Tokyo/Vietnam July 2011 - Vietnam Airlines 1353 Economy Class (CXR - SGN)

***This post is part 18 of a full trip report. The index can be found here***

This will be a very quick post as much of the flight was very similar to the two previous domestic Vietnam Airlines routes I took. We grabbed a taxi from the Sheraton to Cam Ranh International Airport about 20 miles outside of Nha Trang. Despite it's small size, CXR is a very modern-looking airport, having been completely rebuit in 2004. The facility has plenty of amenities for passengers, with a number of places to eat and shop. Security was very quick as usual, and soon we were in the waiting area next to Gate 1.

Vietnam Airlines 1353

Airbus A320
Cam Ranh (CXR) - Ho Chi Minh City (SGN)
Friday July 15, 2011
Departure: 9:30 AM (scheduled)

Arrival: 10:25 AM (scheduled)

Duration: 0h 55m (scheduled)
Seat: 9A (Economy)

I was happy to see that we would finally be boarding via jet bridge and not the typical two-minute bus ride out onto the tarmac. The Airbus A320 we were taking that day, however, looked fairly old and rough around the edges. The seats were a bit worn, though it really didn't matter on this short 55-minute hop to Ho Chi Minh City.

Take-off was uneventful, and the bottled water that I knew and loved was quickly distributed. Service was efficient and courteous. As quickly as we ascended, we were soon descending into Tan Son Nhat International Airport. It was actually kind of nice to see a huge sprawling metropolis (complete with skyscrapers) for the first time in almost two weeks. It was also nice to see some familiar faces... at least for my friend, since a bunch of his relatives were waiting at the airport to pick us up.

Goodbye Nha Trang

Hello Saigon!

Tokyo/Vietnam July 2011 - Vietnam Airlines 1943 Economy Class (DAD - CXR)

***This post is part 15 of a full trip report. The index can be found here***

The night before leaving Hoi An, I inquired the front desk at the Ha An Hotel about the cost of a private car to the international airport in Da Nang. I was told $25 USD, which seemed a bit steep, but since the airport was about 30-40 minutes away, I didn't bother looking for cheaper alternatives. Our flight departure time was 10:20 am, and we decided to leave the hotel by 8:00 am.

Da Nang International Airport is currently undergoing major construction to build a brand new $84 million terminal, and from the looks of things at the old terminal, it's badly needed. Despite being the 3rd busiest airport in Vietnam, the facilities were extremely outdated. Services airside were poor, with just a few gift shops and snack vendors, but surprisingly, there was free WiFi (or maybe we were just stealing WiFi from some unlocked router). The waiting area was crowded, and became almost completely full as more flights were preparing to depart.

Vietnam Airlines 1943

ATR 72-500
Da Nang (DAD) - Cam Ranh (CXR)
Wednesday July 13, 2011
Departure: 10:20 AM (scheduled)

Arrival: 11:45 AM (scheduled)

Duration: 1h 25m (scheduled)
Seat: 1B (Economy)

Boarding was via bus once again, but I was excited to be able to take some closer pictures of our ATR 72-500. Only the back door was used for boarding, as the forward door looked like it was only for cargo. I quickly realized that we had been assigned the bulkhead seats, which offered plenty of legroom. Take-off is always fun on an ATR, as the roar of the propellers hum in your ear and the climb just feels a little bumpier than the typical jet aircraft.

Taxiing to the runway, with new terminal under construction

The plane looked to be near 100% full in the economy-only arrangement. There were 3 flight attendants, and all of them were very friendly with smiles consistently throughout the flight. This was a noticeable improvement over the HAN-HUI flight a few days prior. Service was quick and efficient, as it should be since all they really needed to do was hand out a small bottle of water to each passenger. It's a shame no other food or drink choices are available for these short domestic Vietnam Airlines flights, as they could probably create some extra revenue from all the tourists that frequent these routes.

Soon, we landed at Cam Ranh International Airport, approximately 20 miles outside of Nha Trang. We disembarked on the tarmac and took a quick bus ride to the terminal. The airport itself was noticeably newer than Da Nang International (I'll have pictures for the CXR-SGN post), and it was very quick and easy to book the airport taxi in the arrivals hall for about $15 USD direct to our hotel.

 Cam Ranh International Airport

Tokyo/Vietnam July 2011 - Vietnam Airlines 1543 Economy Class (HAN - HUI)

***This post is part 9 of a full trip report. The index can be found here***

We again decided to take a private car from the Hanoi Elegance Diamond Hotel to Noi Bai International Airport to avoid having to deal with the taxis. The cost was only $18 for the roughly 40-minute trip.

Although, I must say, having spent about 4 days in Hanoi, I found the taxi scams to be a lot less serious than some of the horror stories I read online. As long as you know the few legitimate taxi companies such as Mai Linh and Hanoi Tourist Taxi, and only stick with them, you won't have any problems. I found Hanoi Tourist Taxi to be a little pricier than Mai Linh, but both were safe and didn't have tampered-with meters.

Noi Bai International felt a lot less claustrophobic than when I arrived, probably because of the daylight and the larger departure hall. And even though we arrived 2 hours before our flight, the check-in lines were already chaotic. In Asia, local travelers seem to try to transport as many boxes and suitcases as they can, usually going way over the weight limit, and then having to pay extra at the counter. Though funny enough, my friend's suitcase just barely passed the limit (it was actually slightly over, but the agent didn't say anything).

Security was quick and painless, and soon we were waiting at the gate. Airside shops and restaurants were very sparse, just a couple of stands selling local fast food fare and drinks/snacks. I did notice a Vietnam Airlines business lounge at the end of the hall, but from what I saw looking in, it didn't look particularly fancy or interesting.

Pretty much only VN planes here

Vietnam Airlines 1543

Airbus A321
Hanoi (HAN) - Hue (HUI)
Saturday July 9, 2011
Departure: 1:20 PM (scheduled)

Arrival: 2:30 PM (scheduled)

Duration: 1h 10m (scheduled)
Seat: 30E (Economy)

Departure was soon announced, without any sort of priority boarding for business class as far as I could tell. Everyone just stood up and a massive line quickly formed. The jet bridge ended downstairs, where everyone boarded a standing room only bus for the short ride to our plane. I did notice a separate, more comfy looking bus for the business passengers. I actually love boarding directly on the tarmac so I can get better up-close pictures of the plane.

This Airbus A321 looked quite new, with very little wear and tear on the seats. Load looked to be approximately 90% in Y, with a few empty seats scattered about. The air conditioning was ridiculously strong... the plane literally looked like a fog machine for most of the flight. Leg room was quite comfortable for the short 1h 10m flight to Hue. I wasn't expecting much in terms of domestic Vietnam Airlines service, but pretty much the only thing that was offered on board was a small bottle of water. There were no snacks or any other types of drinks offered, even for sale. Flight attendants were friendly, but not very engaging as there was pretty much only time for them to pass out water bottles and then prepare for landing.

As quickly as we departed HAN, we were soon descending into HUI. Phu Bai International Airport consisted of one runway and one small terminal. I'm not sure how the "international" designation came about since I don't know of any international flights that currently serves the airport. I think there may have been a HUI-REP direct flight at one point in time, but I'm not sure if it's still operating.

A superfluous 2-minute bus ride took us from our plane to the arrivals hall, and soon we were greeted by our driver from the Orchid Hotel in Hue. Overall, this was a good, no-frills flight that got us from point A to point B safely and comfortably. Since VN has a virtual monopoly on this route, there is probably no need for them to enhance their offering any time soon.