Vietnam Travel Newsletter 2016 ­ Quarter 2 | Evivatour.com

Vietnam Travel Newsletter 2016 – Quarter 2

EVIVA TOUR VIETNAM is a local DMC in Vietnam with more than 10 years of experience and endless passion for travel. In our latest newsletter, we would liketo bring you up­to­date travel information in the upcoming holiday season in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar. Let’s get in touch and follow us onTripAdvisor, Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus.

TTG INCONTRI 2016EVIVA TOUR VIETNAM will have our own booth at TTG Incontri, 13­15 October 2016 as an exhibitor. For appointments, please contact our Sales Manager, Ms.Nguyen Bach Duong (Jessica) at her email at bachduong@evivatour.com.vn or skype at whitechocolatea or mobile phone, viber, whatsapp and telegramnumbers at +84 9 1350 1984.

HOT NEWS

The Hollywood movie “Kong: Skull Island” shot in VietnamThe Hollywood movie “Kong: Skull Island” shot in Trang An–Ninh Binh, Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba Island of Vietnam. In March 2016, about 220 cast and crewmembers were at the World Heritage site to shoot for 3 days in Ha Long Bay. This is an opportunity to promote tours in Viet Nam’s raw, unspoiled and powerful.

(Source: Cinet)Direct flight connects Da Nang and Bangkok from 25 May 2016

Bangkok Airways will launch its new route between the beach city of Da Nang and Bangkok from May 2016. As scheduled, the flight will be operated onMonday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday with 144 Economy class seats on an Airbus 319.

Da Nang, which is situated at the end of the East –West Economic Corridor –linking Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Viet Nam, is connected by 19 internationalroutes with over 4 million tourists in 2015. (Source: VNA)

Van Don International Airport–Quang Ninh, opened in 2017An airport near Ha Long Bay will be opened at the end of 2017 to serve two million passengers a year. With an estimated cost of VND 7.5 trillion (US$ 331.7million) for the first stage of construction, Quang Ninh Airport will be built on Van Don Island, about 50 kilometers from the famous bay.

(Source: Quangninh.gov.vn)Highway opened in 2017, 2­hour drive Ha Noi–Ha LongA highway linking Ha Long to the port city of Hai Phong is expected to open in 2017, which will reduce travel time from Ha Noi to Ha Long. Together with thelaunching of the Ha Noi­Hai Phong highway in December 2015, the new route reduces travel time between Ha Noi and Ha Long from 4 hours to 2 hours onceopened. Travel agents and tour operators are encouraged to use the new Ha Noi­Hai Phong highway to provide a comfortable 2.5­hour drive from Ha Noi toHa Long Bay. (Source: VOV)

SPECIAL TOURSIt is time for your wonderful relaxing experience on one of the best beaches on earth.

Ha Long Bay in the NorthIn the north, it is turning into summer, making Ha Long Bay warm enough for swimming. An overnight on a luxury cruise with high quality service to one ofUNESCO World Heritages could be the best experience in your lifetime. For more details, please click here.

Hoi An, Da Nang in the centerLantern is the symbol and a part of the spirit of Hoi An. In this tour, the craftsman will perform the process of producing colourful lanterns. If Tra Que herbvillage, a charming little village on the edge of Hoi An, attracts you by a local daily life with a standard meal of Vietnamese people, Cam Thanh nipa palm (watercoconut) village gets you in amazing activities like catching crabs, racing on basket boat, watching daily life of fishermen on the river. For more details, pleaseclick here

Nha Trang in the center With its turquoise water, pleasant weather, golden sand beach, Nha Trang is a fabulously inviting paradise. This beach­side city provides a rich variety ofattractive activities for visitors like island hopping, scuba diving, kite boarding, sea walking, SUP boarding, and especially fly boarding.

Mui Ne, Phan Thiet in the south centreMui Ne, one of southern Vietnam’s prime slices of beach in Phan Thiet city, is highly recommended. Mui Ne offers a wide range of water activities such asswimming, kite and wind surfing, kayaking, jet skiing… The most special activity is that you can ride an all­terrain vehicle on the white sand dunes–a must­visitplace in Mui Ne. In addition, the destination is rich in its culture. Visitors have an opportunity to discover amazing Po Sha Nu–a relic of Cham culture built in the8th century, or an authentic fishing market.

