Ho Chi Minh City itinerary: how to spend 1, 2 or 3 days

This plan suits a first visit at a steady pace. Base yourself in District 1, around Ben Thanh Market or Nguyen Hue: most of Day 1 is on foot from there, Metro Line 1 starts under the market, and Grab and the free city buses cover the rest. Start early, because the city is hot all year, and keep the middle of the afternoon for a rest. December to April is the dry season; from May to November expect short afternoon showers, so carry an umbrella and move an indoor stop forward when the sky turns. Little needs booking ahead: the War Remnants Museum sells e-tickets online, and the car to Cu Chi is best arranged the evening before.

On this page

How many days
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Tips
Sources

How many days

1 day: Day 1
One day covers the War Remnants Museum, Independence Palace, the post office, Ben Thanh Market and seafood in District 4, and leaves out Cu Chi and Cholon.
2 days: Days 1 to 2
Two days add the Ben Dinh tunnels at Cu Chi as a morning trip, the Jade Emperor Pagoda, the History Museum and a sunset ride on Metro Line 1.
3 days: Days 1 to 3
Three days add Cholon's market, temples and church in District 5, then the city and fine arts museums back in District 1.

Day 1

War Remnants Museum, Independence Palace and the colonial centre

A walking day in Districts 1 and 3: the two big history sights while it is cool, the French-era buildings at midday, the market in the late afternoon and seafood across the canal at night.

07:00 to about 19:00 · 8 stops · entry fees VND 140,000 a person

Numbers follow the plan below; solid lines by road, dotted on foot, dashed by boat, train or cable car. Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Natural Earth.

