My first Vietnam trip from Chennai in 2019 — and what I'd do differently in 2026

October 2019. Chennai to Ho Chi Minh City. My first international trip ever. I was 24, had ₹45,000 saved for the trip, and was determined to spend less. I came back with ₹7,000 left and a 30-hour sleeper-bus story I'm still telling six years later.

The visa in 2019: I landed at Tan Son Nhat with a printed pre-approval letter, paid $25 USD cash at the visa-on-arrival counter, and got a 30-day stamp. The whole thing took 40 minutes in a long line. In 2026 the process is much simpler — Indians apply for the e-Visa online at evisa.gov.vn ($25 single / $50 multi), get the PDF in ~3 days, and walk through immigration in minutes with a 90-day stamp. Faster, longer, cheaper than the 2019 sticker-VoA.

Flight cost: ₹13,800 Chennai-HCMC round-trip on AirAsia via KL. (Today, May 2026, the same route is ₹17,200 — inflation has been kind to this corridor.)

SIM card: Viettel ₹400 for 10 days unlimited 4G. I went to a counter at the airport, gave them my passport, walked out with a working SIM in 5 minutes. In 2026 I'd use Airalo eSIM 5GB for $12 (₹1,000) instead — slightly more expensive but no airport queue, no physical SIM swap, no hunting for a Viettel store to top up.

The bus mistake: I wanted to go HCMC → Hanoi. Flight was ₹3,400. The sleeper bus was ₹1,000. I took the bus. It was 30 hours. Cramped sleeper berths, three meal stops at roadside dhabas, AC that worked in bursts, an entire night of trying to sleep folded into a coffin-shaped berth. The ₹2,400 I "saved" cost me a full day of travel time and a sore back for two weeks.

What I'd do in 2026: book the VietJet HCMC-Hanoi flight for ₹3,200, save 28 hours, arrive fresh. Or take the reunification train (slow but scenic) for ₹2,000 — the experience justifies the time, the bus does not.

Halong Bay: I did a 2-day-1-night cruise from Hanoi for ₹4,800. Boat was fine, food was fine, the bay itself is everything the photos promise — limestone karsts in jade water for as far as you can see. In 2026 I'd skip the cheap cruise and either day-trip from Hanoi (₹3,500) or splurge on a 2-night premium boat (₹12,000+). The middle-tier 1-night cruise is the worst value.

Food: I ate at street stalls almost exclusively. ₹150-300 per meal. Pho bo at 23 Le Thanh Ton in HCMC was a religious experience. Bun cha in Hanoi's Old Quarter (Bun Cha Huong Lien, where Obama ate with Anthony Bourdain) — touristy but actually good, ₹250.

The hostel scene: ₹350-500/night dorm beds in District 1 HCMC. The Common Room Project hostel — still one of the best hostels I've stayed at globally. Free walking tours, ₹50 beers, rooftop with a city view.

Total spend ₹38,000 for 7 days (Oct 2019 numbers): - Flight ₹13,800 - Visa $25 ₹1,800 - SIM ₹400 - HCMC 3 nights hostel ₹1,200 - HCMC-Hanoi sleeper bus ₹1,000 (the mistake) - Hanoi 2 nights hostel ₹900 - Halong Bay cruise ₹4,800 - Food (21 meals) ₹4,500 - Local transport / Grab ₹2,200 - Activities + Cu Chi tunnels day trip ₹3,400 - Misc (laundry, souvenirs, beer) ₹4,000

Things 2019-me got right: travelled solo (forced me to talk to other travellers — I still keep in touch with 3 people from that trip), ate exclusively local (zero stomach issues), used cash for everything small.

Things 2019-me got wrong: the bus (obviously), not budgeting for one nice meal (every dinner was ₹200 — should have done one ₹1,500 splurge), not booking the Halong Bay cruise in advance (got rinsed on a walk-up price).

What's changed in 2026: Indian passports use a paid e-Visa ($25 single / $50 multi) — applied online in advance, no queue at the airport. Vietnam is roughly 25% more expensive across the board. Hostels have doubled in quality (better wifi, private dorms common). Airalo eSIM has killed the airport SIM counter. Grab has replaced haggling for taxis.

What hasn't changed: pho is still ₹250 if you walk away from tourist streets. The bus still costs ₹1,000 and is still 30 hours. Halong Bay still hits the same way.

Plan your first Vietnam trip in Architect — I built this tool partly so people don't repeat my 30-hour bus mistake. See Vietnam visa rules 2026, the 10-day Vietnam itinerary from India, and the Chennai origin pillar for current routings. Country page at /destinations/vn.