SAIGON TRAVEL: A HANDBOOK FROM A TO Z (Part 1)

Overview of Saigon tourism

Dubbed the "Pearl of the Far East", Ho Chi Minh City has long been a cultural, economic and political center of Vietnam.

Traveling to Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City, where more than 300 years old, you can meet high-rise buildings close to each other, amusement parks, busy shopping centers, but also no shortage of quaint villas, traditional markets have existed for hundreds of years. Saigon is large and does not lack the "specialty" tourism such as Saigon River Cruise by boat, visiting West Pham Ngu Lao Street, shopping at Ben Thanh Market or returning to Can Gio beach...

The beauty of Notre Dame Cathedral. Photo: Marty Windle

Climate

Ho Chi Minh City has two distinct seasons: the rainy season from May to November, the dry season from December to April. If you come here in the rainy season, you should bring an umbrella or a raincoat when going out because Saigon Saigon is famous for sudden rains. In addition, Ho Chi Minh City is also a place filled with golden sunshine. It is estimated that there are 270 hours of sunshine a month, the average temperature of 27 ° C, the highest up to 40 ° C but not too harsh as other places.

Vehicles when traveling to Saigon

Transportation for tourists in Saigon is mainly motorcycles, cars, bicycles, buses, cyclo. The cheapest public transport is the bus at only 5,000VND / route, followed by motorbike taxi and taxi. Currently, the traffic density in Ho Chi Minh City is quite crowded, many parts of the city traffic jams occur during the working hours: from 7:00 am - 8:00 am and 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Cyclo is a vehicle loved by many travelers. Photo: Baomoi

Phone number to know

• University College of Medicine: 028 3855 4269
• Hospital District 1: 028 38202060
• Cho Ray Hospital: 028 38554137
• FV Hospital: 028 54 11 33 33
• Fire fighting: 114
• Police: 113
• Emergency: 115

The main areas of Saigon tourism

With a long history of development, Ho Chi Minh City today is very large and crowded with more than 8 million people. To help you not to be overwhelmed by the bustle of this metropolis, we would like to highlight the main areas in Saigon that you can visit.

SAIGON RIVER

The busiest area along the Saigon River is Ton Duc Thang Street, also in the center of Ho Chi Minh City. This road has high-class hotels and restaurants, from which you can admire the poetic Saigon River in the afternoons. There is a pier for visitors to take a tour of the Saigon River or try dining out at floating restaurants on the river.

The area along the banks of the Saigon River is a favorite spot for many travelers. Photo: proview-land

SAIGON NOTRE-DAME BASILICA

This is the central area of ​​District 1, Ho Chi Minh City. The Church area clearly shows the "character" of Saigon city. Near the ancient church is the opposite image of the modern reinforced concrete buildings. From Notre Dame Cathedral, you can visit Independence Palace, shop at Diamond Plaza, walk around Dong Khoi Street, go to Con Rua Lake, drink coffee on Han Thuyen Street ...

The ancient beauty of Notre Dame Cathedral. Photo: kientrucxd

NGUYEN HUE STREET - DISTRICT 1

This is a street in the center of Ho Chi Minh City, the two sides of the road have many hotels, high-end shopping malls, some areas have existed for hundreds of years, they have the appearance of classical European architecture. Go straight on Nguyen Hue Street in the direction of Southeast, you will come to Ton Duc Thang Street, along the Saigon River. Especially, every Lunar New Year every year, Nguyen Hue Street becomes extremely brilliant, where flowers gather to bloom to welcome spring. Flower Street is displayed for about 7-10 days, usually from December 28 to the 5th of New Year.

Nguyen Hue Flower Street is crowded and colorful in Tet

BEN THANH MARKET

Dating from the 19th century, Ben Thanh market is like a witness to history through many changes of the time. The market has 4 ports of East-West-South-North facing the main roads in the center of Saigon. Coming here, visitors can shop for a lot of souvenir products, fabrics, clothes, handicrafts.

The beauty of Ben Thanh market in the evening. Photo: ST

WESTERN TOWN

"West Street" includes Pham Ngu Lao, De Tham and surrounding streets in the center of District 1, Ho Chi Minh City. This place has been put into the list of tourist guides by the famous travel magazine Lonely Planet when visiting Ho Chi Minh City. West Street is very near Ben Thanh Market, a bus stop that transports guests around the city.

CHINESE AREA - DISTRICT 5

The Chinatown is the busiest shopping center in Saigon. This is also a crowded living area of ​​Chinese people in the South. Here you can enjoy a very rich cuisine, there are dishes with Chinese style but there are also dishes that have been slightly changed to suit Vietnamese people. Around the Chinese neighborhood are the largest wholesale and retail markets such as the Binh Tay market, Kim Bien market, Soai Kinh Lam cloth market …

Tourist destinations not to be missed when traveling to Saigon

UNIFIED HALL (INDEPENDENT)

The work is designed according to Feng Shui and Eastern architecture but very modern. Visiting Independence Palace, visitors can admire many items from the old regime as well as the evidence marking the independence day of April 30, 1975.

