How to spend a week in Ho Chi Minh City (as Gen Z)
Ho Chi Minh City feels like a city built for young people—authentic, cheap, fun, and loud!
Trip Details ✈️
We went with six friends in December. We flew to Nha Trang, spent a day there, and the next morning took a flight to Saigon (the old name of Ho Chi Minh City, still widely used).
Flights in Vietnam 🛫
We flew Vietjet Air, the cheapest low-cost airline—and always late. Our 11 AM flight ended up departing at 6:20 PM after multiple reschedules. If you can, pay just $10 more and fly Vietnam Airlines—better service, often empty seats, and almost always on time.
Where We Stayed 🏙️
We rented a 3-bedroom condo at Millennium via Airbnb. It had an outdoor pool with stunning city views and cost just $70 per person for 6 days. If you book earlier, you can find even better deals—like condos in Landmark 81, the tallest building in Vietnam.
Food & Cafés 🍜
Must-visit places:
• Little Hanoi – Famous café, amazing egg coffee ☕
• Haidilao – Iconic hotpot chain, we spent only $13 per person! Expect a 1-2-hour wait, but they offer free snacks, ice cream, lemonade, even manicures & massages!
• Bep Me In – Classic Vietnamese cuisine, near Ben Thanh Market
• Cafe Apartments – A 6-story old building with cool cafés on each floor, packed with tourists from all over the world
• Oshima’s Café – Aesthetic spot, worth visiting to explore the city
• Banh Mi Huynh Hoa – The most famous banh mi spot, loaded with 4-5 types of meat 🥖
More upscale options:
• Hum Cafe & Restaurant – In the top 20 vegan restaurants worldwide 🌱
• Stir Bar – Ranked top 50 best bars 🍸
• Pizza 4Ps – Vietnamese-Italian pizzeria, opened by the Japanese. Amazing pizza & pasta! 🍕
Shopping & Thrift Finds 🛍️
Ho Chi Minh City is great for shopping, especially for thrift lovers and local Vietnamese designers. The prices are similar to Zara, but the quality and designs are way better. We dedicated a full day to visiting these showrooms—definitely worth it!
Places to Visit 🎟️
• War Remnants Museum – American-Vietnamese War history
• Ben Thanh Market – A must-visit bazaar
• Cu Chi Tunnels – A network of war tunnels outside the city, tours cost ~$20
Final Thoughts 🌍
We didn’t go for the cheapest options—most places we visited had prices similar to Kazakhstan. But if you’re on a budget, you can definitely eat and stay for much less! Overall, Ho Chi Minh City is an amazing mix of history, energy, and great food—definitely worth visiting!