The place where you get to discover amazing traveller experiences in Vietnam. Let us know how we can help you with your travel enquiry. WHAT ABOUT VIETNAM with Kerry Newsome Photo Credit - Gerard Gerhard Latest Episode s5-e23-pushing-limits-finding-magic-caving-and-trekking-in-phong-nha-s-tu-lan-cave-system. 00:00 / 34:58 Xin Chao and Welcome to the No 1 Vietnam Travellers Podcast website TRIP PLANNING SERIES 1 SERIES 2 SERIES 3 SERIES 4 SERIES 5 Go to Visa info Welcome to WhatAboutVietnam.com (WAV) as we like to call it! The place where you get to discover amazing traveller experiences in Vietnam Listen - to the "What About Vietnam" - Traveller Insights Podcast here or on your favourite channel. Search - by name of the episode, destination or experience to find the best Podcast, Blog, Transcript or Video to match your enquiry. Read - The Travel Podcast Transcripts and blogs about many different experiences you can enjoy in Vietnam. Save as a PDF or download to print. Watch - Our Trailer Videos on our NEW- YOUTUBE channel Reach out - Send us an email and let us know how we can help you with your travel enquiry. Let me and my guests be your personal guides, mentors, tutors, and fun experts. We all have a story to tell about traveling about, living there or working in Vietnam. Each episode has something for everyone. I hope you will come to know, love, and share this page and my podcast with others to help them discover the true beauty and wonder that is Vietnam. Kerry Newsome Hi, my name is Kerry Newsome and I am your host on the What About Vietnam Podcast. If you have a subject, destination or experience you would like to know more about, why not drop me a quick message here and I will do my utmost to get you the information you have requested. Thank you and I hope you enjoy the next show. Kerry Subscribe to What About Vietnam through your favourite channel And many other channels What About Vietnam is proud to be a member of Auscham Vietnam - Australian Chamber of Commerce Submit Thanks for submitting!

S4-21 Beyond the Phong Nha caves What About Vietnam – S4- E21 Exploring Phong Nha beyond the caves Kerry Newsome: [00:00:01] Xin Chau And welcome to What about Vietnam? I'm happy to report Vietnam is really hitting its straps again as far as being a vibrant, healthy country to visit. I've just got back. I had a fabulous time. I could have stayed a lot longer, but there's just so much to do and trying to cram it in is always a challenge. I know I may sound a bit like a broken record, but there's just such a variety of things to do and discovery is endless. So today I wanted to focus on Phong Nha. Now, you know, Vietnam is kind of managed to get through the really hard years of COVID with a lot of hard work like most places, but also diversification in many cities and localities. And the Phong Nha locality is one such region that really pulled all their straps together to try and build on what was available with the caving to lots of other activities. And a great advocate for that is Ben Mitchell. Now I've had Ben Mitchell on the show before, along with Howard Limbert, but we really concentrated on the caves and I wanted today's story to be about some of the other cool things there are to do in addition to the caves in Phong Nha, because for you and your planning a couple of days might not cover a visit in Phong Nha you may want to extend it to a week and you'll hear from Ben as he actually says he wishes he had a dollar for every person that says, you know, we should have added in more time as there's just so much to do. Kerry Newsome: [00:01:56] Ben is really well known in the region. He's a strong advocate for tourism and really goes out of his way to. Educate to inform people about the region. And he's got some some great links and I'll certainly include those in the notes that you'll be able to get access to. His knowledge. You know it extends to the region's history and that includes its war history. He knows a lot about bike riding and getting around through the jungles, the Phong Nha Loop. He'll talk about all of these kind of activities in the show. And you know what's great it. It's the kind of region that I think a family could really enjoy a long stay there, lots of activities for kids to do, you know, healthy stuff out in nature and exploring farms and farm life and great tasty food from farm to table and just a very nice community spirit with really good, fun, cool things for kids to do that they'll be talking about for years to come. And I think, you know, if you can build into your trip some part that does offer a long stay, it means you kind of get to unpack your bags, leave them there for a week, and then do some really cool day trips. And Fong Na, I think gives you those options and that variety. I'm really grateful for Ben coming on the show, and I just know you're going to love all his stories and and some of the stuff that he's got to share with with us today. Ben, welcome to What about Vietnam once again? Ben Mitchell: [00:03:53] Hey, good morning, Kerry. Thank you. Kerry Newsome: [00:03:55] I thought what we'd get into now, Ben, was some of the things we talked about before we got on here, and that was just some of the things that you can do in Phong Nha that are kind of not for your cave lovers, not for people who are coming to Vietnam to do caves. We know that there's those people. But for those that have gone, gosh, you know, I really didn't have any real knowledge of Phong Nha, So maybe speak to Phong, Nha and a little bit of history. I'm going to make sure that I put in the notes, some of your links etcetera, to some of your historical aspects that we talked about, but maybe share with my listeners. Now just a little bit of the history of Phong Nha so that they can get a feel for it. Ben Mitchell: [00:04:42] Well, Phong Nha has…. Really got a lot to offer to people that want to experience the beauty of rural Vietnam. Um, the mountains here are karst mountains. They're covered in jungle. There is an incredible road which goes from the village of Phong Nha into the mountains up to a place called Tra ang Intersection, where it where it runs into the Ho Chi Minh Trail West. That road is called Highway 20 or Victory Road. And that was the road that essentially led North Vietnam out of the North Vietnamese army, out of Phong Nha to go to fight in the South. It's part of the Ho Chi Minh Trail network. But those roads were built and trails were built during the American war. And today they provide us with access into some really beautiful jungle mountain area national park. And that has become the loop, um, over the years with the backpacker tourism and the loop can be. Can be. Uh, utilized as a day trip by tour companies use it to go to the Dark Cave, the NUOC Moc Eco trail, and the Paradise Cave. You can rent a motorbike and go there for the very fit. You can do it by mountain bike and I mean very fit. We do have a lot of people do that but and I've done it but it's it's quite a quite a big ride. It's about about 60 to 70km of a couple of mountain passes in that. Um and what I highly recommend people do is go on the back of a local experienced motorbike rider. They've got their, their own scooters. They're very easy to book through your homestay. They generally charge about $20, a little bit more than $20 for the day trip. Ben Mitchell: [00:06:57] Basically, you've got a couple of things going on there. One is, is that those guys are. Are getting a day's salary. So, you know, for each person that goes out as a as a as a as a bit of money for the local riders. The other thing is the scenery. The scenery is just amazing off the back of a motorbike. It's an incredible way to see it. If you're on the back of a licensed rider, you can have a beer at lunchtime, one of the places around the park, you can relax and it's it's just an incredible day out that I've never met anyone who didn't rave about after they've done it. Um, what we've made ourselves. I actually made it with a gentleman from Da Nang. And he came up and helped me and I got with Hung from Karst Villas. Hung owns a little resort called Karst Villas. Huong and I used to run tours around the national park. We were we were actually the first people to run tours around the national park. And we had a lot of information that we've now put onto a bit of a podcast that people can listen to in chapters. That's the first chapters about Phong Nha Cave. To give people some background information about that. And then there's some other chapters about different things around the loop and about what you're actually looking at and experiencing as you go around. And that ties in really well with people who either rent a motorbike and go around or they sit on the back of a licensed rider and go around the park to give them a bit of background and give them a bit extra value for their for their trip. Kerry Newsome: [00:08:34] Okay. And I think that's good to mention because I'd like to put some links to that. Ben, if you'll allow me in the transcript and on the website so that people can get that. Because the other thing we kind of touched on at the beginning was this aspect that Phong Nha now offers the opportunity for a bit of a DIY trip, doesn't it? So you can kind of make it up as you go. Obviously there's access to people like yourselves in Phong Nha that can give some advice. I mean, you've only got to contact Ben at Phong Nha, Farmstay his links will be in the show notes. But maybe speak, Ben, if you would, talk about the kind of stuff that people can do as a family, stuff that, you know, can amuse kids. I know you know, you've got a young family as well, and I see them paddle boarding and I see them surfing and I see, you know, like I know the surf is not like Australia surf, but, you know, there are some different aspects which people wouldn't automatically think would be available from Phong Nha as a kind of a base. Ben Mitchell: [00:09:42] Yeah, well. Dong Hoi City itself is located on the East Sea and it has some beautiful big beaches. Um, there's Bo Ninh Beach and Nhat le beach and you can experience those beaches, can experience the seafood restaurants along the beaches. Um. Dong Hoi could be explained as being not. It's a place where you can really get Vietnamese modern culture. It's not, uh, not, not set up for Western tourism. It's set up for Vietnamese tourism. And in summer it's quite busy with Vietnamese tourists and quite a lot of fun for people that are looking for something very unique. You know, as opposed to going to, you know, beaches that are set up for Western tourism. Um, staying in Dong Hoi still gives easy access to the national park. There's tours you can do. You can rent scooters, You can get riders. You can stay in Dong Hoi for one night, two nights, and then still come out to Phong Nha. The whole province has got a lot of different things, a lot of diversity because of. It's a diverse place. You've got the mountains, the jungle, you've got the rural farmland, you've got the beaches, you've got these incredible sand dunes just north of Dong Hoi that have now got four wheel motorbikes that you can rent and ride around on the sand dunes. Um, so yeah, there's a lot of diversity there with the beach. I personally like to go over to a beach called Danha Beach, which is only about a 25 minute drive from Phong Nha farm stay where I live, and I like to go over there at dawn often and go surfing. Ben Mitchell: [00:11:35] The best surfing time is. The autumn and the winter when we get the storms. But we've been going over actually a couple of times recently for some little waves with the kids early in the morning. Um, as far as out here, things to do with families go. I really rate the Bungalow Valley as a great day trip. Most of the homestays around here have got bicycles included in your stay. Or you can rent better, better mountain bikes. And you can also do bicycle tours with she's another guy called. Shi has bicycle tours and he runs some incredible bicycle tours, including going up around the Bong lai Valley and other areas out in the countryside and along different parts of the Ho Chi Minh Trail and. He actually has a company here