07:001
Eat · 45 min
Pho for breakfast at Pho Minh
Cost: Michelin puts it in its lowest price band; pay for what you order.
Start the way many Saigonese do, with a bowl of beef noodle soup. Pho Minh, down the alley at 63/6 Pasteur Street, has served pho since 1945 and holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand. Choose tenderloin, brisket or the cuts of the day, and try the baked pate chaud on the side. It opens at 06:30 and closes at 10:30, and Michelin warns the food can run out, so this is a stop for the first hour of the day.
Image: Vincent Yap / Unsplash
About 20 min walk, 1.4 km. About 1.4 km west along Le Thanh Ton and Nam Ky Khoi Nghia.
08:002
Sight · 1 h 45 min
War Remnants Museum
Cost: Adults VND 60,000 from 1 October 2026; under 6 free; students free after registering online.
The museum documents the war and what it did to civilians, through photographs, documents and objects, including the effects of Agent Orange and other defoliants. Many visitors find the upper floors hard going, so take your time and step out when you need to. It opens at 07:30 every day, holidays included, and an early start keeps you ahead of the tour groups. Buy an e-ticket with a QR code online or pay at the gate. A tank and a helicopter stand in the grounds outside.
Hours, fees and how to get there: War Remnants Museum
Image: flowcomm / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
About 10 min walk, 0.9 km. About 900 m on foot along Le Quy Don and Nam Ky Khoi Nghia.
10:003
Sight · 1 h 30 min
Independence Palace
Cost: Adults VND 80,000; students and seniors VND 40,000; children 6 to 17 VND 20,000.
The palace of South Vietnam's presidents, designed by Ngo Viet Thu, stands much as it was on 30 April 1975, when a tank crashed through its gates and the war ended. Walk through the reception halls, the president's office and the cabinet room, then go down to the old war room under the building. It is open 07:00 to 18:00 every day, Tet included, so it fits any day of the trip. The visit covers several floors, so wear comfortable shoes.
Hours, fees and how to get there: Independence Palace
Image: Balon Greyjoy / Wikimedia Commons, CC0
About 10 min walk, 0.6 km. About 900 m through 30 April Park to the cathedral square.
11:454
Sight · 45 min
Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office
Cost: Free; the post office is still a working post office.
The red-brick cathedral is under a long restoration, and its own website says that while the work goes on it is closed to tourists and open only for daily Mass, so look at it from the square. Across the road, the yellow Central Post Office is free to enter and still sells stamps. Look up at the arched hall under its skylight and the portrait at the far end, and send a postcard from the counters. Half an hour is plenty here.
Image: Kimm / Unsplash
About 15 min walk, 1.1 km. About 1 km down Dong Khoi and Le Thanh Ton.
12:455
Eat · 1 h
Lunch at Bep Me In
Cost: Michelin puts it in its lowest price band; dishes are priced on the menu.
Bep Me In, in the alley at 136 Le Thanh Ton Street a short walk from Ben Thanh Market, is a Michelin Bib Gourmand decorated like a village house, with yellow walls and blue shutters. Michelin's inspectors point you to the pancake with shrimp and pork served in a bamboo basket and the shrimp fried rice in a coconut shell. It is open 10:30 to 22:30 every day. After lunch, go back to your hotel for the hottest hours.
Image: Martin Lewison from Forest Hills, NY, U.S.A. / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
About 5 min walk, 0.1 km. About 300 m to the market.
16:006
Market · 1 h
Ben Thanh Market
Cost: Free to enter; prices are not fixed.
The market under the clock tower was built from 1912 to 1914 and is open 06:00 to 19:00 every day. Walk the aisles of coffee, dried fruit, lacquerware and fabric, and look in on the food stalls even if you have eaten. Prices are not fixed, so ask, offer less and walk away politely if the number does not suit you. When the market closes, the night market starts on the side streets, which is Day 2's dinner.
Hours, fees and how to get there: Ben Thanh Market
Image: VCTBR / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
About 5 min walk, 0.4 km. About 900 m along Le Loi to the top of Nguyen Hue.
17:307
View · 1 h
Nguyen Hue walking street at dusk
Cost: Free
Nguyen Hue, one of Saigon's oldest streets, is now a wide pedestrian boulevard running from City Hall, with the Ho Chi Minh statue in front of it, down towards the Saigon River. Come as the lights go on and the heat goes out of the day. Walk the length of it to the riverside road at the far end for the view across the water, then take a car for dinner across the canal in District 4.
Image: Kevin Rutherford / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
About 5 min by taxi or Grab, 2.4 km. About 2 km over the Khanh Hoi bridge; Grab car or taxi.
19:008
Eat · 1 h 30 min
Seafood on Vinh Khanh Street
Cost: Shellfish is priced by the plate or by weight; ask before you order.
Vinh Khanh Street in District 4 is lined with shellfish places with tables on the pavement. Oc Oanh, at number 534, is in the Michelin Guide: whelks, tiger prawns, crab and octopus cooked in many ways, served outdoors without air conditioning, which Michelin says the atmosphere makes up for. It is open from 13:00 until 03:00. Point at what looks good in the trays and ask how it is cooked, and check the price of each plate before it arrives.

Day 2

Cu Chi tunnels, the Jade Emperor Pagoda and Metro Line 1

The tunnels in the cool of the morning, back to the city for lunch, two of the city's older places of worship and learning in the afternoon, and a ride on the elevated metro at sunset.

08:30 to about 19:00 · 7 stops · entry fees VND 195,000 a person

Numbers follow the plan below; solid lines by road, dotted on foot, dashed by boat, train or cable car. Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Natural Earth.

