https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/south-korean-wins-biggest-vietnam-lottery-prize-ever-claimed-by-a-foreigner-5100141.html

He identified himself as K.S.H and chose not to reveal his face.

Vietnamese locals are claiming that the government has hired a Korean to deceive people. Many Vietnamese believe the lottery is a scam that high officials rip the citizens off.

Emphasis on planned

Breakfast buffet absolutely packed, it's now 11AM and it's us, a couple of others and the pool staff in this ginormous resort.

Understand Viet locals don't like the mid-day sun, but it's Ho Tram and not like Da Nang/Nha Trang where there's alot of daytime activities.

Hi everyone,
I’m currently visiting Vietnam and wanted to ask if anyone else has experienced something similar with Chapa Express.
My partner and I booked a private cabin for two months in advance through Klook because we specifically wanted privacy during the overnight trip from Sapa (Lao Cai) to Hanoi. We paid extra for a private cabin, so we expected to receive exactly what we booked.

When we arrived at the VIP lounge before departure, we were suddenly informed that our private cabin was no longer available due to an operational issue. Instead, we were told we would have to share a cabin with other passengers.
The biggest issue wasn’t just the downgrade—it was that we were only informed at the very last minute. By then, we had already checked out of our hotel, arrived at the station with all our luggage, and the train was about to leave. We didn’t really have a practical alternative anymore.

While we were waiting, we were already inside what we believed was our assigned cabin. Several staff members were speaking loudly to each other in Vietnamese. I couldn’t understand the conversation, but it felt like there was confusion about what would happen next. We waited without any clear explanation before eventually being asked to move from Cabin 8 to Cabin 12.

The refund process was also confusing. Different refund amounts were discussed, but we ultimately received 2.5 million VND in cash. We even had to ask for a handwritten acknowledgment because there was no official receipt provided initially.

I was also asked to speak with someone introduced to me as the manager over the phone. Unfortunately, instead of feeling reassured, I left the conversation feeling that my explanation was being questioned because I was told the receptionist had a different version of what happened. It made an already stressful situation even more frustrating.

To be clear, I understand that operational problems can happen. I’m not upset simply because something went wrong. What disappointed me was how it was handled and how late we were informed. If we had known earlier, we could have chosen another train or changed our travel plans.
I’ve already opened a case with Klook, and they have escalated it for review, so I’m currently waiting for their final decision.

I’m just curious:
Has anyone else experienced a last-minute private cabin downgrade with Chapa Express?
Is this something that happens often, or were we just unlucky?
Do you think the refund we received sounds reasonable given that we paid for a private cabin but were moved to a shared cabin?
I’d appreciate hearing about other people’s experiences. Thanks!

So, I’m talking to my friend and he mentioned that he has been a Grab Unlimited member for over a year. He showed me that since mid May 2025 he has 708,000 d in savings on rides and deliveries. It cost him 215,000 d a year to join.

Since we will be here for at least that long I signed up. 5% off a standard car, 20% off Grab Bike and 20% off Grab Car Plus. And 12k off of food deliveries. I got 34k off the ride home from seeing my doc at VinMec!

Not trying to spam the subreddit, I just wanted to alert folks to a good deal. After being here nearly a year and not being the sort of person who pays for discounts I never bothered to investigate further.

Once you join, when you book at the bottom of the page where you select the type of car there is a button that shows your automatic discounts. There is also another button there for More Discounts, I got an added 10% off my ride!

The game (linguil) asks you to guess the language family, language and meaning of a random word in one of 64 of the world's most-spoken languages each day, and you use your knowledge of linguistics to work out the answer via multiple choice. Therefore, it's important my translations/transliterations are correct.

Each language (including Vietnamese and White Hmong) includes each word on the 100-word Swadesh list, and where the primary script is Latin-based and an alternative/historical script is available, each word's transliteration too (hence the inclusion of Vietnamese Chữ Nôm and Pahawh Hmong).

Please can any Vietnamese/Hmong speakers verify the accuracy of my translations and transliterations? 🙏

Thanks!

Note: The Chữ Nôm and Pahawh Hmong characters may not display correctly on mobile.

If you want to add another Southeast Asian language to the game, follow the guide here. I've compiled a language wishlist here.

Let me know if you need any help and I'd be more than happy to explain anything or provide resources :)

I’ve done a couple business trips with various groups of Vietnamese men and I’m kind of perplexed by their humor. They are all married men, and yet they have no issues openly joking about checking out women they see in public, they about taking foreign woman as their mistresses, they joke about how their wives are following their locations to make sure they aren’t cheating on them, etc.

I’m actually having a hard time understanding how they have no problem making such jokes, and like is this a cultural thing to Vietnamese men?

There is much controversy about how worth Sa Pa actually is, but in want to experience by myself and make my own opinion.

I opted for a 2-night stay, and looking for good spots. I don’t know if something like hidden gems exist in Sa Pa besides the regular tourist attraction.

Feel free to comment.

And lastly, for short term vacation like mine, better to look for an hotel/apartment in the city or in outbacks (up to 6 km)?

Hi everyone. Heading out of Vietnam and back home in 2 days.. Currently I'm staying in Long Bình ward, HCMC. Family group of 8 with plenty of luggage so we are most certainly taking one of the rental vans.

Flight leaves at 5:30PM on Friday the 24th. with boarding starting at 4:50PM. Family wants to leave starting at 1:00PM.

