Taiwan vs Vietnam for Indian Vegetarians on a Budget - my very honest, slightly messy food travel take#

I’ve had this argument with friends way too many times now. If you’re Indian, vegetarian, kinda obsessed with food, and also not exactly rolling in money... where do you go, Taiwan or Vietnam? And honestly, I used to think Vietnam would win by default. Cheaper, more famous backpacker scene, loads of fresh stuff, right? But then Taiwan snuck up on me. Big time. I did both trips fairly recently, mostly solo, mostly hungry, and always doing that thing where I open Google Maps and type "vegetarian near me" like my life depends on it. Sometimes it kinda did. So this isn’t gonna be some polished tourism board answer. It’s the real version. Missed buses, night market panic, amazing noodle soups, 7-Eleven survival meals, temple food discoveries, one truly tragic "veg" bánh mì situation... all of it.

First things first - which one is easier for Indian vegetarians?#

Short answer? Taiwan is easier. Vietnam is cheaper. That’s the whole post, lol. But okay, there’s more nuance than that. Taiwan has this very underrated advantage for vegetarians because Buddhist vegetarian culture is built into daily life in a way that really helps. You’ll see buffet spots, temple-adjacent restaurants, places marked vegetarian, convenience stores with labeled plant-based options, and in bigger cities like Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung there’s a genuinely modern vegan scene too. By 2026, Taiwan’s plant-based thing feels not niche anymore. It’s just... there. Mock meats, soy-based everything, vegetarian dumplings, mushroom broths, vegan bakeries, and labels that often actually mean what they say.

Vietnam, on the other hand, is amazing when you know the code. The magic words are "ăn chay" for vegetarian food. Once I properly started saying that, and not just waving helplessly at menus, my trip got way better. Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi both have excellent chay restaurants now, and there’s defintely more vegetarian awareness than a lot of older guidebooks suggest. Also by 2026, there’s a noticeable uptick in vegan cafés, smoothie bowl places, and eco-conscious restaurants in Da Nang, Hội An, and even Ninh Bình. But... and this is a big but... outside dedicated vegetarian spots, broth, fish sauce, oyster sauce, shrimp paste, and mystery seasoning can sneak into stuff you’d assume is safe. So Taiwan wins on ease. Vietnam wins on cost and occasional sheer flavor drama.

Let’s talk budget because, um, that matters a lot#

As a budget traveler, Vietnam made me feel rich for five minutes, which was nice. Dorm beds in parts of Vietnam are still usually cheaper than Taiwan, local buses are cheap, and simple veg meals can cost very little if you eat where locals eat. In 2026, places like Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City still offer really solid budget value, though yeah prices are up a bit from pre-2020 backpacker fantasyland. I was often spending what felt like pocket change on cơm chay plates, tofu dishes, fresh sugarcane juice, and fruit. Coffee too, ridiculous value. Dangerous for my sleep schedule.

Taiwan is not expensive-expensive, but it’s not Vietnam cheap. Budget hostels in Taipei can sting a little on weekends, and train travel, while excellent, adds up if you bounce around too much. That said, Taiwan is weirdly efficient for budget eating. Night markets, vegetarian buffets where you pay by weight, convenience stores, and those small local eateries mean you can keep costs under control if you don’t chase trendy brunch every day. I actually spent less on food in Taiwan than I expected because filling vegetarian meals were so easy to find. In Vietnam I spent less overall, but I also had more random fails where I bought a thing, took one bite, realized fish sauce had entered the chat, and had to go find another meal. Which is annoying and, y’know, not exactly budget genius.

If your top priority is spending the least money possible, Vietnam probably edges it. If your priority is eating without low-level ingredient anxiety all day, Taiwan is honestly a relief.

My first hungry day in Taipei kinda changed my opinion#

I landed in Taipei tired, undercaffeinated, and with that stupid confidence travelers get from reading three blogs and thinking they understand a city. I did not. I dragged my bag around Ximending, got overwhelmed by signs, nearly walked into traffic twice, and then found a vegetarian buffet. One of those classic Taiwanese self-serve spots with trays of stir-fried greens, braised tofu, cabbage, mushrooms, seaweed, peanuts, rice, little soy things I still can’t identify properly. It was cheap, filling, and exactly what I needed. No interrogation, no suspicious broth, no long explanation that I don’t eat chicken but yes eggs are okay sometimes but actually today maybe no eggs either. I just pointed, smiled, paid by weight, sat down, and inhaled the food. That moment really mattered.

