Trip highlights
- 1Cu Chi Tunnels — the underground war network
- 2War Remnants Museum — essential and difficult
- 3Ben Thanh Market food hall
- 4Mekong Delta sampan boat tour
- 5Bui Vien Walking Street nightlife
Daily spend
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Day-by-day plan
Arrival & Distric 1
Monday, November 15
Est. spend
$50
per person
🌅 Morning
Arrive Tan Son Nhat International Airport
Tan Son Nhat International Airport, HCMC
SGN is 8km from District 1. Official taxi from the stand costs VND 150,000–200,000 ($6–8). Grab (Southeast Asian Uber) costs VND 100,000–130,000 ($4–5). The airport bus 109 runs to Ben Thanh Market for VND 20,000 ($0.80). E-visa required for most nationalities.
Get a local SIM at the airport (Viettel or Mobifone) for VND 100,000 ($4) — 5GB data, essential for Grab navigation throughout Vietnam.
☀️ Afternoon
Reunification Palace
135 Nam Kỳ Khởi Nghĩa, District 1, HCMC
The former South Vietnamese Presidential Palace — captured by North Vietnamese tanks on April 30, 1975 (the famous photograph of the tank crashing through the gate). The palace is preserved exactly as it was on the day of reunification — including the war room in the basement. Entry VND 40,000 ($1.60).
The war room (basement) with its original maps, radio equipment, and operations tables is the most affecting room. The rooftop helipad where the last helicopter evacuated CIA operatives on April 29, 1975 is open to visitors.
Notre-Dame Cathedral and Central Post Office
Đường Công xã Paris, District 1, HCMC
The 1880 French colonial cathedral (Notre-Dame Basilica de Saigon) and the 1886 Central Post Office designed by Gustave Eiffel — together the two best examples of French colonial architecture in Vietnam. The Post Office is still operational.
The Post Office's arched interior with the portrait of Ho Chi Minh at the far end and the original maps of Saigon on the walls is one of the finest colonial interiors in Southeast Asia. Send a postcard.
🌙 Evening
Bui Vien Walking Street
Bui Vien Walking Street, District 1, HCMC
The backpacker street of HCMC — blocked to traffic every night, 200m of outdoor bars and restaurants, live music, and cheap beer (Saigon Beer from a bucket with ice, $1.50). The energy is raucous and entirely good-natured.
🍽️ Meals
Cơm Tấm Bà Ghẻ, Vo Van Tan
Vietnamese · $4 · Broken rice with grilled pork, egg, and fish sauce. The most popular Vietnamese working-class meal. VND 50,000 ($2) per person.
Cu Chi Tunnels & War Museum
Tuesday, November 16
Est. spend
$40
per person
🌅 Morning
Cu Chi Tunnels
Cu Chi Tunnels, Cu Chi District, HCMC
The underground guerrilla network 40km northwest of HCMC — 250km of tunnels used by the Viet Cong during the American War. The Ben Dinh section is smaller and more authentic than the tourist-friendly Ben Duoc section (choose Ben Dinh). Crawl through a genuine tunnel section (70cm high, 80m long). Entry VND 150,000 ($6).
Go directly (bus 79 from Ben Thanh, VND 70,000 round trip) rather than paying $15+ for a tour. The self-guided experience is fine. The AK-47 shooting range (VND 50,000 per bullet) is optional and controversial — skip it.
☀️ Afternoon
War Remnants Museum
28 Vo Van Tan, Vo Thi Sau Ward, District 3, HCMC
The most emotionally affecting museum in Southeast Asia. The collection of photographs, Agent Orange documentation, and captured US equipment is harrowing — particularly the 3rd floor photographs by photojournalists who died in the conflict. Entry VND 40,000 ($1.60).
The museum shows only the Vietnamese perspective — which is important context but not the complete picture. Still essential. The third floor photographs are the reason to come.
🍽️ Meals
Phở Hòa Pasteur
Vietnamese · $5 · The most famous pho restaurant in Saigon since 1960. The beef pho with all the sides (herbs, bean sprouts, lime) is the definitive HCMC bowl.
Mekong Delta Day Trip
Wednesday, November 17
Est. spend
$65
per person
🌅 Morning
Mekong Delta — My Tho or Ben Tre
My Tho or Ben Tre, Tien Giang Province
The Mekong Delta 70km south of HCMC — the river network that feeds Vietnam and Cambodia. Boat tour through floating markets, coconut candy workshops, and tiny islands. The Ben Tre province has the most authentic experience with fewer tourists.
Go by private taxi/Grab to My Tho ($15) and arrange a boatman at the river pier (VND 300,000/$12 for 2 hours). Or take the official tour bus from Ben Thanh Market for VND 350,000 ($14) — less flexible but easier to organise.
