Travel destination
Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Long Bay and the Mekong Delta. A classic two-to-four week route that usually means a short course of vaccines.
Vietnam travel health is mostly about food and water illness, daytime mosquitoes and, for rural or long trips, rabies and Japanese encephalitis. Hepatitis A and typhoid come up for most travellers; malaria is limited to specific rural areas. We check the current advice against your route at your appointment.
Vietnam runs from the cities and Halong Bay to the Mekong Delta and northern highlands, and what you need leans on how far off the tourist trail you go.
Food-and-water illness and mosquitoes are the main themes, with rabies and Japanese encephalitis for rural or long stays. Your pharmacist matches advice to your trip at South London Clinic.
Vaccines
A starting point, not a prescription. What you actually need depends on where exactly you're going, what you'll be doing, how long for and what you've already had — a pharmacist confirms all of it at your appointment.
What to check before you fly
No vaccination certificate is routinely required for UK travellers going directly to Vietnam. Entry requirements change — we confirm the current rules for your exact itinerary at your appointment.
Bites, risk and tablets
Malaria risk changes by region, altitude and season, and depends on exactly where you are going and when. We check the current TravelHealthPro country advice against your itinerary at your appointment, and talk you through bite avoidance and, where it is needed, antimalarial tablets.
Give yourself enough time
Ideally see us six to eight weeks before you travel, as some vaccines are given as a course over several weeks. A rabies course runs over about three to four weeks, so start that one early. Travelling sooner than that? Book anyway — there is usually still something worth doing.
A city-and-Halong-Bay tour is lower risk than weeks in the Mekong Delta, the northern highlands or a long backpacking loop. Where you go, the season and how you travel shape what you need, so the starting point is your itinerary at your South London Clinic consultation.
Hepatitis A and typhoid come up for most travellers because both spread through food and water; the NHS lists both among common travel-vaccine recommendations for South-East Asia. Hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis and rabies come in for longer, rural or farming stays, and it is worth checking routine tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR cover.
Dengue is common in Vietnam and rises in the rainy season, spread by daytime-biting mosquitoes, so bite avoidance matters year-round. Malaria risk is limited and focused on specific rural and forested areas rather than the cities or main tourist spots; TravelHealthPro's Vietnam country advice sets out where, and we check it against your route. Japanese encephalitis is a consideration for longer rural or wet-season stays.
Rabies is present, so any bite, scratch or lick from an animal needs urgent care, and pre-travel doses are worth discussing for rural, cycling or long trips.
See us ideally six to eight weeks ahead so any courses can be completed; a later booking is still useful.
Q: Do I need malaria tablets for Vietnam?
A: Usually only for specific rural areas, not the cities or main tourist spots. We check the current advice against your route.
Q: Which vaccines for Vietnam?
A: Hepatitis A and typhoid for most, with hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis and rabies for longer or rural trips.
Q: Is dengue a risk in Vietnam?
A: Yes, especially in the rainy season, so daytime bite protection matters.
Who you'll see
Superintendent Pharmacist & Independent Prescriber
Rafay has been a pharmacist for more than 12 years and runs the travel clinic at Hills Pharmacy. He'll go through where you're going, what you'll be doing and what you've already had, then explain in plain language what's worth having for your trip and what isn't.
GPhC registration 2240995
Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane, Kennington, South London SE11 4HQ — GPhC premises 1093041 (Marlborough UK Limited)
Check on the GPhC registerUsually only for specific rural and forested areas, not the cities or main tourist spots. Your pharmacist at South London Clinic checks the current TravelHealthPro advice against your route.
Hepatitis A and typhoid for most travellers, with hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis and rabies for longer, rural or farming stays.
Yes, particularly in the rainy season. It is spread by daytime-biting mosquitoes, so bite avoidance matters and there is no tablet that prevents it.
Ideally six to eight weeks so any vaccine courses can be completed, though a later booking is still worthwhile.
Book a travel appointment and a pharmacist will go through your itinerary with you — where you're going, what you'll be doing and what you've already had — then tell you what's worth having and what isn't.
Vaccines and antimalarial tablets are prescription only medicines. Suitability is assessed at your consultation — nothing is sold or supplied without it.
Book an appointment
Appointments are with a pharmacist at Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane — free parking nearby.
What to bring: a list of any medicines you take, and any records that are relevant to what you're coming in for.
Book an appointmentSouth London Clinic at Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane, Kennington, South London, Lambeth, SE11 4HQ · Free parking nearby
Bookings for this clinic are taken by phone and email. Give us a call during opening hours and we'll go through the times that are free.
Opening hours
Appointments are subject to availability. If you are travelling, call as early as you can — some travel vaccines need a course started in advance.
Where to find us
The clinic is inside Hills Pharmacy on High Street. Come in through the shop and tell the counter you're here for an appointment.
Address
South London Travel Clinic at Hills Pharmacy99 Kennington LaneOpening hours
Clinic appointments run within these hours. Bank holiday hours can differ — please call before travelling in.
South London Travel Clinic at Hills Pharmacy, 99 Kennington Lane, Kennington, Lambeth, SE11 4HQ