0.96) per trip and removes 90% of the risk.
5. Don’t Skip Travel Insurance
This isn’t a generic “buy insurance” line. Two specific things bite Indian travellers in Vietnam:
- Motorbike medical bills. If you ride without a licence and crash, many travel-medical policies won’t pay out. Check your policy’s local-licence requirements and exclusions before riding.
- Dengue and typhoid treatment. A dengue fever hospitalisation in a private clinic in HCMC runs ₹29,464-₹92,075 (~8,000,000-25,000,000 VND or ~$305.63-$955.10). Without insurance, that’s an out-of-pocket bill.
SafetyWing’s Nomad Insurance covers both, including emergency evacuation from rural areas like Ha Giang or Phong Nha where the closest international-standard hospital is 3+ hours away.
6. Don’t Eat or Drink Anything That’s Been Sitting Out
The bigger street food risk is not the food itself, it’s the time it spends at room temperature. Vietnamese street stalls operate on fast turnover, but some sit-out buffets at tourist night markets reuse the same pork and fish all day. Travellers report food poisoning spikes around the weekend walking streets in Hoi An and the Ben Thanh night market in HCMC.
The safer patterns:
- Eat at places where the food is cooked to order. The banh mi stalls in Hanoi’s Old Quarter toast the bread in front of you. The bun cha places grill the pork on the spot. Both are safer than the open trays.
- Skip pre-cut fruit from street carts unless you peel it yourself. Pineapple, watermelon, and dragon fruit all sit on ice that’s been topped up with tap water.
- Tap water is not safe anywhere in Vietnam. Brush your teeth with bottled water. The hotel kettle is fine for coffee. Ice from sit-down restaurants and Grab deliveries is generally OK because it’s factory ice, but the ice at plastic-stool stalls is often hand-cut from tap water.
- Watch out for bootleg alcohol in Nha Trang and Vung Tau. Travellers have reported methanol-laced local liquor in beach bars catering to backpackers. Stick to sealed beer (Bia Saigon, 333, or Heineken are everywhere at ₹44-₹92 (~12,000-25,000 VND or ~$0.46-$0.96)) and skip the “happy hour” shots at unnamed bars.
7. Don’t Forget the Cultural Rules Nobody Tells You
Vietnamese culture is forgiving, but a few missteps will mark you as the loud foreigner immediately.
Shoes off indoors. Every homestay, temple, and someone’s home expects shoes off at the door. Most guesthouses will have a pile of slippers at the entrance. If you see slippers, switch.
No pointing with one finger. Use your whole hand, palm up, or nod toward something. Single-finger pointing is read as aggressive, especially when directed at a person or a vendor’s food.
Don’t touch anyone’s head. This is regional, but common in the north. Patting a child on the head, even affectionately, can offend the parents.
Cover your shoulders and knees in pagodas. Tran Quoc Pagoda in Hanoi and any major pagoda or temple may turn away travellers in tank tops. Pack a light overshirt for temple days.
The two-handed money rule. When you hand cash to a vendor, especially a small shop owner, use both hands or your right hand supported by your left wrist. One-handed passing is read as rude. You don’t have to do this at every tourist restaurant, but at local markets it matters.
8. Don’t Exchange Money at the Airport
The airport exchange counters in Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat offer rates that are noticeably worse than the mid-market rate. On a ₹50,000 (~$518.65) cash exchange, that’s typically a ₹1,500-₹2,000 (~$15.57-$20.75) loss for nothing.
Better options:
- Use a forex card or international debit card at any ATM. Vietcombank, BIDV, and TPBank ATMs accept Visa and Mastercard. The fee is ₹81 (~22,000 VND or ~$0.84) per withdrawal (~₹80) plus your bank’s foreign transaction fee. Withdraw ₹7,366 (~2,000,000 VND or ~$76.41) at a time (~₹7,400) to keep the fee ratio low.
- Exchange at a jeweller or gold shop in the Old Quarter (Hanoi) or District 1 (HCMC). Their rates are 1.5 to 2% off mid-market, much better than the airport. Ask your hostel for the closest reputable one.
- Carry some USD cash as a backup. Bring ₹9,640 (~100 USD) to ₹19,281 (~200 USD) in clean, unmarked ₹1,928 (~20 USD) bills. Every money changer in Vietnam takes USD at decent rates, and it’s your fallback if your card stops working on a Sunday night.
For the full breakdown of card-vs-cash maths, see the international cards in Vietnam fee guide and the INR to VND exchange rate page.
9. Don’t Buy Tailored Clothes in 24 Hours
The Hoi An tailoring scene is famous for “suit in a day.” Most of those suits fall apart within three months. The quality tailors in Hoi An need 48 to 72 hours for a fitted suit, two fittings minimum, and they won’t rush the work even if you pay extra.
What happens with the 24-hour places: they cut from a stock pattern, skip the canvas interlining, use glued instead of stitched lapels, and the lining starts tearing at the armpit within a season.
If you want a suit or dress that survives:
- Plan 3 days in Hoi An, not 1.
- Get measured in the morning, fit in the evening, second fit the next morning, pickup that afternoon.
- Budget ₹16,574-₹29,464 (~4,500,000-8,000,000 VND or ~$171.92-$305.63) for a 2-piece suit (~₹16,600 to ~₹29,500), ₹7,366-₹14,732 (~2,000,000-4,000,000 VND or ~$76.41-$152.82) for a custom dress (~₹7,400 to ~₹14,800).
The full pricing breakdown is in the Hoi An tailor dress price guide and the custom suit cost guide.
