Driving the length of Vietnam, north to south

For those who don’t already know, while living in Vietnam, I drove the length of the country on my motorbike. It took me three weeks to complete 2,500 km and I talk about it more in depth here.

Driving the length of Vietnam was very nearly a transformative experience. It was liberating, beautiful and at times, arduous. Along the journey I encountered many unexpected ups and downs, as you do on the road. Some of the more exciting even involved the police. Woops. You can talk to my father, he’s the one with the heavy foot or in my case, a heavy wrist? Either way, I blame genetics.

What traffic laws?

As I’ve mentioned before, the roads in Vietnam are quite lax. There are few speed limits and even fewer that are actually being enforced. Anyone who’s driven long distances, whether it’s in a car or on a bike, knows that when there’s open road in front of you, you just go. I had a few instances where a cop on the side of the road flagged me down and signaled me to pull over. These usually happened in busier sections of the road, while passing through a town or small city. I would veer off, pull down my mask and you could see their instant reactions, ‘Oh, she’s definitely NOT Vietnamese’. I think the paperwork involved for a foreigner is a hassle and sometimes the language barrier is just too much of a pain - they would rather not deal with it. So they took one look at me and let me carry on. These little stops were no big deal and can happen often.

The Po-Po

One specific run-in actually took place during my longest split, an 8 hour drive. As you can imagine, I’m driving long hours everyday. I’m on wide open roads with no one in sight, so I’m cruising. Suddenly and essentially in the middle of nowhere, I see a few cops and cars sat on the side of the road up ahead. Sometimes these are checkpoints for large cargo and trucks transporting goods throughout the country. As I drive closer, I hold my breath, hoping they let me pass and uh-oh- its a no-go. They flag me down and tell me to pull over.

I’m thinking ‘Here we go’. 

They signal me to get off my bike and pull out google translate. They tell me that I’ve been speeding and of course, I play dumb and all Shaggy like ‘It wasn’t me’. The police officer then proceeds to pull up an image on his phone. There I was, little ol’ Madeline, backpack strapped to the bike, speeding along. My immediate reaction was shock- SPEED CAMERAS?! In Vietnam?! I didn’t know they even existed. 

So obviously it was hard to argue when I was looking at a picture of myself, with my speed recorded at the bottom- busted. He then Google translates that I must pay a fine for an obscene amount of money...well, obscene for Vietnam. He asked me for 2,000,000 VND, which equates to about $130. There was no chance I was going to pay that.

At first, I say I don’t have enough money to pay. Mind you, this is a conversation by means of google translate, body language and facial expressions.

He responds by suggesting an ATM at the local police station and that we could go there and fill out some paperwork. 

Ooo no thank you, that wasn’t going to work for me. Instead, I barter and tried to explain that ‘this is all I have’. I counter offered him an amount I was willing to pay - 500,000 VND. This is roughly $20. He reads my offer, sighs out of annoyance, most likely, and then accepts. 

I pay the man, hop back on my bike and off I go. 

Keep small amounts of cash on you

I knew to not keep the bulk of my cash on me while driving. I had my cash packed away somewhere safe. I do that for this exact reason and this is my advice to anyone considering this drive. While in this instance, the police officer’s reasons were more legitimate, it can be common for police to pull you over simply for a money grab. In fact, I experienced this in Ho Chi Minh-

Money grab in Ho Chi Minh

Now I’m at the end of my trip and I’ve arrived at my final destination. I’m so close to being finished and the drive into the city was an absolute nightmare full of construction and traffic. I’m exhausted and I pull up at a stoplight, I look to my left and see a police officer on his bike. He’s stopped at a streetlight adjacent to me. I see him turn his head, look at me and I just knew instantly. I scream total ‘backpacker’ right now - bags strapped to the bike, dirty and worn from the drive. I knew he’d come for me. The light turned green, he sped off and up behind me, lights flashing and the siren on.

I’m thinking, ‘Here we go...again’. He walks up to me and asks for my license. Of course, I don’t have one- no one does.

(As I’ve mentioned before, it’s extremely uncommon for anyone to actually take a road test or own a drivers license in the country. Renting and buying bikes without a license is just the norm.)

We repeat ourselves for a few minutes, him continuing to ask for something I don’t have. He then proceeds to tell me that they’ll take the bike to the police station and keep it.

This bike was a one-way rental and I was to return it later that day, so that was absolutely not going to happen.

I knew what he was doing, he had no ‘real’ reason to pull me over. Technically perhaps, but in this country it just doesn’t happen.

I explained to him that I was returning the bike that day and had a flight out of the country. There was no chance that I would be going to the police station. 

After much back and forth, he asks for money and keeps telling me that I have to pay. He’s asking for a couple million VND, but I wasn’t budging. I had 40,000 VND in my coat pocket, this is equivalent to about $2. I take it out and lay it on thick, ‘this is all I have, I’m at the end of my trip and I’m leaving’. He looks at the money, takes his clipboard and hides the exchange. He takes my whopping $2, stuffs it into his pocket and off he goes. A total money grab. 

What to expect

These things can happen and it’s best to just be aware and prepared. Don’t let it scare you. While these run-ins were unexpected and inconvenient, they could have been far more expensive too. The important thing is I never felt unsafe or threatened.

Vietnam is a stunning country, it has a lot to offer in its food, culture and landscapes. A drive like this one is a ‘once-in a lifetime’ kind of experience. If you’re considering it, consider no more- do it!

I’m a firm believer that most people are kind and are there to help and I’ve experienced it firsthand. I would recommend this drive to anyone- just have your head switched on, be aware and enjoy the adventure… Oh and always keep less than 100$ on you at all times.

• Madeline

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