that does the bicycle tours. Mr. Shi JANG With Bong lai Valley. You can also go up there with the riders on the back of a scooter, or you can rent a scooter and go up there. It's a loop that you do in a rural valley with different stops around the loop that have just naturally evolved around backpackers and. You've got a few farm to table restaurants along the way, like Moi MOI which is one of my favorites, where they do barbecue chickens. When you order the chicken, you actually see people go off and start chasing chickens. Um, they do a really amazing dish where. Kerry Newsome: [00:13:15] They're frightened when they see people come in. Oh no, they are going to have me for lunch. Oh, they. Ben Mitchell: [00:13:21] Look pretty calm just cruising around doing their thing. These are really, really true free range chickens. You cannot get more free range than that. Ben Mitchell: [00:13:34] They're called Ga doi, which means garden chicken. And they're, you know, they're pretty happy chickens. Um, God knows. Ben Mitchell: [00:13:43] I've met. Some people who are vegans, you know, are not vegans, vegetarians for because of food industry reasons. And they will eat the chicken up there because they see it as being, um. A garden variety. Ben Mitchell: [00:13:58] Yeah. And, and, and happy chickens. Yeah. So, so, yeah, I was sort of surprised when I've seen that a couple of times. Kerry Newsome: [00:14:08] I'm kind of conscious that people want to plan and plan their time. So with all of the things that you're bringing in this episode to us, how should people plan their stay? Like how long, where should they do it from? How do they manipulate it? Because we also kind of agree that there's a lot of kind of mish mash of information out there. So a lot of people come to me and say, look, it's just overwhelming. I don't know what's good, what's not good, Like, so can we give a bit of a steer for people or, you know, how they kind of put this together? Do they come to Vietnam first and then do it from Vietnam? Do they do it all their research from home? Where can we where can we send everyone? Ben Mitchell: [00:14:55] Well, I think people can. If people say listen to your podcast, well, then by listening to different episodes, they will get different information about different areas from people who have a lot of experience in those areas. Um, and I think other, other sources of information at the moment, I think that tourism numbers are still very down and I think that if someone landed in Vietnam and started moving through the country, they would and they had already chosen all of their hotels and what they're going to do each day and that before they got here, 100% booked in, they would probably find that by talking to other travelers heading in the other direction at the moment, that they might have done things differently had they had they had more modern information, say, from up to date. Ben Mitchell: [00:15:55] Date. So yeah, up to date information. I'm hearing from a lot of people that they're wishing that they had booked maybe less time in some of the more developed areas and more time in some of the less travelled to areas. I'm also hearing that people are noticing big changes in what they're finding when they get to destinations they've been to before. Um, a lot of businesses have shut down, a lot of businesses have been knocked about in their management systems during COVID. Um, and a lot of businesses have done a full or partial changeover to domestic tourism and the domestic tourism has much different expectations. To what Western tourism has. You might find that when you get to that resort that you've stayed at before, that it's operating very differently with a much different atmosphere. So you've got to be a little bit adaptable and you've got to be prepared to maybe change your plans or not have such set plans if you're traveling through the country. I mean, it's probably different if you're going to come out to Holland again and stay there for two weeks and just chill and hang out and soak up what that town's got to offer, That would be yeah, you know, you're going to do that. But if you're if you're actually going to travel through Vietnam at the moment, you would probably have to make some of the decisions about what you're doing along the way by talking to people heading in the other direction that you're bumping into, because they're going to give you information that might conflict with what your expectations were. Kerry Newsome: [00:17:44] And I think for my listeners, if you if you kind of consider the fact that the industry was just so hit so hard that a lot of the Vietnamese workers that worked in the travel industry have since left that industry and that has. Ben Mitchell: [00:18:05] Big player. Kerry Newsome: [00:18:06] A very big player and I think best to just manage people's expectations at this point and to realize that has meant that a lot of the hotels that Ben's talking about also cannot actually take 100% occupancy because they don't have the staff to man the hotels that were originally operating at that at those levels. So they have small occupancies that they can manage with people. And as Ben also alluded, there's also some takeovers that have happened. So the hotel might, you know, that you went to before or that you looked once before on the website. Actually, it's kind of changed its name. It's having some, you know, renovations done. It's got a new manager, it's got a new style. And, you know, Ben's quite right. It is targeting more the, you know, nearly 100 million local residents of Vietnam rather than us Westerners and foreigners to the country. And likewise, I think we need to appreciate that there's a kind of a what I'm hearing from my chats with people is that there's a re- training going on. So the people that have left the industry and they're hiring back new people, they've got to start from scratch. So, you know, it's kind of evolving, but it's not evolving. It's not a flick of a switch. It's not that, Oh, okay. The gates are open. We're all, you know, Jack ready to go. That's just actually not happening. What is comforting to hear is that there's enthusiasm out there and there's hope out there and there's people aspiring back to, you know, to welcome international tourism back because, you know, I think the country does have so much to offer. Kerry Newsome: [00:20:02] And what I love about talking to you, Ben, is that you do get very much involved with the tourists as they come through. And I love how you can kind of share also that community spirit of Phong Nha . Because when I see anything about Foreigner with your name attached to it, you know, you're meeting and greeting people, you're sharing them, you know, with them what you know and experienced. Now you've been there, you know, a long time. So getting back to that question about people planning, I agree. I think being able to be adaptable and flexible with their bookings because if you're locked in, you're locked in. So people just be careful with your cancellation policies and things like that. I think you'll find there's some manoeuvrability. There is a lot of accommodation there. And one of the things I want to emphasize with Phong Nha is there is the beautiful homestays. But if you know you want luxury in that, you can go up, you know, to your four and five star villas and things like that as well. So there's that really broad scope of, you know, the adventure traveler or, you know, maybe the chill and luxury and, and have a gin and tonic kind of traveler as well. There's that really lovely mix. So just getting back, Ben, to people planning their time. You and I have talked about this before, that you actually get some visitors that come for a couple of days but wish they'd stay for longer, maybe Talk to us a little bit about that. Ben Mitchell: [00:21:33] Well, I wish I had a dollar for every one I heard say that. But I'm glad I have a dollar for every. Kerry Newsome: [00:21:38] You mean Dong, don't you? Ben Mitchell: [00:21:41] But I'm glad I've had. I have a dollar for every one who has stayed an extra day. But I think that the. Yeah, I mean, I'm hearing that daily as people leave that people wish they had longer in this area. They underestimated what the area had to offer. Um, and I do always look forward to them going away and telling people about the area because they enjoyed it so much. As far as things to do, I mean, the Bong lai Valley with those restaurants like Moi Moi and the pub with cold beer, with Kong's jungle experience, where he teaches people about rubber tapping and he's got a big swing up there and a full operating farm that he shows people around. Um, then there's Mr. Quyen at the duck stop, which is a somehow it's become like this world famous thing for people to go there and. Um, see be entertained by his ducks. He's performing ducks. Um, that's really popular with families. Really popular with, you know, travellers. And the food up there is quite a foodie experience for the farm to table dishes. Like they've got bamboo stuff with pork, they've got the Bun Loc cakes, which are a peanut and mushroom, little sort of pasty pie made from cassava. Um, all these delicious delicacies and different foods that if you go up there as a group, even like you often see families and groups of backpackers together sit down and all have a big sort of order different foods and sit around, eat together in a hut up there in the in one of the farm to table restaurants. Ben Mitchell: [00:23:29] That's a good day trip. And it's cheap. I mean, you do it yourself. It's simple as that. You've got to map. The maps are online. It's all available. Um, then as I mentioned before, the national Park loop is a good thing to do. There's many things to do along that, so you can sort of choose what you want to do before you go. Um, with a little bit of research and maybe talking to, talking to your homestay or talking to, to the locals, the, the Phong Nha Cave in itself is really still it's the original tourism thing to do here in Phong Nha. When I first came here back in 2000, early 2007, it was a tourism thing that you could do here you hop on a boat. At the at the father son ferry crossing and which is basically why the village was there. It was a village around a ferry crossing. Um, and you, you go up the river seven kilometers and then they turn the engine off on the boat. And then you go one kilometer into the cave. Now it's a great cave to visit. It's a great cave trip. Sadly, at the moment, there's still no information about what you're looking at and where you are. And there's a lot of really interesting information about that. So we're Hung and I have added that to the podcast that we made in order to try and share that information. I know at Easy Tiger Hostel, pre COVID at 9:00 in the morning every morning, people came from all the different hotels down to Easy Tiger for the 9 a.m. Ben Mitchell: [00:25:09] Talk where we would tell people about that then send them off to the cave in big groups so they could all share the boat. That is currently not happening at the moment because Easy Tiger did not survive COVID. Um, at the farm stay, we try and tell our customers, but what I'm finding is much easier for our staff and for us as a whole as we rebuild, um, at both our businesses that are still open is we refer people to the podcast just to get that historical information. And I'd like to start sharing that more with all the other homestays too, so they can their customers can benefit from that as well. As far as exploring the local area goes. A bicycle ride around in the countryside on either side of the river, heading away from town, either upriver or downriver is a great experience to get out into the countryside because I really fell in love with riding around all the islands in the delta behind Hoi ani 2007 through to about 2010. I found it to be like just Vietnam with no development and no nothing, nothing out there for foreign tourists. And then you could still be back at your hotel in the evening and like nice and comfortable and out for a beer or whatever you want to do. And Phong Nha was very much at that stage. At