I’m looking forward to my first visit to Vietnam. But I’m a cautious traveller by nature — I meticulously plan, weigh up every risk and try to predict potential issues.

I’m aware this is not necessarily a positive trait and each time I get ready to travel I tell myself I’ll be way more chilled out this time.

And yet, there are four things I’ve been losing sleep over in the run up to this trip.

Getting in

Australians require an eVisa to enter Vietnam. It must be done through the official government portal (evisa.gov.vn/), costs $US25 ($40) and takes about 3-5 business days for approval.

However, British passport holders, like me, can enter the country for 45 days visa-free (as can citizens from some other countries, a list of which can be found online).

But I am going to Vietnam via a stopover in Singapore, travelling that leg of the journey on my Australian passport. Is boarding a plane with one passport, then going through immigration on another going to cause me problems? Would it be easier to pay for a visa and travel on the one passport?

A colleague in a similar position decided to go the eVisa route but ended up down a rabbit hole while applying after it asked if he had any other passports. A call to the Vietnamese embassy in Perth assures me I am welcome to pay for a visa but am equally welcome to enter on my British passport.

I’m chopping and changing my mind until about a week before I leave and eventually decide it’s less hassle if I go in with my British passport. But I’m decidedly nervous because of my stop in Singapore on my Aussie passport.

I shouldn’t have worried. In the end, it’s very smooth. When I hand over my Aussie passport as I check in for my Vietjet flight in Singapore’s Changi Airport, I’m asked for my visa. I say I have a British passport so haven’t applied for the visa. My British passport is checked and, with a smile, I’m waved on my way.

I pass through Singapore immigration with my Australian passport and don’t even need to show a passport when I’m at the departure gate in Terminal Four. A scan of my boarding pass and a photo of my face is all the Automated Boarding Gates (ABGS) needs to clear me for boarding.

On arrival in Da Nang, I hand over my British passport and with a stamp to the page, I’m in the country.

Missed connections

I’ve heard stories of three-hour queues at immigration causing missed connecting flights while transferring through Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City. Vietjet and Vietnam Airways fly direct to HCMC from Perth but my final destination is Da Nang so it’s a two-plane journey.

I head this off at the pass by flying with Scoot Airlines to Singapore and add in a one-night stopover at the Crowne Plaza Changi Airport hotel. I’ve stayed here before and it’s a nice way to break up a journey. The 5.35am flight from Perth gets me to Singapore by 10.30am, leaving the whole day and evening to explore the city.

Staying at the airport hotel means it’s hassle-free to catch my 11.15am Vietjet flight the following morning. This sees me in Da Nang by 1.10pm local time.

Incidentally, while both are budget airlines, next time I’ll go Scoot all the way. Its planes are much comfier.

Mosquitoes

In particular, there is a risk of coming home with dengue, Japanese encephalitis or Zika virus — all of which are present in Central Vietnam. I don’t like my chances of totally avoiding mosquitoes where I’m staying — a resort set in the middle of a tropical forest on the Son Tra Peninsula.

After a bit of research, I find that the risk of the second two are relatively low if I’m not staying in rural areas. While it might be in the middle of the jungle, the InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula is a five-star resort 20 minutes from the centre of Da Nang City.

But, not taking any chances, I’m carrying four different types of repellent.

The first is a tube of Odomos cream, which Stephen Scourfield buys in India and swears by. While it doesn’t contain DEET, it does contain N,N-Diethylbenzamide which is slightly more chemical-based than I like to use, so for back-up I’ve brought along Good Riddance Tropical cream. This Australian-made natural alternative has promising reports about its efficacy online.

Impulsively, I grab an Aerogard Tropical Strength roll-on so I can be extra careful on-the-go.

Lastly, on my Singapore stopover I pick up a Mozzie Gone spray which is lemon eucalyptus oil based. I’ve read this oil is almost as effective as DEET to deter those pesky critters. And I figure, if it works in Singapore’s humid climate, it’ll to be good in Vietnam.

I needn’t have been quite so concerned. Added to my, perhaps, over-the-top precautions, the resort is sprayed regularly to keep the insects at bay and provides plug-in mosquito repellents in the rooms. I don’t see or feel a single mosquito during my stay.

Gastro

The Government’s Smartraveller website advises that travellers to Vietnam should drink boiled water or bottled water with sealed lids, and avoid ice cubes, undercooked meat and seafood, and uncooked foods, such as salads and fruits that can’t be peeled.

Is it going to be risky cleaning my teeth or washing my hair in the shower?

And being a real foodie, part of the joy of travel for me is tasting local dishes. Does it mean I’m going to have to avoid all those vibrant dishes that are abundant with raw veg and fresh herbs? I’ve really been looking forward to tasting the country’s famous iced coffees too.

In line with Smartraveller advice I get typhoid and hepatitis A vaccinations before I go, as both protect against the infections which are spread through contaminated food and water (for full cover, get these at least four weeks before travel). Taking probiotics containing lactobacillus and saccharomyces strains are reported to help prevent traveller’s diarrhoea. I figure it can’t do any harm, so start taking Henry Blooms SB Probiotics (available from pharmacies) a few days before I leave and continue for the duration of my trip.

But again, the resort has it in hand. There are plenty of glass bottles of filtered water in my room, including one by each sink in the bathroom. These are replenished twice a day.

My friend Fi gives me her tip. Put a face cloth over the taps to make you stop and think before accidentally using the bathroom water to clean your teeth. It works a treat.

And as for the food … I throw caution to the wind. I figure, in such a luxury resort, it’s in their best interests not to poison the guests, so the hygiene standards are bound to be high.

This resort’s dining options are excellent and there are so many dishes served with salads and herbs grown in the onsite organic garden that it would be impossible for me to resist trying them.

And iced Vietnamese salt coffee is my new obsession, so it’s safe to say I sank a few of those.

I can happily report I suffer no digestive issues during the trip.

No worries

My first trip to Vietnam has gone off without a hitch. I don’t know what I was worrying about. I’ll be way more chilled out the next time I come.