Opening hours: 7:30 am - 11:00 am, 13:00 pm - 4:00 pm (daily); Address: 135 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, P. Ben Nghe, District 1; Ticket price: Adult: 30,000 VND / person / time, students: 15,000 VND /person/time, students: 3,000 VND /person/time, guests from groups of 20 will receive a 1/3 reduction of the ticket price; Parking motorbike at Independence Palace Gate on Nguyen Du street, parking lot in Tao Dan Park on Huyen Tran Cong Chua Street.

Independence Palace. Photo: yatlat

NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL

Located right on the main road in the city center, Notre Dame Cathedral has gradually become a symbol of Saigon city. It stands out with European architecture combining beautiful Roman and Gothic style, with the largest pair of bells in Vietnam. Notre Dame Cathedral is the most beautiful and most important cathedral of Saigon diocese, the pride of the city people. The area around Notre Dame Cathedral has the most beautiful landscape in Saigon.

Opening hours: Visit: Morning 8h30 - 10h00, afternoon 14h30 - 15h30 (Monday - Friday); Mass time: Morning 5h30, afternoon 17h00 (Monday - Saturday), Sunday: 5:30, 6:30, 7:30, 9:30 (for foreigners), 16:00, 17:00, 18:30; Address: Số 1 Xã Xã Paris, P. Bến Nghé, Q.1.

BEN THANH MARKET

The Market is located in the heart of the city, 4 doors overlooking Quach Thi Trang Square and other major roads of the city such as Phan Boi Chau, Phan Chu Trinh, and Le Thanh Ton. Inside the market, there are enough traditional and modern items to make as gifts for family and friends. At night, around the market becomes more bustling with shops of clothes, crowded restaurants.

Opening hours: 7:00 am - 7:00 pm daily; Address: Located between Phan Boi Chau - Phan Chu Trinh - Le Thanh Ton - Quach Thi Trang Square, Ben Thanh Ward - District 1.

BINH TAY MARKET (BIG MARKET)

Located in Chinatown, the Big market is the wholesale market supplying goods to many provinces in the South and the whole country. Goods range from dry foods, cereals, dried seafood to clothes, shoes, and children's toys. In the area where many Chinese people live, many of the living habits and behavior of Big markets are also greatly affected.

Opening hours: 7:00 am - 6:00 pm daily; Address: 57A Thap Muoi, Ward 12, District 6

CAN GIO

About 50 km from the center of Ho Chi Minh City, Can Gio has both forest and sea so fresh seafood is available. There are also many quite interesting attractions such as the Vam Sac mangrove forest, Monkey Island, the tourist area and the beach April 30, the Mausoleum of General Thuy Tuong Nam Hai ... Every year on August 16 of the lunar calendar of Nghinh festival He held very solemnly here with hundreds of boats attending.

Transportation: From Ben Thanh Market, you take the bus route to Nha Be, the bus will stop at this side of the Binh Khanh ferry. You buy tickets by ferry, after crossing the ferry (arrived in Can Gio) you take another bus route to the sea. On the way, if you want to visit any point, please get off because the car in Can Gio has no station to pick up or get off; By motorbike: From Nguyen Van Linh Boulevard, District 7 turn right to Huynh Tan Phat Street, straight to the end of the road is Binh Khanh ferry. By ferry, go straight one way to the town of Can Thanh, where Can Gio beach and many other attractions along this road.

Fishermen at Can Gio beach. Photo: ST

SUOI TIEN TOURIST AREA

Located at the northeast of Saigon gateway, 19km from the city center, Suoi Tien is an entertainment destination that attracts many tourists when coming to Ho Chi Minh City. Suoi Tien is also a place of cultural and historical education through sightseeing places built on the ideas of national legends and Eastern ideology.

Opening hours: 8:00 - 17:30 (Mon - Fri), 8:00 - 18:00 (Sat and Sun), 6:30 - 22:00 (Tet Holiday). Entrance ticket: VND 60,000 / adult, VND 30,000 / child; Tickets for games: 5,000 - 40,000 VND / time; Address: 120 Ha Noi Highway, Tan Phu Ward, District 9; Transfer from Ben Thanh Market: Take Bus No. 19 or ride a motorbike through Thu Thiem Tunnel, straight to Hanoi Highway.

