Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

Officially Ho Chi Minh City; almost everyone still says Saigon. The southern capital is louder, hotter, and more obviously modern than Hanoi — skyscrapers, a metro under construction, and a food scene that mixes northern, central, and southern Vietnamese with French colonial leftovers. The historical sites cluster in District 1: the War Remnants Museum, the Reunification Palace, the Notre-Dame Basilica, the central post office. The Cu Chi tunnels day trip is the most-booked add-on. Stay long enough to do an evening on Bui Vien street, then escape to a rooftop bar for the air.

Tourist map of Ho Chi Minh City showing District 1 landmarks — Notre-Dame Cathedral, Reunification Palace, War Remnants Museum, Saigon Central Post Office, Ben Thanh Market — Tourist map — tap to enlarge.

Tourist map of District 1 in Ho Chi Minh City — close-up of central landmarks and street layout — District 1 inset — tap to enlarge.

Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon with twin red-brick neo-Romanesque bell towers rising above the central square as motorbikes stream past in warm afternoon light — Notre-Dame Basilica of Saigon.

The Saigon Central Post Office interior, an ornate French colonial hall with arched green-painted ironwork, vintage wooden phone booths, vaulted ceiling, and a large portrait of Ho Chi Minh — Saigon Central Post Office interior.

The iconic clock-tower facade of Ben Thanh Market above a busy street with motorbikes and cyclos passing in front and vendors with conical hats outside in warm evening light — Ben Thanh Market entrance.

Bui Vien walking street at night, a neon-lit backpacker district packed with bars, food carts, and travelers seated on plastic stools — Bui Vien walking street at night.

The Reunification Palace, a modernist 1960s government building with a manicured lawn and a vintage tank on display in the foreground under a blue afternoon sky — Reunification Palace.

A narrow earthen tunnel entrance at the Cu Chi Tunnels hidden among jungle leaves with a weathered wooden trapdoor and dappled tropical light filtering through the canopy — Cu Chi tunnels day trip.

A Saigon street pho stall at dawn with steaming bowls of beef noodle soup, fresh herbs and lime, and a vendor ladling broth from a giant simmering pot for customers on tiny plastic stools — Saigon pho stall at dawn.

A banh mi street cart at night with a vendor slicing crusty baguette filled with pate, pickled vegetables, fresh cilantro, and grilled pork in a warmly lit glass case — Banh mi street cart at night.

← Back to Vietnam · All Destinations