Two years! It had been that long since I last flew withVietnam Airlines—a full two years ago. As the ancient poem goes, “A young maiden leaves home and returns an old woman; her accent unchanged, her face utterly wrecked.” That pretty much captures the mood. In two years, Nami from One Piece went from a little girl to a J-cup goddess, while the bags under my smiling eyes evolved into full-blown eye bags (what a free upgrade). But was Vietnam Airlines still the airline of my dreams? Had the flight attendants switched to Nami outfits? These were the burning questions I most looked forward to answering on this Vietnam Airlines flight (sō desu ne).
For this trip to Hanoi, Vietnam, I traveled semi-independently. Along the way, I learned about several ways to get to Hanoi Airport and took a closer look at the airport’s rather “unique” duty-free shops. I’ll share everything in this post—now this is finally starting to resemble a normal travelogue! Not that normality has ever been my goal.
［ Since I’ve already mentioned Nami, it would feel wrong not to include a photo of her. (But did you really need to humiliate yourself like this?) ］
Traveling abroad is really all about the experience: seeing different scenery and discovering how cultures can be different yet similar, and similar yet different. The most exciting moment is opening your eyes and realizing that everything before you now has an entirely different character, as if you’ve entered another time and place. And when flying Vietnam Airlines from Taiwan, you can experience this before you’ve even left the country. How? Arrive at Vietnam Airlines’ check-in counters at Taoyuan Airport, and the lovely ground staff standing before you will be dressed in China Airlines’ pale-purple or pale-pink qipao. Wait a minute—aren’t these China Airlines employees? Then, once you clear immigration and reach the boarding gate: ah, welcome to Vietnam! Everyone greeting you onboard is now a Vietnam Airlines flight attendant wearing a traditional Vietnamese áo dài. That’s right—Vietnam Airlines’ flights between Taiwan and Vietnam are operated in cooperation with China Airlines. Vietnam Airlines entrusts its ground handling and boarding operations in Taiwan to China Airlines, while everything onboard returns to Vietnam Airlines’ capable hands. The two countries’ largest airlines join forces to give you two experiences for the price of one. What a bargain!
[ Horizontal scroll: Raking it in ]
But wait, folks! As the Gospel According to Creya says, “One bargain is never enough for the truly budget-conscious.” There’s another thing I absolutely love about Vietnam Airlines’ Hanoi flights:it’s easy to book the coveted “early departure, late return” schedule that seasoned travelers know gives you maximum vacation time! Vietnam Airlines operates one or two regular flights to and from Hanoi every day. The Taipei-to-Hanoi flight departs at 7:35 a.m.—crack-of-dawn, the-airport-has-barely-opened early—but you can still comfortably catch the first coach from Taipei and arrive in time, with no need to summon a yellow taxi or pay a fortune for an airport transfer. You get to be among the first at the airport, and after checking in on social media, you’ll have an entire day to flood your friends’ and coworkers’ feeds. (Is that really necessary?) The return flight from Hanoi leaves at 5:35 p.m. Vietnam time and arrives in Taiwan at only around 9 p.m. Taiwan time. You can still get home entirely by public transportation, unpack, have a late-night snack, and, if you’re quick, even watch a Korean drama while doing laundry and taking a bath. (You’re really squeezing an entire day into one evening here…)It makes the absolute most of every precious vacation day for office workers and budget travelers. Fellow members of the Frugal Fraternity should definitely put this flight schedule at the top of their selection criteria.。
［ From Creya, a certified practitioner of the Way of Saving ］
[ An early-departure, late-return flight that wastes not a minute of vacation ]
The last time I flew Vietnam Airlines, I fell asleep as soon as I boarded and didn’t wake up until a flight attendant called me for my meal. (That actually sounds rather blissful.) My strongest memory was therefore eating, sleeping, waking up, and eating again. This time, armed with a sense of duty to observe and share, I was determined to stay awake and take photos. And yet, once again, I didn’t even notice the plane taking off. By the time I opened my eyes, we were high in the sky and it was too late to get off. It wasn’t until the return flight that I realized this might not be my fault after all! The Vietnam Airlines aircraft I flew on weren’t especially large, but every takeoff and landing was so smooth I could barely feel a thing. Apart from a little unavoidable turbulence, the entire ride felt reassuringly steady. (It takes real effort to invent this many excuses just to clear your name after repeatedly boarding, falling asleep, and waking up…)
[ A plane with six seats per row. There was more than enough room for me, the giant of the hobbit world—though that probably tells most people absolutely nothing about the actual scale. ]
After landing this time, there was no jet bridge, so a shuttle bus took us to the terminal instead. The main reason was that the old Hanoi Airport terminal sometimes didn’t have enough jet bridges for the larger number of morning flights. It wasn’t inconvenient at all, though. In fact, if you’re the kind of traveler who can’t wait to feel your destination the instant you arrive, thenthe moment you step out of the aircraft, you can immediately feel the local temperature—and as soon as you retrieve your luggage, you can change clothes and activate local mode. That’s a perk too!
