News and Events

Xe om drivers in Hanoi have come up with a new service to embrace the upcoming college admission exam, as they offer to take care of the test-takers for their parents, who are too busy to accompany them to the capital city.

Introduced as a ‘complete catering package’, the service will help parents, who are supposed to take their children to Hanoi to sit for the exam, to drive the test-takers to their exam venues as well as touring around the capital during their stay in the city.

The national university entrance exam this year kicks off on July 3, with hundreds of thousands of high school graduates competing to find a seat at universities countrywide.

Big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City usually receive a number of parents and students from neighboring localities during the ‘exam season’.

“Many parents are so busy with their farming work that they cannot accompany their children to Hanoi, so we will do it,” said Le Thanh, axe om in Cau Giay District.

Customers of the service will no longer have to worry about seeking lodging in Hanoi and other issues, Thanh said.

“They will have their mind at ease, and thus better preparation for the tests,” he added.

$95 for 5 days

Thanh also elaborated the detailed schedule for the five-day service.

“On the first day, we will receive the test-takers at the bus station and take them to the lodging houses,” he said.

“The next day, we will tour them around Hanoi, before taking them to the exam venue on the next two days.

“Finally, we will drive the test-takes to the bus station again for them to return to their hometown.”

The service provider will also be in charge of providing food and laundry services for the customers, he added.

The complete package costs VND2 million (US$95) for five days, half of which is to pay for accommodation, according to Thanh.

“The transport and food and other services costs are both VND500,000.”

Should the test-takers do not want to eat food provided by the service, they will have to pay only VND1.3 million, he said.

Asked how he will seek customers, Thanh said it is not an issue.

“Just come to the bus stations, any young people with backpacks who arrive there alone and look nervous are test-takers,” he revealed.

Thanh said most students come to Hanoi with deep pocket, and 2 million dong for a five-day stay is a worthy deal.

He also revealed that each contract will bring him VND1 million in profits.

“Last year I raked in nearly VND20 million, but it may be only half of that sum this year, given the current financial difficulties,” he said.