One week in Ho Chi Minh City

Over the last three years I have spend several weeks in and around Ho Chi Minh City. In this post I have collected everything you need for the ultimate itinerary for one week in Ho Chi Minh City. Ho Chi Minh City, previously called Saigon or Sài Gòn had a name change after the end of the US-Vietnam war in 1976. The vibes of the city are very different to other big cities in Vietnam like Hanoi or Da Nang.

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Overview of one week in Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon

• Where to stay in Ho Chi Minh City
• What to do in Ho Chi Minh City
• Places to see for free in Ho Chi Minh City
• Workshops in Ho Chi Minh City
• What to eat and drink in Ho Chi Minh City
• Day Trips from Ho Chi Minh City
• TLDR, show me a map with everything important

Where to stay in Ho Chi Minh City

Personally, I don’t stay at hostels. Many do and many have good experiences there, but it not for me for several reasons. The cleanliness of a space is the most important factor for me, even before considering costs. And for that reason I also like my own bathroom. One of the places I used to recommend in 2023 doesn’t exist anymore, but in 2026 I stayed at a new accommodation, owned and managed by a couple and it was perfect.

Austin & Vanessa have two properties where they rent our rooms Austin Home and A&V Home. I stayed at the latter in a room for solo travellers twice in 2026. The property was very clean, the bed was comfortable and the bathroom was ideal with a hot shower with great pressure. On the ground floor is a communal kitchen with a drinking water filter machine, on the first floor is a laundry room where you can wash and dry for free and on the second floor is a living room that is ideal for working, reading or journaling on a rainy day. They also have great guidebooks for the surrounding areas – without which I wouldn’t have found some of the food spots I listed here!

Christina’s – Hotel & Café* (on Expedia* / on Hotels*) is a mid range choice for longer stays. With clean, modern rooms and lofts, with en-suite bathrooms, balconies and comfortable community spaces like a rooftop terrace, working space and a kitchen right in the middle of HCMC. I stayed with them in Hanoi in 2019 as well and can wholeheartedly recommend them. You have your privacy as a solo traveller without breaking the bank, but can still meet people in the community areas.

For a more luxury experience choose La Siesta Premium Sai Gon (on Agoda* / on Booking* / on Expedia*) or New World Saigon Hotel* (on Agoda* / on Booking* / on Expedia*). Both are located near the centre. They are on top of several lists of the best consumer voted hotels in Saigon and have good reviews over several booking platforms.

Ho Chi Minh City Metro

The Ho Chi Minh City Metro was inaugurated in late 2025 and currently starts at the Ben Thanh station (Nhà Ga Ngầm Bến Thành) and connects some districts that with normal traffic take quite a while to reach on a Grab or Taxis.

I booked a ticket at one of the electronic machines (which has an English language option), plus a return ticket for the same price to the Thao Dien station (Nhà Ga Thảo Điền). The metro stations reminded me a lot of the ones in Singapore, modern, clean and efficient.

What to do in Ho Chi Minh City

Even though it is not the current capital city of Vietnam Saigon has had as much of a rich history as Hanoi, maybe even a more turbulent one. Within the city and it’s surrounding areas you can find many well curated museums as well as places of historical and cultural importance.

Museum of Ho Chi Minh City

The Museum of Ho Chi Minh City is located inside the Gia Long Palace. When the impressive baroque villa was built in 1890, during the French occupation, while south Vietnam was still known as “Indochina”, to house the Museum of Commercial Trade.

During and after 1945 the palace had many different designations, from housing governmental and military headquarters of the Japanese, US and south Vietnamese to becoming the official residence of the Premier of the State of Vietnam, then later the temporary residence of the Prime Minister. It became the “Ho Chi Minh City Revolutionary Museum” after the country was unified in 1978 and renamed to its current name in 1999.

Parts of the former palace and museum are in disrepair, but I hope with Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City becoming one of the top travel destinations in Asia they will receive the funding to improve on it in the future.

History Museum of Ho Chi Minh City

The History Museum of Ho Chi Minh City doesn’t only cover the history of the city (as the museum mentioned above does), but rather of the country and neighbouring cultures, from the prehistoric period to the Nguyễn dynasty that ended in 1945.

Independence Palace

The site has seen French occupation (twice), Japanese occupation, the “Republic of Vietnam”, a coup d’état and not one but two wars that were decided right on its doorstep. If only walls could talk…

The building you can visit today was built in in 1962 to replace the old palace, which had been destroyed by dissident nationalist south Vietnamese fighter pilots. It was once the home and workplace of the president of the Republic of Vietnam until the end of the Vietnam war. Today you can visit it as a museum and learn about the life and politics of the time between 1868 and 1975.

