You can get around by car in Vietnam. You can hire a Grab car, a Taxi (there are many companies), and you can rent a car and driver. I recommend either Grab car or hiring a car and driver. Can you car travel in Vietnam? Yes. Here’s what I know about getting around Vietnam by car.
Car travel in Vietnam is best with car and driver. Tour guides with their own cars are happy, knowledgeable people who can make your visit a delight. I can recommend several tour guides who speak English very well. Technically, it is possible to rent just the car, but don’t.
In this article, I will help guide you. There are many things to enjoy in Vietnam. There are also a few problems. I will help guide you away from some of the potential problem areas. I enjoy Vietnam and I know many other people who do, too. This article is about renting a car in Vietnam for short trips. For more information on other modes of travel in Vietnam, see this post.
Let’s get started.
While it is technically possible to rent just the car in Vietnam, please take my advice: Don’t.
Vietnam Traffic Rules
The laws and traffic rules in Vietnam are different. Besides, you are on vacation. Let someone else drive who knows the city, understands the traffic negotiation and can help you with sightseeing.
The traffic rules are too different, and the risks for property and personal injury are too great. Besides, you will need health and accident insurance that cover you in Vietnam. Need another reason? You will need a special insurance policy to get emergency medical care and ambulance transportation.
Car Travel Vietnam
On top of that, you may end up with some legal problems if you have an accident. Most likely, your regular insurance coverages will not apply if you are out of your country. Put another way, you may not be covered if you don’t have a Vietnamese driver’s license.
This could mean international legal issues on top of everything else. I can recommend a really good Vietnamese lawyer in Ho Chi Minh city. To find a lawyer who has passed the bar in Vietnam, and speaks English, and has time to meet with you will be rare. I hope you don’t need one.
Vietnamese Driver License
To rent a car in Vietnam, you will need a Vietnamese driver’s license. To do that, you will need to pass the practical exam and the written exam. The Vietnamese driver’s written exam is only in Vietnamese.
If you have a valid driver’s license in your country, it is possible to use that to obtain a Vietnamese driver’s license but you will still have to pass the driving test. The driving test must be scheduled ahead and they don’t give them often.
For starters, your international drivers’ license is not legal in Vietnam. Yes, I know the assumption is that an international drivers license should apply internationally. It does, but not everywhere.
Hiring a Taxi
There are several cab companies that I know of in Danang: Mai Linh Taxi, VinaSun Taxi, G7 Taxi, Vina taxi and Taxi Group. Most of the Taxi companies have apps by now. Most often you can download from a QR code or link on their website.
Mai Linh Taxi are the green colored taxi cars and are a familiar brand. Their distinctive green cars are easily recognizable and familiar to consumers and tourists. They have an app.
Vina Sun Taxi has a traditional mobile application that gives customers a new way to book Vina Sun taxis from smartphones and allows customers to book their taxi in advance.
Vina Taxi are the yellow vehicles with modern AC, spacious interior, high-quality sound system and LCD screen for the comfort of their customers.
G7 Taxi is a French Taxi company. They are one of the taxis in Vietnam that apply the most competitive fares, which are low, stable, and don’t increase their prices during peak hours. This is the brand with the largest number of taxis in Hanoi.
Taxi Group offers booking via mobile phone to help clients capture all information about the trip, such as the driver, the distance, the estimated cost and the travel time.
| Taxi | Website | Phone |
| Taxi Mai Linh | https://taximailinh.business.site/ | +84 28 3838 3838 |
| Vina Sun Taxi | https://vinasun.vn/home | +84 28 3929 4133 |
| Vina Taxi | https://vinataxi.vn/en/ | +84 28 3811 1111 |
| G7 Taxi | (facebook) | +84 |
| Taxi Group | http://taxigroup.com.vn/ | 1900 54 54 671900 |
Hiring Car and Driver
For those with a healthy budget, hiring a car and driver is the best deal. Plan your trip ahead of time and reserve your car and driver. They will appreciate the advance notice and you will get better service.
Your tour guide can help you translate when necessary and help you bargain to get a better price at the markets. They know quality and can spot a scam before you know it. The tour guides I know really delight in helping their guests.
Your Vietnamese tour guide already knows the places you want to see. They know the best way to get there and they know when they are open, when they aren’t so crowded and probably know the tour guides there. Ask them for advice and enjoy your personally guided trip.
Hire Grab Car
For short trips or those on short notice, it’s easy to hire a Grab car. There are usually enough Grab cars available in urban areas and they would love to have the work. If you have a group, this is the quickest and most convenient way to go together.
One person will have to have the app installed on their phone. I recommend that you do this before you travel. You can make sure everything is working before there is a problem. The card and the app handle the map, reserving the ride, converting currency, the fee and the tip – all in the background. Of course, if you are splitting the bill, you will have to collect from those sharing the ride!
I recommend Grab – both Car and Bike.
Paying for Grab is usually quick and easy. The app will save your method of payment just like the Uber app does. Not all cards will be accepted. I have had credit cards for Visa and MasterCard accepted, including PayPal and CapitolOne. However, it would not take the virtual card for Apple Pay. The reason given was the card didn’t have two-party authentication.
You can download the Grab App from the Grab website here.