Talk:Vietnam/@comment-75.83.171.26-20150804215021

Just got back from VN, two week trip that included a one-week trip to the far north (Cao Bang) and a one-week vacation that included Ha Long Bay, Nha Trang, and Saigon. Bought a SIM card and plan at the airport in Hanoi for USD14 (their most expensive plan) which inc SIM card, activation, 3GB of 3G data (throttled after that, which I did not exceed), and if memory serves 90 minutes of local calling and 10 minutes of international. I have an unlocked Nexus 5, but my friends had VZW locked Note4's and the telcom people there worked around it. They recommended Viettel since Cao Bang is pretty rural. They speak pretty decent English and were very helpful.

I found Viettel's coverage pretty remarkable. e.g. on the winding remote mountain roads to Cao Bang I had HSPA coverage almost the whole time. We were out in the middle of Ha Long Bay, on a remote beach near Nha Trang (the only ones on that beach), and in the middle of the bay in Nha Trang, and still, HSPA. Great coverage in Hanoi and HCM city, but that's not surprising.

We are planning to return to VN every year (volunteer trip commitments) and plan to buy our SIM card at the airport again (and Viettel) next year.