In 1975 after the end of the US-Vietnam war it was renamed to Reunification Convention Hall. Today both names are used frequently. The Independence Palace is one of the most fascinating places to visit in Ho Chi Minh City, read more about why I think that here: Visiting the Independence Palace in Saigon

War Remnants Museum

While you can find a military museum in any bigger city in Vietnam the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City is of a different caliber. The museum expands over several floors and buildings, as well as a fenced in courtyard with military equipment. Several permanent and temporary exhibitions range from the First Indochina War, up until the end of the Vietnam War in 1975.

Internationally the museum is regarded controversially. As for my own opinion: everything government funded is by definition propaganda to some degree. That is no reason not to visit. Only when you expand your horizon and knowledge from multiple sources you can then form your own opinion.

Southern Women’s Museum

The Southern Women’s Museum is the Ho Chi Minh City counterpart to the Vietnamese Women’s Museum in Hanoi.

Places to see for free in Ho Chi Minh City

Ten Thousand Buddha Temple

The temple is four stories high, but hidden at the end of an alley so it is usually not frequented by tourists. The walls of the temple are covered in thousands of small Buddha statues, while two big ones reside in the middle. Behind them is a giant statue of a plant bud, surrounded by local folklore characters depicting good and evil.

Cafe Apartments

This nine-storey apartment building was built in the mid-1960s to house military and government personnel and it did for many years. The transformation into the building it is known as today, filled with small cafes and shops didn’t happen until the 2010s! Today only the stairways remind of us of the original purpose of the building.

Saigon Central Post Office

A remainder of the French colonial period of southern Vietnam / Indochina, this impressive old building is still in use as a post office today! A lot of the inside is covered by souvenirs and advertisements for tours and events, but the ceiling, floors and some walls still tell of the splendor and exclusivity it once had.

Notre Dame Cathedral of Saigon

Finished in 1880 (1895 when you include the towers) this cathedral was built to give French colonists an area of worship and spread the catholic belief within the colony. All building materials were imported from France: the outer bricks are from Toulouse, the original floor tiles from Marseille and the stained glass windows from Chartres! Nowadays a lot of it has been replaced (because, oh wonder, a European building style doesn’t last in tropic climate). In 2023 when I spend one week in Ho Chi Minh City for the first time the Notre Dame Cathedral of Saigon was covered in scaffolding. That hasn’t changed until my last visit in March 2026.

Tan Dinh Church

Tan Dinh Church is also known as the pink church for obvious reasons, is another catholic church in Saigon worth a visit. The inside is also pink!

Nguyen Thien Thuat apartment blocks

These apartment blocks, some of the oldest still standing in Saigon, were built in the late 1800s, during French occupation. Today they are as much of a marvel as they once were, but for different reasons. Every block is like it’s own little village, with families of five and more staying in two bedroom flats, living above shops, schools, cafes, workshops, businesses and markets. As with other old apartment blocks in the city, the future of this part of history is uncertain.

Ho Thi Ky Flower Market

This market, made up of several streets and alleys, as well as hundreds of flower shops and stands with thousands of flowers and flower arrangements is one of the oldest flower markets in Saigon. The streets are breathtakingly colourful and the smell of the flowers covers up the smell of the city for the most part.

Hầm Vũ Khí Bí Mật Secret Weapon Cellar

During the Vietnam war the basement of this house served as a hideout and shelter for the Viet Cong operating within South Vietnam’s capital. Communist sympathisers met here, weapons were stored, some of which you can still see today. Since it was a secret hideout the basement isn’t easy to access. You have to lower yourself through a trap door that looks like the tiled floor.

Nowadays they turned this historical site into a mini museum. After you visit the basement you can also go up to the first floor where some artefacts are exhibited. Some of which are related to the Independence Palace.

The café next door “Cà Phê Đỗ Phủ” is not part of the historical site. You can visit the secret weapon cellar without having to buy anything at the café.

Workshops in Ho Chi Minh City

Conical Hat Keychain Workshop

If you are looking for a self made souvenir that involves the iconic conical hat, but the real thing is too big: Make a smaller version as a keychain instead. At the Workshop Hub they offer the keychain making workshop among many others: decorating a teddy bear, making something from stained glass, making bead bracelets and more.

More on the workshop here: Conical Hat Keychain – Crafting in Ho Chi Minh City

Magnet Portrait

Sine so many magnets at souvenir shops are AI generated I went to Veene Land to make my own instead. The process is straightforward: You pick the size of your magnet, I went with the smallest one that only includes a person, but you can also make bigger ones with frames and backgrounds, or even include multiple people. Then you pick your base, your expression, eyebrows, your hair and finally your clothes. You can also pick makeup, accessories or a “customize slot”. There are many options to choose from and yet in some aspects (skin colours) there are not enough.

