Ho Chi Minh City, formerly named and still also referred to as Saigon, is the largest city in Vietnam. The city lies along the Saigon River to the north of the Mekong River delta.
You can find amazing architecture, illuminating museums, and a must-see marketplace. Here are the top things to do there on your trip.
Top 10 Things to do in Ho Chi Minh City
Top 10 things to do in Ho Chi Minh City
Must-see attractions
Must-see attractions
BEN THANH MARKET
The market is one of the earliest surviving structures in Saigon and an important symbol of Ho Chi Minh City. At Ben Thanh Market you can expect to find almost everything that the locals might need in their day to day lives: from fresh meats and vegetables to clothes, domestic items, pots, woven baskets and bamboo ladders…
- Opening Hours: Daily 6:00 –24:00
- Address: Le Loi, Ben Thanh, District 1, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
REUNIFICATION PALACE
Reunification Palace (or Independence Palace) built on the site of the former Norodom Palace, is a landmark in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. It was designed by architect Ngo Viet Thu and was the home and workplace of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. It was the site of the end of the Vietnam War during the Fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, when a North Vietnamese Army tank crashed through its gates.
- Opening Hours: Daily 07:30–11:00 and 13:00–16:00
- Address: 135 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL
Saigon Notre Dame Cathedral, built in the late 1880s by French, is one of the few remaining strongholds of Catholicism in the largely Buddhist Vietnam. Located in Paris Square, the name Notre Dame was given after the installation of the statue ‘Peaceful Notre Dame’ in 1959
In 1962, the Vatican conferred the Cathedral status as a basilica and gave it the official name of Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica. Measuring almost 60 metres in height, the cathedral’s distinctive neo-Romanesque features include the all-red brick façade (which were imported from Marseille), stained glass windows, two bell towers containing six bronze bells that still ring to this day, and a peaceful garden setting in the middle of downtown Ho Chi Minh City District 1.
VIETNAM NATIONAL MUSEUM OF HISTORY
The Vietnam National Museum of History is in a building that typifies Indochinese architecture. One of many museums in Ho Chi Minh City, this site offers a range of artifacts from Vietnam’s long history Find stunning Indochinese architecture and a vast collection of ancient artifacts when you view this superb museum collection housed in an architecturally impressive building.
- Tuesday to Sunday: 8:00 to 11:30 and 13:30 to 17:00 – Closed on Monday
- Address: 2 Nguyen Binh Khiem Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
JADE EMPEROR PAGODA
Jade Emperor Pagoda (Chua Ngoc Hoang or Phuoc Hai Tu) is one of the most revered temples in Ho Chi Minh City. Built in the 1900s by Taoists and Buddhists, the Jade Emperor Pagoda is simultaneously spiritual and awe-inspiring in scale and ambition. Beneath a roof adorned with elaborate depictions of dragons, birds, and animals, this fascinating pagoda is filled with exquisite gilt woodcarvings…
U.S. President Barack Obama visited Jade Emperor Pagoda as his first destination after arriving in Ho Chi Minh City on May – 2016.
- Address: 73 Mai Thi Luu, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
CU CHI TUNNELS
Located about 50 km to the northwest of Ho Chi Minh City, Cu Chi tunnel is the miniature of the creative and transformed battle of Cu Chi people and soldiers in the fierce fight, lasting for 30 years against the aggressors for independence, freedom of the country With its victory scale, Cu Chi tunnel went into the history of heroic struggle of the Vietnamese as a legend of the 20th century and became famous in the world…
- Opening Hours: 07:00 – 17:00
- Address: Cu Chi District, Ho Chi Minh City
WAR REMNANTS MUSEUM
Situated in the city center, War Remnants Museum is consistently popular with all tourists in Ho Chi Minh City. By visiting one of the most famous history museums, the War Remnants Museum, you have totally transformed your ordinary visit to Ho Chi Minh City to an intellectual yet remarkable trip.
- Opening Hours: 8:00 to 11:45 and 13:30 to 16:45
- Address: 28 Vo Van Tan, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City
NGUYEN HUE WALKING STREET
“Nguyen Hue Walking Street” is the most beautiful and largest street in Ho Chi Minh City with colorful decoration and modern water foutain system. The city’s residents, foreign tourists, and people from neighboring provinces came to the walking zone to enjoy the wonderful atmosphere. Every Tet holiday, the street is flooded with flowers of all kinds and all colors which are decorated splendidly and impressively according to each year’s theme. On this occasion millions of visitors come here to enjoy the beauty of Nguyen Hue Flower Street.
DE THAM – PHAM NGU LAO STREET
De Tham – Pham Ngu Lao Street in Ho Chi Minh City is on the western edge of District 1 and is renowned as the place where most backpacking travellers stay during their holiday. Dozens of inexpensive guest houses, cheap pubs and local restaurants line the sidewalks of this street that’s popular among younger crowds and the backpacker set. Known for its noise, traffic and pure chaos, Pham Ngu Lao draws travelers looking to experience the energy of Ho Chi Minh without a filter.
VAM SAT SALT-MARSH FOREST ECOLOGICAL TOURIST ZONE
Within the Can Gio Mangrove Reserve, Vam Sat Salt-Marsh Forest Ecological Tourist Zone is located within a section of forest between the Vam Sat and Long Tau Rivers that was destroyed during the Vietnam War, now regrown and protected as a wilderness park. Visitors here can explore Bat Swamp to fish for crab or spot for flying foxes hanging from the tree branches, and there’s a crocodile farm where you can take a boat tour and toss fish treats to the hungry reptiles. A 50-foot-tall wildlife observation tower offers a great vantage point for birdwatching or taking panoramic pictures of the marsh wilderness, and at Monkey Island you can stroll island trails among thousands of monkeys.
Plan your trip from Ho Chi Minh City
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