Hah, we got into China in a very different and much cheaper method than that: a buddy simply proposed to a motorcycle manufacturer to give us motorcycles and to consider us as advertisements for their newest model of bikes. I suppose the whole thing was illegal, as we didn’t have licenses, license plates, or any other official materials, but we never got hassled for any of that stuff over 2.5 months there!
I digress. I appreciate your advice; sounds like I can play the odds and if I get turned down at the VN border, just stick to Laos, which is a fine consolation prize.
Also, like you suggested, being just one person on a bike, I might have a better chance of slipping through than a big visible group.
Thank you for the link to your site: I love how clean and concise it is. Too many of the other blogs I am finding about trips like this are way too verbose to be useful!
In fact, your General Info page, it leads me to a possible solution to this challenge: if VN doesn’t let vehicles in, but seems to let them out; and if Laos, Cambodia and Thailand all in foreign vehicles, maybe I should just start and end my trip in Ha Noi instead? I am already flying to BKK, but I am finding round trip BKK-Ha Noi flights for under $200.
Does that sound like a good solution to you?
Can you speak to the necessity of an international driver’s license, or can I get by with my US license?
Does anyone on HUBB know about renting or buying a bike in Ha Noi? Are prices there reasonable?
Thanks so much for the help!