Vietnam - Airport store lists prices in dollar

The SASCO Trading Centre at Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport lists beverage prices in US dollars.

Why does the shop not quote prices in the national currency and get foreign customers to exchange their money into dong at the moneychangers’? Is it worried this will annoy them? I don’t think so.

Travellers know that exchanging their own money into the local currency of a country is a must and no one will ever complain.

In most international airports, you are only allowed to pay in dollars with your credit card. Should you pay in cash, you have to use the local currency. And there are plenty of moneychangers in airports.

This can be observed in Vietnam’s neighbouring countries including Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Le Hoang Tam (Vietnamese)

*This piece was translated from a Vietnamese letter sent to Tuoi Tre written by reader Le Hoang Tam

I have complained about this on 2 previous occasions. By law, all prices in Vietnam must be displayed in VND, but the franchise holder at Tan Son Nhat International Airport persists in displaying prices in US dollars. Why? Maybe because when converted to VND the price is off the scale - just a simple sandwich costs the price of a sit-down meal in a Saigon restaurant. A cup of coffee upstairs is more expensive than on the Champs Elysee in Paris. I deliberately boycott the shops at Tan Son Nhat International and I urge all other travellers to do the same. That way the prices may come down. And where are the police who are supposed to ensure that the law is being complied with? Maybe they can't get through to the “airside" so the franchisee feels safe in breaking the law.

Written by Brian Lamprell, 5 October 2011 16:09

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