Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Top places to visit in Ho Chi Minh City
6 places worth your time in Ho Chi Minh City, with what each is actually like and when to go.
Last updated 2026-08-08
1. War Remnants Museum
Photo: KenWalker [email protected] · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
An unflinching account of the war from the Vietnamese side, including captured aircraft and the Agent Orange rooms.
- Where: District 3
- Map: Open in Maps
- Tip: Genuinely distressing in places. Allow time, and go before the rest of the city's sights rather than after.
2. Cu Chi Tunnels
Photo: Adam Jones Adam63 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Two hundred kilometres of hand-dug tunnels north-west of the city, with a widened section visitors can crawl through.
- Map: Open in Maps
- Best time: Morning, before the heat
- Tip: Ben Duoc is the less-visited of the two sites and generally the better experience.
3. Independence Palace
Photo: Eustaquio Santimano · CC BY 2.0 · source
The former South Vietnamese presidential palace, preserved as it was when a tank came through the gates in April 1975.
4. Ben Thanh Market
Photo: Daderot · CC0 · source
The central covered market — souvenirs, fabric and a food court, with hard bargaining expected.
- Map: Open in Maps
- Tip: Opening prices for visitors run several times the local rate. The surrounding street stalls are usually cheaper.
Watch outAggressive 'you touched it, you buy it' pressure is a known pattern in the souvenir aisles.
5. Notre-Dame Cathedral and Central Post Office
Photo: ntt · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
French colonial brick and a Gustave Eiffel-influenced post office hall still operating as a post office.
- Where: District 1
- Map: Open in Maps
- Tip: The cathedral has been under long-running restoration; the exterior may be sheeted.
6. Cholon (District 5)
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Tollak assumed (based on copyright claims). · Public domain · source
The city's Chinatown, with Thien Hau Temple under its coils of hanging incense and a wholesale market district.
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