the moment, if you leave the village of Phong Nha, you sort of go out into the countryside. You can you can aim for some different things, like a ride out to the dark Cave for a day trip on a bicycles really good. Ben Mitchell: [00:26:48] You can ride bicycle out to the BONG LAI Valley and then come around past where I live. In the afternoon through CU NAM village. CU NAM Village has just been designated by the government as a tourism village for they want to try and get into the tourism market. But it's it'll be very different because it's much more low key sort of tourism in a rural environment. And that's where the Farmstay has always been. A book was recently written by an author called Sue Fleming. She was here on holiday during COVID, and she from, was from Hanoi. Um, and Sue was talking to my mother who was stuck here throughout COVID for two years. And my mother had done about eight years worth of research talking to old people in the village, using local interpreters. And Sue got hold of all Mum's research and and wove a novel around her. Her research, which we are now selling at the Farmstay with proceeds going to rebuilding the museum which was destroyed in the big floods that we have here every few years. That book's called ‘Two Pillars Remain’ and we're selling that here Now. There's also some great. Like there's a good documentary that's been made by Utah University and that is about, um. The war. My mother in law features in that documentary, along with a lot of us Marines that served on the DMZ and other Vietnamese combatants. And that that documentary is really good for people who want to just sort of hear about the human side of the war. Kerry Newsome: [00:28:46] And funny you mentioned about Utah. I want to say hello to many of my Utah listeners and I'll tell you why. Ben, Fascinating as it may be. Um, there are a lot of people who left Vietnam as war veterans, etcetera, and took their families and resettled in Utah in the US 1975, you know, onwards. Et cetera. So yeah, it's really interesting that that documentary is coming out of Utah. I can totally understand why and really good to know. Ben Mitchell: [00:29:22] Huge amount of young people coming into the tourism industry over here. A lot of them were actually studying tourism. During COVID. And they were they were frightened because they decided to go into a field that was that was. Not. Kerry Newsome: [00:29:39] Looking sustainable. Ben Mitchell: [00:29:41] Not looking sustainable. And so they're all quite enthusiastic and they're coming out now and looking for jobs. A lot of the best people from pre-COVID, they were the sort of people who had a lot of get up and go in them and they got up and went. When COVID hit. And I'm finding that a lot of the guys that I used to work with and and around there in places like Taiwan and Penang and different parts of the world now. Yeah. Doing, doing some doing the same job and a lot doing different jobs and they won't come back now I don't think I think that they've left the industry and that's making it very difficult for some of the tour companies. Yes, some of the tour companies are struggling to find those experienced guys that used to do that, used to carry their workload for them, and now they've got young, inexperienced people coming in. And that's adding to the stress of starting up trying to do the training that some companies really tried to do some unique measures to stay alive during the COVID. Um, that's really paying off for them now. Companies like Oxalis who kept all their tour guides busy and working and all their porters busy and working by diversifying. I hear different stories from up and down the coast of other companies that did the same. Um, that'll pay off for them. Now I know that, that I'm very grateful for a couple of the key people who run our businesses who have still got with us and, and I can see that I'm very lucky to have them still. Kerry Newsome: [00:31:20] Ben, thank you for being on the show. I'd like to share with everyone the links that you mentioned. I'll make sure that they're in the notes for people to access and yeah, just great to catch up and talk everything. Ben Mitchell: [00:31:32] Fun yeah. Really appreciate the opportunity. Thanks Kerry.

What About Vietnam – S5- E7 The Rise of Unique Dining Experiences in Vietnam Kerry Newsome: Xin chào and welcome to What About Vietnam. So here we are folks, we're in the silly season. We're in December, Christmas not far away and as per usual we're all going a little bit crazy as we're trying to figure out we're going to have a holiday? How are we going to get together with friends and family? And we're thinking about Christmas dinner and food. So, I wanted to finish up the year with a show that would be speaking to, you know, some of the fun things that we can do with food. And in particular, I want to talk to you about where food culture, trends, where the vision of food is kind of heading in Vietnam. Because if you were to think about Vietnam in just the sense of street food, you would be seriously doing it a disservice because it has exploded in the last few years with new kinds of experiences and the flavors, the new chefs, the variety of mixing and matching with food and beverages. And I wanted a guest on the show that could really speak to that with authority. And I'm delighted to have Jovel Chan on the show. I want to tell you a bit about. Jovel comes with a very strong background in this area. In the last three years, She has been in Singapore as a food writer and blogger, consultant, culinary event organiser. But now she's really got her eyes set on Vietnam as she's based in Ho Chi Minh City. And certainly in the area of developing different cuisines and expanding the horizons, I guess, of experiences in restaurants with different chefs. That focus is primarily in Saigon and in Hanoi. In the last three years, she's actually been tracking the ins and outs of the industry, covering trends, you know, like new openings and happenings, and sharing them through her blog, chevellecharm.com. She became the first Vietnam food and beverage consultant for the Singapore tourism board, adding to an already stellar F&B client suite. She recently founded Saigon Social. Now that comes with some really clever and unique experiences. She's got the Saigon Supper Club, things like cocktail cinemas. And she's really into a very creative sense of connecting with people, sharing great food, sharing great beverages as well, you know, with different gins and craft beers and wine, etc. You're really in for a treat in this show. That's all I can say. It's just something that I think is going to really just put that extra spice of insight into the food scene and hopefully get you even more excited about your trip to Vietnam. Before we jump in, I wanted to just say a quick Merry Christmas and Happy New Year . This is actually the last show for the year. I'm taking a short break and I'll be back on your podcast channel early February . It's a break I really need to have. I've got, you know, lots of things I need to do. I've got a family that I want to have some downtime with and just all of those things are going to make it so that when I come back in 24, I'm refreshed and ready to go. And I have a really exciting plan for the shows next year. So I hope you'll stick with the podcast because there's lots of wonderful stuff happening. I hope you are going to have a wonderful Christmas yourselves. I really thank you for your support over the year. I hope you're enjoying the program. Please sing out if there is a subject matter or something in particular that you'd like to talk about. I'm always I'm always ears and I love to get your feedback. Anyway, I'm talking too much, taking up too much time on this. I want to introduce you to Chevelle. Let's welcome her to the program. Jovel Chan : Great to be here. Great to be here. Kerry Newsome : We've got a lot to talk about. So maybe if we can dive in really early and just get your take on where you think Vietnamese cuisine is heading? What can we expect to experience with cuisine in Vietnam in the future? And yeah, just give us a little look through that peephole to see what's ahead. What can we expect to find when we visit Vietnam? I know my travellers are going to want to know where to go, where to eat. Jovel Chan: I definitely believe that we are at just the start of seeing where Vietnam's dining scene can go. In the past few years post-pandemic, we did see a lot of chefs, both from Vietnam and also from overseas, come into Vietnam, notably Saigon and Hanoi, to set up shop and start catering to hungry tourists and also curious locals who are interested to experience differently and both of them are looking for something beyond just street food itself. I foresee with more five-star hotels also entering Vietnam. and a lot more malls that are also opening up in Vietnam, what you start to see is a very diverse dining scene of different kinds of cuisines, but also at the same time a lot more, a lot better quality. I think it's just a lot more refined and it's a lot more, for the lack of a better word, it's a lot better quality, better dining in terms of interiors, in terms of, you know, even the food itself and also down to service and yeah, the entire experience of dining out. Kerry Newsome : Now, I've heard you say, and I'm cheating here, I've heard you describe the food scene in three words. And I'll give you those three words back and you can maybe expand on them for our guests. So, the first one you mentioned was the dining scene is very hungry. So, describe for us what you mean by hungry. Jovel Chan: So I've been writing a monthly new openings guide in Saigon where I cover new restaurants for the past almost two years. And it's very safe to say that there has been no shortage of new restaurants entering the market even during the pandemic. And it's almost double or triple the rate that it was for obvious reasons during the pandemic versus now since. And this month, I just rallied up not just new restaurant openings, but I also started doing pop-ups, chef residencies and chef pop-ups. So what I mean by when they are hungry, it's really, first and foremost, everybody wants to open up a restaurant. There's so much talent that is happening, there's so many things that are happening. And it's not just opening a restaurant, it's just everybody also wants to come here and try to do something, you know, they're popping up, they're collaborating with each other. You've got chefs from abroad that are doing things here, there's always just something happening. And it's always new. So everybody wants a piece of the pie right now. Kerry Newsome: And that's what I mean by that's really interesting. And I can kind of see that myself, even between visits. I only, you know, like I visit three times a year at least. And even in that three, four months away, I come back and there's something new. There's that place that's just opened up around the corner where it wasn't there when I was there last trip. It's quite amazing. And as you say, it's in the decor, you know, it's in the actual you know, layout and design, the way the tables are set. I love the creativity that is also coming about, which is absolutely fabulous. And then, as you say, the chefs, the new chefs, homegrown chefs, too, that are coming through. So, it's really exciting. You've got another word that you use to describe, and I'd like you to expand on that one, and that's defiant. I love that word, defiant. Jovel Chan: That's your favourite word, isn't it? Kerry Newsome : Maybe I kind of align myself to that. Jovel Chan: So, yeah, so rightfully so, like what I mentioned, the industries also, the chefs themselves are very defiant. So, you know, what we see as creativity to them is kind of like, you know, they're trying to take back something, right? So, I think a lot of them, they don't want to be defined by Vietnamese cuisine. Ironically, but they don't want whatever people think about them to just be limited to banh mi and pho. Because to so many of these homegrown chefs, Vietnamese cuisine and ingredients are able to compete with the likes of cuisine in