HOTELS PROMOTION AND NEWSMelia Da NangThe level honeymoon package (2 nights 3 days)Validity: 7 January 2016–30 September 2016 (except July and August) Package starts at USD 499.00 NETSpecial for honeymooners:• Round trip Airport Transfer • Private Candle Set dinner at the beach with house wine for 2 persons per stay• 60 minutes massage treatment for 2 persons per stay• Late check out until 06:00 pm (based on availability)

Sunrise Hoi An Beach resortLong stay promotion:Validity: 1 Apr 2016–31 June 2016 except public holidays • Stay 7 nights pay 6 nights• Stay 14 nights pay 12 nights

Amiana Resort Nha Trang Long stay promotion (consecutive nights only):

Booking period: now–31 May 2016Stay Period: now–28 April 2016 and 5­30 May 2016 • Stay consecutive 4­6 nights: get 10% OFF per room per night• Stay consecutive 7 nights or more: get 15 % off/room/night • For a minimum 4 nights in Ocean Villa: complimentary 60 minutes spa per paid guest • For a minimum 7 nights stay: complimentary 1 Mud bath ticket per paid guest

New hotel – Vin Pearl Ha Long Bay Resort Opened in October 2015, Vinpearl Ha Long Bay Resort is the new 5­star resort in Ha Long with 384 rooms. With spectacular views of the limestone pillarsstretching across the Gulf of Tonkin, Vinpearl Ha Long Bay Resort is exclusively located on its own private island of Dao Reu. Your personal waterfront gatewayto this unique UNESCO World Heritage Site, Vinpearl Ha Long Bay Resort offers an escape from a world of the usual to an extraordinary paradise of luxury andromance.

UPCOMING FESTIVALS

Hue festivalTime: 29 Apr 2016–4 May 2016 Place: Hue city, Vietnam About: Every two years since 1992, Hue festival is celebrated once in Thua Thien Hue, Vietnam’s former Capital City, to revere the city’s cultural heritage. Thisyear, with the theme of “710th anniversary of Thuan Hoa – Phu Xuan – Thua Thien Hue” and “Cultural Heritage with Integration and Development”, the 9th HueFestival will begin from 29 Apr 2016 and end on 4 May 2016. Activities: During the festival, a variety of activities will be carried out such as street art performances, musical shows, and a special event namely “Night of theForbidden City” which presents the life, culture, history and music of royalty in the 19th and 20th century. This event also gathers many interesting and specialperformances from many artist groups from all over the world such as China, Chile, and France, etc.

Tet doan ngo Time: 9 June 2016 Place: National WideAbout: Tet Doan Ngo is a Vietnamese traditional festival celebrated annually on 5th of the fifth lunar month. Tet means Festival, Doan indicates the start andNgo is Horse, the seventh animal among the twelfth in the Zodiac, which is also used in calculating the time in the past (around 12pm). So Tet Doan Ngo isnamed after the time we begins this festival.Activities: People pray on this day for good health and peace as the fifth lunar month is the time when the weather starts getting hot and people are easy toget sick during this type of weather. According to the old stories, Tet Doan Ngo (Doan Ngo Festival) is also the day the farmers start the killing bad insectscampaign to protect their farms and plants. On this day, we normally eat Sticky Rice Wine and Banh Tro.

‘Cau Ngu’ – Whale worshiping festival Time: 20­22 May 2016 Place: Quang Binh, Dong Hoi province, Vietnam About: It is celebrated as an act of respect for the spirits, and it is also linked to wishing for the prosperity of the fishing villages.Activities: On the first day of the festival, all the villagers will participate in a ritual ceremony of praying for a prosperous year and good health for the eldersand children. The next part, villagers join in a water procession, accompanied by a music band and an ensemble of Hat Boi (Vietnam traditional opera) andtraditional dancing for some villages. During the two days of the festival, all ships and boats are anchored at the wharf.

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Hoi An Mid­autumn festivalTime: 16 August 2016 Place: Hoi AnAbout: The night of the 14th of the seventh lunar month is a very special night where people living inside the Hoi An ancient town will lighten up the streets withbeautiful lanterns in different shapes and sizes. In the past, people believe that based on the colours of the full­moon day, they can predict the future of thatyear. For example, if the moon is green or blue, during the next year, there might be natural disaster happens; or if it’s bright orange, the country will be veryprosperous.Activities: During this special night, besides watching and taking pictures with old streets full of lanterns, there will be some traditional activities such asreleasing lightened lanterns on the river or enjoying the peaceful atmosphere while having delicious full­moon cakes and sipping cup of tea.

