Parking at home/hotel｜Motorbike parks｜In the apartment｜On the street
Frequent choice for travelers in Vietnam – rent a motorbike or scooter. Many travelers who come to Vietnam borrow or buy a motorbike or scooter for traveling in Vietnam on their own. In a foreign country they are exposed to many risks, one of them can be theft of motorbikes or bad parking of motorbikes. This article is suitable for people, that will move in larger cities or will stay in Vietnam for a long time, I recommend to read this article, you will learn how and where to park a motorcycle or scooter.
In larger cities, it is definitely advisable to follow the recommended rules.
Danny – my friend and chief of Rentabike Vietnam (motorbike rental based in Hanoi), helped me to write this article. I guarantee, he know everything about motorbikes in Vietnam, he has this problematics so-called „under thumb“. These recommendations and tips are appropriate mainly for larger cities, for a number of remote and smaller locations and villages in Vietnam may not be applicable. Not only northern Vietnam has a number of small villages and towns and there you simply do not find suitable or guarded parking place for motorbikes.
1. At home or at the hotel
> At home or at the hotel area, you should try to park your motorbike out of the reach and visibility from the street and behind a secured gate and a fence that is tall and hopefully it has a sharp edge. The lock on the gate should be of good quality and should be a part of a gate or a fence that is locked.
> It is not extraordinary, thieves should leave the lock on the gate intact and cut the gate around the lock. Thieves can also lift a motorcycle over a fence, up to two meters or higher. It is also recommended to park a motorcycle in the hotel or house area or in a closed garage, preferably outside the house, within reach of the street.
2. Motorbike parks and places
> Motorbike parks and places – Trong Xe / Gui Xe / Giu Xe (in Vietnamese) written on the sign indicates that such area is used as parking for motorbikes and scooters. Generally, they are safe and relatively trouble free parking places for motorcycles for several hours. It is not recommended to park the motorcycle overnight, but if you have a good relationship with the guards or you know them, it is certainly not a bad choice for keeping the bike overnight.
> Important to know: Get a ticket and do not miss this parking ticket. Make sure, the ticket number is either the number of the motorcycle or the number is written on the standing motorcycle. If you lose a ticket, you can get a fine and it will be hard to get back the bike without registration papers you do not have. Also find out how long you can park your bike here. These places are often also closed by police at midnight.
> Parking tickets – you will receive either one with a number and then the guard will mark your motorbike with that number or record your registration number. Ticket price of parking a motorbike is about 3,000 to 10,000 viet.dongs for a short stay, but the price depends on the location, time of day or holiday, etc. The picture below shows the day (ban ngay) and night rate (ban dem). You should also try to find out how each site works before leaving a motorcycle.
3. In the apartment or in the basement
This advice is about parking a motorbike in your apartment or in the basement of house. There may be another procedure for registering a motorcycle with the guard of this object, but it is usually your landlord is the one who will handle everything for you. Before you leave a motorbike on this place, find out how everything works and then you can leave the motorbike.
4. Parking on the street in the city
> If you leave your motorbike off the market / shop, check if everything is OK. The owner/staff will often tell you very quickly if you are in the wrong place and tell you where to park your motorbike. Listen to his advice, he spends a lot of time at this place and knows exactly what is the best for everyone.
> If you park your motorbike on the wrong place or illegally, it may happen, that the police will assure and entertain your motorcycle. That means you will have to find a local police station that took your motorbike. Show them your registration documents. Ask if they will fine you. Pay a fine (often in another office) because, unlike the general belief, the police do not accept fines. Return to the police station and ask for a motorcycle. Park in the right place. Never try to argue with the police.
> If you leave your motorbike outside at the bar or restaurant, tell the staff and usually they show you where to park a motorcycle. If there is a problem, the owner/manager should be responsible and should solve this problem. But it is good to know, there are also not so friendly bars or restaurants that open late at night and on these places may not be safe fro your motorcycle.
If you want to avoid any problem:
Take a taxi, mototaxi (Xe om), Uber or GrabBike (mototaxi in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City or Da Nang), you pay a few dongs and you do not risk:
1. your motorbike being stolen
2. you will have an accident due to driving under the influence of alcohol
3. finding a suitable motorbike park or place
If you leave your motorcycle on the street and not in the motorbike parks, it’s one of the options for a very short time. In this case, it is best to use the steering lock and the front wheel lock whilst you are not with the bike. NEVER leave a motorbike with anyone other than a motorcycle parking guard who will give you a parking ticket and where you will see the other (Vietnamese) people who are leaving motorbikes. If you leave a motorcycle with a stranger, theft of gasoline from the motorbike or the exchange of parts from the motorcycle can occur. It sounds complicated, but this things do happen. If you follow the advice above, everything should be OK and without any problems. You are in foreign country and follow their instructions!
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