Mini Lionhead Workshop

Another unique, self made souvenir is a painted mini lionhead. Liondancing is a tradition in many Eastern Asian countries und Vietnam has it’s own history connected to it. You can paint and decorate your own lion head with traditional patterns, or make it completely your own.

I wrote about the workshop here: Mini Lionhead Workshop in Ho Chi Minh City

What to eat and drink in Ho Chi Minh City

I linked all of the mentioned foods (and everything else form this post) in the map at the end of the blogpost.

Bò Né

Bò Né translates to sizzling beef, which is exactly what it is. Beef, sausage, pate and an egg, served on a sizzling hot cast iron pan, served with banh mi bread, veggies and greens. This is my favourite south Vietnamese breakfast! I had the best Bò Né from a street vendor in an alley at Hẻm 36 Trần Hưng Đạo.

Bún thịt nướng

I have listed this dish here and once more further down. It consists of rice vermicelli, spring rolls, sliced veggies, peanut sauce, pig skin crackers. The picture in the middle of the gallery below was taken at a street vendor at Binh Tay Market.

Sticky rice

Sticky rice in all kinds of variations will probably forever be my favourite meal in Vietnam. This one is from a food stand at Phùng Hưng market. When I was there they were at the end of the market, on the corner to another street. You can choose your toppings. During a food tour I got to try all of them, my favourite ones were quail egg, pork floss and mung bean paste.

Chuối Nếp Nướng

Grilled banana in sticky rice, with coconut cream “Chuối Nếp Nướng” from a street vendor at 378 Võ Văn Tần. This was my favourite lunch. It has the perfect portion size, is located between many of the things you’ll want to see in Ho Chi Minh City and isn’t too heavy.

Bánh Mì

No list of food in Vietnam is complete without Banh Mi. Of course you can also have many different Bánh Mì in Ho Chi Minh City. Some famous ones are Bánh Mì Hồng Hoa (quite touristy), Bánh Mì Huynh Hoa (the most gigantic Bánh Mì I’ve ever seen.). Close by is another street vendor selling the popular sandwich as well called Bánh Mì 37.

Since it was close to some tour starts I also stopped at Bánh mì Bùi Thị Xuân several times. Close to my homestay were Xíu Mại Chén Đèn Dầu where they mainly sell Banh Mi with meatballs thats famous in Da Lat. Last but certainly not least a personal favourite: Bánh Mì Heo Quay Bà Nam, specifically their crispy pork belly Banh Mi.

Vị Quê Kitchen

If you are vegan, or just want to try Vietnamese food, but vegan, you can eat at Vị Quê Kitchen. Their mushroom Bánh Mì was delicious and not more expensive than one from a street vendor. The fried tofu had an amazing texture as well, but I couldn’t really get on board with the cilantro dipping sauce.

Baba’s Kitchen Restaurant

After meeting a family from Mumbai in the History Museum they recommended me a restaurant with authentic and absolutely amazing Indian food: Baba’s Kitchen Restaurant. Since it will be some time until I can get to India to eat there I went and wasn’t disappointed. You should definitely try their Paratha with your meal.

Bò Lá Lốt

Bò Lá Lốt is one of my favourite street vendor foods. Minced beef is wrapped in Betel leaves and grilled. It’s good with rice vermicelli, herbs and rice paper, but honestly it’s also great on it’s own. If it’s a meal: eat it with a carb. If it’s a snack: It it by itself.

Nước mía

Nước mía = sugarcane juice is a delicacy you can find all over Vietnam. Often with street vendors who freshly grate the sugarcane to extract the juice. It is usually served with ice and Kumquat, to cut through the sweetness. Despite being made from 100% sugarcane it is not too sweet.

S’mores Saigon

If you are more a fan of something less sweet: Try the most delicious lemon ice tea, at a cafe with immaculate vibes, at S’mores Saigon. The lemon tea doesn’t sound like your cup of tead? Try the Oolong Latte or Creamy Drip Coffee instead.

Tonkin Cottage Coffe and Eatery

A tropical-themed decorated cafe with delicious drinks is Tonkin Cottage Coffee and Eatery. This cafe in the middle of an apartment block is a quiet oasis within this bustling city.

Cheese Coffee

While Cong Ca Phe can be found all over Vietnam there is another coffee chain in HCMC that really stood out to me: Cheese Coffee. I loved their Salt Coffe and Golden Boba Crepe Cake. This was my favourite Cheese Coffee location, it is great for people watching and editing your pictures while enjoying your coffee and cake. But there is another location that really stands out: Cheese Coffee – 15 Pasteur. The interior is beautifully decorated and very different from the other locations.

