Taking the Tourist Bus in Vietnam

Before leaving for my nine-day trip in Vietnam, I wanted to book everything in advance so that I wouldn't have to be bothered when I get there. The trains are somewhat expensive for me so I decided to just take the tourist bus since many travelers use this anyway.

From what I read in several travel forums, the two most trusted companies operating bus tours are Kim Tours and Sinh Cafe (which is now known as The Sinh Tourist). I opted for the latter for the simple reason that the name has more appeal to me. (Haha) I sent an e-mail to inquire about the availability of tickets for my desired travel dates, the cost and how to book. I received a reply in a few days and they gave me instructions, which is by wiring them the payment. I didn't see Sinh Cafe in the company name where I should send my payment and I immediately realized that this is one of those 'fakes' pretending to be the real one. (Even if they were the real one, I wouldn't bother because wiring money is tiresome and I would rather take my chance on booking when I get there.)

I scoured the web to find the website of the real one. I was still not able to book in advance though. I didn't know if it was my connection or their website which has a problem that time.

On my first day in Vietnam, the first thing I had to do was to book my bus tickets. I was lucky that the hostel I stayed in HCMC was very near their office which is along De Tham St. I was able to book my desired schedule and was really glad that it was cheaper than I expected. I only paid about 976,000vnd for HCMC-Nha Trang-Hoi An-Hue-Hanoi trips. I also got a free souvenir shirt. (I am a sucker for freebies!)


For my first overnight trip, I had no expectation with the sleeper bus. I thought that it would be just like any other buses only with much larger leg rooms so that you could recline your seats more. But to my surprise, there were real beds, (or at least close to a real bed) double-deckers arranged in three rows, which made me look forward to a restful sleep. The beds are long enough. However, the beds at the front and the middle portion are shorter and was not enough for me. They also provide a blanket and you get 500ml water. (I wonder how often they wash those blankets.) There's also a toilet but in only one of the three overnight buses I took is functioning. Wearing shoes/slippers inside the bus is not allowed so we had to take them off and put them in a plastic bag. This is actually nice to make sure that the bus is kept clean. I think it is also because in Vietnam you have to remove your foot wear upon entering a house and since people sleep in the overnight bus, it is considered a house. Here's to hoping that all sleeper buses are like this.

Inside the Sinh Tourist sleeper bus (HCMC-Nha Trang)