Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City — still widely called Saigon — is Vietnam's largest city and its commercial engine, home to around nine million people across its urban core and a wider metropolitan area approaching 14 million. Situated in the south of the country on the western bank of the Saigon River, it functions as the country's busiest port, its financial centre, and the gateway through which most international visitors enter southern Vietnam.

The city's character is defined by contrast and energy. Colonial-era buildings — French pastel facades, the red-brick Notre-Dame Cathedral, the ornate Central Post Office designed by Gustave Eiffel's firm — stand a short walk from glass towers and rooftop bars on the Nguyen Hue Walking Street. The Ben Thanh Market, a covered iron-and-brick hall built in 1914, remains a practical shopping destination for locals despite its tourist fame, and its surrounding streets compose a dense grid of budget guesthouses, pho shops, and travel agencies known as the Pham Ngu Lao backpacker district.

District 1 is the city's commercial and tourist core, containing the historic landmarks, the riverside promenade, and the densest concentration of hotels and restaurants. District 3 adjoins it to the northwest with a more residential character and clusters of independent cafes. The renovated Nguyen Hue boulevard, closed to traffic, is lined with trees and fountains and has become the city's main outdoor gathering space, especially on weekend evenings.

The War Remnants Museum is one of the most visited sites in all of Southeast Asia, presenting an unflinching documentary record of the American War (as it is called in Vietnam) through photographs, equipment, and testimony. The Cu Chi Tunnels — 75 km northwest of the city — provide an underground perspective on wartime guerrilla tactics and draw hundreds of thousands of visitors annually. The Reunification Palace, where the war's final act was played out on 30 April 1975, is now a state museum left largely as it was that day.

The Mekong Delta is the logical companion destination to HCMC. The river delta begins just south of the city, and a day trip by bus or speedboat reaches the fruit-garden islands of My Tho or the floating market at Cai Be within two hours. Can Tho, the delta's largest city with its famous Cai Rang floating market, is a four-hour drive.

The climate is broadly tropical with two seasons: a dry season from December to April and a wet season from May to November. Temperatures rarely drop below 25°C year-round. The city is served by Tan Son Nhat International Airport (SGN), which is about 8 km from the city centre.