{"id":11720,"date":"2025-02-25T09:52:11","date_gmt":"2025-02-25T09:52:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wanderlusttstg.wpengine.com\/inspiration\/10-things-in-saigon-ho-chi-minh-city-vietnam\/"},"modified":"2025-02-25T10:19:16","modified_gmt":"2025-02-25T10:19:16","slug":"10-things-in-saigon-ho-chi-minh-city-vietnam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/inspiration\/10-things-in-saigon-ho-chi-minh-city-vietnam\/","title":{"rendered":"9 of the best things to do in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-sidebar-content\" data-ad=\"first\"><div id=\"wak-acf-block-253648\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-content-layout-default wak-acf-block-advert wak-ad-first\" data-placement-id=\"63374\" data-advert-visible=\"1\">\n    <style type=\"text\/css\">.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-advert .wak-advert-container{display:flex;justify-content:center;width:100%}<\/style>\n    <div class=\"wak-advert-container\">\n 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ul+h1,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy ul+h2,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy ul+h3,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy ul+h4,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy ul+h5,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy ul+h6{margin-top:40px}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h4,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h6{line-height:normal}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy dd,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy dt,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy li,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy ol,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy p,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy span,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy ul{font-size:1.125rem;line-height:2.125rem}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy a{font-size:1.125rem!important;line-height:2.125rem!important}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h1,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h2,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h3,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h4,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h5,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h6{margin:0;padding:0;word-break:break-word}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h1{font-family:Noe Display;font-size:3.75rem;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:4.0625rem}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h2{font-family:Noe Display;font-size:3rem;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:3.25rem}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h3{font-family:Noe Display;font-size:2.25rem;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:2.5rem}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h4{font-family:Noe Display;font-size:1.75rem;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:2.0625rem}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h5{font-family:Noe Display;font-size:1.25rem;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:normal;line-height:1.5625rem}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content .wak-copy h6{font-family:Jost;font-size:.75rem;font-weight:500;letter-spacing:.08313rem;line-height:.875rem}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content+.wak-acf-block-article-image,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content+.wak-acf-block-copy-content,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-copy-content+.wak-acf-block-image-carousel{margin-top:80px}<\/style>    <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>Ho Chi Minh City, or as locals still call it, Saigon, is one of Southeast Asia\u2019s great modern metropolises. The largest city in <a href=\"http:\/\/wanderlustmagazine.com\/destination\/vietnam\">Vietnam<\/a>, its serrated skyline of neon skyscrapers \u2013 some of them nearly half a kilometre high \u2013 shimmers in the winding Saigon River. Hidden at their feet, in the city\u2019s heart is a gorgeous old French Quarter, where tree-filled boulevards are lined with a glittering Opera House, a salmon pink neo-Gothic cathedral and stately Belle Epoque mansions.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The frenetic whirligig of Saigon plays out against this backdrop.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Fifty years ago, the city fell to the Viet Cong, so there\u2019s no time like the present\u00a0to savour the history and sample this sultry city over several days. Here are the best things to do in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2>9 of the best things to do in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-170283\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <style type=\"text\/css\">.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-article-image{flex-wrap:wrap;justify-content:center}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-article-image .wak-title{text-align:left;width:100%}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-article-image .wak-title+picture{margin-top:40px}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-article-image .wak-caption{color:gray;margin-top:8px;text-align:right;width:100%}.