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. 

Chung Cake – soul of Vietnamese Tet holiday

For all globetrotters, traveling is not simply just going sightseeing, but also is enjoying unique local cuisine of places where they come to. Recently, Vietnam is appealing more tourists to pop in. In Vietnam travel, tourists are attracted not just by its wonderful landscapes and seascapes, but also profound cultural identity and diverse cuisine. One of the most unique and outstanding dishes of Vietnamese cuisine is Bánh Chưng or Chung Cake.

Boiled Chung Cake

Chung Cake is a traditional cake of Vietnam. The cake implies gratitude of later generations to their forefather and hometown. Ingredients of Chung Cake include sticky rice, green bean, pork, dong leaves, and other additional spices as salt and pepper. Chung Cake is often made on traditional Tet Holiday of Vietnamese people and Hung King Festival (on the 10th day of the third lunar month). Chung Cake has the oldest history in traditional Vietnam cuisine. It is mentioned regularly in historical documents. The traditional cake has a significant position in the heart of Vietnamese people. The cake originated from a legend relating to Lang Lieu Prince, son of the 6th Hung King. The legend recalls the next generation about the national tradition. It is also a meaningful explanation and origin of Chung Cake, Day Cake in Vietnam culture, simultaneously, the importance of rice and nature in Wet Rice Civilization. According to today popular opinions, along with Giay Cake, Chung Cake reflects the ancient Vietnamese people's opinion about the universe. The cake is in green and square shape, which reflects the image of earth in the religion of ancient Vietnamese people and other ethnic groups in Asia.

Chung cake

Existing since the 6th Hung King's Empire, Chung Cake has been going with national history and become the soul of Tet Holiday in Northern Vietnam. Once visiting Vietnam during Vietnam Lunar New Year, tourists will see on the feast of local people, there are Chung Cake laid on. These cakes seem to recall Vietnamese people about the legend of Banh Chung and Banh Giay which symbolize the opinion bout the universe of ancient Vietnamese people. 

Definitely, in cultural Vietnam tours, travelers have a chance to discover many interesting things about the traditional food. Old Vietnamese people, who underwent Tet holidays between 40s and 50s of the last century, often pine for traditional Tet with Chung Cakes carefully made. Their ingredients were chosen from dong leaves and sticky rice to green bean, thin and small bamboo strips. During war time in Vietnam, to raise troops to fight the enemy, northern people spend out of food for front line. Thus, Banh Chung was simpler, but more valuable than any thing. Those who underwent Tet during war time and subsidy period, Chung Cake evoked unforgettable memories.

Making Chung Cake

Todays, young generations still inherit and bring the traditional custom into play. Although the young live in big and modern cities, they try to spend time on sitting and waiting for boiling these Chung Cakes, along with chatting with their family. In spite of being sold at supermarkets, stores or other services, in the countryside, the taste Chung Cake is also felt somewhat over the pot of Chung Cake. The present-day atmosphere of Tet still sees the image of Vietnamese women busy during Tet with works of washing the dong leaves, soaking rice, wrapping cakes, while, the children are sitting around a large pot of rice cakes and look after it overnight. For many generations, Banh Chung is the joy of the New Year's reunion. Beautiful thick and square cakes are displayed on the altar dedicated to worship ancestors. There are small cakes made for children as a New Year gift. Yet, today, the method of cooking the cake in somewhere is modernized. Yet, when New Year and spring come, Banh Chung still reminds Vietnamese people about traditional national values.

Chung Cake

Today, ingredients of making Chung Cake remain unchanged: sticky rice, green bean, pork and dong leave. Chung Cake will be more delicious if its ingredients are prepared carefully. Traditional Vietnamese Tet Holiday and images of green Chung Cakes are long-lasting traditional Vietnam culture. Chung Cake evokes Tet Holiday and vice versa. Perhaps, the combination becomes a cultural symbol of Vietnam. Therefore, the work of making Chung Cake when New Year comes is a fine cultural custom of Vietnam. The website National Geographic recently released top 10 unique traditional dishes in the world, including Chung Cake and Giay Cake of Vietnam. The site also described about traditional Tet in Vietnam. Tet Holiday is the most important occasion in Vietnam. It marks the appearance of spring and new hopes. Vietnamese traditional Tet is also the occasion to reunite family members. Everyone often eat melon seeds, marmalade and rice cakes during Tet.