Gay Vietnam

Vietnam's proposed re-opening March 15 reopening date did not take place as previously announced. The outlook for when Vietnam might re-open appears uncertain as no new date has been announced: https://thepointsguy.com/news/vietnam-reopening-tourism/

From VN Express Vietjet has resumed its international route to Da Nang in central Vietnam from Bangkok, Thailand, boosting post-pandemic recovery of tourism and trade connectivity across the region. Passengers can now reserve a ticket to Bangkok with fares only from VND68,000 ($3) (excluding taxes and fees) at www.vietjetair.com. In addition, Vietjet offers complimentary pre-flight RT-PCR tests for its passengers on international services. The Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi International Airport) - Da Nang route is operated by Thai Vietjet with three round trip per week (Wednesday, Friday and Sunday). The flight time is aro…

From You Tube Hà Nội to a big step forward towards getting back to normal as the capital’s famous walking street reopened to pedestrians. Families and tourists flocked to Hoan Kiem Lake to enjoyed the sights and sounds… traffic free! In fact the only vehicles on the road where toy cars driven by excited children who have waited almost a year to enjoy this thrill.

From Asia Insights As Vietnam enjoys rapid economic growth, one community on Hanoi's Red River has been left behind. The "Floating Village" is a series of homes on the water that uses drums as floats. Many residents have no official papers and are unable to find permanent work or receive government aid. A rise in COVID-19 cases in the summer of 2021 left them in desperate straits. We follow 2 out-of-work families and the community's leader as they work to survive the pandemic. https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/ondemand/video/2022353/

From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — The tourism industry is working hard to prepare for reopening on March 15, according to Nguyễn Trùng Khánh, director of Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). Khánh said the VNAT and local authorities were cooperating to revamp tourism facilities, which have been closed for two years. The authority is also calling for more training programmes and supportive policies to lure back workers who left the industry during the pandemic. It is also running the campaign “Live fully in Vietnam” and reaching out to international channels, including CNN and…

From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyễn Văn Hùng has just submitted a proposed plan to the Government for reopening international tourism in safe and effective manner. According to the plan, after the first pilot period for receiving international tourists, the second phase will last from now until March 30, 2022, with the number of eligible localities in the programme extended to all those who have completed coverage of COVID-19 vaccine booster shots and with contained outbreak (green zone, as per the health ministry’s outbreak assessment criteria). This is a huge step up from the currently five localities of Phú Quốc Isla…

From VN Express Vietnam will remove limits on the number of international flights coming and going from all markets starting February 15, restoring frequency to pre-pandemic levels. Dinh Viet Son, deputy director of the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam, said Vietnam will end restrictions on international flights starting February 15, allowing flight frequency restoration to pre-pandemic levels. Son said other countries have acknowledged the new policy and only China has not agreed to resume commercial flights with Vietnam. On February 11, the Ministry of Transport assigned the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam to hold discussio…

From VN Express International passengers entering Vietnam will not need to receive rapid tests for Covid-19 upon boarding or embarking planes, the Government Office announced. Passengers on international flights only need to present their Covid-19 PCR test results, according to document regarding international flights to Vietnam issued by the Government Office on Friday. Fully vaccinated people will be isolated at their residence or hotels for three days, and others for seven days. https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/vietnam-scraps-rapid-covid-test-requirements-for-int-l-passengers-4422182.html

If Thailand's early efforts last year to attract international tourists seemed confusing, Vietnam's current ones are downright daunting. From The VN Express Current Covid pandemic prevention protocols including medical declaration on different apps and rapid testing rules have left domestic carriers navigating troubled skies. During the first week after international flights resumed, January 1-7, 64 international flights brought over 7,800 passengers to Vietnam, according to a report from the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam. Of these 18 were commercial flights while the rest were charter flights carrying experts and t…

From Reuters JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's Oramed Pharmaceuticals said on Wednesday its Oravax Medical unit signed a deal with Vietnam's Tan Thanh Holdings for the pre-order of 10 million doses of its oral COVID-19 vaccine that is in clinical trials. The agreement gives Tan Thanh, a drug distributor, the right to sell Oravax’s oral vaccine in development throughout the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, Oramed said. "The parties have agreed to negotiate follow-on orders potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars," it sa…

