This Vietnam budget baller guide is for all who want to have a good time without breaking the bank. This is for travelers who don’t want to “thrive” on less than $25 or $10 a day. I don’t know about crazy budget bloggers, but that’s not an option for some of us (including myself). This post excludes those extreme people who only stay at questionable places because they’re cheap or rely solely on Couch Surfing.
Hence, this guide was born for the budget ballers. This is for those who like to spend a little bit extra to be comfortable. For those who like to travel and save awhile to fund their comfortable travels, then read on.
1. Decent Flights
Use everything in your power to get those cheap flights. Use Skyscanner, Kayak, check The Flight Deal twitter, and get price updates. Flying in from Seoul, this is how much we spent on flights throughout the country. All the prices below will be in USD. There’s a budget airline that flies from South Korea to Vietnam called Vietjet Air. We also used Jetstar because flights leaving on time is a 50/50 with Vietjet Air.
- One way from Seoul to Ho Chi Minh $171.44
- One way from Ho Chi Minh to Da Nang $49. 83
- One way from Da Nang to Hanoi $56.95
Total Cost: $278.22
You can probably cut the cost of transportation down by taking trains or buses. We were pressed for time due to me only having 10 days of vacation time. (Boo, Korea, give me more.)
2. Hostels, Hotels, Couch Surfing
Vietnam is super cheap for the budget travelers and everything from hotels to hostels are super cheap. I would definitely recommend booking online via Hostelworld or just going and seeing what you can find! We used Funtastic Hostel in Da Nang, Couch Surfing in Hanoi, and (hostels in Cat Ba).
- Funtastic Hostel private room for 2 days in Da Nang $38
- Couch Surfing in Hanoi $0
- Hotel in Cat Ba $50 for 3 nights
Total Cost: $88
I highly recommend Funtastic Hostel in Danang. I’m not getting anything out of this, but I wanted to let you know, it’s worth the stay. They offer amenities such as a free breakfast, a bus to Hoi An, and airport drop off, breakfast, and beer for guests booking a private room. Their hosts are super nice and helpful! We had loads of questions and they patiently answered them all and gave us awesome suggestions. They’re so good, they’re one of the number one picks from Trip Advisor!
3. Transportation
What you pay is what you get. I highly recommend getting a scooter while in Vietnam. The driving is crazy, but I would like to point out it’s organized chaos. Everyone is driving slowly, looking in every direction and generally trying not to hit each other. We paid about $6 for a 24 hour rental scooter and less than $3 for gas to fill up the tank. For how much we moved around Vietnam, it was very cheap, reasonable and affordable.
Total Cost: $35
4. Food
The food in Vietnam is delicious and dirt cheap then you don’t know what’s up! I would explain it as an explosion of tropical flavors like coriander, mint, and some chili sauce on the side. If you need a guide to the food porn, check out my friend Izzy’s post on The Next Somewhere blog for An Illustrated Guide to the Lunch Lady. We ate everything we could get our hands on and the street food was also pretty good. #noregrets
Total Cost: $76
5. Sightseeing & Miscellaneous
I thought these should have their own special group. While in Vietnam we did a Halong Bay tour and we had to pay to get up the Marble Mountain in Danang. Most of what we did was free and I loved every part of it. Some of the miscellanios costs include rain jackets, massages, laundry and sunburn cream.
Total Cost: $69
Vietnam has been one of the most beautiful countries I have ever been to and I can’t believe I haven’t traveled there sooner. Would I totally go back? In a heartbeat! Where can you get a 6 day holiday for about $550 eating and drinking as you please while living life? This budget depends on how you live your life. If you drink more, your holiday will cost a bit more. Aaron and I don’t really drink, so we didn’t spend much on booze, but we enjoyed our holiday nonetheless. Have you ever been to Vietnam? Would you go to this beautiful country and travel like royalty?
43 Comments on How to be a Budget Baller in Vietnam
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I already wanted to go to Vietnam, but now I think I have to go! The food sounds amazing *_* This is totally the kind of budget I can get behind too!
Vietnam is incredible. Everything is super cheap and the food is to die for! I can’t wait to start writing about everything there! You should definitely go with your bf sometime! 😀
I love Vietnam – such a fun country to travel around. And I found the local food to be so cheap and delicious! I haven’t dared to hire a scooter yet though – I would be way to scared to ride around on my own. I usually end up getting a motorcycle taxi, which ends up being cheaper than a normal taxi. These are all great tips, will pin!
Thanks for pinning this, Raya! I really need to stop neglecting Pinterest. Lol. The local food is so amazing! I’ve never eaten things with so much awesome flavor! Mopeds are super scary, but the fun part is taking the plunge.
Just like any place, you CAN spend a ton of money if you really wanted to. But you can also find incredible deals – especially in Vietnam – The last time I was there we spent a month in a really nice hotel for $400!
SO true! I want to go back to Vietnam again! Hanoi was meh, but that hotel was a super awesome find! Where was it?
The Funtastic Hostel sounds awesome. I mean they give you free breakfast, rides, and beer?!?!? That is a lot more than what hotels offer 🙂
Right? That’s what I was thinking too! They’re usually always booked and their staff is so friendly! <3
Interesting read because I did Vietnam by motorbike. My experience was so incredibly different, so I feel like it’s a great contrast! Thanks for this.
