Take the bus to save money
Ms. Le Thi Tam (born in 1992) has been working as a worker for 16 years at Thang Long Industrial Park, Dong Anh District, Hanoi. Her family has 4 members (husband, wife and 2 children), so every time she has to return to her hometown, especially during the Lunar New Year, she encounters many difficulties.
This female worker's hometown is Thanh Hoa, 300 km from her workplace. She said that this year, like last year, her family will take the bus home.
"On normal days, my husband and I take the bus for 250,000 VND/person. If we take the bus during Tet, the price will definitely increase by about 100,000 - 150,000 VND/person. I know it's expensive, but on Tet we have to accept it," said the female worker.
To get on the bus, she had to pay an additional taxi fee for the whole family from Nhue village, Kim Chung commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi) to Hoa Binh park (located on Pham Van Dong street, Bac Tu Liem district, Hanoi).
Ms. Tam said that in recent years, the bus company has not charged for her two children (because they are still young), but this year, when one child is in 2nd grade, she thinks there will be additional costs.
When asked why she didn't rent a private car to go home, Ms. Tam shook her head, "It costs a lot of money, beyond our means."
According to her, for a distance of 300 km, if she rented a private car, she would have to spend about 2,500,000 - 3,000,000 VND/trip. In total, the total cost for the round trip is up to 5,000,000 - 6,000,000 VND. Therefore, she accepts that her family will have to work harder to travel. Once, when she could not catch a bus, she and her husband and children had to ride a motorbike back to their hometown, accepting the danger and cold...
Ms. Cao Thi Thu Trang - a worker (renting a room in Kim Chung commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi) - and her two children also plan to take a bus to their hometown in Nam Dinh to celebrate Tet. "Taking a bus is quite difficult, there is a risk of being crowded and cramped, but fortunately the distance home is not too long so the three of us can endure it" - Ms. Trang shared.
Ms. Trang's family does not buy tickets in advance but will go to the foot of the overpass to catch the Lao Cai - Nam Dinh or Thai Nguyen - Nam Dinh bus routes.
Before these bus routes existed, Ms. Trang had to go to My Dinh bus station (Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi) to catch a bus home. She added that bus fares these days are higher than usual, ranging from 150,000 to 200,000 VND.
"We have to accept it, having a place to go home is good enough. Usually when my whole family gets on the bus, there are no more seats, we have to sit on plastic chairs or on the floor of the bus" - Ms. Trang said.
Rent a private car for convenient and safer travel during Tet
Unlike Ms. Le Thi Tam and Ms. Trang, Mr. Nguyen Van Tam and his wife - workers at CT4 building, Kim Chung social housing area (Dong Anh district, Hanoi) - decided to spend 3,500,000 VND to rent a self-driving car during Tet. "I already have a driver's license, so I will drive my whole family back to my hometown. My paternal and maternal homes are not too far away, so traveling is quite convenient," Mr. Tam shared.
According to the male worker, for a worker's family, owning a private car is impossible. "A worker's income is not enough to buy or cover the cost of "maintaining" a car. Moreover, on normal days, my wife and I mainly ride motorbikes for convenience, so owning a car is too wasteful. Instead, I think renting a private car just for traveling during Tet is very safe and reasonable" - Mr. Tam said.
Meanwhile, the family of Ms. Nguyen Thi Huyen Trang (from Bac Giang) decided to rent a private car to take the whole family back to their hometown. She said that she had booked a car to take her back to Bac Giang on the 25th of the 12th lunar month for 1,000,000 VND.
Then, on the first day of Tet, she will continue to rent a private car from Bac Giang to her hometown in Phu Tho (her husband's house), after Tet, she will rent a car from Phu Tho to her boarding house in Hanoi. "Having to rent a car for many trips, my family has encountered many difficulties. During Tet, it is very difficult to rent a car if you do not book in advance. In addition, prices are often higher than usual days" - Ms. Trang said.
According to the female worker's calculation, the cost of renting a car alone is from 3 to 4 million VND. This is quite a large amount compared to her total income, but she accepts it so that her whole family, especially her children, can travel safely during Tet.
