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Visitor Information
Every major tourist agency has its headquarters or a branch in Saigon. They can book tours and travel throughout the city and the southern region, and usually countrywide as well. Ann Tours, Exotissimo, and Saigontourist are upper tier. Ben Thanh Tourist and Sinh Balo are a lower range. Ann Tourist is a favorite of Frommer's readers and the subcontractor of choice for many of the best international tour operators.
Ann Tourist Co., 58 Ton That Tung, Ben Thanh, District 1 (tel. 08/925-3636/833-2564; fax 08/832-3866; www.anntours.com), has a great reputation that's well deserved. Ann's specializes in custom tours for individuals or small groups. They can be relatively expensive, but that's in comparison to the seat-in-coach cattle-drive tours. These guys will help you do virtually anything you want to in Vietnam. Ask for director Tony Nong, and tell him Frommer's sent you.
Exotissimo, 4th floor, Saigon Finance Center, 9 Dinh Tien Hoang, District 1 Ho Chi Minh City (tel. 08/825 1723; fax 08/829-5800; www.exotissimo.com) has a chic downtown office and can arrange just about any tour or international itinerary. It's popular for expats and has convenient offices throughout the region.
Saigontourist, 49 Le Thanh Ton St., District 1 (tel. 08/824-4554; fax 08/822-5516; www.saigontourist.net), is a large government-run group, but it'll get you where you want to go and is a far better choice than the budget cafes . They man desks in the Majestic, Rex, and Sheraton hotels. They can arrange tours by private car, organize specialized larger group tours to places like the Cu Chi Tunnels and the Mekong Delta, or match you up with larger groups. Day rates start at $13 (£7.20) for a city tour and $40 to $60 (£22-£33) per day for sights farther afield. Offices are open daily from 7:30am to 6:30pm.
Sinh Balo means "Sinh the Backpacker," so-called after the company founder and budget-tour pioneer Mr. Sinh, who also gave his name to the very popular (and much copied) cafe tour company for budget tourists. In 1995 Mr. Sinh started this new, more high-end tour company, and has attracted quite a large following. Sinh Balo runs good classic tours as well as a host of ecotour itineraries. Their offices are at 283/20 Pham Ngu Lao, District 1 (tel. 08/837-6766; fax 08/836-7682).
Tourist Information Center, 4G-4H Le Loi St., District 1 (tel. 08/822-6033; www.vntourists.com), is a great place to come and pick up cards for a lot of the good restaurants and hotels in town. An on-site currency exchange center gives standard rates for cash-only transactions and charges 3% commission. There are also computers with free Internet access. Asiana Travel Mate (a government-run travel agency) is also here The staff at this newly-opened center, however, is not particularly knowledgeable and their English is rudimentary at best.
Budget Tourist Cafes
Saigon's budget tourist cafes, with their many options for affordable seat-in-coach tours in the south and "open tour" bus tickets that run you along the length of Vietnam, are many and all quite similar in the Pham Ngu Lao backpacker area. Sometimes you book with one and get consolidated with another tour at another company. Same prices and services are the rule. Sinh Café below is the über-cafe, but Kim is indicative of the many similar joints.
Kim Cafe, 272 De Tham, District 1 (tel. 08/835-9859), is typical of the Pham Ngu Lao-area backpacker cafes. They do good city day tours and the standard trips to the nearby Cau Dai temple and Cu Chi Tunnels, as well as routes farther afield to the Mekong Delta and "open tour" bus tickets.
Sinh Café, 246-248 De Tham, District 1 (tel. 08/837-6833; www.sinhcafevn.com), or in their new office, Sinh Cafe II near the Dong Khoi area at 24-26 Pho Duc Chinh St. (tel. 08/821-7421), is the best choice for inexpensive trips and tours. On paper the tours seem exactly the same as others offered at private tour agents. They have computerized air booking and are quite efficient if usually overrun with the heavy volume of Western tourists.
TNK, 216 De Tham St. (tel. 08/920-4766; www.tnktravelvietnam.com), is another of the many.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
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