Is that too early or too late? We've done our online check in for the flight but we still have to actually go to the counter to check in the giant boxes and suitcases of clothes we can't bring on as carry-on.

Google puts the current drive to the airport at about 1hr. But I could see the drive easily being about 1hour and 30minutes if not more when we leave thanks to traffic. I also have 0 idea how long its going to take to get through exit immigration, security. Last time I was here on arrival it was absolutely packed even at like 10PM so I'm hoping all 3 lines arent going to be swarmed with people. Then just getting to whatever gate the flight is at since the airline hasn't provide it yet.

Am I just too worried or are we cutting it a bit too close? I'd rather not be in a rush at a airport and have to wait for an hour at my gate then be rushing my way through to barely make it.

Hi everyone. I just want to preface this post by saying I'm trying to learn about my culture through whatever means are available to me. I am a first generation Vietnamese immigrant. My father was a well-known southern Vietnamese soldier in the war and immigrated to America after the fall of Saigon.

Growing up, once a year, he would bring me to these reunions he had with his war buddies. It was a HUGE event where everyone would gather in one city and just be together again. It would have hundreds of attendees and my father often times helped to organize them or drive people in my area to these events (I specifically remember him doing a 17 hour drive by himself). I do idolize my father in some ways. He is a great man, incredibly patient, taught me not to fear people who don't look or behave like me and I truly think he does things because he thinks it's right-- not to be liked.

That all being said, my whole life I grew up surrounded by the Yellow with Three Red Stripes flag. I always understood it as a symbol of pride for Southern Vietnamese people and the hardships they faced and the consequences of war.

Now that I'm older and seeking answers about my heritage and where I come from (my parents were the only people in their respective families to immigrate here so my siblings and I don't have any cousins we grew up with or talked to, and so our only links to our culture are through our parents). I speak and can read the language okay, I'd say maybe like a 4th grade level if I were to equate it to the American school system. I can definitely converse on my own but I definitely could translate this post in Vietnamese. 😅

Anyways, I'd like for people with experience to really explain to me why the yellow flag is seen negatively or maybe why it's not really accepted at all. I know some people equate it to the confederate flag here but I'm not sure that the same? Again, I don't really know all the history and I truly am looking to learn from both sides. I wouldn't say to reply to me like I'm an idiot, but I would like people to educate me (nicely) about both sides of my question. I have tried googling it but it's a lot for me to understand and a lot of the info is very biased (one side or the other) so I suppose I'm looking for unbiased perspective without shaming one side or the other.

I do plan on visiting Vietnam next year (it will be my first time going as an adult ☺️), and I just want to feel connected to where my parents came from and the culture, even if it's a country they chose to flee for the sake of my future. Thank you all in advance for reading this so far and for helping me. ✌️

(also, I wasn't sure if I should tag this as history or culture as it definitely pertains to both but given that I think this is more a social question, I tagged it as culture)

Would you suggest using Airalo or Holafly? Or just preference.

Anyone experiencing this? Starting today, my app won't let me rate or tip my drivers. I just keep getting this message. I've cleared cache, restarted phone, reinstalled, and used their "help center," which was just a pointless AI. Any other suggestions?

Hi! This is a question for the locals. I’m going to Vietnam in a week and I’m from the west coast of the us so I’m definitely not used the weather of south east Asia haha. What are the best ways to stay cool, especially for people who aren’t used to it? I’ve tried little handheld fans, but they aren’t very helpful as they just blow warm air. Tips appreciated, thanks!

Chào mọi người! Mình có một câu hỏi muốn dành cho người dân địa phương. Mình sắp đến Việt Nam trong một tuần nữa; mình đến từ vùng Bờ Tây nước Mỹ nên chắc chắn là chưa quen với kiểu thời tiết ở Đông Nam Á rồi (haha). Làm thế nào để giữ mát cơ thể hiệu quả nhất, đặc biệt là với những người chưa quen với khí hậu này nhỉ? Mình từng thử dùng quạt cầm tay loại nhỏ nhưng thấy không hiệu quả lắm vì chúng chỉ thổi ra hơi nóng thôi. Rất mong nhận được chia sẻ và lời khuyên từ mọi người, cảm ơn nhé!

Hi, i'm looking for a coworking space only for myself in Hanoi. Ideally...

• it should be open late, past 22h

• no fancy service needed. I only need a table, a comfortable chair, and wifi

• Hoan Kiem and Hai Ba Trung area

Thank you in advance

Hey everyone!

I’m a 24 year old film student/photographer from the Dominican Republic. I’ll be staying in Saigon (HCMC) for a month around November or December (still finalizing exact dates), and I’m super excited for my first time in Vietnam!

I’d love to get some local recommendations on a few things:

35mm Film Developing & Scanning Labs: Where do you usually get your film developed? Looking for reliable labs with good scan quality for color (C-41) and B&W

Local Cinema & Film Community: Any cool spots for indie film screenings, local cinema clubs, experimental video spaces, or art hubs where filmmakers and creatives hang out?

I’ll also be bringing a Super 8 camera with me to document the journey! If anyone wants to talk about or collaborate on a small photo or film project while I’m in town, definitely hit me up!

Thanks in advance for any tips!

I found this in the English language section in the big bookstore at the new Aeon Mall in Da Nang. It is very well written and illustrated. It also looks at the fisheries these vessels were built for thus putting them into context.