Japan, of ingredients in Japan, where people treat Japanese cuisine as a premium cuisine. So to many of them, you can hear them say, you know, the number of hours that we take to make pho and what goes behind making a simple bowl of pho like this is the same as making a bowl of ramen, yet nobody is giving us the same credit or willing to pay what people pay for ramen in Japan. So there is this defiance and this is fueling a lot of chefs behind these finer dining kitchens to showcase and storytell about Vietnamese cuisine. Kerry Newsome : Yeah, and I think it's we do need to be careful about stereotyping Vietnamese food. I mean, I even get asked, you know, like, what happens if when I go to Vietnam, I don't like Vietnamese food? And it's like, well, there's, it's a multicultural city that you're visiting. So, you can get any cuisine in the world from pizza to you know, to Greek, to Italian, to whatever. So, you know, don't think of Vietnamese, as you say, just limited to what you know at this point. You know, keep an open mind, coming to the country and, you know, be open to try these new restaurants with these different fusions of flavors and just experiment with the new dining scene. I think that's what's key for people is to experiment. Because you talk about, you know, in your third word, which is nascent, you know, I mean, that deserves definite explanation. Jovel Chan: So Vietnam's dining scene really, really I would say picked up in the last number of years. This isn't to say that there weren't restaurants before, of course there were restaurants before, but dining as a culture in Vietnam with more than just maybe a burger joint or you know the Park Hyatt Saigon and and the ubiquity of it now, and the price that it's now accessible at. I was just writing an article yesterday where 10 to 15 restaurants on it were in the range of 300 to 500k. That's less than $20. So you now have these chefs who are coming in and doing such great things and serving up food where people can enjoy at 300, 500k. It's still a lot higher, but it's a lot less. Before you had dining where it was 2 million. Now it's becoming a lot more affordable and it's a lot more accessible, right? And that's what I mean by the dining scene is it has just really started in the past number of years where people are actually dining out and there is a dining out culture. where people are able to start going out maybe even twice a month and that's something that's within their means. But this only really started in the past two years or three years or so after the pandemic fueled by the likes of the Michelin. So that's what I mean by it's really, really nice and everything is so new and yeah, so much room for opportunity. It's a really exciting time to see where everything goes. Kerry Newsome: Yes. And so, you know, if you are a foodie and you're looking at, you know, your time in Vietnam and best places to go. Now we're talking about dining scenes that are primarily focused in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, aren't we? Which would you say would be the one, if you were a real foodie, to focus on? It's a tough one. Oh my gosh. Jovel Chan: I can't say this in public. Kerry Newsome : I can't say this in public. It's a hard one, I know. I really know it. But people say, oh, if we're into food, should we go, should we spend more time in Ho Chi Minh City or should we spend more time in Hanoi? And I find it hard to answer that question myself. You know, and while I can say to them that, you know, the cuisine in the North traditionally is very different to the South. You know, those, even those flavors have started to, you know, meld a little bit because, you know, people that are opening up restaurants in the North are opening the same ones in the South and, you know, vice versa. So, there isn't quite that division in the new and upcoming, certainly in traditional, there probably is more definition. But yeah, like, what do I say? Help me out! Jovel Chan: I definitely enjoy, you know, food from all the cities, but Hanoi, eating on the streets, but in Saigon, dining out. And if it were up to me and I had five days, I would spend perhaps a day or two in Hanoi and then come down to Saigon and contrast it, yet see those similarities between what you see from, you know, the traditional street food freight, street food favorites up in the north and then come back down with the understanding and the grasp of what it is to Saigon and check out some of the bars and restaurants and what people are doing here. A lot of what I see in Saigon, even on the street food, is that there's a lot of them that are also adjusting to cater to the younger people here, to the experts here. So some of the banh mi here, you see a lot more banh mi kebab here, you see a lot more innovation even on the street food. So I think heading to the north, get your fix, come down here and see how that's kind of evolving and moving a little bit. For a foodie, I think that's definitely like, you know, you can run the gamut from everything that's traditional and see how that moves and changes with Vietnam's growth. Kerry Newsome: That's a really good answer. I'm going to use that one . No, it's a really good way to explain it because I think there's some novelty factors still very present with the new traveler to Vietnam and sometimes, you know, the new traveler to Southeast Asia to experience street food, to sit on the little red chairs, to sit where, you know, the average local person is having, you know, a meal. with their family and, you know, doing some beers, celebrating with family, that sort of thing. So there's a really nice feeling about that and I think people are very keen to do that. But then, like you, I can go from that, and then I'm really keen to explore the wider circle of other restaurants and other cuisines. And as I said, their decor, they're really wonderful ways that they can use color and art and, you know, their designing is just fantastic. And I really, I like that ambience, you know, that way that a restaurant can make you feel like I really want to hang about here. I want to stay here. You know, I want to have another glass of wine and I want to have, I want to try that other thing on the menu that we didn't start with, you know, that kind of thing. You really want to invest your time and stay. So, in that vein, talk to us about some of the latest trends coming through that you're seeing now, you know, especially since the Michelin guides come out, that sort of thing. So, what are the really big trends coming through? Jovel Chan : Modern Vietnamese cuisine is very, very, very popular. Around Southeast Asia, there's a boom of Southeast Asian cuisine and chefs at the helm. And there's a much larger spotlight that's being placed on Southeast Asian cuisine and chefs themselves. So that's something that's also being reflected here in Vietnam. And when the Michelin came in, we saw three out of four of those one-star restaurants being awarded to modern Vietnamese and Vietnamese restaurants. So the narrative became one of going global by going home. Kerry Newsome: That's interesting. Going global. Yes. Jovel Chan: We saw a lot by going home. We saw that people, there was almost like, there was almost a, it's not favoritism, but a curiosity amongst people in the region as well as overseas who naturally want to come to a country and try what the modern version of that local cuisine was. And when they saw that awards were being awarded for such cuisine over perhaps some of the other cuisines, naturally, right? A lot of the restaurants had that signal to become, OK, I need to be more Vietnamese or I need to be modern Vietnamese. So even a lot of these perhaps traditionally French or modern French restaurants And the likes started playing around with, hey, we now use Vietnamese ingredients. Hey, we start, you know, a little bit, you know, playing on that Vietnamese card a little bit more. So because of that, we did see this year more than, you know, almost 10 new modern Vietnamese restaurants open. And we saw a little move even from those quintessentially Western restaurants into using Vietnamese ingredients. So that's a trend that I did see particularly this year. And I know that we will continue to see this trend for the next number of years because of these global movements. But also at the same time, like I said, Vietnamese people are very prideful in their cuisine. I don't see many Vietnamese chefs coming out and trying to do something else. Kerry Newsome: Perhaps not by choice. That's interesting. Very interesting. So, if we were to start looking at making suggestions to people about special experiences with food, And this is kind of going to be a little segue into what you do as a main theme. But like food, as you say, is becoming an experience to experience that restaurant, to experience that food. I'm seeing a lot more of the combination with you know, fine dining and then alcohol or, you know, different kind of combinations of that pairing where that was never kind of an option before, even just before COVID really. So, you know, can you talk to us about some of the experiences that are now coming through that people are getting excited about? Jovel Chan: So like I said, there are a lot more pop-ups and a lot more events that are happening this year. In the alcohol industry in Vietnam, we also had a gin festival for the first time a couple of years ago. We had a whiskey festival for the first time last year. So we're getting a lot more of this food and drink driven events and pop-ups that people can discover. A lot more restaurants are also going in the way of more fun dining than fine dining. So that's another trend that we see happening a lot more as well, fun dining. Kerry Newsome : And that's what I'm keen to talk about. Jovel Chan: Yeah. Fun dining is injecting an element of social and also it's just injecting elements of, yeah, mostly social and fun into the traditionally more stuffy, you know, concept of dining out. right? And the reason why that's taking off here in Vietnam, I mean, first and foremost, it's very much a global trend. I think the new generation of, you know, travelers, you know, with millennials or even Gen Z, they're going to high-end restaurants and going to your traditional like Ritz Carlton and stuff, it's not something that is really appealing to them anymore, right? Which is why hotels are also changing. Now you have younger and cooler brands, like the edition and the like, right? So the hotel industry moved towards something like that because they could see that these big name brands did not appeal to the next generation anymore. Exactly. But in the same way, fine dining and sitting down on the white cloth and having that table side service just isn't what that same generation is looking for anymore. They want to be at the chef's counter, seeing the fire, interacting with people and having these exclusive experiences that meant a lot more for them. It wasn't about going to these really stuffy brands anymore and saying that they were there. They wanted to be one of the only few people to have this really cool thing that was happening and experiencing that with their friends, perhaps in a private setting. So that's what we're seeing, and that's the fun dining aspect. And that's what also inspired me to create these experiences. Because personally, as somebody who writes about the industry and get invited to many of these events, a lot of these events were very stuffy for me. It was always a steak and wine dinner, and I would have to sit down for four hours and drink wine next to people I didn't know. And I didn't want to do that, right? And I saw that those were the only things that were kind of happening in Ho Chi Minh City and Vietnam. So I said, hey, you know what? There are just better ways to experience food that are more fun. but still achieve the objective of trying and experiencing this new wine and dining out with people. And so I created these experiences just to almost show the industry that there are just other ways to do things. And consumers would much prefer to attend such things. So we started doing that under this brand name