General Information
Note: The information presented here is an abbreviated version of our formal General Information for Tours to Vietnam. Its purpose is solely to give readers a sense of what might be involved if they take this tour. Although we do our best to make sure what follows here is completely accurate, it should not be used as a replacement for the formal document which will be sent to all tour registrants, and whose contents supersedes any information contained here.
ENTERING VIETNAM: A valid passport and visa are required for U.S. citizens. The website of the Viet Nam Embassy in Washington, DC, can be viewed here. Your passport, as a general rule, should be valid for at least six months after the date the tour ends. Citizens of other countries may need a visa and should check their nearest Thai embassy. If required by the embassy or visa-granting entity, WINGS can provide a letter for you to use regarding your participation in the tour.
VIETNAM MAP AND COUNTRY INFORMATION: An online map of Vietnam can be found here. The U.S. State Department background notes for Thailand can be found here
HEALTH: Malaria occurs in Vietnam. There are no immunization requirements for Thailand, but the CDC suggest up-to-date tetanus, typhoid, polio and hepatitis A protection and, as needed, booster doses for tetanus-diptheria and measles.
For further information on health advisories for Vietnam, you can view the CDC website.
PACE OF THE TOUR: The tour is not a particularly strenuous one but does require a good degree of physical fitness due to the high temperatures in the south and some longish walks. Some days will involve walking for around 10 km, for example the walk to Crocodile Lake and back at Cat Tien National Park. However most walking is fairly easy and will include plenty of stops for birding. Some uphill and cross-country walking is required at the sites around Dalat and at the two sites in the north. Our birding days will normally begin around 05:30 with a quick early breakfast before birding. Some days it will be a light packed breakfast. Bird activity usually drops off by 11:00, and lunch would normally be taken at the park headquarters, hotel, or nearby restaurant followed by a siesta before resuming birding around 2:00 pm until 6:00 or dusk. There are some drives of approximately three hours with a drive of around five hours between Tam Dao and Cuc Phuong with the journey broken by a lunch stop in Hanoi. All the driving is on good surfaced roads
CLIMATE AND HABITAT: Unlike much of Southeast Asia, Viet Nam’s climate is complex and varied from humid tropical, sub-tropical, to cool. Our tour takes place during the spring in north Viet Nam and during what is the dry season in south Viet Nam. Daytime temperatures are likely to be in the range 30-35°C (86-95°F) in the south and 20-25°C (68-78°F) around Dalat. At Tam Dao, at an elevation of 1,000 meters (3,280 feet), and at Cuc Phuong, nighttime temperatures may drop to 5°C (40°F), while daytime temperatures are likely to be around 8-14°C (45-58°F). We are unlikely to encounter rain, but the possibility of a thunderstorm cannot be discounted.
ACCOMMODATIONS: In Dalat we will be staying in comfortable 3- or 4–star standard hotels with air-conditioning and private bathroom facilities. At Bao Loc and Tam Dao the accommodation is more modest but fairly comfortable with en-suite bathroom facilities. At Cuc Phuong and Cat Tien the accommodation is rustic but again with private bathroom facilities and hot water in all rooms.
DRESS: Dress is informal everywhere.
TRANSPORTATION: Land travel will be in air-conditioned mini-buses throughout.
SMOKING: We request that you not smoke in the vehicles or when the group is gathered for meals, checklists, etc. If you are sharing a room with a non-smoker, please do not smoke in the room. If you smoke in the field, we ask that you do so well away and downwind from the group.
If any lodge, accommodation or location where the group is staying or is gathered has a more restrictive smoking policy than the WINGS policy, the more restrictive policy will prevail.
GENERAL INFORMATION & CONDITIONS OF WINGS TOURS: Please take a moment to read the WINGS General Information & Conditions. This section contains important information about how we conduct tours, e.g., what is included in the tour price, refund and cancellation policies, pace of the tours, and other information that will help you prepare for the tour.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: A more complete General Information for Tours to Vietnam will be sent to each registrant on receipt of their booking. Final information with instructions for meeting the group, hotel addresses, etc., will be mailed about three weeks before trip departure. Other news will be communicated as necessary. If you have any questions, please let us know.
Updated: March 2008