I was on a motorbike too and it was scary! How did you feel the first time? I know I was sweating bullets! I saw some people doing Vietnam by motorbike and it was an interesting experience to see.
I love traveling around Southeast Asia! You can really stretch the dollar here and everyone is so nice. I’ve heard some horror stories about being scammed in Vietnam – it happens to the best of us!
Thanks for sharing these tips 🙂
Totally! I have so many great experiences in Southeast Asia. Everyone in Thailand was so nice as well. I think if you’re not careful, you can definitely get scammed anywhere. People tried to scam us too, but we wouldn’t let them. Have you ever had an experience like that?
Is there another way to get around the city without a scooter? I don’t know how to drive one yet and don’t think learning on the spot is my cup of tea. Maybe rent a bicycle haha
Thanks for this because I’m planning to go Vietnam soon.
Yes! Vietnam is amazing for biking! There’s loads of places to go on a bike. It seems really safe too. You can always practice a on a scooter by the beach in a parking lot too. 🙂
That is quite friendly on the pocket. We generally do use Skyscanner for getting the best rates on flig for staying we generally do not rey to cut costs.ts, but
Yes! Sometimes Skyscanner is a bit unreliable, but it definitely gets the job done. I always double check the airline website too.
I visited Vietnam a few years back and it was cheap with not many visitors. I’m happy to read things haven’t changed despite the huge number of travellers nowadays. Thank you for sharing
There’s a lot of travelers but not as many as you would expect like in Thailand or Bali. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there. Where did you go in Vietnam?
I think youre right about hiring the scooter, its worth it to have freedom of mobility. Did you have any licence trouble?
Actually, luckily, I didn’t. My license in America was actually expired but no one seemed to notice or care. Hahaha. What about you?
Tagging this to revisit for when I visit Vietnam in November. I’m not a budget traveller but there are definitely some great ideas in here. Thanks so much for putting all of this together. Soooooo looking forward to eating the food too.
Vietnamese food is sooooo yummy! It’s hard to budget for sure and I’m sure I could have cut costs in some places, but I definitely like to be comfortable. What do you look forward to eating the most?
$550 for six days is pretty good value. I’m curious to know if there’s anywhere in South Korea that would be as cost effective. Riding a scooter in Vietnam is fun but crossing the road can be quite a challenge.
I would think so too! We moved around in Vietnam a lot, but I’m sure if we didn’t, we would have saved more. You could never rent a scooter for that cheap in South Korea. In comparison, it’s super expensive to rent one here! The road was scary, but you just keep going. Don’t look back and just go. Hahaha.
Great tips to have a great time in Vietnam on the cheap. The scooters would be the perfect way to see the country!
Definitely! Scooters are the best because they are king in Vietnam. Everyone has one and even the cars seem to pay special attention to them. They transport everything on a scooter. I’ve even seen families of 5 riding on one scooter.
It’s amazing that even “balling” by most standards is still way cheaper than what we would spend travelling around North America.
Right? You can stretch the dollar out far in SE Asia. You could never spend that much in 6 days in North America. You would have to save for years before going on a nice holiday somewhere. It’s a bummer everything is so expensive.
Vietnam is a cheap country to visit and I really like the food.
But we didn’t have much good memories because we were scammed. And there was a storm so it’s flooded in the city.
I gotta give it another shot. 🙂
Oh no! Which city ended up flooding? I hope you give Vietnam another chance because it’s such a great country. How did you get scammed? What happened?
The timing of me finding this is perfect! I’m planning a SE Asia trip and want to budget but not super-crazy-budget. Thank you, this is so helpful!
Thanks so much for reading this! I hate shoe string budgets. I’m also a traveler that wants to be comfortable.
Did you spend 10 days in Vietnam? I thought you went to Bali too! Only having a week off really cuts into your adventure time, but I’m glad you were able to make it cheap and cheerful!
I spent 6 days (not counting the transit) in Vietnam. I went to Bali the next week. Having a short vacation there was sad, but we definitely made the best of it!
Wow! I didn’t realize it was so inexpensive there! I have been wanting to visit and I just haven’t had the time – maybe with the prices being so low I could squeeze it in.
The prices are so right and everything is unbelievably cheap in Vietnam! If you have a chance definitely squeeze it in!
Awesome budget tips right here and would like to try this on my next travel. Some of the photos looks familiar. I miss Danang and Hoi an.
Me too! I love Hoi An and Danang! I would go back in a heart beat! What was your favorite part?
$76 total for food – that’s impressive! I spend $76 a day in Europe — yikes! I also like to do group tours so I thought Halong Bay tour and Marble mountain were reasonably priced.
Yikes! Europe is so expensive! Halong Bay and Marble Mountain were super reasonably priced! I couldn’t believe the price! It was soooooo good!
I defs spent more than that but I was doing everything alone, and I feel like doing things together totes saves money. I also was there for 14 days! I’m glad you had fun
I’m jelly you were there for 14 days! I wish I had more time in Vietnam and I did more research into awesome places to go. I feel like many things are a bit more expensive for a solo traveler.
Vietnam is at the top of my list so this is just awesome info to know!! I love the sound of the Ha Long Bay tour. Will keep these tips in mind!
Kristie – you.theworld.wandering