Action-packed December coming up in Hanoi, Vietnam as Chinese brand Asian Poker Festival (APF) makes its debut at the Royal Poker Club.
Since the official announcement late last month, curiosity has been growing as APF will be the first Chinese brand to host a full-fledged festival in the capital city. Players can expect a strong contingent of Chinese players mixing with the locals and other international participants for some very exciting showdowns. Also announced, well known poker head Roberto Wong will be the official APF Tournament Director.
APF is scheduled to run from December 7 to 13, 2023. The week-long event offers 25 trophy events and an ambitious VN₫ 27 Billion (~$1.1 Million) in guarantees highlighted by the Main Event VN₫ 15 Billion (~$616,650) prize pool.
ASIAN POKER FESTIVAL – Player Guide
Key Events
The 25-event schedule features buy ins from VN₫ 2.3 Million to VN₫ 108 Million. The most attractive are the nine events backed by guarantees. Five are tagged as High Rollers. The Main Event carries the largest guarantee of VN₫ 15 Billion.
| Event | Date | Guarantee in VN₫ | Buy in in VN₫ |
| APF Kick Off | December 7-9 | 1,500,000,000 | 6,600,000 |
| High Roller Warm Up | December 7 | 1,000,000,000 | 33,000,000 |
| High Roller Single Day | December 8 | 1,200,000,000 | 44,000,000 |
| MAIN EVENT | December 9-13 | 15,000,000,000 | 25,000,000 |
| Super Star Challenge | December 10 | 2,000,000,000 | 108,000,000 |
| Mini Main Closer | December 12-13 | 1,200,000,000 | 3,400,000 |
| Super High Roller | December 12 | 2,000,000,000 | 88,000,000 |
| Superstack Closer | December 13 | 1,000,000,000 | 8,800,000 |
| High Roller Last Chance | December 13 | 1,500,000,000 | 55,000,000 |
Tax on Winnings
In Vietnam, poker players are subject to a 10% government tax for any prizes above VN₫ 10,000,000 less the buy in amount.
New Travelers to Hanoi
Over the past year, Hanoi has experienced a poker boom, with both local and international brands vying for coveted slots in the annual calendar. For newcomers, Hanoi is very affordable and quaint. It is fun to explore with numerous lakes scattered all over the city. Here are some important bits of information to help you get by.
Noi Bai International Airport to Royal Poker Club – 45-60 minutes
Best form of transport – Grab
Vietnam currency – Vietnamese Dong
Weather in December – 15 degrees to 22 degrees (cool and dry)
Language – Vietnamese but you can get by if you speak English
Stay tuned for more updates.
Tricia David
Tricia David has long experience as a recreational poker player and has been covering poker events since 2010 for numerous outfits in Asia. She spent one year working part time with Poker Portal Asia then became editor and lead writer for all event coverage of the Philippine Poker Tour (PPT). Under the PPT, she overlooked content for their website, and produced live updates on all their events. In addition, she served as the live and online events website content writer for the Asian Poker Tour. Currently, she does live events reporting in Asia for online news site Somuchpoker and is also one of their news contributors.
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