called Saigon Supper Club. and bringing people together. And six months later, we've done about 10 dinners and dined at least 200 people. Kerry Newsome: And I think that that's clever. I think that you doing this in a social sense is really key because I think some of the the experience is like, I'll use the restaurant called, I think it's called Noir, the one that you go to in Ho Chi Minh City, where you actually dine in the dark. Like, you're totally in the dark. And funnily enough, a friend of mine went, and I wasn't able to go on the night, but she came back and she said, you know, out of the 10 courses that I ate in the dark, I couldn't even pick the whole 10 correctly. I only picked two out of the 10 dishes. correctly for the experience. And she absolutely loved about it. So, it wasn't just the food that was a great experience and fun. It was the fact that, you know, every other sense in her body was being tested to figure out the texture and the taste and, you know, what the smells were and things like that to try and figure out what that dish was. So, you know, I think that was one of the first examples I had of moving away from traditional stuffy type environments where, you know, you are just having one experience, which is just that set meal, to adding on another layer of the experience to have fun and guessing and things like that. And I see what you're doing with the supper club is where you're getting a mix of, you know, expats, some locals, some tourists, you know, curious people, you know, of all areas, regions who are coming in, who can get to meet other people. Because, you know, travel is about meeting people as well. And I think this is another lovely way to do it. So I'm really keen to hear more about that. Before we just jump into that, I'd like to, because my my listening audience, and I'm talking to you guys out there now, when you do come to Vietnam and you're going to be coming into the two major cities we're talking about, Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. And people do, I know you ask, how long should I allow to stay in these places? Now, that's another interesting question to answer because if you do want to start enjoying the food culture and the food experiences, you'd need a few days to do it because you can't kind of gobble it all down in one day or probably even two days. So, you might need to allow, you know, some extra time in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi to take advantage of these other aspects of enjoying Vietnamese food and the dining scene as we're seeing and talking about it now. So, if you were to look at… Let's do Hanoi first. If you were to pick a… Say, okay, Jovel, I'm coming into Hanoi, you know, I'm bringing my family, you know, we're really looking for a really nice restaurant, you know, we eat everything. So just, you know, where should we head to? Just give us a few and we'll check and see, you know, if we can get a booking and that sort of thing. So maybe, I went through your website, I found it very hard to pick which street. Jovel Chan : So, I think one of my definitely favorite restaurants is a restaurant called Gia. Kerry Newsome : Yes, I've seen that. That's Hanoi. Yeah. Jovel Chan: Yeah, so Gia is it truly is one like so this year it got one star but I visited them back in 2021 when it first opened and I knew that it was already something that was very very special because it does modern Vietnamese But the way they do it is really by… So in a lot of modern Vietnamese restaurants, a lot of the techniques are very much still very Western techniques. Kerry Newsome : But with a Vietnamese spin. Jovel Chan : A lot of the techniques are recognizably and distinctively Western, but perhaps the flavor, right? They've used Vietnamese herbs and spices. So in some of the modern Vietnamese restaurants, you can still see a beef tartare, which is very much from a French dish, right? But they'll use a Vietnamese quail egg. But in Zia, it is very distinctly Vietnamese. It's almost like imperial Vietnamese cuisine. It feels like that. Nothing really feels like it's from the West. It's just a pure elevation of everything that you've had in Vietnam, done in a way that is very noticeable in Asian and Vietnamese. And I think that's why it's so, so special. Kerry Newsome : Okay, so that's Gia in Hanoi. So what's the second one? Jovel Chan: Yeah, so Los Fuegos is a restaurant and it is a Brazilian steakhouse. I know it's very ironic, but it's from a guy and he is from South America and he spent quite a bit of time in Australia herding cattle. So he really knows his meat. And it's this really quaint little outdoor steakhouse space. And we have a very private area at the back where he has handcrafted this entire barbecue from scratch. So he's made it out of pure love. And it's such a nice little quaint space. And you go in there, and it's gorgeous, gorgeous meat and very, very well done. And more importantly, it has certain ingredients that are not particularly legal in Vietnam. And I don't mean anything, you know, like, too, too, too off the record, but they have like, you know, brain and certain, you know, innards, certain ingredients, you know, for some reason is banned. It's not allowed in Vietnam that he has it, which is a very traditional part of the cuisine. So I really appreciate going there and having that. And number three? Number three has to be, I think the cafes there are really, really, really good. I definitely enjoy the cafes there a lot. So if I had to pick number three, I would choose a cafe. Kerry Newsome : Yeah, but there's so many of them. I mean, I like some of the very well-known, even the Runam. I love the Runam. They are so quaint. Jovel Chan: Oh. Okay, so it has to be a restaurant. Oh, this is tricky then. Okay, I think one of my favourite restaurants in Hanoi then has to be, I think Labrie. Labrie is really good. L-A-B-R-I. Bistro. Kerry Newsome: So it's cafe, bistro, that kind, is it? Jovel Chan : Labri is dining. I've heard really good things about Chapter and Dung, but I've not been yet to be very honest. But I've been to Labri and I thought it was really good. Kerry Newsome: Let's move on to Ho Chi Minh City. Number one for Ho Chi Minh. Jovel Chan : Ho Chi Minh City. Kerry Newsome: This is very, very hot question to ask. When I get asked that question, I actually picked one of the Michelin star restaurants and that's Anan. Anan is, has never let me down, like seriously, anyone I send there just comes away with that many photos about food, even people that never take photos of food before, all of a sudden they're sending me photos of food from Anan, it's outstanding. Jovel Chan: Yeah. And then he just opened up a smaller, not a smaller, but a sister concept in the same building on the third floor. Oh, really? Kerry Newsome : Okay. I must check that out when I'm there. Jovel Chan : Yeah. So it's in the same building. It's got one by far, molecular far. So, you know, another place to stand. Excellent. All right. As for me, If ever the day Anan becomes really full and you need an alternative to send your guests to, my go-to modern Vietnamese restaurant is An's, a place called An's, A-N apostrophe S. N apostrophe S, that's conveniently. I know. So interestingly, An's is helmed by the ex-right hand of Peter, Kerry Newsome : Right, so a breakaway. Jovel Chan: Yeah, it's a breakaway, but the food is very different, I would say. Okay. Very different, but it's still very much modern Vietnamese. Yeah, with a chef counter and everything, it's a lot more quaint and less, I would say, creative and playful with the molecular and the one bite, but in the same vein as Zia Hanoi, it really elevates it from the core of Vietnamese cuisine. So it retains the sanctity of it a lot stronger. Kerry Newsome : The only other restaurant I have been in this sort of league, if for want of a better word, was A by Tung. That 20 degustation, oh my God, that was just outstanding. Jovel Chan : That's a really good one. Kerry Newsome : Oh my God, I was just in awe. I was totally in awe by that restaurant, but it's very expensive, but it's absolutely outstanding. So if you had a third, what would you pick for your third? Jovel Chan : A third restaurant in Saigon. I would say, oof, wish I had more time. I think for some, I always think, the place I always bring a lot of people to is Moi. I bring a lot of people to Moi, Moi Craft Sake, which opened up a year ago. Sorry, is that M-O-R-E? And M-U-A. Kerry Newsome : M-U-A, mm-hmm. Jovel Chan: Yeah, mùa is the word for seasons in Vietnamese. And the chef is a very, very talented chef that opened up the restaurant first in Hội An by the rice fields and everything. It's a very gorgeous restaurant. And then opened up mùa kraft sake, which is a lot more of like You know, it's very casual. It's like a hundred seat space in District 3 and you'll see a lot of people there drinking beer and craft sake. And this craft sake is made from Vietnamese rice and it's Vietnam's first sake. And it's actually really well done. So this chef, he loves Japanese cuisine and spent some time there. And he came back and created a menu that really nicely married Vietnamese and Japanese cuisine together. You've got that izakaya and you've got that street niao culture of eating and drinking in Vietnam. put put them together and pet it with beer, local beers and local craft sake together. So any point of time you go there, it's really busy. Energy and everything is really affordable. It's like, you know, that's in the 300 400 Raj telling you about So I bring everybody there just for like a good dinner so that they can still see what like Vietnamese cuisine can be beyond just street food, but at the same time, try things like they've got the tasting flights for Vietnamese sake. And yeah, it's always a good time. Kerry Newsome : Jovel, is there any particular sort of cuisines influencing other cuisines? Like we've talked about Vietnamese cuisine influencing some Western cultures, but is there some other cultures that are influencing Vietnamese? Like, is there some Japanese influence into Vietnamese? Is there, you know, some Korean influence into Vietnamese food? Is that coming the other way, working the other way back? Jovel Chan: I think Vietnamese cuisine in particular is very influenced from First and foremost, it was a country that was colonized its entire life, right? Vietnam was just continuously colonized by the French, obviously, you can see in the food, by the Chinese. And then you had a lot of people migrate out of Vietnam. They left to Europe and they left all over the world, the US and Australia. So when we come back and see Vietnamese cuisine, which is why I love looking at the dining scene, it's because when you see a lot of these restaurants, and depending on where the chef is from, most of the chefs, at least a year ago, don't spend time in Europe. So his food is Nordic. He calls it Nordic Vietnamese cuisine, right? Peter came from the States, Anan Saigon. You have a lot of these chefs, and depending on where they're coming from, it's influencing Vietnamese cuisine. And it's so interesting to tell people when you look at the cuisine itself, it's almost like a history story. Like you can tell exactly why. If you go to Ngo's restaurant in District 3, he spent time in Indonesia and Australia. So his modern Vietnamese cuisine and what he does is very different to what a lot of other chefs do. But everything, I went to a Vietnamese, a modern Vietnamese restaurant back in Singapore, and the chef went to the US and spent a lot of time working in Mexican restaurants. The food that came out was also very different, but still very uniquely Vietnamese. So when we look at Vietnamese cuisine, especially modern Vietnamese cuisine, those that are helmed by the second generation, like overseas chefs, right? grew up abroad and had to create and adapt to Vietnamese cuisine in that country, that also tastes different to whatever is from Vietnam. So there's a lot of these things. And that's why seeing the dining scene here, as compared to other countries in Southeast Asia or any other country, is very, very much reflective of that massive diaspora