08:301
Sight · 2 h 30 min
Cu Chi Tunnels at Ben Dinh
Cost: Foreign visitors: VND 35,000 admission plus VND 100,000 service and guide ticket.
Leave District 1 by Grab car at about 07:00: Ben Dinh, the closer of the two preserved sections, is about 41 km by road. A guide takes you through the forest past hidden hatches, booby-trap displays and a stretch of tunnel you can crawl, which has been widened for visitors. Both sections open 07:00 to 17:00 every day. Ben Duoc, farther out, is the one you can reach by public bus (route 13 to Cu Chi bus station, then route 79), but that makes a full day.
Hours, fees and how to get there: Cu Chi Tunnels
Image: flowcomm / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
About 45 min by taxi or Grab, 41.3 km. About 41 km back to Tan Dinh; Grab car or taxi.
12:302
Eat · 1 h
Lunch at Banh Xeo 46A
Cost: Michelin puts it in its lowest price band.
Banh Xeo 46A, at 46 Dinh Cong Trang Street in Tan Dinh, is a Michelin Bib Gourmand that has made the same dish for more than seven decades: huge crisp crepes stuffed with mung beans, bean sprouts, pork and shrimp. Wrap pieces in the lettuce and herbs and dip them in fish sauce. Michelin's inspectors suggest the outdoor seats by the open kitchen over the air-conditioned room. Lunch service runs 10:00 to 13:50, so do not arrive late.
Image: Martin Lewison from Forest Hills, NY, U.S.A. / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
About 15 min walk, 1.1 km. About 900 m along Dinh Cong Trang and Dien Bien Phu.
13:453
Sight · 45 min
Jade Emperor Pagoda
Cost: Free; donations welcome.
Built by a Cantonese merchant around 1900, this Taoist temple is thick with incense smoke and carved figures. The main hall honours the Jade Emperor; in the side halls are the Kings of Hell and Kim Hoa Thanh Mau with twelve midwife figures, where people pray for children. It is open 07:00 to 17:30 every day. Dress modestly, keep your voice down and ask before you film inside. The pond out front is full of turtles.
Hours, fees and how to get there: Jade Emperor Pagoda
Image: Gary Todd / Wikimedia Commons, CC0
About 15 min walk, 1.2 km. About 1.2 km along Mai Thi Luu and Nguyen Binh Khiem.
15:004
Sight · 1 h 15 min
Ho Chi Minh City History Museum
Cost: VND 60,000 from 1 October 2026; children and students free.
The museum's 1929 building, in the Indochinese revival style, sits inside the zoo grounds and holds more than 43,000 documents and objects, among them twelve national treasures, Dong Son bronze drums and Asian ceramics. It is open Tuesday to Sunday, 08:00 to 11:30 and 13:00 to 17:00, and closed all day Monday. On a Monday, swap it for the Ho Chi Minh City Museum, which opens every day. Students and children go free; bring a card.
Hours, fees and how to get there: Ho Chi Minh City History Museum
Image: Anne and David / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
About 15 min walk, 1.1 km. About 1.1 km down Le Duan and Ton Duc Thang to Ba Son station.
16:405
Do · 15 min
Metro Line 1 from Ba Son station
Cost: Single tickets VND 7,000 to 20,000 by distance in cash; day pass VND 40,000.
Metro Line 1 runs from Ben Thanh under the market east to Suoi Tien, 05:00 to 22:00, until 23:00 on Friday and Saturday. Buy a single ticket at the machine or tap a contactless card, and ride three stops to Thao Dien. Past Ba Son the Saigon River comes into view from the elevated track, then Landmark 81 above patches of green, the view a Tuoi Tre writer said he rarely gets from a motorbike.
Image: S5A-0043 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
By train, 3.1 km. Three stops to Thao Dien, then a 10-minute walk to the riverside park.
17:156
View · 1 h
Thao Dien riverside park at sunset
Cost: Free
From Thao Dien station, walk west to the riverside park on the Saigon River in Thao Dien and watch the sun go down behind Landmark 81 and the towers on the far bank. It is a quiet, green spot after a day in the centre, and there are cafes on the streets between the station and the river if you want a drink. Head back to the station before the evening rush builds.
Image: Tat Linh Nguyen / Unsplash
By train, 4.5 km. Metro Line 1 from Thao Dien, five stops back to Ben Thanh.
19:007
Market · 1 h 30 min
Ben Thanh night market
Cost: Meals from street stalls; agree prices first.
When Ben Thanh Market closes at 19:00, more than 100 stalls set up on Phan Chu Trinh and Phan Boi Chau streets along its sides, selling handicrafts, souvenirs, clothes and food. Come up from the metro station under the market, walk the two streets once, then sit down where the grills are busiest. Prices for souvenirs here are higher than in the market by day, so bargain, or just eat.
Image: Terrazzo from Vernon Hills, IL, USA / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0

