Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

Hi, have you found another hotel?
I called Fortuna and the cheapest rate they quoted me is USD$88 net for next week. I'm looking for cheaper (but girl friendly and clean) hotel too.

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

Hi Peter North,

When will you be in Hanoi again? I have been there a few times and got to stay at some local hotels at Old Quarters. Have you been adventurous enough to take a walk around that cowboy town area? Quite facinating and hotels there are good and cheap too at about US$20 (some can even go lower). Also got to know a few pubs there is will open until last customer leaves.

I may be up there again in a couple of weeks, and if your timing is about the same, we should arrange something there together!

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

Not yet, Bro. USD88 is more expensive that the rates published on the Net.

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

My last trip to Hanoi, the hotel room was booked by my country manager in Viet at abt USD60 per night.

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

I've booked two hotels by phone.

HANOI STAR HOTEL II
25 Hang Mam Street
Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi

ELEGANT II HOTEL
107 Trieu Viet Vuong, Hanoi

Both around USD$20 per night. You can check it out from
http://www.elephantguide.com/hanoi/hanoi_accom_u25.htm

Anyone with experience with these two hotels? Are they any good?
How about the location, are these convenient?

I still have to make a choice among these two, hope someone can help me.

Thanks

Exchange rate
 

I'm VERY puzzled.

I checked three currency converter werbsite and the rate I got for 1 SGD is more than 9600 Dong.

http://www.oanda.com/convert/classic - 9,947.28 VND
http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert.cgi - 9,627.41 VND
http://finance.yahoo.com/m5?a=1&s=SGD&t=VND - 9,626.96 VND

However, I went to People Park Centre today and the rate I got from 3 money changer was either 8000 VND or 8200 VND.

What's going on? Can anyone help? Thanks

Maybe I should just change to USD.

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

Bro,
As the Viet Dong is a controlled currency (meaning it's not freely available outside Vietnam), the rate you got at money changer is expected. Best is to change at your hotel in Vietnam.

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

I've not decided on the exact date yet. I'm not going Hanoi "again". I'm a newbie in Hanoi. I've never been there before. So the places you mentioned are quite alien to me.

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

the Hang Mam hotel is at the old quarters. lots of soveniers shops and local eateries and restaurants around there. its a local hotel, no lifts, so make sure u ask for a room on second or third floor with balcony, otherwise they will give u a room on 5th or 6th floor and no windows and yet charge u the same price. These local hotel may be guest friendly but they hve to close their doors by 11.30pm! the police will come around that time to make sure everyone goes to sleep by then.

so the best thing is to befriend the Boss of the hotel and go party with him. he can then arrange for most things.

the other way is to pick ur vege at New Century at Trang Thi, just a disco, short distance from the hotel. go by Xe Om, motorcycle, should cost u about S$1 or vnd10,000. if u take Taxi, beware they will take u on a "hanoi city tour". Anyway the 'chai' at NC is about usd50 for one whole night if u know how to bargain, otherwise its about usd80.

its cold now in hanoi, at night may drop to 12degC. room no heater, so try to get a 37degC biological heater for the night.

have fun!

Re: Exchange rate
 

figure this out;

the worst rate is to change in singapore at $1 to vnd8000

next best is to change at bank in Hanoi at $1 to vnd 9300

next best is to change at Nobai airport when u touch down at $1 to vnd 9450

the best is to draw money from ATM using our Visa credit card. if u have Citibank Visa, its most convenient if u have the pin. rate is slightly better than the nobai airport or about there.

;)

Re: Exchange rate
 

Dun change Dong in S'pore, change some in the Hanoi airport n the rest outside the airport. U might need some USD for entertainment but with piles of dong, it should be more than enough to survive in Viet.

Hanoi Cheongsters Club- HCC
 

Hey guys,

There seems to be increased interest in Vietnam these days, could be due to the marketing efforts in Joo Chiat or whatever.

After spending sometime in Hanoi and bringing some friends to cheong there, majority of the guys have fallen in love with that place, or fallen in love at that place ;)

There are much ups and downs in Hanoi and fortunately more ups than downs. Cheonging in Vietnam is very different from cheonging in Singapore, there are price discrepancy and even "black house" where they rip you off.

Yet there are also fun house. For example there is this place where a few local hotels are situated, you pay entrance fee of S$30 and go up the stairways to catch any girl you like and screw until you drop. If you really like her, pay another $10 tips, if not, then just go. Some of them speaks good Chinese even. And by the way, S$30 is foreigner premium price, for locals (which I passed off as locals sometimes), its only S$15.

I feel strongly that such "advanced military intelligence" of various night firing exercises ought to be shared by the seasoned cheongsters of Vietnam for the benefits of the brudderhood.

As such, I am proposing the formation of HCC1, HCC2 and HCC3 to cover exercises in Northern, Central and Southern vietnam. I myself is quite active in Hanoi and can contribute significantly to various tactical exercise planning there.

Meantime, those interested parties, please declare your interest here first and when the dust settles, we can start seperate threads. But if not many parties interested, then we can forget about this idea.

Just one more very valuable tips before you go . .. in Hanoi, bring your own rubber. There is no 7-11 or any convenience store there and only 42% of the guys there uses condoms and it is even difficult for you to buy it from the supermarkets (they usually put condoms in the same kind of glass display cabinet as with Parker and Mont-Blanc pens and nobody is there to take it out for you, so by the time you make enough noise trying to buy condoms, half the town would already have known about it!). You will have better chance of getting condom from those small pharmacy (nha thuoc) and you have to ask in Vietnamese.

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

bro,

the lowest Fortuna will go for their room is USD55 excluding 15% tax. (10% VAt & 5% service charge).

cheers,
sponge

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

How u get this rate? Pls advice....

Re: Hanoi Night Club
 

bro,

if u bring gals from other KTVs, u will have to pay an extra USD10-20. can try asking the recep about the charges to bring a "friend" back, see whether there are any changes to it.

if u bring a gal from Boss KTV to ur room at Fortuna, u dun have to pay anything. just go up to ur room and wait for her as u should have already buy her "hours", minimum of 4hrs at USD4-5 per hr. This fee will be charged to your bill when u have a gal keeping u company when in the niteclub. Standard charges for short time: USD60, Overnite USD80.

hope it helps.

cheers,
sponge