How much does it cost to travel to take a Vietnam solo trip? It’s a question I get asked often, and one that is hard to answer without context. In this guide, I’ll break down all my expenses from my recent trip (including flight fare) and give you a ballpark figure for how much you should expect to spend when visiting Vietnam solo.
Vietnam Solo Trip Estimate: $1275
You will spend about $400 on a flight from Manila to Hanoi. You can also choose to take a bus or book an overnight train, but these options are not ideal if you want to get the most out of your trip.
We do not consider Hanoi one of the cheapest cities in Southeast Asia, so hotel accommodation may cost around $30 per night. To lower this expense, look for cheaper hotels online before arriving and make sure they have good reviews from previous guests. Keep in mind that there are some hostels in Hanoi where you can pay less than $10 per night if you don’t mind sharing a room with other travellers!
Accommodation on Cat Ba Island costs approximately $20 per night when shared between two people (or $10 for each person). The island itself is small enough that it shouldn’t be hard finding budget places within walking distance from wherever you plan on exploring during your stay here!
Average cost daily (excluding flight fare) for your Vietnam Solo Trip: $85
Average cost daily (excluding flight fare): $85
The average cost of accommodations in Vietnam is $10 per night. This includes hotels, guesthouses, and hostels. If you are staying at an Airbnb or other short-term rental, add another $5 to this figure for $15 per night on average. The average cost of food will be about $15 per day if you eat out three times at restaurants that offer local cuisine; Vietnamese street food costs even less at around $7-$8 per day.
Food prices can vary significantly by region—in Hanoi they’re higher than in Saigon, for example—so check TripAdvisor before deciding on your budget! Your transportation costs could be anywhere between nothing if you walk everywhere or up to several hundred dollars if you plan to do lots of driving or riding motorcycles through Vietnam’s mountains and countryside (or anywhere else). Transportation costs also depend on how often you take public transport rather than private vehicles like taxis: buses are cheaper than cabs but slower while motorbikes cost more upfront but may save money over time since they’re faster than taking buses all day long every single time! Activities (including entrance fees) run from around $$3-$20 depending on what sort of things it involves: museums might cost less whereas hiking tours can get quite pricey quickly depending upon where exactly these trips lead us too 🙂
Vietnamese Dong to Philippine Peso exchange rate at the time of my travel (Sep 26, 2019): 23000 VND – 101.00 PHP
The Vietnamese Dong to Philippine Peso exchange rate at the time of my travel (Sep 26, 2019): 23000 VND – 101.00 PHP
This was the rate that I got from a local ATM in Hanoi. For example, $1 USD would be roughly equivalent to 120,000 VND.
I used Tour Radar to find my tour!
It was easy to find the tour I wanted by searching for “Vietnam solo trip,” and then I sorted the results by price. The first result was from a company called Tour Radar, so I clicked on it. Once on the page, I read through all of the information about each tour and decided which one would be best for me based on what it offered: transportation from Hanoi to Halong Bay; food and accommodations at hotels along the way; snorkelling gear (optional); and an English-speaking guide who would show us around Halong Bay.
I also liked that this company arranged transportation between cities, which meant that we wouldn’t have to worry about finding our own ride or taking taxis during our travels. If you don’t mind paying extra money for this convenience, then this type of service might be perfect for you too!
As far as negatives go…there wasn’t much that bugged me about this tour besides some minor inconveniences like having no control over where we stayed (it was decided in advance) or deciding whether we wanted lunch out on our own (again – decided for us). That said: these things weren’t really major issues because everything else went smoothly!
It’s possible to travel Vietnam solo on a budget!
It’s possible to travel Vietnam solo on a budget!
The average cost of our trip was $85 per day. If you include flight fare, that number jumps to $90 per day. Finally, if you factor in the visa fee as well (it’s free for US citizens) the final number becomes $95 per day.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed reading about my Vietnam solo trip. While it was a bit more expensive than I expected, I had so much fun and would recommend it to anyone looking for an adventure!