Northern Vietnam + Malaria
 

What's the word on malarial risk in Hanoi and Halong? Everything I've read said no risk at all in Hanoi...but our travel doc is insisting we stay on the Malarone through Hanoi as we'll be visiting Halong Bay for 2 nights.

I wasn't aware there was a risk there, but maybe so?

Any feedback on this would be really helpful...as well as (on a side note) what the mosquito situation is like in both areas in mid-November?

The CDC says...

"Malaria risk area in Vietnam: Rural only, except no risk in the Red River delta and the coastal plain north of the Nha Trang. No risk in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Da Nang, Nha Trang, Qui Nhon, and Haiphong."

http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/destinationVietnam.aspx

Since you start the Malarone 3 days before entering the malaria risk area and continue 7 days after leaving it, you may find that you don't even have 10 days outside of risk area to allow you stop...depending on your itin,

We saw no mosquitos in Hanoi, but we didn't go to Halong Bay. From the cdc description, I also take it to mean that Halong Bay is not a risk area.

The manufacturers instructions for Malarone are to start one or two days before entering the malarial risk area and continue for 7 days after leaving the area. So as Kim says, it may depend on your itinerary.

Don't worry,no mosquito could live in the winter. And mid-Nov is winter :D

it you have to pay a bunch for them then i would maybe not do it, but if your ins. pays for them, then why not just to be safe....we did not use them at all in VN and we were there in nov/dec....it was not cold...

During my two and a half months in SE Asia (although not mid-November), the most mosquito bites I got was on the few-hour hike in Halong Bay at the park on Cat Ba island...and the park area is something I would consider rural...

Jayna
travels at www.ususbaby.cm

While Halong Bay is rural, the cdc info says there is no risk on "coastal plain north of the Nha Trang."

And, come on, Bob, are you saying you'd take ant-malarials even if not needed if they were cheap??

I wouldn't make a decision about where and when to take anti-malarials based on cost, but on risk. The are you are visiting in VietNam are not malarial risk.