Saigon on a Budget: 10 Cheap and Free Things to Do

Ho Chi Minh City Is Cheap. Here Is What That Buys You

Ho Chi Minh City is one of the least expensive big cities left in Southeast Asia to visit properly, not just survive on rice and instant noodles. A full day of real food, a paid museum ticket and a couple of Grab rides across District 1 runs roughly 400,000-600,000 VND, about US$15-23. Skip the paid viewpoints and eat where locals eat, and that number drops further. The catch: almost nothing is truly free once you count the e-visa fee most Western visitors need before landing, so budget the paperwork as carefully as the meals.

Days needed Best months Daily budget Booking note
2-3 full days for the city itself December-April (dry, less humid) 400,000-800,000 VND (~US$15-30) on food, sights and Grab, hotel on top Sort your e-visa at evisa.gov.vn and a District 1 hotel before you land, not after

Getting In and Around Without Overpaying

Tan Son Nhat International Airport (SGN) is 2026’s only working gateway for arrivals, roughly 6-8km from District 1. The new Long Thanh airport east of the city is still not handling passenger flights in 2026, trial runs only, with a full commercial opening targeted around December, so do not plan an arrival there this year.

Grab into District 1 runs roughly 110,000-250,000 VND (~US$4-10), fare shown in the app before you confirm, no haggling. Uber does not operate in Vietnam, it sold its Southeast Asia business to Grab in 2018, so ignore any driver who says otherwise. Airport Bus 109 is the budget option at 40,000-50,000 VND, running roughly 5:30am-1:30am every 15-20 minutes, slower but fine without heavy luggage.

Metro Line 1 (Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien) is the only line running in 2026. Fare runs 6,000-20,000 VND depending on distance, genuinely useful for the Thu Duc/Landmark 81 stretch, but it does not reach the War Remnants Museum, Notre-Dame or the Reunification Palace, so most sightseeing days still mean walking or a short Grab.

Do Americans, Canadians and Australians need a visa for Vietnam?

Yes. Vietnam is not blanket visa-free. A 45-day exemption covers roughly 13 countries, mostly Western and Northern Europe plus Japan and South Korea. US, Canadian and Australian passport holders need an e-visa from the official evisa.gov.vn portal: about US$25 for a single entry or US$50 for multiple entries, valid up to 90 days, taking 3-5 working days to process. Apply before you book anything else.

Is Grab actually cheaper than a taxi here?

Usually, yes, and with less hassle. Grab fares are fixed and shown before you ride, typically 10-20% under a metered taxi with no negotiating. If you do flag a street taxi, stick to branded, metered companies, Vinasun (white/cream) or Mai Linh (green); unbranded cars around the airport and tourist streets are the most common overcharging risk in the city.

10 Cheap and Free Things to Do in Saigon

  1. War Remnants Museum - 40,000 VND adult (20,000 VND ages 6-16, free under 6), District 3, open 7:30am-5:30pm. The one paid sight that fully earns its ticket price.
  2. Reunification Palace - roughly 40,000 VND, or about 65,000 VND combined with the exhibition, ticket window 8am-3:30pm.
  3. Notre-Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office - free to view from outside. Notre-Dame is closed to visitors mid-restoration, completion now pushed toward 2027, but the Post Office next door is open and free, its ironwork often wrongly credited to Gustave Eiffel when the architect was Alfred Foulhoux.
  4. Ben Thanh Market - free to wander 6am-6pm; after 6pm the surrounding streets turn into a cheaper street-food night market until roughly 10pm.
  5. Jade Emperor Pagoda - free, donations welcome, District 1, roughly 7am-6pm.
  6. Walking District 1 - Dong Khoi and Nguyen Hue walking street cost nothing and link most of the above on foot.
  7. Cholon (District 5 Chinatown) - Binh Tay Market and Thien Hau Temple, free to enter, and priced far more locally than Ben Thanh.
  8. A ride on Metro Line 1 - 6,000-20,000 VND out to the Thu Duc/Landmark 81 side of the river, cheaper than any tour bus.
  9. A proper street-food crawl - pho 45,000-70,000 VND, banh mi 20,000-35,000 VND (a famous stuffed one from Banh Mi Huynh Hoa runs closer to 60,000 VND), com tam 35,000-65,000 VND.
  10. Ca phe sua da - 15,000-25,000 VND from a street vendor. This, not egg coffee, is Saigon’s own everyday coffee icon; egg coffee is a Hanoi invention from 1946 and a novelty import here.

If you want a booked introduction to street food rather than winging it, a guided street-food tour runs roughly US$29-33 for 8-10 tastings over three hours, hotel pickup included, useful for a first night when eating solo on the street feels intimidating.

Is the War Remnants Museum worth the entry fee?

At 40,000 VND it is the cheapest heavy museum experience most travelers will have this year. War photography, Agent Orange exhibits and captured military hardware in the courtyard make it genuinely sobering, not a casual browse. Budget two to three hours and skip eating immediately before or after. Full details are on the museum’s own site .

Where to Stay in District 1 Without Overpaying

Budget travelers cluster around Bui Vien and Pham Ngu Lao, hostels and guesthouses with dorm beds and cheap private rooms a short walk from Ben Thanh Market. Mid-range boutique hotels sit closer to Dong Khoi, further from the nightlife noise, still walkable to the main sights. Book ahead around Tet (the Lunar New Year) or a dry-season weekend; walk-up availability is realistic the rest of the year.

Check District 1 hotel rates on Booking.com before you land, since prices climb closer to arrival during peak months.

One Paid Viewpoint Is Enough

Landmark 81 SkyView costs roughly 300,000-500,000 VND and sits atop Vietnam’s tallest building since 2018, not Bitexco, whatever some postcards still claim. Bitexco’s Skydeck is cheaper at roughly 240,000 VND and was the country’s tallest building until Landmark 81 overtook it. On a budget, the honest move is picking one ticket, not both, or skipping the ticket entirely for a rooftop bar with a similar view and a drink instead of an entry fee. Compare Landmark 81 SkyView tickets .

Beyond the City: Cu Chi Tunnels and the Mekong Delta

The Cu Chi Tunnels sit 1.5-2 hours outside the city, entrance roughly 110,000-125,000 VND, a half-day trip that pairs well with a Cao Dai Temple noon ceremony. The Mekong Delta’s My Tho and Ben Tre are a similar distance for a single, unhurried day. These belong to a separate part of the trip planning, not the city itself; our Ho Chi Minh City day-trip guide covers both properly, and a Cu Chi Tunnels tour can be booked a day or two ahead.

For the city days themselves, pair this guide with our 2-day , 3-day or 7-day budget itineraries, or the ranked list of marquee sights if you would rather build your own order. More background on the country’s tourism sites and current advisories sits on vietnam.travel .

Keep small denominations of dong on hand for street stalls and markets that will not break a large bill, and wear a crossbody bag with the strap facing away from the road. Drive-by phone and bag snatching on Bui Vien, Dong Khoi and Nguyen Hue is the real petty-crime risk here, not violent crime, and it is entirely avoidable with a bag held on the inside of the pavement.