Day 3

Cholon's market, temples and church, then two museums

District 5 in the morning, when the wholesale market is busiest and the temples are cool, lunch on Nguyen Trai, then two museums in District 1 for the afternoon heat.

07:30 to about 16:00 · 7 stops · entry fees VND 120,000 a person

Numbers follow the plan below; solid lines by road, dotted on foot, dashed by boat, train or cable car. Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Natural Earth.

07:301
Market · 1 h
Binh Tay Market
Cost: Free to enter.
Binh Tay, at 57A Thap Muoi Street, is Cholon's big wholesale market, also called Cho Lon market, with stalls of dried goods, spices, fabric and kitchenware. Vietnam Airlines' city guide gives its hours as 06:00 to 18:00. Many traders sell in bulk to shops, so look and ask rather than expect to buy single items everywhere. Take a Grab car from District 1, about 6 km, and come before the midday heat.
Image: Syced / Wikimedia Commons, CC0
About 10 min walk, 0.6 km. About 400 m east to Hoc Lac Street.
08:452
Sight · 30 min
Cha Tam Church
Cost: Free; a working parish church.
The church of Saint Francis Xavier, called Cha Tam after the priest who built it, was begun in 1900 and consecrated in 1902, a Gothic church in the middle of Chinatown. On the morning of 2 November 1963 President Ngo Dinh Diem and his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu came here to pray before giving themselves up to the coup, and were killed soon after. Look at the facade and the courtyard; go inside only outside Mass times.
Image: Fayhoo / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
About 10 min walk, 0.9 km. About 900 m east along Tran Hung Dao and Lao Tu.
09:303
Sight · 30 min
Quan Am Pagoda (On Lang Assembly Hall)
Cost: Free; donations welcome.
The city's tourism office says Hokkien immigrants built this temple on Lao Tu Street at the start of the 19th century and named it after Guanyin, the goddess of mercy. Like Thien Hau down the road, it is built in Chinese style, with courtyards, statues, altars and paintings, and the air is thick with incense smoke. People come in to pray throughout the morning, so keep to the sides, speak quietly and ask before photographing anyone.
Image: Scott Edmunds / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
About 5 min walk, 0.4 km. About 200 m to Nguyen Trai Street.
10:104
Sight · 45 min
Thien Hau Temple (Tue Thanh Assembly Hall)
Cost: Free; donations welcome.
At 710 Nguyen Trai, Cholon's best-known temple is dedicated to Thien Hau, Mazu, the goddess of the sea, and the city's tourism office dates it to 1760. You enter through the green iron gate hung with lanterns, cross a courtyard and leave by the side gate; look up at the porcelain scenes on the roof. On her birthday, the 23rd day of the third lunar month, her statue is carried through the streets. Nghia An Assembly Hall is next door.
Image: Balon Greyjoy / Wikimedia Commons, CC0
About 20 min walk, 1.5 km. About 1.5 km east along Nguyen Trai.
11:205
Eat · 45 min
Lunch at Pho Le
Cost: Michelin puts it in its lowest price band.
Pho Le, at 413 to 415 Nguyen Trai, has served southern-style pho for over 70 years and is a Michelin Bib Gourmand. Order the mixed bowl, with raw and cooked beef, brisket, beef balls and tendon in a rich bone broth, and add herbs and bean sprouts from the plate. It opens from 06:00 to midnight, so it also works as an early breakfast. Then go back to District 1 and rest through the early afternoon.
Image: GiveMeMollusks / Wikimedia Commons, CC0
About 5 min by taxi or Grab, 4.5 km. About 4.5 km to Ly Tu Trong Street; Grab car or taxi.
14:306
Sight · 1 h 15 min
Ho Chi Minh City Museum
Cost: VND 60,000 from 1 October 2026; children and students free.
The museum fills the former Gia Long Palace, built from 1885 to 1890 to a design by Alfred Foulhoux, at the corner of Ly Tu Trong and Nam Ky Khoi Nghia. President Ngo Dinh Diem lived and worked here in his last months in 1963, before the coup. Its rooms tell the city's history, and a Huey helicopter and a collection of old cars stand outside. It is open 08:00 to 17:00 every day, holidays and Tet included.
Hours, fees and how to get there: Ho Chi Minh City Museum
Image: Thomas1313 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
About 10 min walk, 0.9 km. About 900 m past Ben Thanh Market to Pho Duc Chinh Street.
16:007
Sight · 1 h
Fine Arts Museum
Cost: VND 60,000 from 1 October 2026; the museum's own list still gives children and students half price.
The main building is a villa built from 1929 to 1934 for the Hui Bon Hoa family, with its original wrought-iron stair railings, and the collection runs from Champa and Oc Eo pieces on the third floor to woodcuts, ceramics and lacquer, silk and oil paintings of the 20th century. It is open 08:00 to 17:00 every day, so an hour before closing covers the main building. Afterwards, the night market by Ben Thanh is a short walk if you skipped it on Day 2.
Hours, fees and how to get there: Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Museum
Image: Phương Huy / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Tips for Ho Chi Minh City