Taipei in 2026 also feels very current in the way food trends are landing. There’s more plant-based fine dining than before, but also more casual eco-minded spots doing sustainable Taiwanese ingredients, low-waste menus, oat milk tea drinks, vegan scallion pancakes, and these very slick modern bento places. I tried one near Zhongshan that did a beautiful mushroom rice set and honestly I nearly resented how aesthetic it was. Like, can lunch be less photogenic and more normal please. But it was great. Even the convenience stores are better than they have any right to be. 7-Eleven and FamilyMart in Taiwan are basically emergency support systems for vegetarians. Rice balls, sweet potatoes, salads, soy milk, sometimes tofu snacks, fruit cups. Not glamorous, but practical.

Vietnam gave me better highs... and more food-related trust issues#

Now Vietnam. Ohhh Vietnam. I adore it, let me just say that. Some of my favorite travel mornings ever happened there, sitting on tiny plastic stools, sweating in the heat, drinking absurdly strong coffee while scooters buzzed by like angry insects. For pure atmosphere, Vietnam can be unbeatable. And when vegetarian food is good there, it’s so fresh and alive and textured and balanced that I start getting emotional about herbs. Real talk. I had a chay bún huế in Ho Chi Minh City that was all lemongrass, chili, mushrooms, tofu, and depth, and I kept thinking, wow okay, if this is what lunch is doing here then what am I supposed to do with my life back home?

But I also had a not-fun evening in Hanoi where I ordered what I thought was a simple noodle dish with vegetables and got hit with a fishy smell immediately. To be fair, that one was probably on me. I’d gotten lazy, didn’t check carefully, and assumed "vegetables" meant vegetarian. Rookie mistake, even though I should know better by now. After that I got stricter. I started saving vegetarian phrases offline, choosing dedicated chay restaurants more often, and using HappyCow plus Google reviews obsessively. By 2026, this combo works pretty well in Vietnam, especially in big cities and tourist-friendly places. It just requires more vigilance than Taiwan.

Best cities for budget vegetarian eating - my very biased ranking#

If I had to rank the easiest and most satisfying places I personally ate as an Indian vegetarian on a budget, it’d go something like this. Taipei is up there because it’s just so easy. Taichung surprised me with cheap vegetarian buffets and calm café culture. Kaohsiung felt underrated, warmer, a bit less frantic, and I ate incredibly well around the station area and near some temple neighborhoods. In Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City was best for variety and modern veg options, Hội An was good if a little more tourist-priced in parts, and Da Nang felt like it’s really growing into a strong vegetarian-friendly stop in 2026, especially with beachside wellness cafés and newer vegan spots. Hanoi had excellent dedicated vegetarian meals but was less forgiving when I was improvising.

  • Taipei - easiest overall, amazing veg buffets, reliable transit, lots of labeled options
  • Kaohsiung - underrated for cheap local veg food, less stressful than Taipei
  • Ho Chi Minh City - best Vietnam city for range, trendy vegan cafés plus old-school chay spots
  • Da Nang - getting better fast, good value, newer health-focused food scene
  • Hội An - lovely but watch the tourist markup, still very enjoyable for vegetarians

What I actually ate a lot in both countries#

In Taiwan, I kept coming back to vegetarian buffets, sesame noodles, scallion pancakes when I could confirm no sneaky stuff, dumplings with cabbage or chive fillings, fried rice, bento boxes with tofu and vegetables, steamed buns, sweet potato, fruit, soy milk breakfasts, and this endless rotation of tofu in forms I didn’t know tofu could exist in. Stinky tofu, yes, I tried the vegetarian version at a night market and... look, I respect it more than I loved it. The smell enters the room before your soul does. But braised tofu? Bean curd skins? Hot pot with mushroom broth? Very much my thing.