[ A dedicated shuttle bus takes you to the terminal in just a minute or two—a completely painless transfer. ]
[ They were presumably welcoming family members who had been working abroad for a long time. Whole families, young and old, came to meet each arrival, all carrying flowers. It was incredibly grand. (Uncle: Let me finish picking my toes before I come stroke your face.) ]]
The old Hanoi Airport terminal was like Taoyuan Airport’s Terminal 1 in the old days: dated inside and short on facilities. But I think the coolest thing about Hanoi Airport was its airport shops. They were so memorable that even my goldfish brain could never confuse or forget them after passing through a dozen or twenty airports. But why do I keep calling it the “old” Hanoi Airport terminal? Becausethe brand-new Terminal 2, built specifically for international flights, had already opened by the time I wrote this article—it officially opened on December 31, 2014!The wonderfully distinctive Terminal 1 would then be used for domestic flights. If you get the chance, it’s still worth visiting—or just look at the photos below and you’ll understand. Ta-da!
[ The old terminal’s airport shops have all the atmosphere of a traditional market. ]
High-end duty-free boutiques have nothing on this place. These shops sell authentic Vietnamese souvenirs, with practically everything you’d find in Hanoi’s Old Quarter gathered under one roof. No matter how rushed your time in Hanoi was, or whether you only discovered while packing that you hadn’t bought enough souvenirs, never fear! Hanoi Airport has you covered, and the prices aren’t outrageously high either. It truly is an economical market-style airport perfect for budget-conscious young women—or aunties—to browse!
[ From Vietnam’s famous G7 Coffee and mung bean cakes to the internationally famous Burger King, they’ve got it all! There’s also foot massage and a café serving light meals that looks suspiciously like an internet café. ]
[ Hanoi Airport’s new international terminal is now open, so you’ll only see this uniquely Vietnamese airport atmosphere when flying domestically! ]
[ From now on, international flights such as those between Taiwan and Hanoi will use Hanoi Airport’s brand-new Terminal 2. ]Photo courtesy of theVietnam Airlines fan page
How to Book Vietnam Airlines Tickets
If you want to fly Vietnam Airlines, you can book directly through the airline’s website, which occasionally offers promotional fares. Alternatively, you can book through a travel agency. Agencies with long-term partnerships with Vietnam Airlines sometimes have exclusive discounted fares. I particularly recommend the agency I used this time,Hong Yi Travel Agency. They can also arrange your Vietnam visa, saving you some hassle.
1. Book directly through the official Vietnam Airlines website
→ Go to the official Vietnam Airlines website
Vietnam Airlines currently flies from Taiwan to Vietnam, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, India, Bangkok, and Singapore.
Booking is very simple: just follow the form, enter your information, and pay online. You can even choose your seat for free! If you don’t want to read English, the website currently has a Simplified Chinese version to make booking easier.
2. Book through a travel agency
→ Go to theHong Yi Travel Agency website、Fan page
You can call the travel agency directly to ask about fares. Their Vietnam visa service currently costs NT$1,850, which is NT$50 cheaper than applying yourself—and saves you the hassle!
Transportation Between Central Hanoi and Hanoi Airport
On the outbound journey, I joined Hong Yi Travel Agency’s Sapa tour, so I skipped central Hanoi and traveled directly from the airport to Sapa by tour bus. On the way back, I had just completed another tour of Ha Long Bay and headed straight to the airport as soon as I returned to Hanoi. As a bonus, here are several ways to travel from central Hanoi to the airport. Transportation from the airport into the city works similarly, so you can use this as a reference too!
