Useful preparation for Vietnam travel during Tet

Tet Nguyen Dan (Vietnamese Lunar New Year) is the most important and biggest holiday in Vietnam. For Vietnamese people, it is not just the time for family reunion, for relaxing after a hard working years and for exciting activities and festivals. Tet holiday is also a favorable time for foreign tourists to have an amazing travel in Vietnam to explore a new land, new culture and immerse themselves in traditional customs of local people. If traveling Vietnam during Tet holiday, tourists should pay attention to have a good preparation for the journey such as airfares, hotel room, tours, transportation….. Follows are some useful tips for a perfect Vietnam tour during Tet holiday without troubles. 
Baggage for the trip

Never bring too much baggage

In the New Year travel, baggage should be brought enough, neatly and carefully checked. Such personal documents as passports, identity card, and birth of certificate for children must be accompanied during the trip. In addition, a small box of first aid is indispensable in the list of preparation. Necessary items are prioritized than others to reduce the weight of baggage. Preparation of good health before your trip is also noteworthy for having a real and interesting experience. Do not carry too much cash with you; you can bring ATM or Credit card in stead when traveling. In some cases, if you have to bring cash, you should keep money carefully. Studying or preparing information about the destination (traditional customs, weather...) is necessary to avoid cultural shocks and have proper preparation. Also, it is necessary to bring along some kinds of medicine such as anti-vomiting, abdominal pain medication, headache medication... 
Transportation 

Vietnam Airlines

It is noted that during Tet holiday, airfare and train fare are often sold out quickly. Therefore, if having private Vietnam tour packages, tourists should book in advance as early as possible. If traveling by plane, you should have a unique tag on baggage to easily receive baggage after getting off the flight, which helps to save your time. To explore the beautiful country, you can travel by motorbikes (in private tours) or by means of transportation provided by travel agents. Motorbike is a convenient and economic vehicle; yet, if choosing the vehicle to get round, you should pay attention to the safety on road. If you travel in group, you should hire a car. It is necessary to ascertain the day of departure to buy train, plane tickets or car rental contract to avoid losing money, as during Tet it is very difficult to cancel, change or return ticket. This will be a big trouble to you and your trip may be canceled. And, you cannot book another, as air, trains and coaches are mostly fully booked. Tet holiday is the time of family reunion. It is the time when family members working far from home will come back to reunite with their family. Normally in Vietnam tour packages during this time, South-North route's domestic travel volume reaches the peak before Tet, while North-South one after Tet. To avoid the case of all seat occupied, it is highly recommended to buy tickets in advance as early as possible. If booking in advance, some domestic routes are discounted as Hanoi - Sapa, Hanoi - Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City - Nha Trang and vice versa. 
Accommodation

Six Senses Con Dao Resort

Vietnam Lunar New Year is the peak tourist time, so please have a plan ahead if you want to travel on this occasion. The room reservation or booking tour on Tet holiday is often difficult to cancel or change (or very high cancellation or change fees. Therefore, it is necessary to consider destination, room type, hotel, and number of people... to avoid costly changes. In addition, it is necessary to book early via travel agents or reputable websites. During this time when booking room of hotels in tourist destinations (especially crowded ones), tourists will receive answers that rooms are either occupied or have very high rates. To book a room during the New Year's holiday with a good price, you can contact travel agency or reserve on online-booking websites. Price Tet holiday is the time of high travel need. Thus, tour companies, tourist attractions, dining areas, and lodges continuously increase price and remain quality of services. Therefore, you should select reputable travel agents with guaranteed quality of services. Many tour companies published hotels/resorts rate online with lower rate than others, but do not include tax and service charge... Information about the extra service charge is quite small and rarely recognized. The extra charge is 10% of VAT, 5% of service charge, extra charge on weekend, holidays... You should contact travel agents to get useful advice and consultation. 
Destinations

Halong Bay

Such famous destinations in Vietnam as Halong Bay, Sapa, Hanoi, Da Nang, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Dalat, Phan Thiet, and Ho Chi Minh City will be so crowded with tourists from all over the world. You should have a detail schedule for your trip to be active in any situation. There are many interesting and new places for you to explore during this time. You can refer Vietnam points of interest and reviews about these attractions on the Internet first then decide. Otherwise, you can ask for your friends’ advice to be sure more. Pay attention that during Tet holiday, museums, mausoleums, indoor exhibition places and art houses will stop opening to welcome tourists for about 4-5 first days of the New Year. Meanwhile, beaches will be ideal places for tourists who want to enjoy cool weather and tranquility. Walking along Hanoi Old Quarter or sunbathing on Mui Ne Beach is a perfect option for Vietnam holiday during Tet. 
Eating 

Noodles Soup Vietnam

As you are traveling in a country having different cultural traditional customs from yours; therefore, cuisine in Vietnam may be an obstacle during the trip. You should bring along your own food in case you cannot consume local dishes. In addition, you should chose suitable restaurants during the holiday, as there are many of them having days off. If you are invited to a Vietnamese family, that would be the ideal case to enjoy Vietnamese traditional food with Chung Cake, boiled chicken, and pickled onions. 
Shopping

Bac Ha Market

It will be definitely an interesting experiences if you have a chance to visit Cho Tet - special wet markets selling New Year stuffs. Whether you are traveling a big city or rural mountainous area, get your camera ready! Also, many restaurants and stores will be closed for the first few days of the lunar New Year. Some market will still be open lately such as Dong Xuan Market or Ben Thanh Market. There, many products will be sold at a very reasonable price because most sellers want to have more luck and start a smooth sales year. Tet holiday in Vietnam often begins mid-January to mid-February, in spite of the change in Lunar Calendar year to year. It means that Tet is coming so close here. Have you ever welcomed New Year in lunar calendar yet? Why not come to Vietnam, immerse in lines of people and explore the country. Many interesting things are waiting for your exploration with traditional culture and customs.