From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — Fully vaccinated foreign arrivals with negative COVID-19 test results will only need to self-quarantine at home or places of accommodation for three days upon entry into Việt Nam by air, according to the latest guidance from the health ministry issued on Thursday. The new policies will be effective from January 1, 2022, the day Việt Nam is set to resume – on a pilot basis – regular international flights, starting first with Beijing/Quangzhou (China), Tokyo (Japan), Seoul (South Korea), Taipei (Taiwan, China), Bangkok (Thailand), Singapore, Vientiane (Laos), Phnom Penh (Cambodia), and San Francisco/Los Angeles (the United States), befor…

From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Transport has submitted to the Prime Minister a plan on the pilot resumption of regular international flights carrying passengers to Việt Nam from December 15, in anticipation of a year-end surge in travel demand. The first phase will last for two weeks, starting on December 15, during which regular flights between Việt Nam and destinations with a high level of pandemic safety and high demand for entry into Việt Nam will be conducted, namely Beijing (China), Tokyo (Japan), Seoul (the Republic of Korea), Taipei (Taiwan, China), Bangkok (Thailand), Singapore, Vientiane (Laos), Phnom Penh (Cambodia), and San Francisco or L…

From Reuters ANOI, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Drugmakers Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) and MSD, known as Merck & Co Inc (MRK.N) in North America, have agreed to give licenses to firms in Vietnam to produce COVID-19 treatment pills, Vietnam's ministry of health said on Friday. The companies have sent letters of approval to the Drug Administration of Vietnam, the ministry said in a statement, for the production of Molnupiravir and Paxlovid pills. The ministry said Vietnam has so far used 250,000 Molnupiravir doses, with 72%-93% of recipients recovering after five days. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/vietnam-says-pfizer-msd-grant-its-firms-l…

From Vietnam News THANH HÓA — Two people in central Thanh Hóa Province died on Wednesday morning after getting the Vero Cell COVID-19 vaccine while three others are being treated at a local hospital, the provincial Department of Health confirmed. They were inoculated on Tuesday. All of them are from Nông Cống District. On Tuesday, the district’s health centre organised the second doses of Vero Cell vaccine for workers and employees at Kim Việt Shoe Co., Ltd in Nông Cống Town Industrial Complex. All people who registered for the vaccination underwent health screening by local medical workers and were advised about the kind of vaccine they would be vaccinated…

From VN Express National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines will operate its first regular direct flight to the U.S. on November 28, achieving a dream conceived nearly two decades ago. The flight will depart from HCMC in the evening and arrive at San Francisco 13 hours and 50 minutes later, CEO Le Hong Ha said at a press briefing Tuesday. The return flight will leave San Francisco on the evening of November 29 (U.S. time) and arrive in HCMC on December 1, 16 hours and 40 minutes later. The wide-body aircraft Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner will be used for the direct flights. Initially, there will be two flights a week and this can be increased to sev…

From VN Express The U.S., the U.K., Japan and Belarus have officially accepted Vietnam's vaccine passport, while others are waiting for the country to use a consistent template. The four countries made their decisions early November, with specific certifications regarding the vaccine types, Pham Thu Hang, deputy spokeswoman of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, said at a press meet Tursday. India has also agreed in principle; while China, South Korea, and countries in ASEAN and the European Union are in the process of reviewing and waiting for Vietnam to come up with a consistent vaccine template, Hang said. People…

From VN Express International travelers who are fully vaccinated or have recovered from Covid-19 can visit five destinations in Vietnam, with no quarantine mandated, starting this month. The Government Office announced Tuesday that Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh has approved a pilot plan to welcome international visitors as proposed earlier by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The plan will be carried out in three phases. In the first phase that will open this month, foreigners will be able to visit: Vietnam’s biggest island Phu Quoc; the central city of Da Nang; Quang Nam Province, home to the ancient town of Hoi An; Khanh Hoa Pr…

