David’s guidebook
Food scene
Great service and western foods. Walk-in guest might have to wait for 20 mins. Should make a reservation in advance
62 locals recommend
pizza 4p's
Great service and western foods. Walk-in guest might have to wait for 20 mins. Should make a reservation in advance
High-quality Sushi. A bit crowded. Waiting time is ~20 mins without reservation
27 locals recommend
Sushi Hokkaido Sachi
40 Đông DuHigh-quality Sushi. A bit crowded. Waiting time is ~20 mins without reservation
Very reasonable price for authentic Vietnamese Foods. Nicely decorated restaurant. Favourist place for tourists
225 locals recommend
Taste Saigon Tour
160 PasteurVery reasonable price for authentic Vietnamese Foods. Nicely decorated restaurant. Favourist place for tourists
Trung Nguyên Legend Café
80 Đồng KhởiThe best local coffee brand
Quan Bui
19 Ngô Văn NămVery good place for authentic Vietnamese foods
Sightseeing
Tourists seem to like the place. The price is usually cut-through and 2 times of what the goods are worth for. You should try to bargain if you really want to buy stuff there
1702 locals recommend
Ben Thanh Market
Đường Lê LợiTourists seem to like the place. The price is usually cut-through and 2 times of what the goods are worth for. You should try to bargain if you really want to buy stuff there
A nice walking street. Crowded in general. Multiple cultural events during weekends
115 locals recommend
Nguyen Hue Walking Street
22 Nguyễn HuệA nice walking street. Crowded in general. Multiple cultural events during weekends
Traveler advice
Getting around
Taxi and ride-hailing service
Getting around
Grab is the best choice for tourists: reliable, cheaper (during non-peak hours) and the route is mostly accurate. If you have to take a traditional taxi, then Vinasun and Mai Linh are the only reliable ones. Others might try to scam you. Some Vinasun and Mai Linh drivers might try to scam you by asking for an unreasonable price, but they are reliable in general. A good rule of thumb to calculate the price is always < $1/km. Both are meter-based.
Public transport is not common in HCM
Airport
- It should cost < 8 USD from Airport to my place, ~30 mins during non-peak hours
Getting around
Safety
Don't ever walk around and use your phone. Pickpocket might drive on motobike and snap your phone. Don't give them a chance by exposing your belongings.
Other than that, Ho Chi Minh is the one of the safest cities in the world. It's alright to walk around at night in the CBD
Getting around
Mobile Sim Cards
It's alright to get a sim card at the airport. It's slightly more expensive in the city but you get convenience. It should cost around 200 000 VND to get the sim card. There are multiple data plans at a reasonable cost.
e.g: Vinaphone telco: 15G for 200 000 VND/month, 3.8G for 70 000 VND/month. You can ask the seller for more plans
Customs and culture
COVID-19
- Local authorities are very strict on COVID-19 matters. The punishment might be jail as it is very costly for them to deal with contract tracing and spread. They already made a very good example of a few cases.
- Always wear a mask in public (it is a breach of law otherwise)