In the evening hours the area around Turtle Lake turns into a street vendor hotspot so you can try many different meals in one spot.

Breakfast Food Tour

The best thing to do in a new city, in my opinion, is taking a food tour with a local guide (not a travel office tour) to taste the best food spots. I went on a Breakfast Food Tour in Saigon with Saigonhappytour. They introduced me to some of the foods shown above and showed me where to get my favourites in this huge city.

TEA’SPACE – Bến Thành

This new and modern tea “house” provides a calm spot directly next / behind the Bến Thành market, which is bustling with people day and night. They had a good selection of teas, both Vietnamese and international. I went for their one person tea set and could do several brews. There is no loud music blaring in great difference to a lot of cafes in the area. If you like tea and quiet, or just need a break -> come to TEA’SPACE.

If you can’t find it: it’s through the alleyway and then to your right, up the stairs, on the 2nd floor on the left. After nightfall it looks like this:

Quán Bò Bít Tết “Aussie Meat”

At “Aussie Meat” you get meat from Australia, a fitting name indeed. I chose by price, since I couldn’t read the Vietnamese names of the different parts of the cow. It was served as “sizzling beef” in a cow shaped cast iron skillet, with egg and accompanied by banh mi, salad and some sauce. The meat was good, the quality was worth the price. Just be careful of the fat. Since it’s sizzling hot the fat splatters everywhere – and ruined my pants on the very first day in the country.

Pandachacà – Coffee & Matcha

The matcha craze has reached Vietnam. And while many cafes and restaurants use the cheaper green tea powder, sweetened and for a latte already pre mixed with sugar, some stores are real hidden gems. Pandachacà sits in an alley outside the city centre, close to my accommodation this time around. They have real matcha, prepare it the traditional way, you can choose how much sugar to add (none for me) and if you order a latte it comes perfectly separate, with the milk on the bottom and the dark green matcha on top. At the same time it mixes perfectly. No clumps, just a perfectly blended matcha latte.

Bún thịt nướng Hoàng Văn

Bún thịt nướng Hoàng Văn has recieved a Michelin Bib Gourmand for their dish Bún thịt nướng and since I was in the area I stopped here for lunch. Despite this everyone else here was a local, so I felt good about the choice. The Bún thịt nướng was savoury and the textures were soft for the noodles, chewy for the meat and crispy for the spring roll, and of course it was served with plenty of salad, herbs and sprouts.

Bunz Smash Burgers

I was once told about a burger shop in Hoi An it would be “among my top three” burgers, if I went against my principles and went there instead of getting Vietnamese food. It did not. Bunz Smash Burgers however, did. Their regular smash burger landed straight on the podium. A solid third place of all the burgers I had in 21 countries and over 100 cities worldwide.

The burger is simple, but their care for the quality of the ingredients, everything fresh and a small menu made it stand out to me both in taste and texture. The Australian wagyu beef they use to make their own ground beef turns into a delicate and juicy on the inside and crunchy on the edges, with a nice maillard-reaction browning patty. With two smashed patties the regular smash burger comes with actually good cheese (hard to come by in Vietnam), slightly sweet, mostly tangy, fresh diced white onion and a good amount of pickles, plus a delectable house-made burger sauce on top of a soft brioche bun.

I swear they did not pay me to write this, it was just that good. So good in fact that I got a second one after I had finished the first.

A+C Coffee Experience

Not only is the coffee at A+C Coffee Experience good, their other drinks are as well. Many tables on several floors, good wifi and an AC that is pleasantly cool, but not cold, invite to stay longer. To blog, to journal or just to hang out with friends. I spend a few hours here while it was raining and tried their “Fluffy Cloud” Coffee with traditional Phin coffee and “Cloud Concentrate” (no, I don’t know what it is either) and the Water Lilies drink with jasmine Tea, lychee rose and peach.

Là Việt Coffee Saigon

While waiting for a workshop to start I had a kumquat coffee mocktail at Là Việt. The sourness of the kumquat pairs really well with the Vietnamese robusta coffee.

Ănăn Saigon

This restaurant had won the first Michelin Star in Ho Chi Minh City – and has continued to renew their star every year since. They are located in one of the oldest markets in the city center: Chợ Cũ Tôn Thất Đạm. They offer two set menus at 100+ USD and à la carte dishes. Since I hadn’t gotten to eat crab in Singapore, I went for their crab fried rice. The dish contains Camau crab, shrimp, lạp xướng sausage, lotus seed, garlic, egg and rice. On some pictures it was served in a crab shell, but mine was just in a stone bowl.

