Ho Chi Minh (or Saigon) I’d say is Vietnam’s most established and modern city. Upon arrival I was expecting it to have quite older architectural buildings with a lot of culture but in fact it felt like I had just stepped off a plane somewhere in the states. I am still unsure exactly why they use both Saigon and Ho Chi Minh, it’s kinda confusing and you aren’t sure which one is correct but I know that Saigon is used by the elders. If I were to pick between Ho Chi Minh or Hanoi in the north I would say choose Hanoi but if you have the time and plan to spend a fair bit of it throughout Vietnam then don’t miss out on HCM.
This particular part of the trip was especially special for me since I am half Vietnamese and it had always been a dream of mine to visit part of my heritage. I actually still have family in HCM so I was able to coordinate through my mother (since neither me or my Auntie and Uncle speak each other’s language) a dinner with everyone at my Aunt and Uncle’s house. It was a truly special moment to experience that and also very comforting to know that I have family in another part of the world who cares so much about me and my family. They also prepared a massive feast which was the perfect introduction to the amazing cuisine of this country!
We stayed in HCM for a total of 3 nights, which I felt was a decent amount of time to see the sites inside the city and its surroundings. We did a few tours, explored the city, and visited war memorials and sites which, as an American, might not be the greatest feeling but provides an interesting perspective on what really happened in Vietnam.
Location: Ben Thanh District
We stayed in a very central location in relation to most of the sites, which were all in walking distance. In this area are plenty of shops and restaurants and is quite a busy area with lots of cars and buses and of course millions of scooters, something that Vietnam is iconic for. I definitely recommend staying here if you want to be central to majority of the city.
Accommodation: Oscar Saigon Hotel
We were very fortunate to have been to able to stay here. It was quite the luxury after staying in hostels for the previous portion of the trip, thanks to my Aunt and Uncle who set us up here. The service, cleanliness, and space of the hotel were very nice and of course you couldn’t beat the location. We were literally at the foot of the main street so you could easily get to anywhere in the city either by foot or cab. They also had a massive buffet breakfast every morning on the top level of the building which made for a nice view of HCM city.
Food & Dining
My Bahn Mi
This place was located within walking distance from our hotel and was a great place for lunch, especially for bahn mi. Shocking, I know. They had some really nice selection of sandwiches and sauces to choose from, although nothing beats getting it from a vendor on the street. This place was actually owned by a guy from SoCal and he was very sweet and very down to earth. It made our time during our lunches quite nice, we actually went twice!
- Cost: 56,000 dong ($2.50)
Nha hang Ngon
This restaurant was also within walking distance from our hotel. It was a beautiful setting and an absolutely massive restaurant. There were so many people there and also so many waiting that I was unsure if we would even get a seat but the place was large enough so we got seated pretty quickly. This place was recommended to me by my cousin who had lived there for a summer with my Aunt and Uncle and so glad we tried it. It was definitely my favorite dinner in HCM and I highly recommend it. The scenery was beautiful and the food was fresh. Lots of variety to choose from and the food came ridiculously quick. I think we were there for a total of 20 minutes.
Activities
Mekong Delta
My Aunt booked a full day tour for us through Saigon Tourist which is a very popular tour company that provides tons of different tour options throughout the city. They picked us up from our hotel and took us to the edge of the Delta which took around an hour, but our guide provided some very interesting facts about Vietnam which I enjoyed. Then we traveled by boat along the Mekong stopping at different islands where we were completely immersed in the Vietnamese culture. Here are a few things that you will experience on the tour:
- Eat the Vietnamese local fruit
- Drink tea and nectar from honey bees, so yum!
- Watch how they crack open a coconut and yes you can drink the coconut milk too
- See how they make coconut candy
- Eat a local lunch prepared for by local villagers
- For the daring, try fermented snake wine (only the boys did as it’s supposed to help with “libido”)
- Cruise the Mekong Delta via small boat through the river bush as they did during the war
Cu Chi Tunnels
This was another tour that was booked through Saigon Tourist, which picked us up from our hotel but was only a half day tour. I highly recommend seeing this as it was a vital way how the Vietnamese won the war. And if you don’t know already as an American they call the war the American War and it is very pro communist and propagandist, which you will also find in the War Museum in the city. As an American it was very interesting to see the other side of the Vietnam War and how they survived during this time.
You also have the opportunity to go about 100m through the very small and narrow tunnels, which gives you a true indication as to how small these tunnels actually are. A lot of people only went through a third of the way or completely opted out because of how narrow and claustrophobic it can get down there. At the end Josh even admitted to almost having a panic attack. I am quite small so I didn’t struggle too much but I honestly have no idea how they survived that long in such a small space, truly amazing! At the end of the tour we had a nice local snack and tea, which they actually served you everywhere despite the heat!
Behn Thanh Market
This market is one of the largest in HCM and is highly recommended to visit as one of the top things to see in the city. It’t worth a look but it’s not as impressive as other markets and because it is inside it got extremely hot after walking around for a while. They will also haggle you a lot too if you seem even a little interested in something so be weary of that if you are just browsing, it may ruin your experience. But overall the market is pretty massive and it’s cool to see what kind of items they sell.
War Remnants Museum
As we were walking around the city we passed by the War Museum around 2:30pm which we knew we definitely want to check out, but it closed at 4pm so we weren’t sure if an hour and a half was enough time to check everything out so we decided to go the following day. And oh boy, glad we did. They actually close the museum down in the middle of the day for lunch so you have to decide if you want to see it in the morning or afternoon so we decided for the afternoon and we ended up staying for 4 hours until close! I totally did not expect that but when you go will you understand.
It was a very moving and interesting museum but as I mentioned before just understand that it is very pro communism and propagandist. Regardless of that though it opened my eyes up to so many different parts of the war that I had no idea about, which left me feeling a bit sad at the end but I think is something necessary that everyone should see for themselves.
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