Things to Do in Ho Chi Minh City

Within the Can Gio Mangrove Reserve, Vam Sat Salt-Marsh Forest Ecological Tourist Zone is located within a section of forest between the Vam Sat and Long Tau Rivers that was destroyed during the Vietnam War, now regrown and protected as a wilderness park. Visitors here can explore Bat Swamp to fish for crab or spot for flying foxes hanging from the tree branches, and there’s a crocodile farm where you can take a boat tour and toss fish treats to the hungry reptiles. A 50-foot-tall wildlife observation tower offers a great vantage point for birdwatching or taking panoramic pictures of the marsh wilderness, and at Monkey Island you can stroll island trails among thousands of monkeys.

The Cholon neighborhood, Ho Chi Minh City’s Chinatown, is dotted with traditional Chinese-style pagodas and temples, including one of the neighborhood’s most popular places of worship, the Thien Hau Temple. Built by Cantonese immigrants in the early 19th century, this temple honors the goddess of the sea, Thien Hau (more commonly named Mazu).

Located on a busy street, it would be easy to walk right past Thien Hau, but it’s well worth stopping in to see the architecture and interior. On the outside, the temple roof is adorned with delicately worked porcelain figures depicting scenes from Chinese legend. You’ll find even more of these porcelain dioramas on the interior walls of the temple as well.

Before you even step through the exterior gate of the temple, the smells of burning incense should already be apparent. Dozens of huge conical coiled incense hang from the ceiling over the main worship area, permeating the space with a smoky haze and an intense odor.

The Reunification Palace is an important site of political and cultural significance, built by the French in 1868 to mark the newly established colony of Indochina.

In 1945, it briefly became the headquarters for the Japanese after their defeat of the French. In 1962, two Vietnamese rebel pilots bombed the palace - the president survived but the palace did not. He commissioned a new one to be built.  It was renamed Independence Palace and the design became a Modernist icon.

In 1975 the palace was the symbolic site of the triumphant liberation of Saigon. Vietnam was then reunified; since then the building has been known as Reunification Palace.

Today it is a working government building as well as having areas open to the public. Tour the private quarters, the president's former office and the War Command Room. You get a real sense of what happened here and  its importance in Vietnamese history.

Located just south of The Independence Palace, Tao Dan Park is one of Ho Chi Minh City’s largest and most serene parks known for the more than 1,000 large and mature trees that populate the space. The park is home to unique plant sculptures of various animals like dragons and tigers and replicas of Nha Trang's Cham Tower and Hung King Temple. The street Truong Dinh bisects the park, and on the northeast side of the street, you can find a modern sculpture garden.