Rotterdam to Ho Chi Minh City shipping route.

Rotterdam to Ho Chi Minh City is a 9,010 nautical mile shipping route via Suez Canal, heading east from the Netherlands to Vietnam. That is 16,686 km of water against 9,889 km as the crow flies. On the way the vessel passes Strait of Gibraltar, Bab-el-Mandeb, Strait of Malacca and Suez Canal, so canal transit fees and waiting time at the canal are part of every voyage.

At sea, the voyage lasts 31.3 days at 12 knots, 26.8 days at 14 knots and 20.9 days at 18 knots. Liner schedules on the lane quote 29 to 48 days port to port, because the services call at other ports and some transship. Over the last 30 days we counted 32 sailings by 3 carriers (Hapag-Lloyd, ONE and OOCL).

Red Sea security changes the sea distance on this lane. A ship sent via Cape of Good Hope sails 12,454 nm instead of 9,010 nm and spends roughly 10.3 extra days at sea. Ask your forwarder which routing the carrier uses: the booking price and the arrival date both depend on it.

2,341 nm of the route, 26% of it, lies inside North Sea ECA and Mediterranean Sea ECA. In an emission control area ships must burn fuel with no more than 0.1% sulphur or clean the exhaust with scrubbers. That fuel costs more, and carriers add it to the ocean freight bill as a low sulphur or ECA surcharge.

Recent freight rates for NLRTM to VNSGN start at $1,934 for a 20GP and $3,171 for a 40GP ($2,719 for a 40HC). These are spot market prices from carriers that sail the lane; your quote will also include terminal handling, documentation and any bunker surcharge. At Ho Chi Minh City (VNSGN) carriers give about 4 free days before demurrage and detention charges start, so plan the truck or rail pickup before the box lands.

Of the 60 port to port routes from Rotterdam in this directory, Ho Chi Minh City is the 40th shortest. Closer destinations include Tanjung Priok (8,658 nm), Singapore (8,381 nm) and Oakland (8,213 nm).