Much as I like travelling within Vietnam, one invariably comes across scams or deceptive practices. For instance in Hue, you have to be particularly careful with the cycle rickshaws. The latest trick in Hanoi is for young shoeshine boys to remove your sandals and tell you they need repairing. Within seconds they have your sandal and apply superglue. When I indicated that my wife's sandal was fine, a thread was inserted into it and an accomplice held the thread so I could not remove it without tearing the sandal. After this incident we inspected our sandals - both were fine and will give years' more service. These experiences in no way detract from this great country, but forewarned is forearmed.

- Neill Smith

CLICK CLACK

I agree with Cristina Corleto regarding the mad scramble for the aisles on an aircraft's arrival. Why this is so important after a 12- or 14-hour flight is beyond me. However, I have to disagree with her when she says "as soon as the seatbelt sign is turned off". In all my flying experience I would suggest that there may be 10 per cent or less of people still strapped in when the sign goes off. Even though the cabin attendant has instructed otherwise, you can hear the multiple clicks as passengers remove their belts as soon as the aircraft stops at the gate - and in many cases even before that.

- Peter Moore

MISTAKEN IDENTITY

The photo of Anchorage in Lance Richardson's article on Alaska (Traveller, October 4) has the caption "Anchorage, Alaska's capital". This is incorrect. Anchorage may be Alaska's largest city but the capital is Juneau.

- Brian Caller

FALLING FOR ALASKA

Reading Lance Richardson's cover story on Alaska brought back many fond memories for us. We visited Alaska in the autumn of 2012, travelling through Anchorage to Talkeetna, the Denali National Park to Fairbanks and then further north inside the Arctic Circle to Coldfoot and Wiseman. The autumn tonings in the Denali National Park were magnificent, with colourful small berry plants providing food for the numerous grizzly bears we saw eagerly building up layers of fat before their winter hibernation. As your writer says of the freedom of the wilderness, "How beautiful you are".

- Leo Cleary

MUCH ADO ABOUT KAKADU

I write to assure Daniel Scott and your readers that, contrary to his impression, the Kakadu Plateau area, which he visited with Australian Wilderness Adventures (Traveller, October 4), is correctly described as  a wilderness area. The IUCN defines this category of protected area as "usually large or slightly modified areas, retaining their natural character and influence without permanent or significant human habitation …". It goes on to mention another objective as being "to enable indigenous communities to maintain their traditional wilderness-based lifestyle and customs, living at low density and using available resources in ways compatible with the conservation objectives". I have been to the area and believe it ticks all of the boxes for wilderness.

- Geoff Mosley

FEET FIRST

I'm with Lee Tulloch when it comes to Changi Airport (Traveller, October 4). It's also my favourite airport. I spent a few hours there with my young niece en route to New York. So much to see and do there and beautifully landscaped gardens outside. We even had a foot spa. The Singaporean gentleman looking after us there was thoroughly charming and even gave her dolly a treatment.

- Annie Mayo

WELSHED ON

Lance Richardson refers to the English pirate Henry Morgan (Traveller, October 4). I believe that he was actually Welsh. It is a common mistake to call all British nationals English. We are not!

- Lilian Wasik

PULLING OUT ALL STOPS

Returning from Tunisia, my husband and I were 10 hours in transit at Dubai. Yes, we were offered the complimentary hotel room as a result of the lengthy wait. However, having heard horror stories of queues to board transport to the hotel and queues to book in to said hotel, we opted to outlay cash for a room at the Dubai International Hotel in the airport terminal. Having arrived very late at night, the only thing we wanted was a shower and comfortable bed and we were ecstatic at the wonderful room and facilities. We woke fresh, happy and ready for our 9am flight to Sydney, which was a breeze after such a good rest. But beware, if you do arrive late at night, make sure you arrange to be met at the gate and shown the way to the hotel, as it is somewhat of a labyrinthine journey to reception.

- Beverly Byrnes

LETTER OF THE WEEK

My first thought after reading the article "Major disconnect"  (Traveller letters, October 4), was: "Relax, calm down!" I've just returned from an incredible holiday in the Kimberley, the best part being for six days no TV, no mobile, no Wi-Fi and no internet. Looking at 1.5-billion-year-old rock formations, walking along paths people have walked for the past 40,000 years, and taking a swim in a waterhole only discovered 30 years ago and only accessible by air. Luxury and sense of life gets a different meaning. That said, one still can use the battery of a mobile phone to create sparks to make a fire and actually cook food rather than eating it sashimi-style. Free Wi-Fi wouldn't help and Facebook or Twitter aren't part of survival kits either!

- Uwe Stiefel