Saigon

Compared with the stately elegance of Hanoi's French colonial streets and cafes, Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) remains brasher, more outgoing and more energetic. A city of sunlight and friendly dynamic people, Saigon-HCM City is a pleasant place for locals and foreigners alike to visit.

HCM City is only 300 years old but has many human and historical values created by the exchange of different cultures. The culture of the former Saigon and present-day HCM City shows an original characteristic of the Vietnamese culture and nation in the historical and geographical context of the country’s southern region. It is possible to say that Saigon-HCM City is a convergence of many cultural flows during its process of establishment and development, and it has a culture that bears the impressions of the Vietnamese, Chinese, Cham, Khmer, Indians, and so on.

Saigon was also one of the country’s main centers to come under the influences of the French and American cultures. This is reflected through constructions such as Nha Rong Wharf, the Post Office, Grand Theater, City Hall, Reunification Palace, and Ben Thanh Market. The system of ancient pagodas and churches like Giac Lam, Thien Hau, Giac Vien, Notre Dame, Huyen Si, Thong Tay Hoi and Thu Duc reflects a diversity of religions and beliefs with dozens of annual festivals. This has created cultural diversity of this southern land. In each street or at each corner of streets, the city’s geographical names link with celebrated people in cultural and historical fields as well as victories of a heroic city. Famous beauty spots and cultural-historical places in the city include Saigon Zoo, Dam Sen, Suoi Tien, Ky Hoa Lake, Museum of History, Museum of Revolutions, Cu Chi Tunnels, Ben Duoc Temple, An Phu Dong Resistance Base, 18 betel-growing hamlets, Lang Le Bau Co, the Bung Sau pineapple garden, and Can Gio Ecotourism Resort.