Southern Vietnam · Vietnam
Vietnam's biggest, fastest city, still called Saigon by nearly everyone: French colonial landmarks, war history, rooftop bars and street food on every corner.
Ho Chi Minh City is Vietnam's largest city, with around nine to ten million people, and its economic centre. It is still known as Saigon to most people, including its residents. The city was the capital of French Cochinchina, and later of South Vietnam, and it was renamed in 1976 after the fall of the Republic and the reunification of the country.
It is a very different place from Hanoi. The city is bigger, faster and more commercial, with wide French-planned boulevards, glass towers and a river port. The colonial legacy is visible in the red-brick Notre-Dame Basilica and the Central Post Office, and the war is remembered at the Reunification Palace and the War Remnants Museum. In the centre, District 1 is compact enough to walk, though the motorbike traffic is legendary.
Above all, Saigon is a city to eat and drink in. Its street food, from banh mi and broken rice to pancakes and noodle soups, is exceptional, and its café, rooftop bar and nightlife culture is the liveliest in the country. It rewards a couple of days, and it is a good springboard for the Mekong Delta and the Cu Chi Tunnels.
Why visit
Ho Chi Minh City is the best place in Vietnam for food, modern energy and a look at the war from the southern side.
Some of the best snacks and coffee in Southeast Asia, and dishes from across the country.
The Reunification Palace, the War Remnants Museum and the Cu Chi Tunnels tell a powerful, difficult story.
The Basilica, the Post Office, the Opera House and grand boulevards.
Rooftop bars, live music and a city that never stops.
The Mekong Delta, Cu Chi and the beaches are all within a few hours.
Main attractions
Most sights are in District 1 and District 3, with Cholon and Cu Chi further out.
The former presidential palace of South Vietnam, where a tank crashed through the gates on 30 April 1975 to mark the end of the war. Its 1960s interior, with war rooms and a basement bunker, is preserved.
Tip Allow an hour, and check opening hours.
A museum of the Vietnam War, from the Vietnamese perspective, with photographs, military equipment and displays on the effects of Agent Orange. It is powerful and often distressing.
Tip Allow two hours, and consider whether the images are suitable for children.
A red-brick neo-Romanesque cathedral built in the 1870s, and opposite it a grand yellow post office of the 1890s with an iron-vaulted hall, both in the French colonial style.
Tip The Basilica has been under renovation, so check access.
The city's best-known market, with stalls selling souvenirs, clothes, coffee and food. A tourist favourite, with high prices for gifts.
Tip Bargain, and eat at the food stalls.
A network of hand-dug tunnels about 70 km north-west of the city, used by Viet Cong fighters. Visitors can crawl through sections, and see booby traps and displays.
Tip Take a half-day tour, and go early.
The Chinese quarter, with temples, markets and herbal medicine shops, including the atmospheric Thien Hau Temple.
Tip Go by Grab or as part of a tour.
Things to do
Ho Chi Minh City is best explored by mixing sights, food and evenings out.
A guide leads you through the alleys for pancakes, noodle soups and snacks, often by motorbike.
Tip Choose a small group.
Strong Vietnamese iced coffee with sweetened condensed milk, at any café.
Tip Try it in an old apartment café.
See how fighters lived and moved underground.
Tip Not for claustrophobes.
The pedestrian boulevard leads to the river, and is a favourite evening promenade.
Tip Go after dusk.
A Taoist temple filled with incense and carved figures.
Tip Dress modestly.
Views of the skyline and river at dusk.
Tip Book for sunset.
Local food
Saigon's food is bigger and sweeter than in the north, with dishes from across the country and its own southern specialities.
Broken rice served with grilled pork chop, egg and pickles.
Where to try it Street stalls and small restaurants.
The southern version is loaded with herbs, pâté and sauces.
Where to try it Street carts and bakeries.
A large, crisp pancake filled with pork, shrimp and beansprouts, wrapped in lettuce and herbs.
Where to try it Restaurants in District 1.
A clear, sweet pork and seafood noodle soup, typical of the south.
Where to try it Breakfast stalls.
The southern style has more herbs and sauces.
Where to try it Street stalls.
Sweet, cool drinks for a hot day.
Where to try it Cafés and street vendors.
Accommodation
Stay in District 1 for convenience, with a choice of areas around it.
Transport
Ho Chi Minh City is the main international gateway to southern Vietnam.
Traffic is heavy, and Grab is the easiest way to move.
When to go
Ho Chi Minh City is hot all year, with a dry season from December to April and a wet season from May to November.
Sunny, dry and slightly cooler.
Very hot and dry.
Afternoon downpours and humid heat.
Heavy rain, with streets sometimes flooding.
Worth planning around: The days around Tet, when many businesses close, and the peak rain in September and October.
Itinerary
The city sights, a day at Cu Chi and Chinatown, and a day of food.
Colonial and war history.
Tunnels and Chinatown.
Eating in earnest.
Travel tips
A few tips make the city easier.
FAQ
Officially it is Ho Chi Minh City, and most people, including locals, still call it Saigon, particularly the central district.
Two or three days. Add a day for the Mekong Delta.
Generally yes, but bag and phone snatching is common. Use Grab and keep valuables secure.
It contains graphic images and may upset young children.
December to April, the dry season.
By half-day tour or by Grab, about 1.5 to 2 hours each way.
Keep exploring
Places that pair well with Saigon, whether you have a few spare days or are building a longer route.
Mekong Delta, southern Vietnam, Vietnam
Vietnam's rice bowl: a delta of waterways south of Ho Chi Minh City with floating markets at Can Tho, fruit orchards, homestays, coconut candy workshops and a slow river pace.
Don't miss A dawn boat to a floating market, with fruit boats piled high and vendors hanging their wares from tall poles.
Explore Destination — The Mekong DeltaGulf of Thailand, southern Vietnam, Vietnam
A tropical island in the Gulf of Thailand with long beaches, snorkelling, a national park, pepper and fish-sauce farms, night markets and a cable car to the offshore islands.
Don't miss Swimming off Sao Beach in calm turquoise water, then dinner at the Duong Dong night market.
Explore Destination — Phu QuocCentral coast, near Da Nang, Vietnam
A UNESCO-listed trading town of Chinese assembly halls, Japanese bridge and merchants' houses, famed for lanterns, tailors, food and its easy access to beaches and the ruins of My Son.
Don't miss The old town at dusk, when the lanterns are lit and the river fills with candle-lit boats.
Explore Destination — Hoi AnRead next
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