and in the 80s when everybody just left. Kerry Newsome: Our show is actually going to be the last show for 2023. So really, really… Oh my goodness. You are a Christmas gift, Jovel, all wrapped up in tasty food ideas. See, that's why I thought this was perfect, absolutely perfect. So, and I have so many travelers coming over for Christmas and New Year and then coming for TET and things like that. So, if we are to talk about, and I want us to explain, help me out here, I want us to explain just how Vietnam celebrates these Western culture events like Christmas because obviously Vietnam is not necessarily, it's a Buddhist predominant country. So, whilst it goes nuts in Saigon with Christmas decorations and Christmas fair, it's kind of still hard to isolate. What does Vietnam do for Christmas? You know, where do I, where do I book, you know, a Christmas dinner or a Christmas lunch or, yeah, can you help me out there? I really need some suggestions for Christmas fair and then New Year's Eve. What, where do people go for that? And then we're going to finish off and talk everything about that Saigon Supper Club because I think that sounds fabulous. I want to join. Jovel Chan: That's all right. Thank you. So let's start talking about Christmas. So Christmas in Vietnam, if you're traveling to Vietnam for Christmas, you've definitely got no shortage of options, especially in the hotels. All the hotels will do some set menu. A lot of them will also do your Christmas brunch. and a number of restaurants here and there, but in terms of a Christmas market or Christmas festival, there isn't something that exists here on a grand scale. You have the neighbourhood Christmas markets, which are a showcase of local artisans and brands that come to the fore, that are usually hosted by individual restaurants, like let's say Luzin, and stuff like that. There are small little pockets of Christmas markets, and I believe if you go along Nguyen Hue Street, you can see a couple of lights and a few baskets doing here and there. But if you're looking for a full-on Christmas outfit like in Europe, then you're definitely not going to see that here. Kerry Newsome: It's more the neon lights. Jovel Chan : But that's not just anywhere. Yeah, it's more the neon lights and, you know, the wiener house, Christmas music that comes on. And of course, it's always a party that follows after. So we saw that with more of the Western holidays here in Vietnam, like, you know, Halloween, let's say, or the like, are big reasons to throw a party. So, you know, head for dinner at perhaps, you know, one of the restaurants or a Christmas brunch to get that festive spirit. And then thereafter, you know, definitely I'm sure the bar scene will take that over a lot stronger than let's say the dining room. Kerry Newsome : And then New Year's Eve, is there any good spots for New Year's Eve? Jovel Chan : So New Year's Eve, similarly with Christmas, you'll see a lot of hotels during New Year's Eve. Mainly hotels, especially for brunch. A lot of restaurants don't necessarily do a New Year's Eve brunch, they'll do a set menu. Yeah, because, you know, wastage and costs and if you want people to work on these public holidays, you would pay them three times as much. At that point of time, I think a lot of the restaurants are like, hey, you know what, we probably won't get that many people because, you know, we've got our own festivities or perhaps they're not in Vietnam celebrating. So why do we want to do a brunch? So it's usually for the hotels to take over. Kerry Newsome : I have a prediction. I reckon in the next few years they'll be doing more around Christmas and Christmas lunches because the Westerners are coming and they've got to have Christmas lunch or dinner somewhere. And obviously places that cater to that are going to be in high demand. Jovel, let's finish up and I'd really like to throw it to you now to talk about what you're doing with the Saigon Supper Club, you know, just your passion behind it. I'm really keen to, because it's new and it sounds fabulous. So, over to you. Jovel Chan: Oh, thank you. So Saigon Supper Club are basically dinner experiences where people come. It's very much a food but also social experience where we host groups of 10 to 15 people in very unique spaces. So we've done ones on rooftops, we've done ones in farmhouses, we've done ones in wine cellars. And in the same vein as fun dining, it's to make dining fun. And we also bring people such as the bartenders and the chefs and they also all get involved to interact with the people and the diners and also showcase at the same time modern Vietnamese cuisine and also other products such as craft gin. We've done rum before, we've done chocolate pairing. So in this one little dinner, you get to really interact with a lot of things that allow you to also indulge in the food culture that is super new in Vietnam, right? The dining scene here. So that's what we've been doing with Saigon Supper Club. And we're in the midst of launching new experiences. We're doing Cocktail Cinema Club, where it's basically outdoor cinema experiences where we bring in our food and beverage partners. And what we're trying to do here in Vietnam is to create occasions for people to enjoy food and drink. Right now, you can only experience it within the four walls of a restaurant. But that's not how you should be enjoying or learning how to dine. or how to enjoy food just within the four walls of the restaurant. So we need to create these events and festivals and make it fun and attract people by coming out to do something new and novel, like an outdoor cinema on the rooftop in the middle of District 1. And through there, be like, hey, you know what? Here's a glass of wine. And get them to try new things in this manner. Otherwise, it will just always be stuffy. Otherwise, for the first time, people are trying wine and it's in a restaurant in perhaps a way that they can't afford it. So that's what we want to do. We want to make dining and drinking and going out and experiencing food very fun. That's why it was also the inspiration to create a lot of these events and experiences to just encourage people to come out, meet other like-minded people and build habits that encourage them to take the second step and make dining in Vietnam a lot more sustainable beyond just something stuffy like steak and wine. We're launching our first cocktail cinema In Christmas time, we're showing Love Actually. We managed to get it with subtitles, fully licensed. And we have an audio solution provider that allows people to just watch the movie with their own AirPods or earphones, you know, no crazy sound systems and stuff. So it's going to be a really, really… Do you have a date for that? We are finalizing the date with the venue at the moment, but once I do, I'll let you know. We will invite our craft beer and cider and wine friends to come in here to do You know, that's the place where people can actually try it in a very casual, fun and local way. Kerry Newsome : And I think that social interaction, you know, where you can, you know, you can stand around with people and say, what do you think? And you know, that tastes a bit like this. Did you try this one? And it's just all that sharing is so much fun and makes it just, I think that much more enjoyable. In just closing up, Jovel, is there anything I should have asked you that I didn't ask you when we're talking about dining and the dining scene in Vietnam? Should I have asked you something and I didn't get around to it? Jovel Chan: No, but you should be asking me, you know, when the next time you're going to be in Vietnam and go out for coffee, very offended about that. Asking me when you can take me out for lunch, perhaps? Kerry Newsome : Yes, I will. Definitely. I'm writing that down as we speak. I'm going to make sure that I put your links so that people can go to your website because your website's fantastic, by the way. It's got some great information and your blog. Thank you so much. You've really got some great information. So, people, get onto that website and check out. all her information on the restaurants. If you want some great ideas to share with your family, friends, or when you're over there, don't miss out on that link and it'll be in the show notes. Jovel, I just want to say thank you again for being on the show. You've been a wonderful guest and I'm just grateful for your time. Jovel Chan : Thank you so much for having me. Happy dining.

To travel, to experience and learn: that is to live.” – Tenzing Norgay One of the most asked questions I get from travellers is - When is the best time to visit Vietnam.? The answer isn't a simple one. Vietnam being a long skinny country with a shoreline of 3,200Kms, weather can vary significantly from North to South. I hope you will find this guide useful in your trip planning. January: January is the ideal time to consider cooler weather pursuits in Vietnam. In the northern region, particularly the famous Sapa town, located in Lao Cai province. Sapa is known for its stunning rice terraces, which are at their most beautiful during the winter months. The weather is chilly, making it perfect for trekking and exploring the local hill tribes. If you head to these locations make sure you are rugged up as it can snow in Sapa and roads can be drizzly. It is advisable to get some advice on best things to do prior to booking for this area. The south is your best bet for warmer weather but it too can have more frequent wet days but much warmer than the north and still with medium to high levels of humidity.I know from experience visiting another northern area called Ba be Lake, it was freezing cold. However, with puffer jackets and warm under clothing it meant we had the pristine lake and the caves to ourselves, and the beautiful cherry blossoms were just starting to break through. Less tourists and more chance for local interaction. February: February is a good time to visit Vietnam's central region. I mention this as somewhere between late January and mid February Vietnamese celebrate TET. This is a celebration that is waited for all year. You will find the ancient city of Hoi An becomes a sea of colour with flowers and fruit tree sellers lining the streets in the lead up. Combine that with the colourful lanterns and it’s a joyous time to be there. The weather is mild making it perfect for exploring the city's historic sites, such as the Old Town, the Japanese Covered Bridge, and the Hoi An Museum of History and Culture. The city is also known for its beautiful beaches, which as the month ages are warming up for swimming. Earlier in the month it may still be long sleeve weather and not warm enough to make the dive into the ocean or pool. But a week later this can change. You just never know in Vietnam. Kerry in February in Ba be lake - Vietnam March: March is the ideal time to visit Vietnam's central and southern regions, and further afield, the famous Mekong Delta. The weather is warm and humid, making it perfect for exploring the region's famous floating markets, such as Cai Rang and Phong Dien. The region is also known for its beautiful landscapes, including rice paddies and coconut groves. Hoi An is especially nice in the central region, and one of my favourite times of the year for mooching through the old town and finding new hidden gems in the alleys. Drinking coffee, people watching, sipping a cocktail at Happy Hour and chatting with locals. Basing yourself in Hoi An is a good plan as from here there are many activities and day trips to enjoy, that still mean you are back in time for twilight by the Thu Bon river. Hoi An - The Thu Bon river at twilight Photo Credit - Thomas Levine Photography - Photo Hoi An - March April: April is a great time to visit Vietnam's central highlands, particularly the city of Dalat. The weather is cool and dry, making it perfect for exploring the city's many waterfalls, such as Pongour ( a beautiful waterfall you can reach so close your hands can touch the falls) and Datanla. Kerry at Pongour Falls Dalat February The city is also known for its beautiful gardens and flower farms, such as the Valley of Love and the