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-article-image+.wak-acf-block-article-image,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-article-image+.wak-acf-block-copy-content,.wak-acf-block.wak-acf-block-article-image+.wak-acf-block-image-carousel{margin-top:80px}<\/style>        \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">1. Visit the War Remnants Museum<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_772550632-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85228\" alt=\"Exterior of the War Remnants Museum, with a captured US Air Force plane outside\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">A captured US Airforce Plane outside the War Remnants Museum (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div id=\"wak-acf-block-536024\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>The War Remnants Museum starkly lays out the effect of what Vietnamese call the American War on their people, from the captured planes and tanks in the courtyard to the shocking impact of Agent Orange and napalm on forests and villages. After a visit, the prosperity and positivity of modern Saigon just fifty years on feels miraculous, and the city\u2019s rechristening as Ho Chi Minh City poignant.<\/p>\n<p><strong>More information: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/baotangchungtichchientranh.vn\/?language=en\">baotangchungtichchientranh.vn<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>Read next:\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/inspiration\/things-to-do-in-hanoi\/\">9 of the best things to do in Hanoi<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-769805\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">2. Explore the Cu Chi tunnels<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1610354020-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85232\" alt=\"A man climbing out of the Viet Cong tunnels near Ho Chi Minh City\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">You have the option of crawling through sections of the tunnels on a visit to Cu Chi (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-sidebar-content\" data-ad=\"in_content_1\"><div id=\"wak-acf-block-620077\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-content-layout-default wak-acf-block-advert wak-ad-in_content_1\" data-placement-id=\"63376\" data-advert-visible=\"1\">\n    \n    <div class=\"wak-advert-container\">\n        \n            <div id=\"div-gpt-ad-63376\">\n                <script>\n                    googletag.cmd.push(() => { \n                        googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-63376'); \n                    });\n                <\/script>\n            <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><div id=\"wak-acf-block-805509\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>Cu Chi is more an underground city than a set of tunnels. This was where the Viet Cong were based prior to capturing Saigon in 1975. The Americans never found them \u2013 despite carpet bombing the area and denuding it entirely of vegetation.<\/p>\n<p>On a visit you will see how Vietnam defeated the world\u2019s preeminent superpower with bits of broken steel and astonishing ingenuity and grit. Guided tours include the option of crawling through sections of the tunnels, which have been enlarged to fit Western visitors, and then, if you wish to, shoot contemporaneous munitions at the firing range.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><b>Read next:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/inspiration\/top-10-things-to-do-in-vietnam\/\">17 of the best things to do in Vietnam<\/a><b><br>\n<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-322398\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">3. Wander Saigon\u2019s French Quarter<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_571153756-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85236\" alt=\"Aerial view of Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon with the sky scrapers of the city in the background\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">You\u2019ll find the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon, pictured, in the French Quarter<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div id=\"wak-acf-block-837856\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>Saigon\u2019s French Quarter was intended to be the spiritual heart not merely of the colony of Cochinchina, but of a new France in Asia. This was a mini-Paris, designed to a European plan and comprising the Asian Notre Dame cathedral, a shimmering Opera House modelled on the Petit Palais, Fernand Gard\u00e8\u2019s tropical version of Paris\u2019s H\u00f4tel de Ville (now renamed the Ho Chi Minh City People\u2019s Council) and Admiral Pierre-Paul de La Grandi\u00e8re\u2019s Botanical Gardens.<\/p>\n<p>The grandest architecture has been lovingly preserved. But in the surrounding streets, Twentieth Century French art deco buildings crumble as the skyline of new Ho Chi Minh City rises from the ashes of Parisian Saigon.