Food/Water Safety in Vietnam?

Question

I am traveling to Vietnam soon with my friend.  One of the biggest reasons I am excited to visit is for the food--for me this is one of the most exciting and telling parts of travel and I absolutely plan to eat the street food.  Many places I've traveled I had to drink bottled water and Vietnam seems no exception.  My question is this: I am excited to try the pho (read http://www.hanoitravelfun.com/ha-noi-noodle/ ) and other ubiquitous broth-based soups, and am addicted to the Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk at my local Vietnamese restaurant which I want to try there as well.  All of these involve water in one form or another.  Is it safe to eat these things?  Has the water been boiled in these soups?  I have heard horror stories of people having an ice cube in their beer and making it back home only to die hours later from some foreign bacteria.  Seriously.  I can deal with a little "traveler's stomach" and am religious about popping some Pepto tablets before eating, but hospital stays or worse are certainly not worth the risk.  I will be in Hanoi, Dalat, Saigon, somewhere in the Mekong, and Phu Quoc (see http://www.vietnambeachshow.com/phu-quoc-island-a-passionate-island-involved-with-nature/ ).  Any advice from those who have gone before me?  Thank you!

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

Hey~ 
My husband and I were in Saigon/Meconf Delta areas in March of 2010. I would definately agree with the above advice. We ate in restaurants and had no ill effects. Even the locals drink bottle water due to bad plumbing. Beer is served with ice cubes as well as their delicious and refreshing cool tea. They will tell you not to eat the ice cubes,but as they melt in your drinks, you can only hope they were made with purified water. We did take and used a portable light purifier to use in our room to brush our teeth with. It was easy and worked great. You can read more vietnamese food: http://www.luckyvietnamtravel.com/category/vietnamese-food-drink/

We found the food and Vietnames coffee to be delish. Be sure to try the young coconut drinks they sell on the streets and everywhere. Very refreshing.

Make sure all your shots are up to date and use good travelers sense and you should have a wonderful time.

ooo · Answer

Well I live here (10 years) and have had to watch my wife (Vietnamese) suffer on several occasions from bad street food. The hygiene is not up to standard in some areas but the government is doing its best to educate the vendors. I never touch the ice. I'm told you can get worms from it amongst other things. Even bottled water is hit and miss. Make sure you've got insurance and follow the old saying 'When in Rome....... Same thing applies here. Watch the locals and eat where they eat in numbers. This rule also applies to the beaches, especially Nha Trang and especially if its been raining. If the locals aren't swimming neither should you. Heavy rains inland wash all the excrement and sewerage down the rivers and streams and into the ocean. Not a good time to swim! If you're on a late night  or early morning stroll along the beach in Nha Trang (around 4am) and you come across an army of workers and wonder what they're doing, they are cleaning the beaches of excrement that gets deposited there each and every night. You've just got to hope the tide hasn't beat them or you could be swimming in it the following day. Don't believe me? Get up around 4 and go take a look. If you want to swim go on the offshore boat tours, they're great. Cheap, good food and good entertainment.  P.S. One more piece of advice. If you're going to swim, whether it be in the hotel pool or the rivers or ocean, bring ear plugs and some vaseline. You don't want to risk getting an ear infection. I had one that took ages to cure but nothing since I had custom earplugs made for my ears.

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Food/Water Safety in Vietnam?

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