What do foreigners think about Vietnam and Vietnamese people ?

Let’s look at some of the comments about Vietnam and Vietnamese people from foreigners around the world who have had experience living in this country.

1. “Vietnam has many interesting places worth visiting”

Tommy Mauer, from the USA, has visited Vietnam 5 times in a span of about 3 years and has spent about as much time and energy there as any non-resident foreign tourist will. He loves Vietnam, especially the many interesting places that Vietnam offers:

“There are a few places I insist any tourist visiting either Hanoi in the North or Saigon in the South to make an effort to check out while they’re over there.

In the North, of course, there’s the famous Ha Long Bay, which is really too incredible a sight to justifiably describe it in words. All I can say is that I’ve never seen anything like it before, and I’m unsure of what a good comparison would be

In the South, you can visit Vung Tau, which is a relatively short 1–2 hour ride south of Saigon proper, and on the coast. The beaches are a nice refuge from the more hectic city culture of Saigon, and some of the views of the surrounding cliffs on the coast and peaks that reside on the outskirts, are some of my favorite in the country”.

2. I fall in love with Vietnam and decide to live here

David Debbie, who has lived in Vietnam since 2012, also share some great comments about Vietnam:

“I came to Vietnam 6 years ago and still love it. Vietnam is simply a wonderful country. I fall in love with Vietnam and decide to live here.
I also read many forums said that foreigners should not come to Vietnam because they met many scams and stressful when staying there. I’m so sorry that they were unlucky travelers and I think there are only a few travelers that have experience with this misfortune. Ho Chi Minh city seems the craziest city in Vietnam that it’s the biggest one with many people staying to get a job. The traffic here is busy, but I love this city for no reasons … Hoi An and Da Nang are peaceful cities. People are very extremely friendly.”

3. Vietnam is so strange but I adjusted and I really loved it by the end

Daniel Koenen, a student from Australia, share some experience in Vietnam while he was studying as an IT university student in Ho Chi Minh City for 7 months:

“My first impression of Vietnam is motorbikes and the traffic here. Motorbikes are crazy. Scooters everywhere. Busses are not going to stop before hitting you. Rules are more heuristics. Danger at any moment. At first, I really hated how chaotic and risky it was and hated how people wouldn’t let others in or wait their turn like in Australia. But I adjusted and I really loved it by the end.

About food, there was a huge health focus on food. Fast food was actually two to three times more expensive than normal healthy food. It was treated as a luxury food for rich folk. I love this so much.

I was also lucky enough to enjoy the Chinese New Year in Vietnam. Chinese New year here is insanely important. Everything shuts for a week and everyone goes home to their hometown and HCMC was a ghost town.”