10. Don’t Trust “Free” Walking Tours That Push Shops
Hanoi and HCMC both have free walking tour operators that take you through the Old Quarter for 2 to 3 hours. The model is tips-based, but the guides are contractually required to stop at specific shops (silk, lacquerware, coffee) for 15 to 20 minutes each. The shops pay the tour operator a commission, and you end up with a hard sell.
This isn’t a scam, exactly, but it’s a time drain that most backpackers don’t budget for. You lose an hour of the tour to a shopping pitch, and the guide can’t leave until everyone has “had a look.”
Workarounds:
- See paid walking tours on GetYourGuide or Klook. The guides don’t have shop quotas, the groups are smaller, and the price is ₹1,473-₹2,578 (~400,000-700,000 VND or ~$15.28-$26.74).
- Or do the Old Quarter yourself. It’s 15 streets, walkable in 90 minutes, and the only thing the guides add is context you can read on your phone.
11. Don’t Photograph People Without Asking
Vietnam is one of the easier countries for street photography in Southeast Asia, but the rules are still:
- Don’t point a lens at a person’s face from 2 feet away. That’s the threshold at which it stops being “ambient” and starts being intrusive.
- Ethnic minority villages in Sapa, Ha Giang, and Mu Cang Chai often charge a ₹184-₹368 (~50,000-100,000 VND or ~$1.91-$3.82) “photo fee” if you walk in with a DSLR. Pay it or ask first.
- Military uniforms, police checkpoints, and airports are off-limits. They’ll ask you to delete the photo on the spot.
- In the Mekong Delta floating markets, the boat vendors will pose for you if you buy something. The asking price goes from ₹368 (~100,000 VND or ~$3.82) to ₹110 (~30,000 VND or ~$1.15) the moment you raise your camera without buying.
12. Don’t Overlook the Health Pre-Trip Basics
The riskier outdoor activities have specific hazards that show up in travel clinic reports every year:
- Sapa and Ha Giang treks: leeches in the rainy season (May to September). Wear long socks tucked into your trousers and treat your boots with DEET or salt. Most homestays will lend you leech socks.
- Phong Nha area caves: bat guano dust can carry respiratory viruses. If you have asthma, bring your inhaler; some caves require a medical certificate for entry.
- Monkey forests (Cat Ba, Can Gio): monkeys bite when you feed them. They bite harder when you don’t. Keep food in your bag and don’t make eye contact.
- Snake encounters in the Central Highlands: rare but rising with hotter dry seasons. Don’t walk in long grass after dusk without closed shoes. Anti-venom is only available at provincial hospitals.
- Sun exposure: Vietnam is closer to the equator than most Indians realise. SPF 50 and a hat are not optional in Da Nang, Nha Trang, or Phu Quoc from March to August.
Before you fly, check the official Indian government travel advisory for any current health or political alerts, and the Vietnam Ministry of Health site for outbreak updates.
Where to Stay (Hostel Picks)
This isn’t a city guide, so I’ll keep it short. For Hoi An, Da Nang, and Ninh Binh, the scene is mostly homestays and small guesthouses. Book the first 2 nights in advance during peak season (February to April, October to December) and walk in for the rest.
FAQ
Is Vietnam safe for Indian tourists? Yes. Violent crime against tourists is rare. The main risks are motorbike accidents, taxi overcharging, and food/water hygiene. Avoid those three and you’ll have a smooth trip.
Do Indians need a visa for Vietnam? Yes. Apply for an e-visa at evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn. The fee is ₹2,410 (~25 USD), processing takes 3 business days, and it’s valid for 90 days with multiple entries. See the step-by-step e-visa guide if you’re cutting it close.
Is tap water in Vietnam safe to drink? No. Use bottled water for drinking and brushing your teeth. Ice from sit-down restaurants and Grab deliveries is generally OK.
Can I use UPI in Vietnam? Limited. Some hotels in District 1 (HCMC) and the Old Quarter (Hanoi) accept UPI via QR through Indian payment aggregators, but it’s not widespread. Carry an international debit card (HDFC, ICICI, or Axis Forex) and some VND cash as backup.
Is Vietnamese food vegetarian-friendly? Mostly yes. Pho and bun bo Hue have meat-based broths, but most restaurants offer a vegetarian version on request. MẸT Vietnamese Restaurant & Vegetarian (Saigon), De Tham Restaurant (Hanoi), and A Taste Of Saigon run fully vegetarian kitchens. Buddhist-style “chay” restaurants are everywhere and marked.
Should I ride a motorbike in Vietnam? Only if you have experience and a Vietnamese licence. The legal situation for Indian licences is not recognised, which affects both traffic fines and insurance claims. Grab Bike is the safer alternative for most travellers.
What’s the biggest scam to watch out for? Unmetered taxi fares at the airport, followed by “free” walking tours with mandatory shopping stops. Both are avoidable by using Grab and searching paid tours on GetYourGuide.
Subodh’s Take
Vietnam is a country where small mistakes are common for first-time Indian backpackers, and where a bit of pre-trip planning pays off disproportionately. The 12 things above aren’t the catastrophic stuff. Nobody’s getting robbed at gunpoint. They’re the slow leaks: ₹184 (~50,000 VND or ~$1.91) here, a missed bus there, two days in a hospital with dengue. Sort the visa, the SIM, the insurance, and the transport apps before you land, and the rest of Vietnam is the easiest country in Southeast Asia to enjoy.
Staying connected: Grab a local SIM on arrival, or set up an eSIM before you fly.