🌙 Evening
Ben Thanh Market food hall
Ben Thanh Market, District 1, HCMC
The 1914 colonial market hall — the formal stalls close at 6pm but the surrounding night market opens: plastic tables, cold beer, and dozens of food stalls cooking everything from banh mi to hot pot to grilled meats.
🍽️ Meals
Delta village lunch, included in tour
Vietnamese · $8 · Home lunch in a local house — rice paper rolls, elephant ear fish (cá tai tượng), and fresh coconut.
Cho Lon Chinatown & Rooftop Bars
Thursday, November 18
Est. spend
$80
per person
🌅 Morning
Cho Lon — Saigon Chinatown
Cho Lon, District 5, HCMC
Cho Lon (Big Market) is HCMC's Chinese neighbourhood — the Thien Hau Temple (most beautiful in the city), the Binh Tay Market (the genuine wholesale market — different character from Ben Thanh), and wonton noodle shops that have been here since the 19th century.
The Thien Hau Temple is free and extraordinarily atmospheric — giant incense coils hanging from the ceiling, the air thick with sandalwood, and the crowd of Teochew Chinese worshippers is genuine and unchanged.
☀️ Afternoon
The Deck Saigon rooftop and Saigon River
Various rooftop locations, District 1
The rooftop bars along the Saigon River give the best cityscape views — the Chill Skybar (ABC Hotel roof, 26th floor), The Deck (on the river bank), and the Rex Hotel rooftop (1962, where American press officers briefed journalists during the war — the original 'Five O'Clock Follies' bar).
The Rex Hotel rooftop bar is historically significant — cocktails at the same bar where American military spokesmen gave daily briefings that bore little relation to the actual war situation.
🍽️ Meals
Hum Vegetarian, District 3
Vietnamese vegetarian · $20 · The best vegetarian restaurant in Vietnam — gorgeous garden courtyard and Vietnamese temple cuisine adapted for non-religious visitors.
Banh Mi & Departure
Friday, November 19
Est. spend
$50
per person
🌅 Morning
Banh Mi 37 Nguyen Trai — the best banh mi in HCMC
37 Nguyen Trai, District 1, HCMC
The Vietnamese banh mi (French baguette, pâté, Vietnamese cold cuts, pickled carrot, cucumber, chilli, coriander) is the world's greatest sandwich. The stall at 37 Nguyen Trai has a queue from 7am. VND 25,000 ($1).
Huynh Hoa at 26 Le Thi Rieng Street is the other banh mi institution — both are excellent, both have queues.
Jade Emperor Pagoda (Phuoc Hai Tu)
73 Mai Thi Luu, District 1, HCMC
The finest temple in HCMC — an 1892 Taoist temple dedicated to the Jade Emperor of Heaven. Rooms of extraordinary carved wooden figures, spirit money burning in giant urns, and the turtle pond where turtles are released for good fortune.
Free to enter. The Jade Emperor is in the main hall surrounded by generals and celestial guards — the carving quality is exceptional.
☀️ Afternoon
Airport transfer
Tan Son Nhat International Airport
Tan Son Nhat Airport is 8km from District 1. Allow 3 hours before international departure. Grab to the airport costs VND 100,000–130,000 ($4–5).
🍽️ Meals
Nha Hang Ngon, District 1
Vietnamese all-region · $15 · A beautiful French colonial courtyard restaurant with street-food stalls from all Vietnamese regions. The banh xeo (sizzling crepe), bun bo Hue, and cao lau are all excellent.
Before you go
📅 Best time to visit
November–April: dry season, temperatures 28–34°C, clear skies. May–October is the wet season — heavy afternoon rains but the city functions normally between showers. December–January is the best month for comfort.
🛂 Visas
E-visa required for most nationalities. Apply at evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn ($25 USD, 30 days single entry). Approved within 3 business days. Some nationalities (UK, EU, US) get 45-day visa-free stays — check the latest Vietnam immigration rules before applying.
💱 Currency
Vietnamese Dong (VND). ~25,000 VND per USD. Cash is the primary currency — very few street food stalls take cards. ATMs: Techcombank and Vietcombank have the best rates and lowest fees. Notes have many zeros — double-check you're paying the right amount.
🆘 Emergency numbers
police: 113
ambulance: 115
fire: 114
💬 Things you won't find in a guidebook
- Crossing the street in HCMC: don't wait for gaps in traffic (there are none). Walk slowly and steadily — the motorbikes will flow around you. Make eye contact with drivers as you cross. Never run.
- Grab (the app) is the safest and cheapest way to travel. Always confirm the destination in-app before the driver moves. The 'Grab Food' feature delivers excellent local food from restaurants that don't have delivery otherwise.
- The Vietnamese coffee culture (ca phe): drip filtered coffee over sweetened condensed milk (ca phe sua da, iced) is extraordinary. Saigon coffee is stronger and sweeter than Hanoi coffee. Try a ca phe trung (egg coffee) too.
One thing worth not skipping
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