An amusement park in Suoi Tien resort. Photo: angididau

VIETNAM HISTORY MUSEUM

Vietnam History Museum was built in 1929, formerly known as the Blanchard de la Brosse Museum. Visiting here, you will admire, learn about tens of thousands of valuable artifacts. In addition, the museum also has more than 25,000 books and precious documents for archeological and ethnological research…

Opening hours: Morning 8:00 am - 11:30 am; 13h30 - 16h30 (Tue-Sun); Entrance ticket: VND 2,000 / adult, VND 1,000 / child (Vietnamese guests), VND 15,000 / person (foreign visitors); Address: No. 2, Nguyen Binh Khiem Street, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1 (next to the Zoo and Botanical Gardens).

Vietnam History Museum. Photo: ST

WAR REMNANTS MUSEUM

Visitors here will feel the most honest about a fierce war period, to further appreciate what is in the present. Artifacts such as airplanes, cannons, tanks, guillotines and two "tiger cages" compartments were built in the right size at Con Dao prison. There are also galleries on the Southwest Border War, the war to protect the northern border, the Spratly Islands issue, the conspiracy of hostile forces ...

Opening hours: Morning 7h30 - 12h00, 13h30 - 17h00 (daily); Entrance ticket: VND 15,000 / time / person (foreign visitors), VND 2,000 / person (Vietnamese visitors); Address: No. 28 Vo Van Tan Street, District 3.

War Remnants Museum. Photo: sotaydulich

CU CHI TUNNELS

Cu Chi Tunnels are 70 km northwest of Ho Chi Minh City. This is the miniature of the battle of the army and people of Cu Chi in the fierce resistance war for 30 years. Cu Chi Tunnels make the current generation admired by the work deep in the ground, with many floors, many nooks and crannies like spider webs, accommodation, meeting and fighting with a total length of over 200 km.

Foreign tourists are visiting Cu Chi Tunnels. Photo: dulichsaigon

Cu Chi Tunnels have two points:

Ben Duoc Tunnels: The base of the Party Committee & Military Region of Saigon - Gia Dinh is preserved in Phu Hiep Hamlet, Phu My Hung Commune, Cu Chi district. Directions: Lines 13 and 79, take bus No. 13 from Ben Thanh to Cu Chi bus station, then take bus 79 from Cu Chi bus station to Ben Duoc.

Ben Dinh Tunnels: Cu Chi district Party Committee base is preserved in Ben Dinh Hamlet, Nhuan Duc Commune, Cu Chi district. Directions: Tourists take bus route No. 4 from Ben Thanh to An Suong. Then continue to take route 122 from An Suong Bus Station to An Nhon Tay, get off.

General notes:

• Total time to visit and move: Half-day
• Ticket price: VND 100,000 / foreigner, VND 20,000 / Vietnamese guest. In the tunnel, visitors will be eating cassava and drinking tea for free.
• Other means of transport: If traveling by motorbike, you can follow the bus route. Rent a taxi from the city center to the tunnel is about 600,000 - 700,000 VND / time. It is possible to rent a cheaper tour car by taxi.
• Sports shoes should be worn for ease of passage in the tunnels.

 

SAI GON RIVER TRIP

The winding flow of the Saigon River through the 37km city area is a very beautiful landscape space. Try once to experience the riverside cruise, you will discover the very special features of Saigon with the wild, wild beauty of the river in the bustling urban area. The forms of sightseeing include boat trips along the river to Nha Be, Can Gio; Canoes to Lai Thieu; sightseeing with dinner on restaurant board Depending on the quality of service, the cost of a trip along with the Saigon River costs from 80,000 VND / person or more.

Address: Many excursions on the Saigon River start from Bach Dang harbor on Ton Duc Thang Street (District 1, Ho Chi Minh City) or Saigon Port at 3 Nguyen Tat Thanh, District 4, Ho Chi Minh City. You can contact directly with Saigon cruise ship: 0283 8230 393, Ben Nghe cruise ship: 028 8231 475, cruise ship 168: 0283 8296 820, My Canh cruise ship: 0283 8223 299.

Take a boat to visit the Saigon River in the evening. Photo: tapchiduthuyen

THU THIEM TUNNEL

Southeast Asia's largest river crossing tunnel and the entire East-West Highway TP. HCM inaugurated on 11/20.

Thu Thiem Tunnel. Photo: citinews

PLAYER PRIME

With a prime location across the Saigon River winding around the beautiful downtown of Ho Chi Minh City, Thu Thiem Bridge has gradually become a favorite destination for young Saigon people today.

After a hard-working day, Thu Thiem Bridge is a wonderful meeting place among countless luxurious cafes. Standing on the bridge, watching the city at night sparkling with light and refreshing to enjoy the cool breeze, really very comfortable. It really is an experience that travelers should not miss.

A corner of Thu Thiem bridge. Photo: digiphotoclub