In Vietnam, my staples were cơm chay, phở chay, bánh xèo chay, fresh spring rolls with tofu, stir-fried morning glory, tofu in tomato sauce, lemongrass tofu, jackfruit dishes, and a frankly irresponsible amount of bánh mì chay once I found trustworthy places. The herbs in Vietnam deserve their own visa category. Basil, mint, coriander, all that crunch and brightness. Indian vegetarians who are used to big flavors usually connect with Vietnamese food really fast, I think, because when it works it doesn’t feel bland or like some sad compromise. It feels intentional.

Street food, night markets, and the reality check part#

This is where Taiwan absolutely shines for a vegetarian traveler who still wants that fun snacky chaotic food-travel energy. Night markets are a whole experience, obviously. Raohe, Ningxia, Shilin, Liuhe down south, loads more. Not every stall works for vegetarians, but enough do that you don’t feel excluded from the fun. You can snack on grilled corn, peanut ice cream rolls at some places, scallion pancakes, fruit, sweet potato balls, vegetarian dumplings if you seek em out, wheel cakes, tea, baked mushrooms, and random things that look better the more tired you are. And because Taiwan’s public transport is so good, I found myself doing these cheap little food missions all the time.

Vietnamese street food is thrilling too, but for strict vegetarians it can be a little more hit-and-miss unless you’re on a food tour that specifically understands vegetarian needs or you’re sticking to known chay vendors. One trend I noticed in 2026 is more curated food tours offering vegan or vegetarian versions in cities like Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. That’s actually a cool shift. There’s also more sustainability talk in food tourism now, with farm-to-table experiences around Hội An and eco-cooking classes where they’ll accommodate vegetarians properly if you ask in advance. I did one outside Hội An that included herb picking and a market visit, and yeah, touristy, sure, but also really enjoyable. Plus I got to eat without detective work for one afternoon, so no complaints.

A few practical things I wish someone had told me earlier#

  • In Taiwan, look for vegetarian buffet restaurants and Buddhist vegetarian spots. They’re often affordable, fast, and very filling.
  • In Vietnam, learn and save the phrase "ăn chay" and show it written down. Don’t rely on the word "vegetarian" alone.
  • Use Google Translate camera mode, but don’t trust it blindly. It has lied to me before. Boldly.
  • HappyCow is still super useful in 2026, especially in Taipei, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, and Hội An.
  • If you’re Indian and miss home flavors, both countries have Indian restaurants, but Taiwan’s vegetarian Indian options felt more consistently easy to find in big cities.
  • Convenience stores in Taiwan are elite. In Vietnam, fresh fruit stalls are your backup best friend.

So which one felt more exciting, and which one felt more comfortable?#

This is where I contradict myself a bit, because travel is like that. Vietnam felt more thrilling to me. A bit messier, a bit louder, more improvisational, more intense in a good way. The food highs were insanely high. The cheapness helped. The café culture? Top tier. I could happily spend weeks there just wandering, eating tofu and herbs and bread and drinking iced coffee till my hands shook. For an Indian vegetarian backpacker who doesn’t mind putting in some effort, Vietnam can be a total joy.

But Taiwan felt easier, smoother, kinder to my brain. Cleaner transport, more reliable labeling, less need to explain, and a food culture where vegetarian eating didn’t feel like an exception. For budget travelers who are also anxious eaters, or for first-time solo travelers, or honestly just for people who want to spend their mental energy on enjoying a place rather than decoding every menu, Taiwan is fantastic. I was less stressed there, which maybe made me more open to trying stuff. Funny how that works.

My final answer if you made me choose just one#

If your budget is super tight and you’re okay being careful, choose Vietnam. You’ll probably spend less, eat beautifully at dedicated chay spots, and have one of those trips that gets under your skin in the best way. If your budget is modest rather than shoestring, and you want maximum ease with still-plenty-of-wow food moments, choose Taiwan. For Indian vegetarians specifically, Taiwan is the safer recommendation. Not safer in a dramatic way, just in a practical "you will find dinner without spiraling" way.

Me? I’d go back to both. Taiwan for the calm confidence of knowing I can eat well almost anywhere, Vietnam for the flavor rush and chaotic charm. They scratch different itches. And maybe that’s the real answer nobody likes in comparison posts - sometimes there isn’t a winner, just two places that feed different versions of you. Anyway, if you’re planning a hungry little Asia trip and want more real-world travel stories like this, have a scroll through AllBlogs.in. There’s some good stuff there, and probably someone more organized than me too.