Asian Travel Adventures: Ho Chi Minh City - Airports, Hotel and Tour Arrangements

     The last trip I had, before Ho Chi Minh City, was in Beijing, China, last November 2010.  I am quite fortunate to have been able to embark on another Asian travel four months after.  It also means, again, that I am running low in savings.  I think that I haven't hit the penniless stage just yet, so, for now, I am indulging in trips abroad and I have upcoming trips to Taiwan next month and to Singapore in July. 

     That being said, I swore that I would not spend too much money in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC).  I wanted to save some dollars for my Taiwan trip; after all, I had this belief that I would be spending less in HCMC because I had friends who'd be travelling with me and with whom I could share the hotel cost.

     So, my friends and I booked a cheap hotel at the backpackers' area in HCMC, in Bui Vien Street.  I received a hotel voucher from our chosen hotel and we were billed for USD 47 per night, or USD 141 for our 3-night stay.  Our room was for triple sharing and with light breakfast included, so, we paid USD 47 each (around Php 2,200).  Our room was big with a computer and free wired and wi-fi internet inside the hotel, and a bath tub.  The reviews are great over at Trip Advisor, and we don't have to pay upfront, not even a deposit; payment may be made upon check-out.  Not a bad deal.  The hotel we booked is called Beautiful Saigon Hotel.

     For our tours, I just booked with The Sinh Tourist and paid the price online.  I chose Cu Chi Tunnels and Cai Be Mekong Delta tours, and we paid VND 334,000 (more than USD 5) and USD 40.27, respectively.  Both tours were for 3 persons.  

    We have booked a cheap hotel and cheap tours, so me and my friends were all set to go.

    We went to the NAIA Terminal 3 to catch our flight.  Again, I was amused by the thermal receipts issued to us by Cebu Pacific as boarding pass.  We didn't buy seats for our flight so I urged my friends to be at the airport at least 3 hours before our flight.  Cebu Pacific already has its online check-in system in operation but it seems that you need to buy seats in order to avail of the service.  I thought people would most likely make use of this option considering that you wouldn't need to be at the airport 2 hours before your flight if you check-in online but I was wrong.  Well, as always, I asked the ground staff to give us seats in front, and what do you know, we were given seats on the 3rd row, D, E and F.  But when I checked the seat selector option earlier in the day, seat 3D is occupied.  Amazing, right? 

     The National Bookstore inside the terminal was even more amazing; now bigger and with more books inside.  We bought a magazine and a book, because a bookstore is too hard to resist, plus pens because I forgot to bring one.

     Then, it was time for our 2 and 1/2 hour flight to Ho Chi Minh City which happens to be not the capital of Vietnam (it's Hanoi, actually).  I slept all the time during our flight which was not hard to do considering we departed at 11:00 p.m.  Philippine time is an hour ahead of Vietnam time, so even if we flew for 2 and 1/2 hours, we arrived at 12:30 a.m., in Vietnam.  I turned back time! Yipee!

     When I woke up after we landed, I asked my friends if we were given arrival cards and they said there weren't any.  There's no arrival card, another yay for Vietnam. Less hassle.

     So, we finally got inside the Tan Son Nhat International Airport and it looks almost the same as our very own Terminal 3.  I promise.  Even the vicinity of the luggage conveyor looks creepily like Terminal 3.  As in.  I really felt as if I was in the Philippines instead of in Vietnam.  To check the facilities, flight schedules, etc., of Tan Son Nhat International Airport, this is their website: http://tsnairport.com/cms/en/home.

 Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Ho Chi Minh City

See?  It's very much like NAIA Terminal 3.  Just like back home.

The luggage conveyor stopped for about 10 minutes. LOL!

 Arranging luggage at the airport is very Filipino. I do this, too.

     Honestly, I didn't research much about HCMC so I just printed out the travel wiki guide for HCMC and some tips I got from the internet about a DIY city tour.  I knew that we were supposed to hire only Vinasun and Mai Linh taxis but where to find those at the airport was another matter.  But since the area immediately in front of the exit doors were littered with cars picking up their guests, we ended up waiting at the far left side.  We were wondering how to get a taxi when I noticed that the guys who were sitting beside us, chilling, were working for Vinasun and Mai Linh and some other taxi service.  The Vinasun guy, in long sleeves and tie, the color of which I forgot, got us a cab after we asked how do we get one.  He told us that a cab will arrive in 4 minutes, and indeed, a cab arrived not long thereafter.  The other ones like him from the other cab companies were sporting similar attires: long sleeved dress shirt and tie in the heat of the night.

      We got inside the taxi, and the driver promptly pressed the meter and we started our journey, a very slow journey, to our hotel in Bui Vien.  For one reason or the other, the cab driver was driving very slowly...40 kph, max.  I swear.  I was staring at the speedometer the whole time because I was so bored with his driving.  I wouldn't mind a slow drive during the day where there are a lot of cars, buses and motorcycles around, but in the dead of the night?  Are you kidding me?  Well, perhaps, the cabbie was thinking about our safety, so I was still thankful.  Our fare from airport to hotel was VND 120,000.

     Now, for the best part.  I emailed the hotel that we would be arriving in HCMC at 12:30 a.m., so they knew we were coming.  When the cab driver dropped us in front of our supposed hotel, we were confused, standing in the sidewalk like crazy people.  We were searching for the hotel but we could not find it.  But the place was right.  From the pictures, the hotel is supposed to be several steps away from Buffalo, a bar where backpackers frequent, and which was still buzzing with activity when we got there.  A little more effort in scanning the area and we saw the hotel.  It was in front of us, the same place where the cab dropped us off.  But it was closed.  The lights were off and the aluminum/stainless gate (the one used by mall shops) was down.  There was a 6-inch clearance left and we were literally on our knees peeping inside the closed hotel.  Then one of us saw a doorbell.  It was so high we needed to use something to push it.  Five minutes more had passed and someone turned on the lights. Thank god; we were waiting for at least 15 minutes already. The front-desk officer, not a security guard, woke up from her sleep, in her decent sleepwear, on a folding bed, beside the reception area.  She quickly found our room keys because she was expecting us, and we checked-in and went up to our room.  We were trying to suppress our laughters because this incident is one for the ages.

     In fairness, we were pleasantly surprised with our room.  It was decent sized, with a twin bed and a queen-sized bed, plus there was a fruit basket, with many fruits.  There were macopa, mangoes, bananas and others plus an assortment of tea and coffee.  N free bottled drinks, though.  It looked exactly as the pictures we saw in the hotel's website.  The beds were clean and comfy, the sheets were crisp and there were sparkling white rubber slippers.  And there's really a computer with wired internet inside the room and wi-fi internet.  Most important of all, the bathroom was super clean, just like what they said in their website.  Were we happy with our choice of hotel?  Of course, even if it we waited for the someone to open the doors for us.

Computer inside the room with free internet.

The friendly, helpful and competent staff.

They're all the ones you'll need, and in fact, they the only ones there,

except during breakfast where there are other servers.

     I think this is all for now.  My next post will be about our half-day tour to Cu Chi Tunnels.  Till then!