The History Museum closes all day Monday and from 11:30 to 13:00; Independence Palace, the War Remnants Museum, the Ho Chi Minh City Museum and the Fine Arts Museum open every day.
Notre Dame Cathedral is closed to tourists until its restoration is finished; it stays open for daily Mass, and the facade and the post office opposite are the visit for now.
City buses on 134 routes are free for everyone until 31 December 2026: tap a contactless bank card or phone wallet on the reader to log the ride. Metro Line 1 tickets cost VND 7,000 to 20,000, or VND 40,000 for a day pass.
For Cu Chi, a Grab car to Ben Dinh is the quick way, about 41 km each way, with the fare shown in the app before you book; ask the driver to wait or book the return for about 11:00. Bus 13 then bus 79 reaches Ben Duoc instead, but takes most of the day.
It is hot all year, about 27 to 30 degrees on average by month: walk before 11:00 and after 16:00, carry water, and use the museums for the middle of the day.
From May to November afternoon showers are common; keep a museum in reserve to swap with an outdoor stop when the rain starts.
At Ben Thanh and the night market prices are not fixed: ask first, offer less and walk away politely if it does not suit you.
Dress for temples on Day 2 and Day 3: shoulders and knees covered at the Jade Emperor, Quan Am and Thien Hau, and speak quietly where people are praying.

Getting there, where to stay and the weather by month are on the Ho Chi Minh City page. Plan checked 24 October 2026.

