The Amazing Race Vietnam: Cuộc đua kỳ thú 2016 is the fifth season of The Amazing Race Vietnam, a Vietnamese reality competition show based on the American series The Amazing Race. It featured ten teams of two in a race around Vietnam for 300 million₫. This season's teams consisted of all-stars.
The program aired on VTV6 from 31 March to 9 June 2016.
Huy Khánh returned as host after he was absent during the previous season.
Rapper Tiến Đạt and hotel manager Thúc Lĩnh Lincoln, who had competed on different teams from Season 2 and Season 4, respectively, were the winners of this season.
This season began filming in late 2015.
As the season was titled "All-Stars", it is the first time that one of the international spin-offs of The Amazing Race featured returning contestants (the eleventh, the eighteenth (dubbed as "Unfinished Business") and the twenty-fourth seasons of the original American version also featured returning teams).
The non-elimination penalty, the Speed Bump, was introduced to the series. As with the American version, the Speed Bump requires the team that finished last in a non-elimination leg to perform an additional task at some point during the next leg.
During this season's visit to Australia, there was a planned Roadblock task in Yarrawonga involving an ultralight aircraft. During filming, an ultralight crashed after encountering dust devils, killing both occupants. Ian Cook, the pilot who flew along with Sydney-based Vietnamese cameraman Quoc Huong Vu, were taking aerial shots of the location.[1] This incident occurred during the middle of a Roadblock, which some of the contestants had already completed. As such, the Roadblock task was cancelled, and teams continued to New South Wales to continue with the leg.[2] The task in Yarrawonga was not aired or acknowledged during the episode.
The returning teams and their prior placements are:[3]
Hương Giang Nguyễn appeared on the sixth season as a clue giver during the third episode and served as the host during the seventh episode in 2019.[4]
The following teams participated in the season, with their relationships at the time of filming. Note that this table is not necessarily reflective of all content broadcast on television due to inclusion or exclusion of some data. Placements are listed in finishing order:
Airdate: 31 March 2016
In this season's first Roadblock, one team member had to climb a rope ladder up the tower in the centre of the hydroelectric dam bridge, carrying with them the bottle of Sting Energy Drink from the previous task to exchange for the next clue at the top.
Airdate: 7 April 2016
In this leg's Roadblock, one team member had to cross a series of rings suspended beneath the village bridge to retrieve the Detour clue on the other side. If they fell into the river below, they had to go to the back of the line and try again.
This season's first Detour was a choice between Eat or Make, which both took place at a village farm. In Eat, teams had to use bamboo poles and a campfire to traditionally cook three orders of rice to a judge's satisfaction to receive their next clue. In Make, teams had to fully cover a wooden bovine skeleton in hay to create a sculpture. Once approved, they received their next clue.
Airdate: 14 April 2016
This leg's Detour was a choice between Loaf or Hair, which both took place in Y Tý town centre. In Loaf, teams had to use traditional methods and tools to make a Vietnamese glutinous rice cake called a Bánh giầy to receive their next clue. In Hair, teams had to make a traditional wig by weaving string together in the style of braided hair, then dying it with an herb mixture and heating it over an open flame to receive their next clue.
Airdate: 21 April 2016
This leg's Detour was a choice between Make 'n Play or Drum 'n Shout, which both took place at Trống Đọi Tam. In Make 'n Play, teams had to use provided materials to build a traditional Vietnamese drum. This included using a winch and the weight of a team member to stretch the skin over the top of the barrel. Once approved, they received their next clue. In Drum 'n Shout, teams listened to a performance by a duo of musicians, who sang and played small drums and erhu. They then had to correctly match the lyrics and drum rhythm, accompanied by erhu, to receive their next clue.
Airdate: 28 April 2016
This leg's Detour was a choice between Fly or Graceful. In Fly, teams traveled to February 3 Park, where they had to assemble, paint, and fly a butterfly kite to receive their next clue . In Graceful, teams traveled to Trường Sanh Palace, where they had to dress in full costume and take part in a Hát tuồng performance to receive their next clue.
Airdate: 5 May 2016
In this leg's Roadblock, one team member had to climb to the top of a coconut tree, using only their hands and feet, and pull off one coconut to receive the clue for the Detour.
This leg's Detour was a choice between Learn or Do. In Learn, teams traveled to Miếu Ông Cọp, where they had to learn a series of intricate animal poses and actions and correctly perform their in succession to receive their next clue. In Do, teams traveled to Bình Bá River, where they had to use an ancient winch to fully raise a large fishing net out of the water to receive their next clue.