Dalat Flower Garden. A quaint and particularly European style city you will see and feel an atmosphere of fresh flowers, fruits and rolling hills. This is also an opportune time to head to Phong Nha and go caving, motorbike riding through the hills, trekking and soaking up the small town community of Phong Nha with locals.If you would like to know more about visiting Phong Nha I suggest you contact Phong Nha Farmstay and visit the podcast I did with Ben Mitchell a great Aussie bloke who has been living there for many years now and will give you the local knowledge you need. May: May is a great time to visit Vietnam's northern region, particularly the famous Ha Long Bay. The weather is warm and humid, making it perfect for exploring the bay's many limestone islands and caves. The bay is also known for its small beaches and opportunities for swimming and sunbathing. Lan Ha Bay and Halong Bay are a must if you visit Vietnam around this time. The limestone mountains jutting from the mesmeric coloured water will be a lifelong memory not just stored on your phone camera. The central and south are hot and very popular for those wanting to soak up the sun at any famous beach cities like Danang, Nha Trang, Phu Quoc Island and Mui Ne. March to May are ideal for other places in the north like Ha Giang. June: June is a great time to visit Vietnam's central region, particularly the city of Hue. The weather is HOT and humid, making it perfect for exploring the city's many historic sites. It is the hottest time of the year so be prepared with lighter clothing and sunscreen. This month really makes it safe to head to most places along the 3,200 shoreline as long as you like it VERY hot during the day with the odd downpour. July: July is a great time to visit Vietnam's southern region, particularly the city of Nha Trang. The weather is warm and humid, making it perfect for swimming and sunbathing at the city's many beaches. Nha Trang is also known for its many water activities, such as snorkelling and scuba diving, and its famous cable car ride to Vinpearl Island featuring a veritable Disneyland of experiences for kids. Across most of Vietnam it is HOT, so if that’s how you like it, then it’s your time. August: August is a great time to visit Vietnam's northern region, particularly the city of Hanoi. The weather is hot and humid, making it perfect for exploring the city's many historic sites, such as the Old Quarter, the Temple of Literature, and Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum. The city is also known for its delicious street food, which can be enjoyed at the many night markets. Early morning by the lake is delightful as the air is at its coolest, and you will see people dancing, exercising, running, and doing Tai Chi. Further in the north the weather is conducive to explore the mountainous regions due to panoramic views of the rice fields, but if it rains in places like Ha Giang it can be wonderful one minute, but drizzly and wet and slippery the other. August and September are recommended as good times to go, but please see note below for further information. Photo credit Jack Taylor - Ninh Binh Episode - https://www.whataboutvietnam.com/series-4/episode-16/ninh-binh---the-mystical-rival-to-halong-bay September: September is my favourite overall Vietnam time of year to visit most places in Vietnam. I call it a “safe bet! It’s a great time to visit Vietnam's central region, particularly the city of Da Nang and Hoi An. The weather is warm and mostly dry, making it perfect for exploring the city's many historic sites, such as the Marble Mountains and the My Son World cultural heritage Temples . The city is also known for its beautiful beaches, such as My Khe Beach, and its many water activities, such as jet skiing and parasailing. Further afield Hoi An has An Bang beach and because the weather is a little milder it makes you feel like getting out more during the day. The nights are delightful and it’s a fun thing to do, to go strolling along the beach alleys to find the best local bars to listen to music and eat the local catch from the day. An Bang Beach September October: Is a great month for the south. The rainy weather is starting to dominate in the central and northern region, which can ruin any type of fun adventure. Or if you love the rain like I do, it can make it a whole lot more fun. Important to note: It is Typhoon season and sometimes the power of these can be highly destructive and can definitely ruin any holiday and although the locals are used to them, they take them seriously and buckle down. I have stayed in the central region in October before and had no issues, but weather is becoming more and more unpredictable. November: November is not a great time to visit Vietnam's central region, as it becomes very dull and rainy. Hoi An has been known to flood many times. However, it can be a good time to visit the city of Hue. The weather is cooler and it can make for the perfect time for exploring the city's many historic sites, such as the Imperial City and the Hue Royal Palace. The city is also known for its beautiful landscapes, such as the Perfume River and the surrounding countryside, which are perfect for cycling or motorbike tours.It may be the perfect time to visit a wellbeing retreat close to hue called Alba Wellness Retreat and Spa. I can vouch for a visit as the experiences are NOT weather dependent and you will walk away after the Yoga, massages, Onsen and meditation feeling like a new person. Check out our special offer here and the podcast I did with the GM Hylton Lipkin here. The north is becoming a lot cooler, verging on cold. However, that just means you can choose to do more indoor activities, like shopping, visiting museums, dining out and for those adventurers on good days, it makes for a good time to visit areas like Ninh Binh. December: December is the time of year where you can expect people "rugging" up in the north! It can make a nice time to visit Vietnam's northern region, particularly the city of Hanoi. The weather is cold, making it perfect for daytime pursuits such as exploring the city's many historic sites, such as the Old Quarter, the Temple of Literature, and Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum. The city is also known for its delicious street food, which can be enjoyed at the many night markets. It's also a perfect time to attend the famous Hanoi's New Year Countdown at Hoan Kiem lake. Further north it is getting super cold, so unless that is what you want to experience I would suggest avoiding, till it warms up. It can snow in Sapa at this time, but not enough to ski and very drizzly. The south will offer you more options as it is warmer, but generally it can be wet. The city has a vibrancy and you will soon find out that rain doesn’t deter the Vietnamese from doing too much. So don’t let it stop you either! Off the beaten track For those harder to get places in the north like Mai Chau, Ha Giang, Mu Cang Chai, Ban Goc Waterfalls etc, locals say the best time is around March to May or September and October. These regions take over 6 – 8 hours to reach by bus, or car from Hanoi, and once you arrive in the region of Ha Giang for example, it takes at least 4 days to do the whole loop. Meaning you are driving 8-9 hours per day. For trip planning in these areas I urge you do lots of homework to curate the kind of experience you want to have there. You can’t really expect a Travel Agent in your own country to understand or appreciate the nuances of weather in these regions, unless they specialise in Vietnam travel. The images you see on social pages are on all the perfect days. No one is posting on Instagram the days when the roads are so misty you cannot see 50 yds in front of you, or the roads are choked with traffic. They say to have these amazing experiences you have to have time, patience and pick the right operators to do them with. Suggestions for respected operators in Sapa and close regions - http://www.ethosspirit.com/ - Please check out the Episode I did with Phil Hoolihan talking about Sapa and how managing expectations for tours in these regions is important. You can go here to listen. For regions like Ha Giang I got to interview Tom Stone and he likewise knows the area well and his team can offer up some local knowledge to help you plan the kind of experience you want. His team’s best contact is through facebook here https://www.facebook.com/flipsidevietnam/ The interview and transcript I did is here. Disclaimer: It has to be said that with global warming the weather is becoming harder and harder to predict. Please use this article as a guide only. What was once is no longer something you can set your calender to. The suggestions made in this article are from personal experience and talking with locals in the regions and cities suggested to visit, but it is by no means going to be perfect. TIP for travellers: Facebook is a great tool for communication with operators in Vietnam. If you have plans that could be affected negatively by weather, I strongly suggest you check in with the operator via their Facebook page or reach out to a Travel group, or venue in the region as they will give you the most up to date information at the time. Written by – Kerry Newsome 2025 “To travel, to experience and learn: that is to live.” – Tenzing Norgay

Of course, TET is the most important festival of the year in Vietnam, and because of that you must see our separate BLOG HERE with everything you should know about TET as a traveler. However, there are 9 other festivals that can affect travellers during the year in Vietnam, totally separate from the universal ones related to westerners as in Christmas, New Years and Thanksgiving. 1. Lim Festival So much of the traditional Vietnamese festivals is taken up with its costumes and pageantry. The Lim festival is one of those special ones that includes lots of traditional fair activities in the beautiful setting in the Lim Village. The Lim Festival opens annually on around 12th - 13th day of the first lunar month in the year, February 3, 2023. The festival allows travelers to enjoy the UNESCO-listed Quan Ho folk singing and a variety of traditional games. You’ll see locals performing in traditional costumes and it gives amazing insight into the traditions of Vietnam. The Lim Festival is celebrated in Lim Village which is located in the Bac Ninh Province of Vietnam. The village is only about 11 miles (18 KM) from Hanoi, which you can easily get to by bus or your own rental car. So much of the traditional Vietnamese festivals is taken up with its costumes and pageantry. The Lim festival is one of those special ones that includes lots of traditional fair activities in the beautiful setting in the Lim Village. Photo credit for Lim Festival - https://goviettrip.com/vietnam/lim-festival-vietnam 2. Perfume Pagoda Festival The Perfume Pagoda Festival is Vietnam's famous Buddist pilgrimage site. Held February 5, 2023, this festival welcomes thousands of pilgrims who pray when they arrive at the sacred cave. They pray for a happy and prosperous new year. It takes place in Hanoi at the Perfume Pagoda. During the festival, pilgrims first board boats that pass a beautiful landscape of rice paddies and limestone mountains before going by foot past picturesque historical shrines and up hundreds of stone steps. Photo credit and further information - https://luxtraveldmc.com/blog/perfume-pagoda.html 3. Phu Giay Festival From April 22-27, 2023 in the Nam Dinh Province, the Phu Giay Festival takes place. This festival is a tribute to Lieu Hanh, one of the Vietnamese " 4 immortal gods." Interestingly, Lieu Hanh is the only of the four immortal gods that’s based on a real person. The festival takes place around 55 miles from Hanoi, when the Vietnamese make a pilgrimage to the Phu Giay Temple. The festival offers traditional diversions such as cock-fighting, ​ keo chu , and folk singing. During the festival, many pray for good fortune as they carry decorated bamboo relics while wearing traditional costumes. Further reading - https://vietnamisawesome.com/articles/best-vietnam-festivals 4. Hung King Temple Festival The Hung King Temple Festival