Sources

Checked in October 2026.Show all 28 sources

guide.michelin.com. Pho Minh: Bib Gourmand, 63/6 Pasteur Street; pho since 1945; tenderloin, brisket and other cuts; pate chaud; closes at 10am, come early before the food runs out; open daily 06:30 to 10:30.
baotangchungtichchientranh.vn. War Remnants Museum hours (07:30 daily, holidays included), adult fee VND 60,000, students free with online registration, under 6 free, e-tickets with QR code.
en.wikipedia.org. War Remnants Museum exhibits on Agent Orange and other defoliants.
dinhdoclap.gov.vn. Independence Palace: open every day including Tet, 07:00 to 18:00; adults VND 80,000, students and seniors 40,000, children 6 to 17 20,000; designed by Ngo Viet Thu; tank through the gates on 30 April 1975.
en.wikipedia.org. Palace rooms: President's office, cabinet room, the old war room underneath.
chinhtoasaigon.org. Cathedral closed to tourists during the restoration, open for daily Mass (cathedral's own website, banner read 2026-10-24).
vietnamairlines.com. Central Post Office free to enter; visit 30 to 45 minutes (Vietnam Airlines travel guide).
guide.michelin.com. Bep Me In: Bib Gourmand, 136 Le Thanh Ton Street; near Ben Thanh Market; yellow walls, blue shutters like village houses; pancake with shrimp and pork in a bamboo basket; fried rice in a coconut shell; open 10:30 to 22:30 daily.
visithcmc.vn. Ben Thanh Market built 1912 to 1914; open 06:00 to 19:00 daily, free; night market from 19:00 with over 100 stalls on Phan Chu Trinh and Phan Boi Chau, handicrafts, souvenirs, clothes, food; prices not fixed.
en.wikipedia.org. Nguyen Hue: one of Saigon's oldest thoroughfares, now a pedestrian street from City Hall towards Ton Duc Thang (the riverside road).
guide.michelin.com. Oc Oanh: in the Michelin Guide, 534 Vinh Khanh Street; whelks, tiger prawns, lobster, octopus, crab; outdoor, no air conditioning; open 13:00 to 03:00.
diadaocuchi.com.vn. Cu Chi: both sections run by the historical site, open daily 07:00 to 17:00; foreign visitors VND 35,000 admission plus VND 100,000 service and guide ticket from 1 February 2026; Ben Dinh the closer section; tourist section widened.
router.project-osrm.org. Road distance Ben Thanh Market to Ben Dinh about 41 to 44 km (OSRM driving route, Ben Thanh OSM way 39514795 to Ben Dinh OSM node 1388480068 “Địa Đạo Bến Đình Củ Chi”: 43.6 km; Ben Dinh to Banh Xeo 46A: 41.3 km).
openstreetmap.org. Bus 13 Saigon bus terminal to Cu Chi bus station, then bus 79 to Ben Duoc (place guide, place-ho-chi-minh-city sources).
guide.michelin.com. Banh Xeo 46A: Bib Gourmand, 46 Dinh Cong Trang Street, Tan Dinh; over seven decades; crepes with mung beans, bean sprouts, pork and shrimp; al fresco seating by the open kitchen; open 10:00 to 13:50 and 16:00 to 20:50 daily.
visithcmc.vn. Jade Emperor Pagoda: built about 1892 to 1900 by Luu Minh, a Cantonese migrant; open 07:00 to 17:30 daily; main hall for the Jade Emperor; Kings of Hell; Kim Hoa Thanh Mau with 12 midwife figures; dress modestly, keep quiet, ask before filming.
baotanglichsutphcm.com.vn. History Museum: open Tuesday to Sunday 08:00 to 11:30 and 13:00 to 17:00, closed Monday; VND 60,000 from 1 October 2026; children and students free; 1929 building, Indochinese revival style; over 43,000 objects, 12 national treasures; inside the zoo grounds.
en.wikipedia.org. Metro Line 1: Ben Thanh to Suoi Tien, 05:00 to 22:00, 23:00 Friday and Saturday; single tickets VND 7,000 to 20,000 cash; day pass VND 40,000 (place guide, place-ho-chi-minh-city sources); stations in order Ben Thanh, Opera House, Ba Son, Van Thanh, Tan Cang, Thao Dien (three stops Ba Son to Thao Dien, five from Ben Thanh).
