Vietnam forum

Posted from within Vietnam.

Just made the cut and bought my sleeper bus ticket to Hoi An upon my arrival in HCMC on the eve of Tet.

Train ticket definitely out of the question. But the price I paid was US$50 - steep. The bus is OK, it's more like a bunk-on-wheels, a mini dorm or prison cell with three columns of two-level bunk beds, and no seats, no toilet either, and no complimentary box of treats. And without the sleeping mattresses and aircon we would be like slaves in a galley to be delivered to our destination in a horizontal position.

This is the first time I've seen such a bus.

Total time is 22 hours with 10 hours trip to Nha Trang and with layover of one hour.

The trip though was perfect and smooth except for a tiny bit of frequent honking by the driver. I guess this is the driving culture of Vietnam.

The best thing about this arrangement is that I took the bus a block from my hotel in Saigon and I was drop off from my bus in Hoi An a few steps from my next hotel. No worries of transferring. And the hotel is still quite a steal - room for US$7.