From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyễn Ngọc Đông on Tuesday told the Vietnam News Agency that the Cát Linh-Hà Đông metro line project will be inaugurated and put into commercial operation before November 10. According to the deputy minister, the ministry and the Hà Nội authorities met on Monday to discuss issues related to the handover and reception of the project, including documents for the two sides to sign at the handover ceremony of the project. The Hà Nội People’s Committee has announced the price of the tickets for the Cát Linh-Hà Đông metro, with the lowest one being VNĐ8,000 ($0.35) for a trip and VNĐ30,000 for a day p…

From Vietnam Express Vietnam was considering welcoming fully vaccinated foreign tourists to sequestered resorts, which might not be a popular option. "I spent more than 20 years working as a tour guide in Vietnam... people want to see the wonders of Vietnam and experience its culture.. Some package holidays only last for two weeks... No one will come from overseas if they are fully vaccinated and have to spend 7 days in isolation. It is just not economically viable for them and they will go elsewhere or simply stay in their home countries". Garry Adams "If the traveler has been vaccinated and the city where he/she is going to is mostly vac…

From Vietnam News HCM CITY — Kiên Giang Province People’s Committee on October 21 issued a pilot plan to welcome international tourists using "vaccine passports" to Phú Quốc Island beginning November 20. The plan aims to gradually restore the international tourism market, ensure security in tourism activities, and contribute to socio-economic development targets set for 2021. The People’s Committee of Kiên Giang Province requests all international tourists to have a vaccine passport and strictly comply with epidemic prevention measures in Việt Nam. At least 90 per cent of the population and workers in Phú Quốc have to be fully vaccinated in order to be…

From VN Express Ho Chi Minh City, a major tourist hub, will only consider welcoming back foreign tourists from next year onwards, with this year's focus being on reviving domestic tourism. The city will open up its tourism activities in three phases based on the pandemic situation. During the first phase in October, the city will only allow travel companies to organize one-day tour packages to ‘green zones,’ which are deemed to have low Covid-19 spreading risks such as Cu Chi and Can Gio districts, famous for historical sites and eco-tourism destinations. In the second phase from November until the end of the year, the city will focus on …

From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — Thanks to Government’s Resolution No. 105/NQ-CP on support for enterprises, cooperatives, and business households, the criteria for obtaining a Work Permit as a foreigner in Việt Nam has been eased. To resolve some of the difficulties facing enterprises and foreign workers, this resolution has been approved by the Prime Minister and was issued on September 9. To facilitate foreign workers coming to work in Việt Nam, the Government requested the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs to relax some of the regulations and conditions on granting and extending Work Permits, while ensuring pandemic prevention and control meas…

From VN Express Vietnam Airlines is planning to operate regular flights between Vietnam and the U.S. starting October, seeking to fulfill a dream of nearly two decades. The state-owned carrier will use either Boeing 787 or Airbus SE A350 aircraft for its inaugural U.S. route from Ho Chi Minh City to San Francisco with one refueling stop, CEO Le Hong Ha told Bloomberg. Since last year, the airline has been operating irregular charter flights to repatriate Vietnamese from the U.S. during the Covid-19 pandemic. The airline will rely on transporting cargo to offset initial low passenger demand, Ha said. https://e.vnexpress.net/news/busine…

From Channel News Asia HANOI: Vietnam's capital Hanoi will further ease its coronavirus restrictions from this week, the government said, with new cases on the decline and the majority of its adult population partially vaccinated. Most construction projects can resume from Wednesday (Sep 22), authorities said late on Sunday, adding further easing would follow, with average new daily cases down to just 20. So far, 94 per cent of Hanoi's adult population of 5.75 million has received one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, with the aim of completing second doses by the end of November, said deputy chairman of Hanoi's ruling People's Committee, Duong Duc Tuan. "We…

From Channel News Asia HANOI: Vietnam has approved Cuba's Abdala vaccine for use against the coronavirus, the government said on Saturday (Sep 18), as the Southeast Asian country is battling its worst outbreak. Abdala becomes the eighth COVID-19 vaccine approved for use in Vietnam, which has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the region, with only 6.3 per cent of its 98 million people having received at least two shots. The announcement came hours after President Nguyen Xuan Phuc left Hanoi for an official visit to Havana. Vietnam has recorded 667,650 coronavirus infections and 16,637 deaths, the vast majority in the Delta-driven outbreak from late…