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>Read next: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/inspiration\/best-time-to-visit-vietnam\/\">Our guide to the best time to visit Vietnam, no matter your itinerary<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-687255\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">4. Shop in Ben Thanh Market<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2244663031-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85242\" alt=\"Tourists examining knickknacks within Ben Thanh Market\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">You can get everything from branded bags and silks to herbal teas at the iconic Ben Thanh market (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-sidebar-content\" data-ad=\"in_content_2\"><div id=\"wak-acf-block-750240\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-content-layout-default wak-acf-block-advert wak-ad-in_content_2\" data-placement-id=\"63377\" data-advert-visible=\"1\">\n    \n    <div class=\"wak-advert-container\">\n        \n            <div id=\"div-gpt-ad-63377\">\n                <script>\n                    googletag.cmd.push(() => { \n                        googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-63377'); \n                    });\n                <\/script>\n            <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><div id=\"wak-acf-block-295729\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>Hunkering in the heart of the District One in Central Ho Chi Minh City, this delightful covered market is one of the few surviving buildings anywhere constructed by French Empire industrial architects Brossard-Mopin, who worked almost entirely in Asia. It started life as a fish and vegetable market, and while locals still buy food here, Ben Thanh\u2019s principal shoppers are tourists who browse everything from branded bags to cheap t-shirts and herbal teas to silks. There\u2019s great street food, too, and in the streets around a string of tailors where you can get suits, skirts and shirts made bespoke at a great price in just a few days.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>Read next:\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/inspiration\/six-alternative-places-to-visit-in-vietnam\/\">6 alternative places to visit in Vietnam<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-836121\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">5. Stroll around Cholon, Ho Chi Minh City\u2019s Chinatown<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2032579523-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85245\" alt=\"The entrance gate to Ba Thien Hau Temple in Ho Chi Minh City\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">Thien Hau Temple, pictured, is dedicated to the Fujianese sea goddess Mazu (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div id=\"wak-acf-block-468387\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>Saigon\u2019s Chinatown feels like a city apart, as indeed it was until Ho Chi Minh started its rapid late 20th century expansion. Cholon Town is in fact far older, founded by various Chinese migrant communities from the 17th Century onwards, including Minh H\u01b0\u01a1ng refugees from Ming China fleeing the persecutions of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and Fujianese who came here under encouragement from the Vietnamese Nguyen Emperors in the 18th Century.<\/p>\n<p>They\u2019ve left their mark in a series of stunning, architecturally Chinese shrines, some of which preserve religious traditions lost elsewhere. Don\u2019t miss the dragon-gabled, incense-swirling Quan Am Temple, dedicated to Guanyin, the Chinese version of the Boddhisattva Avalokitesvara from the Lotus Sutra, and the Thien Hau Temple dedicated to the Fujianese sea goddess Mazu whose cult has been largely lost both in mainland China and Taiwan.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-627948\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">6. See Ho Chi Minh City from river and rooftop<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2249328393-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85247\" alt=\"Aerial sunset view of Bitexco Tower, buildings, roads, Bason bridge and Saigon river in Ho Chi Minh city\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">The best views of the city come from the Saigon River, pictured, or a rooftop bar (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-sidebar-content\" data-ad=\"in_content_3\"><div id=\"wak-acf-block-638085\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-content-layout-default wak-acf-block-advert wak-ad-in_content_3\" data-placement-id=\"63378\" data-advert-visible=\"1\">\n    \n    <div class=\"wak-advert-container\">\n        \n            <div id=\"div-gpt-ad-63378\">\n                <script>\n                    googletag.cmd.push(() => { \n                        googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-63378'); \n                    });\n                <\/script>\n            <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><div id=\"wak-acf-block-772428\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>The best views of Saigon are from river and rooftop. Start with a boat cruise, choosing one which sails just before sunset. Watch the golden light glisten over the water and glitter in the glass towers. As the light deepens into twilight, the city twinkles into nightlife in myriad neon, argon and xenon colours. Most evening cruises include dinner on board, after which you can catch a cab to a sky bar like Twilight and watch the city whirr at your feet, cocktail or cold beer in hand.