Can UK passport holders enter Vietnam without a visa?

Are the rumors True about Vietnam ditching the Tourist Visa for UK passport holders?

I’ve heard the rumor being spread that Vietnam plan to open up a visa waver solution for travellers looking at entering Vietnam for this short period of time for tourism purposes.

I’ve been waiting patiently to hear directly from a solid source, to confirm that in fact, this is true.

Many channels around the backpacking community have been talking about it, but I have been waiting to hear directly from the horse’s mouth that this rumor is in fact true,

Ladies and gentleman, it’s just happened!

It has just now been officially announced by the Gov.UK website that entering Vietnam without the need of arranged in advance visa will be taken into effect from July 1st 2015.

This is brilliant news for UK Backpackers travelling around South East Asia!

Mostly travelling around South East Asia is easy visa wise,

Most Visa’s in South East Asia are either picked up upon arrival or simply a free tourist entry stamp at the boarder (Malaysia gives UK passport holders a free 90 day tourist stamp on arrival),

However, Vietnam has always been the wild card in this situation and to be honest, it has been off putting for many backpackers due to the complications and high fees.

Things are about to change for Backpackers wanting to travel to Vietnam

(Vietnam has a lot to offer and its great more backpackers will have the chance to explore this country)

It was not an easy process and many backpackers had to sort out some way of obtaining an entry invitation letter before entering Vietnam whilst in Cambodia and the whole situation was very tricky and not easy to grasp.

This is all a thing of the past and its much more simple now this new entry solution has been put in place to boost tourism in Vietnam.

Other South East Asia destinations simply have an understandable system or don’t charge at all for entry, I’m happy to hear Vietnam have done something about this, it was for sure needed with a continued rise in backpacking and travel around South East Asia.

It would have made my first trip to Vietnam more easier that’s for sure!

(Vietnam was great fun, the visa did add an unwanted cost to my trip budget, specially for a weekend visit)

Vietnam has always been an issue and after my visit 3 years ago, it was a nightmare as I had to arrange an appointment in advance whilst in London with the Vietnamese Embassy, pay a high fee in order to enter Vietnam by paying for a visa for my very short 5 day weekend visit to Ho Chi Mihn.

The fee was double the price of my Airasia flight to visit the city.

You can see how this can put off some budget backpackers travelling to Vietnam during a short period of time in South East Asia, with Laos, Thailand and Cambodia who all have easy entry options to choose from, it’s simple to cut out Vietnam from your intended trip, which is a great shame!

I hope this sparks other destinations to follow suit

(It will open up more tourism opportunities in Vietnam, I hope others follow too)

I’m a fan of what Vietnam has done in order to take the next step towards opening up its borders to increase tourism opportunities.

The more countries that progress towards following the same footsteps, the more Tourism can open up in many areas around the world and its a win win for both parties, the countries in question and the travellers destination choice.

Vietnam already had this option in place for some travellers such as the Norwegians, great to see UK travellers can also make the most out of this Tourist waver stamp too.

It’s not perfect, but for sure progress in the right direction and I hope many other countries looking at gaining a tourism boost follow in their footsteps, this is only going to have a positive effect on the future of tourism in Vietnam.

The fine print and indepth details of what’s now possible with Vietnam Visa wise.

UK Passport holders from July 1st can enter Vietnam as a tourist with an entry stamp free of charge.

If you wish to stay longer than 15 days, then you will still need to arrange a visa.

If you wish to enter Vietnam for business reasons, then you will still need to arrange a visa.

What does this mean for UK passport holders wanting to enter Vietnam?

You’re free to travel and enter Vietnam as a tourist for 15 days.

This is great if you wish to fly in to Vietnam for a city visit, explore Vietnam by train from Hanoi to Ho Chi Mihn. 15 days is still a possible duration, you can do a lot with this new time frame and not have to worry about paying for Visa fees any longer from July 1st 2015.

Want to stay longer than 15 days? You will still need to apply for a visa.

Still not 100% perfect, but hey its progress and better than nothing right! I hope you’re excited to now to include Vietnam on your next visit to South East Asia.

I’m sure this will have nothing but a positive effect on Vietnam and its tourism industry and this scheme may be extended and stay for the long run. In the future there might be a possibility the duration will be extended once they see the benefits of this trial run, but only time will tell.

Thank you for reading this blog post and I hope you’re excited for your next adventure with this incredible fresh information on the Vietnam visa situation for UK travellers!