Ho Chi Minh City is the business and financial hub of Vietnam, with a prominent history going back hundreds of years. The Khmers originally settled the region, with the Vietnamese taking over in the 17th century.

The French conquered Saigon, as it was then known, in 1859, and made it the capital of Cochin China in 1862. They extended and embellished the city with broad boulevards and elegant architecture. At the peak of the Vietnam War in 1969 the city had 4.5 million inhabitants. They were all evacuated when Saigon and the rest of the South fell to North Vietnam in 1975.

The city has recovered in the 30 years since then; the current population is over 7 million. It was renamed Ho Chi Minh City, after the spiritual leader of Vietnamese Communism, but the inhabitants were so reluctant to adopt the new name that the authorities compromised; the official name is Ho Chi Minh City but the city centre is still called Saigon. The Vietnamese government may be Communist, but it understands well the importance of the tourism industry to the economy, and has promoted the country vigorously.

Sightseeing

 Cu Chi Tunnels

How did the Americans lose the Vietnam War? Your guide will lead you through hidden trap-doors to explore the Cu Chi tunnels that helped thwart the US army at every turn.

 Cu Chi Tunnels

How did the Americans lose the Vietnam War? Your guide will lead you through hidden trap-doors to explore the Cu Chi tunnels that helped thwart the US army at every turn.

 Saigon Central Post Office

Saigon Central Post Office still operates, though it also serves as one of the city's top attractions, having been designed by the famous Gustave Eiffel.

 Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral

Pilgrims flocked to this beautiful basilica in 2005 when its Virgin Mary statue was reported to have shed tears. We're sceptical, but there are better reasons to visit the Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral, such as its superior architecture!

 Independence Palace (Reunification Palace)

Originally built to demonstrate Vietnam's strength in the wake of Independence, it was torn down, replaced, and eventually renamed Reunification Palace after the fall of Saigon.

Pham Ngu Lao Street

Though known as the backpacker district, the bustling Pham Ngu Lao Street attracts people from all walks of life with its bounty of clothing, war memorabilia, and other merchandise.

War Remnants Museum

The War Remnants Museum paints a vivid – and often disturbing – picture of the country's 20th-century struggles. It's a must for anyone hoping to understand Vietnam's complex history.

Dam Sen Park

With lakes, gardens, and so much more beyond the rides, Dam Sen is the perfect amusement park for people who don't like amusement parks, as well as those that do!

Jade Emperor Pagoda

With its ornate carvings and constant aura of incense smoke, this is the pagoda to see if you've only time for one. Be sure to look over its gorgeous courtyard from the roof!

 Ho Chi Minh City Museum

Located in the old Gia Long Palace, photographs and artefacts offer an exemplary account of Vietnam's bloody past. It's uncompromising without being gratuitous.

Ho Chi Minh City is blessed with fantastic restaurants serving a combination of French, Chinese, and, of course, local Vietnamese cuisine. It is this confluence of food cultures that has made Vietnamese food famed around the world, and brings visitors flocking to sample Saigon’s many fabulous restaurants.

While street food and snack stalls are also an inextricable part of a Vietnamese dining experience, sometimes you need a fabulous restaurant that combines expertly prepared dishes with a pleasant ambiance, stunning views and diligent service. Our list of the 10 Best Restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City has them all to varying degrees so you can rest assured they will provide a dining experience to remember.

Some restaurants:

Quan An Ngon

A beautiful design scheme like something out of an exotic fairytale and a range of cooking stations preparing specialities from all over Vietnam keep Quan An Ngon packed out every evening with foreigners and well dressed locals. This is the perfect place to try legendary Vietnamese dishes such as fresh spring rolls, Hue noodles and black pepper crab. Occupying a prime location next door to The Reunification Palace, this restaurant is situated inside a refurbished mansion where guests can dine amid intricately carved teak furniture, lotus ponds and serving staff in classic satin dresses.

Camargue

Address: 74/7D Hai Ba Trung, District 

Camargue is a refined French restaurant set in the courtyard of an old colonial-era opium factory. While not exactly fine-dining, the ambiance is sophisticated and the cuisine available is clearly French with a slight Vietnamese touch. Highlights include seabass and squid served with sweet chard, roast lamb with polenta enriched with Phu Puoc pepper, and crispy pork leg marinated in a slight spice and caramelised artichoke. An excellent wine list is available with several options by the glass. Camargue is next door to many other restaurants and bars including The Refinery Saigon Bar and Restaurant. 