1. Vietnam Airlines MINI BUS
If you want to travel directly from near Hoàn Kiếm Lake in the city center to Hanoi Airport, Vietnam Airlines’ MINI BUS is actually an excellent option.A one-way trip costs just USD 2. There are plenty of departures every day, timed around Vietnam Airlines flights. One minor drawback is that you have to make your own way to the Vietnam Airlines office to board. Apparently, during quieter periods, you may also have to wait until the bus fills up before it leaves. I had left very little time to get to the airport, so fate did not bring me aboard the minibus this time, and I have no photos to share. But thanks to the enthusiastic sponsorship of Google Street View, I do have a map showing where to catch it. May you all find it without trouble!
[ Walk in the direction marked THIS WAY and continue for one small block. You’ll see a storefront with a Vietnam Airlines sign and the MINI BUS parked outside! ]
2. Taxi
Ah, the universally available taxi: a traveler’s best friend, though hardly a friend to the wallet. I was short on time and left exactly three hours before departure. The taxi ride took about an hour, so I arrived at the check-in counter precisely two hours before my flight. My calculations were so accurate I could have set up a fortune-telling stall. (Little did anyone know this was pure luck; at the time, my backside was practically on fire.) I walked into a random roadside Tourist Tour shop that sold local tours and asked them to call me a taxi. After bargaining as hard as I could, the final price wasUSD 13. If three or four people split the fare, that’s only USD 3–4 each, which is actually excellent value. The journey is also shorter than the other two options.
[ Agree on the price through a local Tourist Tour shop before getting in, and keep the receipt, so you won’t have to worry about the driver suddenly raising the fare. ]
3. Public bus
This really is an ordinary public bus, complete with bus stops and route numbers just like in Taiwan. Routes 7+9 and 17 can all get you there. This is the cheapest option. Fares vary by route, but at present (November 2014), a single-stage fare is aroundVND 9,000 (approximately NT$15 or USD 0.45). However, the buses can be crowded and slow. I’ve also seen people online report being made to get off because their luggage was considered too large. This option is best for backpackers who have allowed plenty of time to reach the airport. After all, the buses really are small, so let’s try not to let our luggage inconvenience other passengers.
Routes 7 + 9: Hanoi Airport–Kim Ma Bus Station (KIM MA), the final stop. From there, take bus 9 to Hoàn Kiếm Lake. (The transfer is more troublesome, and you have to pay two fares.)
Route 17: Hanoi Airport–Long Bien Station (LONG BIEN), the final stop. Cross the road after getting off and you’ll be in the 36 Streets area of the Old Quarter. (A single fare is cheaper.)
Phew—trying to outdo myself really has me breaking out in a cold sweat! For a different take on my previous Vietnam Airlines experience during my trip around Europe, see:| Watch My Europe-Bound Legs | Vietnam Airlines Makes the Dream of Europe Less Difficult
← That’s the second post, the second one! The Northern Vietnam journey continues! There’s a Like over here waving at you—see it? (If you’re on mobile, be a dear and quickly switch to the desktop version to click it~)
And of course, don’t forget to join theCreya! Yes I Can fan page, where every freshly published article will be delivered straight into your hands!
My Ultimate Nine-Day Northern Vietnam Itinerary（Each itinerary below will have its own article. When the text lights upblue, it means the article is open and ready for you to visit!）
Travel dates: 2014.11.15–11.23
- Ultra-Condensed Itinerary Overview
- Departure: Vietnam Airlines, Hanoi Airport, and Transportation
- Day1~3：Introduction to Traveling in Sapa, Bac Ha, and Ethnic Minority Villages / Nine Attractions: Markets / Nine Attractions: Villages and Architecture （Hong Yi Travel AgencyFamiliarization Tour）
- Days 4–5: Central Hanoi（Hong Yi Travel Agency Familiarization Tour）
- Day 6: One-Day Ninh Binh TOUR（Local Tour Company）
- Days 7–9: Three-Day, Two-Night Ha Long Bay Legend Cruise
- Information: Introduction to Legend Cruise（Service／Setting and Rooms／Meals）
- Information: All Things Vietnam and Travel Tips
- Nine Days in Vietnam: A Photo Collection I’d Happily Keep Exploring Forever
