Here’s how our travel to Ho Chi Minh City came about. And, I think it’s OK to start an article with the C word – well it did mess up the world’s travel plans for almost three years. By the time Covid travel restrictions did finally ease off, and that was a long road in New Zealand, we were chomping at the bit for some time away and a bit of adventure. After so much time stuck in the home town, a weekend getaway an hour down the road was beginning to feel intrepid.
So literally, on the day restrictions for returning back to New Zealand came to an end, we jumped online to see if you could still even get a flight out, to somewhere a little more exciting. Not that NZ isn’t great, but when you can’t leave, you can’t help wanting to be somewhere else. The conversation went pretty much like this;
– ‘Wow, I’ve found a great price for the four of us to fly into Vietnam and out of Thailand with a month in between. We could just meander overland all the way there through Cambodia’
– ‘That sounds great. Shit, book it before the cost goes up’
6 minutes of form filling later
– ‘Booked, whohoo’.
After booking those flights, we then discovered that doing the trip overland was going to take a lot of time on buses and long border crossings. The roads through the border regions are very slow. If we were back in our backpacking days and time felt more unlimited I reckon overlanding it all would be a blast. But on trips these days, our time is limited; and doing those long bus trips with a 10 and 12 year old wouldn’t be the same experience – at that age they’re just not going to get the same experience out of it. So we actually ended up doing more internal flying than we’d anticipated to make it all happen. And what an absolutely amazing trip it was.
We flew into Saigon / Ho Chi Minh just a few days before Christmas. Saigon is such a fantastic place to start a South East Asian trip. Heat, humidity, crazy crazy mopeds, beeping, amazing food every few metres, 24/7 flurry and enterprise, beeping, phenomenal coffee, big smiles, beeping, tangible history contrasting with the sparkling new infrastructure, and an entrepreneurial moving forward attitude, and beeping.
We spent just two full days in Saigon. When we were last in Vietnam a few years back we’d been to the big Saigon tourist hotspots, so on this trip we were there as a jump off point and to do more simple soaking up of the pace and atmosphere of South East Asia. The tourist spots are, of course, definitely worth the trip for sure though so – here’s our recommendation of places you’d be crazy to miss – the places that showcase the rich history and vibrant culture of Vietnam.
One of the top places to delve into the country’s past is the War Remnants Museum. With its compelling exhibits, the museum provides a poignant perspective on the Vietnam War and its aftermath. Featuring powerful displays of military equipment, photographs, and personal accounts. It offers you a chance to understand the impact of the conflict and the resilience of the Vietnamese people. Some of the images and themes are pretty intense and so if you’re there with kids, you’ll likely need to do some explaining. Maybe even some censoring of a few of the photos. I think it’s worth exposing kids to the real world – and that is all that’s good and the reality of the bad. It certainly helped them get some perspective on how good their own lives are even though when we visited they were several years younger. It was still a highlight for us all.
https://goo.gl/maps/KTZS5AQyX75LK6Kr6
The Cu Chi Tunnels, located just outside the city, give you an opportunity to experience the underground network used by Viet Cong during the war. Exploring these tunnels provides an immersive insight into the ingenuity and resilience of the Vietnamese people. And you get to shoot the place up too if you’re that way inclined, with the Vietnamese and American weapons of that war. Quite a few people on the trip we were on back in the day thought that was a little out of sorts. But hell, I picked the Kalashnikov and Lou picked the M16. Someone will make a living out of it right!!
Book a trip here; https://www.getyourguide.com/cu-chi-tunnels-l3671/
Another significant historical site is the Reunification Palace, an essential for any travel to Ho Chi Minh City, which played a pivotal role in Vietnam’s reunification process. Formerly known as the Independence Palace, it was the site of the dramatic fall of Saigon in 1975, marking the end of the Vietnam War. Definitely worth a look inside for an hour or so. There are a few helicopters dotted in the grounds which helped give it a sense of the clips we’ve all seen of the final days of the fall of the South as well as add a bit more interest for the younger visitors.
https://goo.gl/maps/mD2rxKQBChmM2dpbA
I remember a trip to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum years ago. It was towards the end of a long hot day and the queue to see Ho Chi Minh’s preserved body inside was way too long for our patience, exhaustion and hunger level. The grounds and whole complex are a great place to visit though even without heading in to see Ho Chi Minh’s embalmed body. Everyone enjoyed just wandering around and experiencing the reverence that’s held for Ho Chi Minh, evident at every turn from the well clipped pristine gardens to the sharp uniforms. If you are planning on going in, maybe go early in the day before exhaustion sets in. A big enough excursion to work up a bit more of an appetite for more great Vietnamese food.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ho_Chi_Minh_Mausoleum
Saigon is a city that blends the old with the new. The Notre-Dame Cathedral of Saigon would be a great place to see this and is in every guide book. But every time we’ve been, it’s been shrouded in scaffolding. One day maybe. But a really cool place actually to experience the old and the new as well as see it, is to grab a drink at the Hotel Continental. You feel like you’re in a scene from The Quiet American.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Continental,_Ho_Chi_Minh_City
For our travel in Ho Chi Minh City this time around, the highlights were still on the tourist trail but they’re the kinds of places you could just keep heading back to time and time again.