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-349656\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">7. Broaden your palate through Vietnam\u2019s lively food scene<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1606700704-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85248\" alt=\"View from below of Saigonese 42 Nguyen Hue Coffee Apartment Building, a colourful complex filled with caf\u00e9s\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">The Saigonese 42 Nguyen Hue Coffee Apartment Building is filled with arty caf\u00e9s (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div id=\"wak-acf-block-459072\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>The residents of Ho Chi Minh love their food, and there are a myriad of great places to eat for all budgets, from upscale Secret Garden (which is a leafy haven in the heat) to hundreds of street stalls, where locals sit around plastic tables after work and feast on piping hot Com Tam (broken rice with honey-glazed pork cuts, garlic, cucumber, carrots, and a fried egg) or Pho.<\/p>\n<p>There are superb vegetarian restaurants, too, like HUM which is decked out in technicolour contemporary art and set in an open-plan dining hall garden filled with Lotus flowers.<\/p>\n<p>Caf\u00e9 society is as Ho Chi Minh City as it is Parisian. Be sure to sample thick Vietnamese coffee in the quintessentially Saigonese 42 Nguyen Hue Coffee Apartment Building, a huge converted 1970s apartment block overlooking one of the centre\u2019s key boulevards whose rooms now all house arty little caf\u00e9s.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-557331\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">8. Meet the Jade Emperor<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_1472663024-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85249\" alt=\"Woman making an offering at the Jade Emperor Pagoda\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">The Jade Emperor Pagoda is the city\u2019s biggest (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-sidebar-content\" data-ad=\"in_content_4\"><div id=\"wak-acf-block-316320\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-content-layout-default wak-acf-block-advert wak-ad-in_content_4\" data-placement-id=\"63379\" data-advert-visible=\"1\">\n    \n    <div class=\"wak-advert-container\">\n        \n            <div id=\"div-gpt-ad-63379\">\n                <script>\n                    googletag.cmd.push(() => { \n                        googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-63379'); \n                    });\n                <\/script>\n            <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><div id=\"wak-acf-block-514279\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>Saigon\u2019s biggest and brashest pagoda was founded by a Cantonese merchant in the early 20th century. It\u2019s an eclectic place \u2013 nominally dedicated to the great immortal Taoist warrior who defeated a string of monstrous beings at the dawn of time, but honouring mythological characters from Buddhist and Confucian traditions.<\/p>\n<p>The Emperor himself stands majestic and some four metres high in the main sanctuary. The Hall of the Ten Hells has murals depict the karmic fate awaiting those who have fallen into the lower states of life according to Mahayana Buddhism. The City God\u2019s shrine is more practical and Confucian. His hat reads in Chinese \u2018Look at Me Once to Receive Money\u2019. You\u2019ll have to give it first (there\u2019s a box at his feet), then rub his hand and wait patiently for munificence.<\/p>\n<p>Other shrines are dedicated to Avalokitesvara the Boddhisattva of Compassion from the Lotus Sutra, depicted as Quan Am and Bodhidharma who brought Buddhism and Kung Fu across the Himalayas from India to China.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\r\n\n\n    <div id=\"wak-acf-block-811550\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-article-image wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n                \r\n        <h3 class=\"wak-title wak-h3\">9. Visit the Independence Palace<\/h3>\r\n                    \n<picture>\n    <source media=\"(max-width:575px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-700x470.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(max-width:991px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <source media=\"(min-width:992px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-1280x693.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-2560x1386.jpg 2x\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-350x250.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-350x250.jpg, https:\/\/www.wanderlustmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/shutterstock_2312652627-700x470.jpg 2x\" class=\"attachment-85251\" alt=\"Exterior view of the Independence Palace with a grand water fountain in front\" width=\"350\" height=\"250\"><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>   \r\n        \r\n        <span class=\"wak-caption wak-image-caption-text\">Rooms into the Independence Palace have been preserved as they were in 1975 (Shutterstock)<\/span>    <\/div>\r\n\n\n<div id=\"wak-acf-block-777671\" class=\"wak-acf-block wak-acf-block-copy-content wak-content-layout-default\">\r\n        <div class=\"wak-copy wak-body-standard-text\"><p>This beautiful modernist hall designed by one of Vietnam\u2019s greatest architects Le Corbusier-influenced Ng\u00f4 Vi\u1ebft Th\u1ee5 was built as the Independence Palace for the short-lived Republic of South Vietnam. President Nguyen Van Thieu used it as his headquarters until April 1975 when the building fell to the Vietnamese army in the Fall of Saigon. The palace was subsequently renamed Reunification Hall and closed down when the official capital of the new unified Vietnam shifted to Hanoi. 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