Like every other Michelin Star restaurant I have been to so far one dish was not enough for a full meal. After the fried rice I had their Wagyu beef mini banh mi. As the name suggests it was a small banh mi bread, topped with wagyu beef short rib, bavette flank beef, pâté, tomato and pickled vegetables (carrot and cucumber).

With these two dishes I ordered a Saigon Special beer. The whole meal came out to roughly 25€.

At the risk of never being able to collaborate with them: In my honest opinion the food was good. But not spectacular. There is food just as good, or even better out on the market, at street vendors and small hole-in-the-wall places. A restaurant with 20+ things on the a-la-carte menu alone can – in my experience – never reach the taste with every dish that a person who makes the same single meal day in, day out, for decades, can. Or maybe the food was better when the Michelin people went. Who knows?

Day Trips from Ho Chi Minh City

As the biggest city in the south of Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City is also a transport hub. From the airport, to the ports for cruise ships and the smaller passenger ferries, the train station and many busses, both from the central bus station and by smaller private companies it is easy to get from A to B. Even if said B location is hours away. There are many day trips or multiple-day-trips you can do from Ho Chi Minh City to maximise your time in the south, here are some of them:

Day trip to the sand dunes of Mũi Né

Mũi Né is a coastal fishing ward in the Lâm Đồng Province of Vietnam. Since the 1990s the area has slowly transformed into “resort central”, though some nature remains untouched, or integrated into the tourism economy in a ecological way. Mui Ne is known internationally for it’s sand dunes that look as if you’re in a desert prone country.

Half or full day trip to the Củ Chi Tunnels

The Củ Chi Tunnels, originally built during the French occupation and later enlarged and used more extensively during the Vietnam war can be visited at two locations Ben Dinh and Ben Duoc. Both are relatively close to Saigon.

The two locations are very different from each other: Ben Dinh is the more touristy one, while the area around Ben Duoc is much larger and more extensive. I recommend visiting the tunnels with a local guide*, to get background knowledge and historical facts about the tunnels and their importance in the Vietnam war.

If you want to read in more detail about the tour, click here: Cu Chi Tunnels – Tunnel systems of the Viet Cong

Day Trips and cruises to Côn Đảo Island

Con Dao island is part of the Con Dao archipelago and is officially counted as a special zone of Ho Chi Minh City, despite being 230 km away from the main city. You can get there either by plane or by ferry. During French colonialism the island became infamous for it’s prison where Vietnamese and Cambodian nationalists were sent by the colonial government. Today Con Dao and many of it’s surrounding islands are part of Côn Đảo National Park, with a focus on protecting marine life. A lot of the tourism here is focused on sustainable nature-based ecotourism and I hope they will manage to protect their slice of paradise.

Day Trips to Bến Tre

Bến Tre, often called the “coconut capital of Vietnam” is part of the Vĩnh Long province. Many day tours going to “the Mekong Delta” from Ho Chi Minh City take you here. Ben Tre is known for it’s coconut farming and coconut candy, even though agriculture, forestry and fishing only make up a third of the provinces GDP. Vinh Long is also renowned as a leading producer of red pottery in the country, with its products being exported to many countries around the world. If you take a boat along the river to Mang Thit pottery village you can see houses with huge kilns.

Weekend trip to Can Tho from Ho Chi Minh City

Day Trips to Cao Dai Temple Tay Ninh and Black Virgin Mountain

The Cao Dai Temple in Tay Ninh, also called Great Divine Temple, Cao Dai Cathedral or the Tay Ninh Holy See is the first (finished 1947) and most important temple of Caodaism in Vietnam. Caodaism is a fascinating religion in my opinion, so being able to (respectfully!) visit their main holy site is quite the experience. I linked the Wikipedia article, do read it.

Part of most tours from Ho Chi Minh City is also the Black Virgin Mountain. An area managed by the Sun Group who also manage Ba Na Hills and Fansipan. The mountain itself is fascinating. As an extinct vulcano it rises almost eerily from the flat surrounding area. During several wars the mountain had a high significance, due to its unique position and elevation. A Buddhist shrine is located about two thirds up the mountain. Nowadays a cable car takes pilgrims and tourists up to the very top where a newly built park resides.

Map of my trip to Ho Chi Minh City

How to read the map: In the first layer light blue are museums and places of historical importance, dark blue are buildings of religious or cultural importance. In the second layer light green are restaurants, dark green are street vendors and orange are cafes. You can open the menu on the top left and choose the layers of the map.

You can save the map to your Google Maps for your trip to Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon by clicking here.

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