The Ben Thanh Market is a vibrant hub where locals and tourists converge. It’s Vietnam style bustle, but without being chaos, where you can experience the essence of Saigon’s bustling trade and a taste of the city’s cultural heritage. From amazing mouth watering street food, to traditional handicrafts and souvenirs – which made it hard to pull the kids away from the place, the market offers an authentic glimpse into Vietnamese daily life. You’ll inevitably leave with a whole bunch of mementos and items to enhance your trip. Like a T-Shirt stating how much you love Pho (a must have if you feel you don’t look touristy enough just yet), or a bead bracelet to prove you’re a real traveller. The jewellery is really nice here and really well made. I still have a few pieces around 10 years on and going strong, from a previous trip. Expect to spend several hours here, eating, drinking, browsing, and bargaining. It’s great.
https://goo.gl/maps/7sE9WxFAAXqB99cV9
A great intro to Vietnamese food is to cook it. Luke Nguyen’s cooking school, Grain, is great fun for any age. They really look after you – but don’t drink too many of the coffees or you may be awake for days. Our kids love Asian food but I think this would be a great way to introduce someone who was unsure, as making it yourself makes all the difference for the kids. And because the chefs are on hand, what you end up with is pretty damn tasty. It’s a fantastic half day activity.
http://www.grainsaigon.com/index.html
For something a little different, and somewhere to head for, for more coffee and to work up an appetite (again) so you can fit in more delicious food and drink, make a beeline for the Coffee Apartments. It’s a bit strange in there as you head up the stairs – you’re left wondering if you’re in the place you could see from the street outside as it feels a bit like a closed down apartment block. Then you turn a corner and a vibrant cafe springs into view, and then another and so on. We headed up to the Saigon Oi for great coffee with a shit load of cream on top. Indulgence and fun – what else did you come for??
https://www.facebook.com/saigonoicafe/
Of course, you’ll want to have great Pho every morning for breakfast. And the options are simply unending. Want a recommendation for amazing Pho? Check out this place for utter deliciousness with mountains of fresh herbs for you to pile on as you see fit. You’ll mostly need to point at stuff to communicate but wow!! They also have a desert yoghurt that I still don’t have the name for – but again, point to it as all the locals will be eating it too.
https://goo.gl/maps/uUmJjv7FXXBj2MpV9
And for more amazing food and great beer in a really funky spot head to Propaganda. The funk is definitely more than surface level. The food is fantastic with some of the best Banh Mi in town, delicious salads, noodle dishes, spring rolls and great ice cream. The beers are great too as is the awesome selection of healthy soft drinks, which will keep you there a while longer. Plus, more merch to take home with you to keep your trip close for longer. This place is well worth a visit and you may want to book ahead.
https://propagandabistros.com/
Ok, one more food place. But this is a destination. Ngon Restaurant is the best place in Ho Chi Minh City to experience the whole range of food from across Asia, all under one roof, in a beautiful setting. The food is truly delicious. Plan to spend a good few hours here for an evening meal that will become a veritable feast. Everyone loved eating like royalty for a few hours. Try the Ban Xiao. My god I can still imagine tasting it right now and it’s making my mouth water.
https://www.facebook.com/Nhahang.QuanAnNgon/
For more information on Saigon’s attractions and travel tips, you can visit websites like Lonely Planet’s Saigon page or Tripadvisor’s Ho Chi Minh City page.
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/vietnam/ho-chi-minh-city
In conclusion, travel in Ho Chi Minh City, and just walking the streets of Saigon filled us with energy – and a little sweat of course. It’s a brilliant, vibrant, bustling city, with lots of beeping. The people are welcoming, warm and helpful and full of smiles. And the great thing about a few days in the big city is, however many tourists there may be, you never feel like you’re in a tourist trap as there’s just so much regular daily life going on. That’s how to see a country and culture for what it really is. What better place could there be to kick off a South East Asian trip?
From here we headed to the train station for the trip out of town. The trains are an experience you’ll not soon forget – neither are the places they’ll take you. Next stop, the coast and Santa.
Also, check out our food blog here on some of our favourite Vietnamese dishes while on our awesome trip.
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