~ taahas ~

Yes, we plan to come visit saigon this weekend. The departure flight will be on this Saturday, 3rd Sep 2016 at 11,10am and here begin the journey. We have come out will some idea about the itinerary and let us share it here..

1210 - 1230	Arriving. Check out airport.		Distance
1230 - 1345	Toward city by bus. Straight go to War Rennam Museum.	This museum is not for the faint of heart as it houses harrowing displays of weapons and photographs. Established in 1975, it’s home to U.S armoured vehicles, bombs, infantry weapons and provocative images detailing the brutality of war. Address: 28 Vo Van Tan, District 3. Open from 7:30 A.M to noon, 1:30 P.M to 5:00 P.M Monday to Friday. Entrance fee: VND15,000	From Ben thanh 1.2km (15min)
1730 - 1800	Heading to hotel.	Bali B Hotel. Do not forget to deal cu chi tunnel tours.	1.9km (23min)
1900 - 2100	Dinner. Then go to Turtle Lake	Look for travel agency.	2.4km (30min)

4 September – Day 2

0700 - 1400	Cuchi tunnel tour.		80km
1400 - 1500	Back to hotel.	Bali B Hotel.
1500 – 1800	Saigon Zoo & Botanical Garden	VND 20,000
1800 – 1900	Back to hotel	Get some rest.
1900	Dinner @ Skybridge.	I agree with Dirty Pierre, the traffic in here jams up in rush hour. So you need to plan carefully when taking the bus. If you're staying in phu my hung like I did, then you should take the 102 or 34 bus. Both of them go by phu my hung on streets "nguyen van linh" and "huynh tan phat". Buses start around 5am every morning, and unfortunately, they stop at the early time of 7pm. Okay, from phu my hung to Ben thanh I would take either the 34 bus or the 102. The 102 was nice and big, while the 34 was very small. They are both old buses, but they are quite alright. The prices were very cheap. The price of the no.102 bus is 6,000vnd for a ticket and the price of the no.34 bus is 5,000vnd for a ticket. The drivers were very friendly. Sometimes the traffic would be so crazy, and it would take over 1 hour to get to district 1. But usually it only takes about 40 minutes. Personally I think that its a great idea to take the public buses around the city as it provides a great experience and an opportunity to see the city with a different view.	7km from District 1.

5 September – Day 3

0630 - 1100	Mekong river tours.	- Departing at 6.30 from NinhKieu Wharf. Taking a motorbike boat to Cai Rang floating market. On the way, you can observe many interesting activities along Can Tho riverbanks. You will have chance to know how local people go fishing and transport tourists as well as product by the waterway. - Reaching Cai Rang floating market, you can reappear the selling activities in the past by using a traditional “offering pole” for exchanging consumer products. - The traveller will visit the local rice-nobble factory and learn more about the traditional method to produce the rice-noble. - To know more about lifestyle over there, just keep going into some small creeks, you will feel the fresh atmosphere and enjoy the Southern countryside. - Visiting where you can eat some special seasonal fruits. - At 9:45 : Cruising back to NinhKieu Wharf
1100 - 1200	Back to hotel.	Bali B Hotel.
1200 - 1400	Ben Thanh Market.	Find souvenir.
1400 - 1445	Return to airport for depature.
1620	Fly to KL.

Some info about going to D7.
Option 1

For foreigners living in District 7 that do not have the luxury of having their own car or motorbike, finding the cheapest and quickest mode of transportation is important. Hiring a taxi cab from District 7 to District 1 will most likely cost you a little under 100,000 VND or around 5 USD. That’s too much compared to riding a public bus at 3,000 VND or hitching a ride in a xe om at probably around 50,000 VND. Now the bus can really take a long time to get to your destination and riding a xe om is not for the faint of heart (at least for me).

But here’s the tip. There are Phu My Hung Shuttles with two (2) routes from District 7 to District 1 (and back) at only 10,000 VND (50 cents). It’s comfortable, air-conditioned and doesn’t make a lot of stops compared to a bus. You just have to know two things: route and schedule.

Option 2

Since I also have to visit District 7 from District 1 for FV hospital and Parkson paragon theatre, I took a bus from a private company right in front of Lucky Plaza on 69 Đồng Khởi, Bến Nghé, Hồ Chí Minh. The bus comes every 5-10 mins after the hour and it costs three times as much as local bus, but still cheap: 15000 dong. If you see a bunch of Koreans and Japanese expats standing in front of it close to the end of the hour, then you are at the right place, haha. Here is no bus sign, but a nondescript "Xe Buyt" text on the pavement right outside of Lucky Plaza. Since I took the line before, is the bus ride is really pleasant since it won't have many stops and you will always have a seat. It is relatively new with AC. It only take 20 mins with no traffic to get to district 7, and 30 without traffic. I haven't been able to locate the stop back going from Dist 7 to 1. I know the end of the line is "riverside" in district 7, according to the attendant. I have no idea what this means, but I believe this is the CityLand Riverside residential area in district 7. I did took the 34 back and it definitely took twice as long. Good luck.