takes place on April 29, 2023 and celebrated the birth of Vietnam’s first kings: the Hung Vuong. Hung Vuong became king in 2879 BC, and the story has been embellished over the years. To remember the King and his many sons, people gather at the Hung Temple, located near Việt Trì in Phu Tho province, about 50 miles (80 KM) from Hanoi. Travelers will get to witness hundreds of lanterns being released into the sky the night before the festival. The next morning a beautiful flower ceremony is held, followed by a large processional that begins at the foot of a mountain and ends at the main Hung Temple. Photo credit - https://vietnamisawesome.com/articles/best-vietnam-festivals 5. Hue Festival The Hue Festival of 2023 is to span the entire year! With continuous activities through the entire year, the Hue Festival begins with an opening program known as the Ban Soc ceremony in January, and ending with a Countdown Show on December 31, 2023. The festival is Biennial, meaning it happens once every 2 years. The festival features theater, dance, music, and acrobatics that are performed in different places around the city, although most of the activities are conducted around the grounds of the Hue Citadel. Have a listen to Hue The City - Past, Present and Future for more information about Hue. 6. Reunification Day Celebrated on April 30th, Reunification Day was celebrated when South Vietnam was freed from U.S Troops. This was the day that South Vietnam joined North Vietnam under one government. The people of Vietnam celebrate their Reunification date each year on this date. The day is celebrated throughout Vietnam, but travelers should head to larger cities such as Hoi An or HCMC to take part. There is an amazing parade in Hanoi as well as fireworks displays in Danang. HCMC in particular goes crazy late into the evening and lots of events will be held, so make sure you check these out, and where these are held as traffic is beyond description. Find more detail about this very special day here - https://hoiannow.com/hoi-an-guide/festivals-in-vietnam/reunification-day-vietnam/ 7. Buddha’s Birthday Also known as Vasek, Buddha’s Birthday is celebrated each year by the Vietnamese. Celebrated on May 26, 2023, temples are adorned with lavish decorations to celebrate the birth of Buddha. Locals often offer fruit, flower garlands, and traditional Vietnamese dishes. Hoi An is one of the best places to celebrate Buddha’s Birthday, which is held at the Phap Bao Pagoda. Locals then head to the temple to perform religious rites, and listen to the Buddha’s scriptures. During the festival animals are released while flower garlands and lanterns are often placed on river banks. 8. Independence Day Vietnam's Independence Day is celebrated on September 2 every year. This euphoric celebration celebrates the independence of Vietnam in a grand way. This is a public holiday in Vietnam, meaning many things will be closed in smaller towns. Independence Day is celebrated throughout Vietnam, but as a traveler it is best to go to Hanoi or HCMC to celebrate. In HCMC where I was staying at the time of these celebrations the atmosphere was electric. There are many events in the main cities, but more so in HCMC. Beware of traffic if you have to get to the airport as it is crazier than usual and many roads get closed off. For further reading and photo credit - https://www.edarabia.com/vietnam/national-day/ 9. Mid Autumn Festival Celebrated on September 16/17 September, 2024, the Mid Autumn Festival features a wide range of activities for all. You’ll see paper lanterns, lion dancing, and food booths that sell a variety of Vietnamese treats. Otherwise known as the Harvest Festival, households often display offerings in honor of the full moon. Hoi An is a great place to celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival. As a traveler you will see plenty of street performances, a beautiful lantern processional, and exhibits throughout the town. This one is a special one and many travellers base their trip around as they want to be part of the pageantry. It is always noisy, fun, colourful and the vibe is always around fun and mainly focused on children, so families, I suggest it would be. areal treat for kids. Find more detail here - https://www.vietravel.com/en/cultures-and-customs/legend-of-midautumn-festival-in-vietnam-v11383.aspx It’s a good idea to keep these festivals in mind when planning your trip to Vietnam. Travellers can certainly get a better glimpse into Vietnamese culture by taking part in them, but sometimes its best to avoid them or plan around them as with nearly 100 million people, things can get congested and make travel plans difficult if you haven'tt planned for them. Happy travels. Kerry Newsome

Staying Vigilant or going in “Eyes wide open” Recent Vietnam Scams and How to Avoid Them There has been a lot of recent hype about Vietnam and scams causing people serious concern and often outrage. While I continue to travel to Vietnam many times in a year, I am mindful of these scams. However I certainly don’t give them any more weight than I would do for any other country I visit. While it’s said a holiday is about chilling out and being super relaxed, that doesn’t mean switching off your normal antennas for trouble or things that don’t sound right, or feel right. That gut feeling is there for a reason. I prefer to recommend “staying alert” rather than being “vigilant’ as vigilant sounds so unnecessarily aggressive, and for the most part, I have not found myself caught by any of the scams I am about to tell you about. That isn’t to say they don’t exist. Maybe because I am well versed in the country’s eccentricities, I don’t confuse issues that rise up as being scams. Sometimes they are just miscommunications. However, I did have a Taxi issue I will explain more about below. 1. Taxi Scams: Reports suggest that some taxi drivers in major cities have been involved in scams where they manipulate meters or take unnecessarily long routes to inflate fares. To avoid this, opt for reputable taxi companies ( VinaSun, Mai Linh) or ride-sharing apps GRAB, BE ; check on Google Maps prior to leaving the approximate time and distance away, and always check there is a meter running. Personally, I prefer to use the GRAB App, as I get to match my name, with the drivers booking, cost of trip and the name of place. I pay in cash and I always tip and give a rating. Trust me, it’s a good thing to do on many levels. My Taxi scam experience: One thing to watch for is taxis lurking in areas close to markets, kind of alone. In the beginning I thought, “great” I am tired and here is a taxi, so my 2 sisters and I jumped in. I showed him the address of our hotel on my phone and he hardly looked at it. I instantly got a bad feeling. I said ‘meter’, he nodded. But no meter was on. I asked how much in Dong? He said 200k for a 50 K trip. I said no. He immediately locked all the doors. I had a moment of panic. I immediately started taking photos of his face, his license on dashboard, and I said “let us out or I will call the POLICE. I shouted police and started to wind down windows. He was going to start driving when I said to my sisters to bash on windows of car. He stopped, opened doors, and I forcefully ushered my sisters to get out of the car fast. Which we did. He drove off at a fast pace. Good riddance. That was it. A reminder that I’d taken my eyes off my game by not sticking to what I would normally do. I used my Grab App and we got picked up by a lovely driver in nice car and made our way back to hotel. So, you see it can happen to the best of us. 2. Street Vendor Overcharging: While street food is a highlight of Vietnamese cuisine, there have been instances of street vendors overcharging unsuspecting tourists. To avoid falling victim, establish the price before making a purchase and consider checking with locals for reasonable price ranges. This is always hard to mitigate as each area may endure different cost factors for the same item, so if its 50c extra you pay and think worth haggling over versus OVER the top $10 extra, then I suggest don’t buy it. Look further afield for better value. The same thing happens when buying water in my country. Shops in the same shopping centre, can vary from $2.50 to $5.00. Isn’t that a scam or overcharging? It’s a hard one to measure and find what to measure it by? 3. Fake Tour Operators: The rise of online booking has given scammers the opportunity to pose as legitimate tour operators. This is scary, and I raise a flag here. Be cautious when booking tours online, especially if the prices seem too good to be true. Research reviews and book through reputable platforms or agencies. Facebook is prolific in Vietnam so there is always the option to check the company out by their FB page and communicate directly with operator. Be thoughtful about how you pay for services. Say you will pay cash on completion if you are doubtful or type the tour company name into a Vietnam travel group page like Vietnam for Smart for tourists and Vietnam - The Travellers Experience and see if it gets any hits? Or reach out to yours truly to design you a private tour through my What About Vietnam Trip planning services. 4. Motorbike Rental Scams: Reports indicate scams involving motorbike rentals, where unscrupulous operators claim damages to the vehicle that were already present. Thoroughly inspect the bike before renting, take pictures of any pre-existing damage, and ensure clear communication about terms and conditions. This is a must. Especially for longer trips, I would advise going through a reputable bike company who can back you up if you have a breakdown, or if you need any further assistance during your ride. One very well known company is Easy Riders, and if you are planning a long trip you shouldn't go past Vietnam Coracle for this trips and local bike riding advice 5. Fake Tickets: In popular tourist destinations like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, there have been reports of fake tickets being sold for attractions. Purchase tickets directly from official vendors or the venue to ensure their authenticity. Or if you have a tour Operator, ask your Guide to purchase for you to ensure you get the exact tickets you want. That way nothing gets lost in translation. Tips to Avoid Scams: Research and Plan: Familiarize yourself with common scams reported by other travelers. Platforms like travel forums, facebook groups and blogs can provide valuable insights. However, be warned some situations can be over dramatized and toxic. Without sounding like I am blowing my own trumpet, you might like to listen to some travellers in your area of interest on the Podcast, as we don’t pull any punches and if there is a local scam we usually put it out there. 2. Stay Informed: Keep an eye on local news and travel advisories for updates on prevalent scams. 3. Use Reputable Services: Choose well-known taxi companies, established tour operators, and trusted accommodation options. 4. Bargain Wisely: Bargaining is common in Vietnam, especially in markets. However, do it with respect and be aware of the reasonable price range for goods or services. I can’t stress this one enough. I warn people to only bargain if you really are interested in the product. If not say “I just want to know YOUR final price” and if it’s not what you want to pay, then walk away. Special Note: It is becoming increasingly more popular for shops to present fixed price options so if you see a ticketed item, the price is non-negotiable. Unless you buy many and you then you may get a discount. 5.Trust Your Instincts: If something feels off, it probably is. Trust your instincts and be cautious in unfamiliar situations. Vietnam's beauty and warmth are best enjoyed when travellers are informed and they go in with “eyes wide open”. Not everything is going to go exactly to plan, so plan on that, and you will be fine. By using those god given instincts, and implementing a few simple precautions, visitors can make the most of their time in this captivating country without falling victim to any unscrupulous practices. Top of Form Written b y - Kerry Newsome - Founder and Host - What About Vietnam