The Deck Saigon

Address: 38 Nguyen U Di, District 2

The Deck Saigon sits beside the Saigon River in a delightful al fresco setting 15 minutes taxi ride from downtown Ho Chi Minh City. The romance of this restaurant is unparalleled and the pan-Asian fusion type dishes are very well prepared. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, this restaurant has excellent set lunch offerings. Come dinnertime, a la carte dishes run from soft shell crab tempura to char grilled shrimp and rib eye steak. Most of the meat is imported meaning it isn’t the cheapest but quality is assured. 

Monsoon Restaurant and Bar

Address: No.1, Cao Ba Nha, District 1

With a chic, minimalist dining room and impressive menu spanning the best dishes from Thailand, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, Monsoon Restaurant is the best choice for a spicy regional dishes like tom yam kung soup and pad Thai, red curry and pork cooked in clay pot. Prices are very reasonable for what is widely considered the finest Southeast Asian restaurant in Saigon. 

The Refinery Bar and Restaurant

The Refinery Bar and Restaurant brings a touch of French charm to downtown Ho Chi Minh with a menu of French bistro favourites such as steak frites and creative salads. As a former opium factory, The Refinery is replete with genuine colonial fixtures and has a charming garden terrace that offers the perfect spot for soaking up the cosmopolitan ambiance over a couple of wines. This is popular restaurant is enclosed in a fashionable courtyard next to the Park Hyatt Hotel on Hai Ba Trung Strees. 

La Cuisine

Address: 48 Le Thanh Ton Street, District 1.

La Cuisine is unashamedly classic French cuisine, serving many traditional dishes such as steak tartare, foie gras with Provence figs, and pan seared duck with Béarnaise sauce. Plating and execution is stylish and modern, just like the white-washed, bare brick walls, and chunky wooden tables. The owner and head chef is French and has worked all over the world before settling in Ho Chi Minh to open La Cuisine. Look out for the set lunch menu which offers two or three courses for significantly reduced rates for a taste of something fancy at a great value price. 

The Temple Club

Address: 29-31 Ton That Thiep St, District 1

The Temple Club is a chic bar and restaurant that is on the itineraries of visiting stars and globetrotters. Located in a converted Chinese Temple in a small alleyway off Pasteur Street, it’s easiest to find by using Saigon Centre Shopping Mall as a landmark, and those that do make the effort will be rewarded with a richly decorated dining room serving Vietnamese fusion dishes and a cocktail lounge with skilled bartenders and tapas style accompaniments. For pure sophistication, The Temple Club is hard to beat. 

Lemongrass

Lemongrass is a fine dining restaurant located in a narrow shophouse in District 1. Serving delectable Vietnamese dishes presented with French flair and providing guests with diligent service, this three floor restaurant is certainly one of Ho Chi Minh’s top restaurants. Choose from the sizeable range of meat, fish and vegetarian dishes on the a la carte menu or trust the chef and choose one of four set menus available at Lemongrass. Soft candlelight adds a touch of romance to proceedings, enhanced by the live music playing in the background. 

Address: 4 Nguyen Thiep St., District 

Nha Hang Ngon

Nha Hang Ngon is an endearingly popular restaurant serving a complete rundown of Vietnamese dishes in a restored colonial mansion. The menu is as big as a cookbook but all dishes are explained in English. Some might feel the restaurant lacks authenticity, but this is a great option for large groups who want to sample a wide range of Vietnamese food in pleasant surrounds. While this isn’t fine dining, the prices are such good value it is accessible for almost everyone.

4Ps Pizza Saigon

Address: 8/15 Le Thanh Ton, Dist.1

This Japanese owned and operated pizza and pasta restaurant serves some of the best pizzas east of Napoli. 4Ps Pizza Saigon is an institution with Ho Chi Minh’s expat community serving stone-baked pizzas with inventive toppings that run from flower petals to teriyaki chicken. Despite the hard to find location down an alleyway behind The Sushi Bar on Le Thanh Ton Street, it gets packed on weekends and reservations are highly recommended.