Ha Tien is a seaside town in Kien Giang Province in Southern Vietnam. It is at the west end of the Mekong Delta close to the Cambodian border. Although a tourist spot, it doesn't see many western visitors due to its remoteness.
From Vietnam:
The bus terminal is west of the city centre. There are buses from Ho Chi Minh City's Mien Tay terminal; Futa -Phuong Trang Buslines Kumpho Samco Buslines operates modern coaches leaving Saigon regularly from 06:30 to 23:00 (170,000 dong). The journey takes about 8 hours. The bus station is a bit outside the city, so you can to take a motorbike taxi to get to town. The price is normally 20,000 dong but the driver will probably ask you more. Walking to town will take you about 30min.
There are also buses from Can Tho and Chau Doc. The connection from Can Tho often requires a change in Rach Soi or Rach Gia from where it is about 1 hr.
From Cambodia:
From Phnom Penh: (Feb 2029) There is company that serves Ha Tien direction: Champa Mekong Travel (US$12). The journey take 4½-6 hours. You will be required to change 3 buses (in Kampot and after the border crossing, the last two will be without air conditioning). A guy from the company will take your passport before border crossing and will carry it until all procedures end. You cannot track your own ID. You will have to pay US$1 for a temperature measurement. People that travel on their own may pass the border more quickly. It may make more sense to travel using local transport and tuk-tuks, especially if you aren't solo traveler.
The border near Ha Tien (7 km to the north) is open for tourists. As of late 2010, it is possible for tourists of most nationalities to enter Vietnam via this border crossing without the need for a visa. However it applies only to stays of up to 15 days, and you can only visit the so-called "Special Economic Zone", which is essentially the town of Ha Tien, and the area between the town and the border, including Mui Nai Beach. You must not travel further into Vietnam. (The officials at the border will tell you that you cannot go to Phu Quoc Island with the visa and may not issue you a visa at all without a small bribe.) For ventures further into Vietnam, a visa is needed prior to arrival at the border.
People of some nationalities (e.g. British, French) may be permitted to enter Vietnam without a visa for 15 days. There are no restrictions were you are allowed to go.
To get to the border from Cambodia you can ride a bus or van or hire a motorbike taxi from Kampot (US$8), Kep (US$5), or Kampong Trach (US$5). The road can vary in condition from paved and bumpy to packed dirt and bumpy, be prepared for a slightly white-knuckled ride depending on the daring nature of your driver and the road can also be very dusty in the dry season. Also, be aware that there seem to be Vietnamese drivers now waiting well inside the Cambodian side waiting to pickup (poach) prospective travellers to take them across the border into town. Your driver may stop here to talk with them and seem to suggest you go with them. A ride to town should be US$3-4 or less (it is only 7 km and the road is well paved on the Vietnamese side.) If you can't agree on a price there you can simply have your Cambodian driver take you to the border where you can cross over and have the drivers on the other side fight over you.
From Kampot you can take a bus or minibus to Ha Tien. Champa Mekonk runs Buses at 10:30, 13:30 and a later bus (US$8). The driver collect the passport at the border and will do the process at both borders for you. On the Vietnamese site another minivan will wait for you to bring you to the office of the travel agency in Ha Tien just in the middle of the town center.
The centre of town is easily walkable with Tran Hau the main commercial street running along the seaside between the big bridge for road traffic (Cau To Chau) and the former pontoon bridge for pedestrians (Cau Phao, removed in early 2007).
Moto drivers are found at various strategic points all over town. Any journey in town is no more than 20,000 dong, e.g., to the ferry port, or bus station. To the border, 40–50,000 dong.
There are also two main metered taxi companies, the omnipresent Mai Linh, and Ha Tien Development Corp.
It is possible to rent motorbikes by the day (approximately US$6) or pedal cycles (approximately US$2) at several locations in town.
Get one of the tourist maps where the locations of the cave temples are indicated.
Plenty of small hidden Chinese temples, scattered all over town, often down small back streets. The Mac Cuu Family tombs, set on a sprawling hillside at the end of Mac Cuu Street. At the border with Cambodia (actually in Cambodia) are 6 casinos. Only one sizable one, the others smaller gambling dens featuring mainly Chinese games.
Mui Nai is a seaside resort that has a tiny but sandy beach on offer (2,000 dong entrance fee).
There are several large markets in Ha Tien on the riverfront. Near the road bridge over the Dong Ho inlet is the fish, meat, and fruit market and also a large new covered market for clothes and household goods. In the evening there is a large night market, which springs up around the old market hall. This is in Tuan Phu Dat, which is opposite the Ha Tien floating restaurant on the Dong Ho inlet. Very cheap good quality clothing, also souvenirs and costume jewellery. Some food stalls in the old market hall also.
There is no shortage of options for accommodation in this town. It seems that every other building is either a Khach San (hotel) or a Phong Tro (a place that has rooms to rent). The epicentre of sleeping options can be considered the area delimited by Tran Hau, Mach Thien Tich, and Chi Lang Streets.
Bao Tam near the central market has air-con/hot water rooms/TV for 170,000 dong. Very clean.
Crossing the border into Cambodia is very easy as you can get a 30-day tourist visa on the spot for US$30. However, the visa official will ask you for US$31 but will quickly back off if you just keep saying that you know it's US$30. The health official next door will also ask you for a US$1 fee, but again, just keep saying that you know there is no fee and he will also back down.
The Ha Tien Travel Co operates from 1-3 Tran Hau next door to the Hoa Mai Hotel. There are buses and minivans to all the usual places from here. The scam of overcharging for visas and adding a "service charge" is alive and well here for those travelling to Cambodia, with charges of US$37 common for the US$30 visa. Do not fill in the visa application or hand over your passport, simply organise the passport yourself on arrival at the Cambodian border.
In Cambodia the most accessible places are:
Primary administrative division