news.tuoitre.vn. Past Ba Son the Saigon River comes into view, then Landmark 81 above patches of green; a view rarely seen from a motorbike (Tuoi Tre News, September 2026).
vietnamairlines.com. Binh Tay Market: 57A Thap Muoi Street; open 06:00 to 18:00; also called Cho Lon market (Vietnam Airlines travel guide).
vi.wikipedia.org. Cha Tam Church (Saint Francis Xavier), 25 Hoc Lac; first stone 3 December 1900, consecrated 1902; Gothic; Diem and Nhu prayed here on 2 November 1963 before surrendering and were killed.
visithcmc.vn. Thien Hau Temple, 710 Nguyen Trai, built 1760 for Mazu, green iron gate with lanterns, courtyard, exit by the right gate, porcelain figurines, Mazu festival on the 23rd of the third lunar month; Quan Am Temple, 12 Lao Tu, built by Hokkien immigrants early 19th century for Guanyin; Chinese-Buddhist style, incense smoke (HCMC Tourism Promotion Center).
guide.michelin.com. Pho Le: Bib Gourmand, 413-415 Nguyen Trai Street; over 70 years; mixed beef noodles with raw and cooked beef, brisket, beef balls and tendon; open 06:00 to 00:00 daily.
hcmc-museum.edu.vn. Ho Chi Minh City Museum: open 08:00 to 17:00 every day, holidays and Tet included; VND 60,000 from 1 October 2026, children and students free; Gia Long Palace by Alfred Foulhoux, built 1885 to 1890; Diem's last residence in 1963; helicopter and car collection (sight images).
baotangmythuattphcm.com.vn. Fine Arts Museum: VND 60,000; museum list still gives children 6 to under 16 and students half price; open 08:00 to 17:00 daily; villa 1929 to 1934 for the Hua (Hui Bon Hoa) family; Champa and Oc Eo pieces on the third floor; woodcuts, ceramics, lacquer, silk and oil painting; iron stair railing photo.
ttbc-hcm.gov.vn. Free city buses on 134 routes until 31 December 2026; tap a contactless card (place guide).
vietnam.travel. Heat: monthly mean about 27°C in December and January, 30°C in April; dry season December to April; short afternoon showers May to November (place guide, Questions).
openstreetmap.org. Coordinates (OpenStreetMap through the Photon geocoder and Overpass): Pho Minh alley (Hẻm 63 Pasteur, way 723876670), Notre Dame Cathedral (way 801950766), Bep Me In (node 11616168569, 136/9 Lê Thánh Tôn), Phố đi bộ Nguyễn Huệ (node 11775511388), Ốc Oanh 1 (node 5565425321), Ben Dinh (node 1388480068), Bánh Xèo 46A (node 3506699501), Ba Son station (way 1163010587), Công viên bờ sông Sài Gòn - Thảo Điền (node 12435161718), Chợ Bến Thành (node 3166133536), Chợ Bình Tây (relation 2552505), Nhà thờ Giáo xứ Thánh Phanxicô Xaviê (way 1482251693), Hội quán Ôn Lăng (way 366664393), Hội quán Tuệ Thành (way 1497050780), Phở Lệ (way 1536912862).

Ho Chi Minh City itinerary: how to spend 1, 2 or 3 days

How many days

War Remnants Museum, Independence Palace and the colonial centre

Pho for breakfast at Pho Minh

War Remnants Museum

Independence Palace

Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office

Lunch at Bep Me In

Ben Thanh Market

Nguyen Hue walking street at dusk

Seafood on Vinh Khanh Street

Cu Chi tunnels, the Jade Emperor Pagoda and Metro Line 1

Cu Chi Tunnels at Ben Dinh

Lunch at Banh Xeo 46A

Jade Emperor Pagoda

Ho Chi Minh City History Museum

Metro Line 1 from Ba Son station

Thao Dien riverside park at sunset

Ben Thanh night market

Cholon's market, temples and church, then two museums

Binh Tay Market

Cha Tam Church

Quan Am Pagoda (On Lang Assembly Hall)

Thien Hau Temple (Tue Thanh Assembly Hall)

Lunch at Pho Le

Ho Chi Minh City Museum

Fine Arts Museum

Tips for Ho Chi Minh City

Sources