Job Discussion Forums

[I'm With Stupid]

Hi everyone. I'm gonna be going up to Hanoi soon and I was just wondering if Hanoi has the same situation as Saigon, where you've got to wade through a sea of dodgy taxis to get to the reputable ones. If so, what taxi companies should I look for and are they on the main taxi rank, or do they get quietly moved to one side like in HCMC?

Also what sort of price should I expect to the city centre?

[sigmoid]

I flew into Ha Noi just before the end of last year and yes, it's pretty much the same as SGN. You should note that the HN airport is much further away from the city center than it is in HCMC. The trip takes nearly an hour.

I ended up with a San Bay (Airport) taxi after waiting around a while for something better. The starting fare seemed a bit high (45k vnd??) but it matched what it said on the card. The fare to the Old Quarter ended up being around 400,000 vnd (not quite $20), a few bucks more than I expected but not outrageous considering the distance.

Later, my friend confirmed that $14 is generally thought of as the usual cost. And when I booked a ride back to the airport at my hotel, they charged $15. So, it should be somewhere in that range ($14 - 20).

[lexpat]

[cb400]

I once landed in Hanoi soon after tet, a really scummy looking douche came up to me and offered me a ride to the city for only 2 million VND. I laughed and tried to walk away and he told me to 'fuct your mother' in Vietnamese thinking he was being funny. He didn't realize I understood Vietnamese quite well (swear words are always fun to learn first) and I ended up smoking him in the head with my backpack ( I was in a foul mood already, can't explain why I did it) this nearly caused a full on brawl in the taxi stand and a Mai Linh rep through me into a taxi and got me out of there. I remember looking back and seeing 2 guys trying to lift the douche onto his feet as he was still almost out cold

Good times in Hanoi.

Or the smarter option I learned is just go up the departures on the second floor, walk to the end and hail a cab as they drop someone off. They normally have to go back to the city empty so you can offer 200,000 off the meter to get into the city. Of course this is not as much fun as fighting with aholes in the arrivals section, but less stressful sometimes.

[ExpatLuke]

2 years ago the Noi Bai taxis were the cheapest option... for around 300,000 VND. CB400's idea of going to the second floor sounds pretty good though. Wish I had thought of that.

[I'm With Stupid]

Thanks for the ideas. I might get the bus then and then just get a cab to my hotel from wherever it drops off. Failing that, I'll go upstairs.

[RustyShackleford]

Make a right from exiting the terminal and just take the jetstar bus for about 100,000 VND direct to your hotel. If you know your way in town taking the public bus for 9,000 vnd can't be beat.

[cb400]

The free option:

Fake a heart attack leaving the airport. Wait for ambulance. As you arrive to the hospital 'pop' up saying you feel much better thank you.

Everyone will be too shocked to say anything.

beat the system.

[theoriginalprankster]