What we got wrong
Every correction since launch, with the wording that was wrong kept in place. A site that only shows its successes is a site whose failures you never find out about.
17 corrections published · last audit 4 September 2026
- Correction 4 September 2026 · Transport in Asia
Two guides said 33 hours of train where the site wrote 32 h 45 elsewhere
What we used to say
Hanoi to Saigon in one go is 33 hours: nobody should do that.
What the source says
32 h 45 on the SE1 night train — leaving Hanoi at 21:45, arriving in Saigon at 06:30 on the second morning. That is the duration the article devoted to this line had published since launch, official timetable in hand; two guides announced another. A quarter of an hour has never hurt anyone, but it proved that nothing connected those three pages to each other. The duration is now in the register of published figures: the sentinel refuses publication if one of them starts saying something else again.
- Correction 4 September 2026 · China
The Chinese visa was quoted at 126 €; consular fees are 45 €
What we used to say
Free under the waiver; ≈ 126 € for an L visa lodged at a centre
What the source says
The Chinese embassy in France publishes 45 € in consular fees for a single-entry visa, a reduced rate extended to 31 December 2026 for Schengen-area nationals. The 126 € was the full rate from before the successive reductions of the last two years. Service fees at the lodging centre are added on top, bringing the total to around 110 €: we could not open the Paris centre's official fee schedule, whose link leads to an inaccessible PDF, so that total remains an order of magnitude. The 45 € comes from the embassy itself.
Chinese embassy in France — extension of the reduced visa fees ↗
- Correction 4 September 2026 · Vietnam
The correction to the Hanoi–Saigon train time had forgotten the country page
What we used to say
Underestimating distances: Hanoi to Saigon by train is 33 hours
What the source says
32 h 45, the time read from the official SE1 timetable. The figure had been corrected the previous day in two guides, and the journal told the reader that a sentinel would from now on refuse any page saying otherwise. It would not have: it checked that an amount appears where it is expected, never that a stale value is lurking elsewhere. It was lurking here, on the country page and in its printable version. The check now asks the question both ways, and it was deliberately made to fail on this exact case before being adopted.
- Critical 4 September 2026 · Thailand
The country page announced the 15 September rule eleven days before it applied
What we used to say
30-day visa exemption for tourist stays, since 15 September 2026. It was 60 days previously.
What the source says
60 days for an entry up to 14 September 2026, 30 days for an entry from the 15th. The reduction was published on 31 August, and the page was already writing it in the past tense: someone leaving that week read that they were entitled to thirty days, when they had sixty. The visa guide was saying the opposite at the same moment, and the guide was right. The page now carries both regimes with their dates, and the number the tools decide on switches over by itself on the morning of the 15th — with nobody having to remember. The publication check now refuses a dated rule whose second regime is not announced to the reader.
- Correction 3 September 2026 · Thailand
An official source cited since launch no longer led anywhere
What we used to say
Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs — https://www.mfa.go.th/en/publicservice/visa
What the source says
That address serves a "PAGE NOT FOUND" page while answering HTTP 200. The daily watch could not see it: the page answers, its content no longer moves, no alert fires. It is replaced by the digital arrival card portal, which matches the formality actually required. A false 404 is more dangerous than a dead link — it looks like a source.
- Critical 3 September 2026 · Thailand
The visa exemption drops from 60 to 30 days on 15 September 2026
What we used to say
60 days at present, but a reduction to 30 days is announced as imminent by the French authorities.
What the source says
The reduction is no longer an announcement: it has a date. The Thai Ministry of the Interior published four regulations in the Royal Gazette on 31 August 2026, and the exemption drops to 30 days on 15 September. Two points appeared nowhere on this page: land entries are now limited to two visa-free crossings per calendar year, and a single extension of up to 30 days can be requested at an immigration office. A traveller who entered before 15 September keeps the length granted on arrival.
- Clarification 31 August 2026 · South Korea
The optional K-ETA is not free, contrary to what was written
What we used to say
Cost: free.
What the source says
Free because the K-ETA is not required until 31 December 2026 — but applying voluntarily costs 10,000 won, non-refundable even if refused. The word "free", without that nuance, implied the optional application was free too. The end date is also the one set by a notice of 20 March 2026, not an annual deadline.
- Clarification 31 August 2026 · Where to stay in Bangkok
The flat-fare network has eight lines, not thirteen
What we used to say
13 lines, nearly 200 stations.
What the source says
Eight lines and thirteen routes, 194 stations, about 277 kilometres. The confusion came from counting routes, which are often presented as a number of lines. The point that matters to the traveller is unchanged: that fare is reserved for Thai nationals.
- Correction 30 August 2026 · Cambodia
The "Cambodia e-arrival" app is compulsory by air
What we used to say
No mention of an arrival form.
What the source says
Compulsory since 1 September 2024 for every arrival by plane. Insurance covering hospitalisation and repatriation is also required.
- Clarification 30 August 2026 · Laos
Not every land border post issues a visa
What we used to say
Visa on arrival at the main border posts.
What the source says
The land crossings that issue a visa on arrival or accept the e-visa are limited: check yours before turning up. Missing an entry stamp carries a penalty of at least 200 USD.
- Clarification 30 August 2026 · Indonesia
The Bali tourist levy has a figure
What we used to say
A local tourist levy applies on entry to Bali — with no amount.
What the source says
150,000 IDR (≈ 7.50 €) per entry. "All Indonesia" customs form within 72 hours. A damaged passport leads to refusal of entry.
- Clarification 30 August 2026 · Philippines
The extension has a figure, and eTravel is compulsory
What we used to say
Extendable locally — with no duration and no cost. eTravel presented as a declaration.
What the source says
A 29-day extension (59 in total) for ≈ 3,030 PHP. eTravel compulsory: the QR code is asked for by the airline and on arrival.
- Clarification 30 August 2026 · Vietnam
The exemption is 45 days, and it is not extendable
What we used to say
Visa-free for short stays — with no duration given.
What the source says
45 days visa-free. Neither the exemption nor the e-visa is extendable locally. Online registration 72 hours before arrival at Ho Chi Minh City airport.
- Clarification 30 August 2026 · China
The waiver covers 30 days and runs to 31 December 2026
What we used to say
Short-stay waiver for tourism — with no duration and no end date.
What the source says
30 days, for tourism, business, family visits, cultural exchange and transit. Emergency passports excluded. Passport valid 6 months beyond departure. Police registration within 24 hours.
- Correction 30 August 2026 · South Korea
The K-ETA is suspended for French nationals until 31 December 2026
What we used to say
The K-ETA may be required or suspended depending on the period — cost announced at ≈ 10,000 KRW.
What the source says
Exemption in force from 1 January to 31 December 2026. The K-ETA remains optional: applying for it exempts you from the arrival card. Cost brought to zero.
- Correction 30 August 2026 · Thailand
The digital arrival card (TDAC) is compulsory, not optional
What we used to say
An online arrival declaration may be required: check before you leave.
What the source says
Compulsory since 1 May 2025 for every entry by air, land or sea, to be filled in within the 3 days before arrival.
- Critical 30 August 2026 · Thailand
The visa exemption drops from 60 to 30 days
What we used to say
Exemption up to 60 days, extendable once locally.
What the source says
60 days at present, but a reduction to 30 days is announced as imminent. Any stay planned beyond 30 days must be reconfirmed before departure.
Found something wrong?
Write to contact@racinesvietnam.com with the source that makes you think we are wrong. Corrections are published here with the old wording kept, and the person who reported them is credited unless they ask otherwise.