Airdate: 12 May 2016
In this leg's first Roadblock, one team member had to eat an entire five-kilogram (11 lb) bowl of pho within 45 minutes to receive the clue for the Detour. If they didn't finish, they would still receive their clue once the 45 minutes were up, but they would incur a time penalty at the Pit Stop, the length dependent on how much the team member ate.
This leg's Detour was a choice between Salt or Fish. In Salt, teams traveled to a salt farm, where they had to harvest five wheelbarrows full of salt to receive their next clue. In Fish, teams traveled to Lê Văn Ánh's House, where one team member would be blindfolded. Following directions from their partner, they had to enter the mud flats and catch three giant mudskippers with their bare hands to receive their next clue.
In this leg's second Roadblock, the team member who did not perform the previous Roadblock had to complete a three-part obstacle course. First, they had to ride a bicycle across a thin and bumpy wooden bridge. Then, they had to swim under a series of ropes through muddy water without touching any of the ropes. Finally, they had to stand on a raised log and attempt to knock an opponent off the log, each using sandbags, the racer being given three attempts to do so. If they completed the course, they received their next clue. If they failed any part of the course, they would have to start over.
Airdate: 19 May 2016
In this season's only Fast Forward, one team member had to put on snorkeling gear and swim a long distance from the beach to a boat anchored far offshore, then dive down to retrieve a briefcase from beneath an attached raft. The other team member had to solve a math problem without using calculator or taking notes, the result of which is the password of the briefcase. After returning to their partner on shore with the briefcase, they received a phone call from host Huy Khanh, who offered them VND60 million (approx. US$2,650) to immediately quit the race, or bring the briefcase to the Pit Stop, where he would make the same offer again, this time for VND150 million (approx. US$6,620).
In this leg's Roadblock, after traveling to a designated offshore location by boat, one team member had to put on snorkeling gear and dive down to the coral reef, where they would collect as many oysters as they could find on the sea floor, then return to the boat to open them. Some oysters contained a white pearl, some contained a black pearl. If they didn't find three black pearls, they had to wait out a 15-minute time penalty before diving again. Otherwise, they received their next clue.
This leg's Detour was a choice between Knock Knock or Melting Time, both taking place in Phu Tuong Prison. In Knock Knock, teams learned how to communicate in Morse code. They were then locked in adjacent cells. One team member received a message to relay to their partner by knocking it in Morse Code on the wall. If their partner understood the message correctly, they received their next clue. In Melting Time, one team member was locked in a cell, and had to stand on continuously on a block of ice for five minutes, then rest for five minutes, repeating for the duration of the task. Meanwhile, their partner had to draw at random to determine the type of spoon they could use to dig the cell key out of a large block of ice. Upon retrieving the key, they unlocked their partner's cell and received their next clue.
Airdate: 26 May 2016
There was to be a Roadblock on this leg involving one team member piloting and landing an ultralight aircraft, but due to the death of a cameraman and pilot as noted in the Development section above, this task was canceled and teams were moved onto the next location. It was not mentioned in the episode.
Airdate: 2 June 2016
For their Speed Bump, Pha Lê & Hà Việt Dũng each had to place 10 metal nuts onto a chopstick, then both stack all 10 on top of each other without the stack falling over before they could continue racing.
This leg's Detour was a choice between Knit or Carry. In Knit, teams had to weave together a traditional Vietnamese basket to receive their next clue. In Carry, teams had to carry heavy hay bales to a marked area and build a haystack 2 metres (6.6 ft) in diameter and 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) high to receive their next clue.
Airdate: 9 June 2016
This season's final Detour was a choice between Circus or Drama. In Circus, teams traveled to the Ho Chi Minh City Circus, where one team member had to walk across a circus tightrope while their partner launched themselves onto a trapeze and swung to reach their next clue on the ceiling. In Drama, teams traveled to Chuồn Chuồn Giấy Club, where they had to dress in elaborate costumes and perform a short comedy-drama skit to the approval of the judge to receive their next clue.
In this leg's first Roadblock, one team member had to ride a self-balancing scooter and maintain their balance while navigating through a maze of Sting Energy Drink cans and cases. They had to make their way to four specific points within the maze to pick up a can of Sting at each. If they collected and four and then reached the centre of the maze within an allotted time limit, they could retrieve the clue for the second Roadblock.
In this season's final Roadblock, one team member had to climb to the top of a rock-climbing wall attached to the side of an upturned shipping container, then climb a rope to the top of a giant Sting Energy Drink can, all within an allotted time limit, to receive their final clue.