Ox racing festivalTime: September 2016 Place: Mekong DeltaAbout: The ox racing is held in a 60mx170m ground which is surrounded by high earthen rampart where spectators can stand. The racing lane is 100m longand 4m wide. Its two ends are marked with departure and destination poles. Each racing tournament involves 38 pairs of oxen selected from competition incommune level. The competition consists of two rounds. It can be considered that ‘hu’ is the selection round, and ‘tha’ the real contest, which displays thestrength of the oxen and the skill of their controllers.Activities: The racing oxen become the pride of the whole village. As such the controllers, the owners of the oxen and the oxen themselves all try hard to show

their skills and strength. The prize­winning oxen are much loved for their efforts to bring about the honor for their owners. The ox racing in An Giang has anaged old tradition. The men in the village take this community event as an opportunity to show their courage and dexterity.

Ok Om Bok festivalTime: 13­14 November 2016 Place: Tra Vinh, Viet Nam About: Annually, Khmer people in the Southern Region of Vietnam celebrate Ok Om Bok Festival along with 2 others, Sene Dolta and Chol Chnam Thmay. Allof these festivals are taken place under the full­moon as Khmer people believes that the moon God is the one who controls both weather and crops throughoutthe year. Activities: Depends on the scale of the festival (village areas only or provincial area), the festival will be held in the courtyards of each village or at Ba Om pondcultural relic site. During the festival, a series of cultural and social activities which offer a closer look into local cuisines and cultural characteristics and betterconnection with friendly local people such as art performances, traditional sport challenges and folk games will be organized.

TRAVEL POLICIESVisa fee reduction and waiverStarting on 23 November 2015, the single­entry visa stamp fee to Vietnam is US$25 and multiple­entry visa for up to 3 months is US$50, instead of US$45 andUS$95 according to Circular 157 by the Ministry of Finance. The multiple­entry visa valid for above three and up to six months remains US$95 per person, andUS$135 per person for between six months and a year.

For those who are exempted for Vietnam visa, if they wish to re­enter Vietnam within 30 days of their departure, they will pay only US$5 instead of US$45 ascurrently charged, the official added. In fact, many tourists first visit Vietnam then they travel to Laos and Cambodia and come back to Vietnam to return to theirhome countries because Vietnam is now connected to more international flights than the other two countries.

Starting from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2016, according to Vietnam Government Decree, citizens of Belarus, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and United Kingdomwill no longer need a visa to visit Vietnam for stays up to 15 days. Please note that you still need a visa to enter Vietnam for periods of 15 days and longer and ifyou wish to re­enter Vietnam within 30 days of their departure. Visa extension of 15 days during the stay in Vietnam is permitted. This is under proposal to

extend to 5 years from 2015 and we will update for more details.

If you wish to extend your visa after 15 days, please contact us at sales@evivatour.com or via our hotline +84 9 3600 9908 (viber).

TRAVEL TIPSVietnam’s weather varies a lot from north to south and changes each season. Studies show that we are around the same weather with Bali, Indonesia, notPhuket, Thailand although it looks to be on the same equator. It is highly recommended to come to Vietnam from April to June when it is end of high season forforeign tourists, before peak holiday season for domestic tourism, when it is not too hot in the north and it is not the rainy season. Importantly, the price is muchbetter during the low season. Here are some useful tips for travelers to Vietnam during this season.

Weather One of the first questions asked by any traveler is to decide the best time to visit. You are advised to do a quick search or seek advice from travel experts.Check out our brief weather forecast below.

ClothesThe places you simply must see in Indochina are many but the highlights include cities, temples and beaches. Wear light clothes to let your skin breathe. Cottonis fine. A sensible packing list will include a T­shirt or vest, long­sleeved shirt or blouse, shorts or a skirt for day, and long pants or long skirt for night. Wide­brimmed hats are highly recommended, especially if you plan to visit Indochina for more than a week.

FootwearSandals or flip flops are popular in Southeast Asia. However, a pair of shoes is a smart choice to take along as you not only visit deltas, beaches but alsomountainous area. It keeps your feet safe and comfortable. In Vietnam, you you can walk on your barefoot or use their hotel slippers inside the hotels.

MedicalMedicines can be bought easily in pharmacy. However, it is important to bring your own or keep your doctor’s prescription aside if you are in some specialtreatment.

^Ha Noi83A Tran Quoc Toan St., Hoan Kiem Dist, Ha Noi, Viet Nam t. +84 4 3942 6585f. +84 4 3822 8008e. consultant@evivatour.com.vn Ho Chi Minh CityM1906, 19th Floor, Central Garden, 328 Vo Van Kiet, Dist.1, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam t. +84 4 3942 6585f. +84 4 3942 6585e. consultant@evivatour.com.vn

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