Saigon, My Experience of Eating, Staying, and Getting Around in 2025
Last April, I spent about 7 nights in Saigon, using it as a base to explore Dalat, Hanoi, and even Thailand. This isn't about the typical tourist spots; I've covered those in previous posts from 2017, 2019, and 2022. Instead, it's all about the food, the accommodation, and getting around!
(I've included some snapshots of S.G. from previous trips, featuring places like the Notre Dame Cathedral, Tan Dinh Church, the book street, and the Saigon Central Post Office.)
Where to Stay: Paradise Boutique Hotel and Spa
I keep going back to the Paradise Boutique Hotel and Spa at 288 Le Thanh Ton, District 1. The location is fantastic - safe, close to Ben Thanh Market (about a 3-minute walk), and near a 24/7 convenience store like 7-Eleven for drinks, fruit, and other essentials. The rooms aren't super luxurious, but they're comfortable, with cozy beds, and the prices are reasonable. They have a small rooftop pool with a nice city view, but I wouldn't recommend eating or drinking up there because it can be pricey. I usually book a Premier twin beds room with a city view on floors 6, 7, or 8 to avoid noise, usually for around $85 to $87, depending on when you book. For my last night on April 25th, I paid $103 including tax because it was close to the big 30th of April celebrations.
Breakfast is included – a decent buffet with Vietnamese and Western options. The staff in the dining room, including the manager, are attentive and welcoming.
I checked out other hotels in District 1, and while some were cheaper (around $50 or less), the reviews mentioned things that I wouldn't like – noisy or weak air conditioning, leaky bathrooms, uncomfortable beds, etc. Now that I'm older, I value comfort and convenience. And while there are hotels over $100, I feel it's too much for a longer stay! I consider myself middle-class; I enjoy traveling but need to be mindful of expenses.
The hotel doesn't have laundry facilities, but there are a few laundromats nearby. Last year, I used "Dan's wash & stay" at 185/10 Pham Ngu Lao (about a 10-15 minute walk or a quick Grab ride). This time, I found a much better laundry service: T&H laundry. They pick up and deliver laundry for free if you're within 3 km. The price is reasonable too. They picked up my clothes around 9 am and delivered them back around 5 pm. They weigh the clothes, send a photo via WhatsApp (84-906-830-166; or 096830166), and then deliver the clothes neatly folded in plastic bags, all inside a larger bag. Super clean and organized! I've done laundry in many countries like Italy, Spain and Turkey (the most expensive even though everything else was affordable!), but nowhere has offered such good service at such a low price!
It costs 45,000 VND per kilo for 24-hour service, or 65,000 VND per kilo for 8-hour service. They delivered mine earlier because they weren't busy. So, it cost only about $3, which is cheaper and easier than doing it myself at Dan's. At Dan's, I would have to take Grab four times to drop off and pick up the clothes (because I couldn't wait at the laundromat - no air conditioning, 1 hour to wash, 1 hour to dry). Washing or drying costs 30,000 VND per batch of about 2-3 kg. I would use three machines for washing and drying to be sure. Although I did tip the attendant at Dan's, so he put my clothes in the dryer. It was still more expensive since 4 grab trips is about $6, and I would have to fold the clothes. Every time I left the hotel, I would start sweating! To sum it up, T&H Laundry is much cheaper and easier! (However, they don't do free pick-up and delivery if you have less than 2 kg.)
Food Adventures: What I Ate
I ate at these places this time:
- Com Tam Ba Ghien: 84 Dang Van Ngu, Ward 10, Phu Nhuan District. This was the only place in S.G. that I found particularly delicious on this trip (I haven't been enjoying my food lately). I was recommended a lot of places, but I was happy with this one. The pork chop was moist and tender, barbecued but not dry. It was a large portion, so two people could share it, and order extra shredded pork skin and a small plate of rice. I was so busy eating that I forgot to take a picture, so here's one from last year! I couldn't find a Grab or Taxi from Tan Son Nhat airport. It was 4/25/25, approaching the 30th of April holiday, there were practice exercises in District 1, and many roads were blocked. I had to Grab to my sister-in-law's house in Tan Binh District. After visiting there and eating Com Tam, I could grab a car at 8:45 pm to my hotel in District 1. The moral of the story: avoid traveling to Saigon on major holidays!
- Thanh Giong Express: Specializes in Hue-style banh beo (steamed rice cakes) with fresh shrimp, banh bot loc (tapioca dumplings), and banh nam (steamed rice flour cakes). 9 am to 9:30 pm. 2D Nguyen Huy Tu, Dakao, District 1. A relatively new spot with a big plus: if you ask, they'll use fish sauce without MSG. After eating here my blood pressure didn't go up! I prefer the banh bot loc to the banh beo. They sell frozen banh for takeaway, but I saw that it wasn't allowed in the US, so I didn't buy any.
- Hu Tieu Hong Phat: 391 Vo Van Tan, District 3. I ate here last year and it was clean, delicious, air-conditioned, reasonably priced, and Michelin recommended. (Some photos are from my trip last year).
- Banh Khot Co Ba Vung Tau: 40B Tran Cao Van, District 3. Clean, but not as tasty as the Co Ba Vung Tau I had in Vung Tau last year.
- Khai Phat: A noodle and wonton soup place at 83 Yersin, Cau Ong Lanh Ward, District 1. The wontons are good, but the broth is salty and has a lot of MSG. They said that if you tell them beforehand, they will leave out the MSG when serving.
- "Mien Cua Cha Gio Cua Bien" (Crab Glass Noodles and Crab Spring Rolls): 94 Dinh Tien Hoang, District 1. A/C upstairs. Michelin recommended in 2024. The crab glass noodles have a lot of crab. The crab spring rolls and crab soup weren't great! They also have salt-roasted crab and tamarind crab.
- Nam Giao Quan: 139 Le Thanh Ton, Ben Thanh Ward. I ordered banh Hue (Hue-style cakes) and banh it tran (sticky rice dumplings). I also had a coconut drink. The place was crowded and after 2 hours I experienced diarrhea!
- Quan Bui: Located on Le Thanh Ton, District 1, very close to my hotel. This place is clean and upscale but a bit pricey (mostly tourists). But they give too little VEGETABLES. If you order bun cha from Hanoi, they will give you two lettuce leaves. If you ask for more, they will give you one more. If you want anything more than that, you'd have to pay. I told them that they should give more veggies since veggies are very cheap in VN. If I had to pay, I would have written a scathing review in Google Map and other travel sites. Then they gave me 4 lettuce leaves.
- Pho Hoa: 260C Pasteur, District 3. There's too much MSG. The fried spring rolls and fresh spring rolls are not that good.
Getting Around Saigon
I mainly used Grab to get around S.G. However, if you're flying into Tan Son Nhat (TSN) airport, waiting for your Grab can be a bit of a hassle, especially at the new terminal (I think it's Terminal 3). You have to walk quite a distance outside. The electric green cars were on the first day. I flew from Hanoi, it was the first day they changed terminals, so there weren't clear instructions. I heard international flights will soon arrive at the new airport, which is further away from TSN!
Regarding TSN airport, the customs officers were efficient and caused no problems. However, the lines were still long because TSN is always busy!
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