Saigon Uncovered: The Best of HCMC City Tour 

A fun ride to the most popular tourist attractions in Saigon. Learn the history of each famous site from the unique perspective of our guides.

Unlike typical sightseeing tours that only cover the main landmarks, the “XO Sights of Saigon” offers an in-depth, immersive historical journey through Ho Chi Minh City. We focus on providing genuine historical context and meaningful cultural insights, ensuring every minute of your experience is engaging and educational.

We believe that great guides make a great tour that’s why the “XO Sights of Saigon” tour is led by tourism majors and teachers who undergo months of study and training before they are allowed to guide. Rather than relying on simple scripts, our guides are educated storytellers who bring Saigon’s rich history to life using archival photos, historical maps, and deep local insight.

The “XO Sights of Saigon” tour offers a good mix of both famous attractions and lesser known markets and sites that the big Ho Chi Minh City tours cannot go to. We’ll provide a deep dive into the history of some of Saigon’s most famous locations (with historical photos!), that many travelers have seen in movies, documentaries and school books but never knew the full story behind. Some of the places we visit on this tour are:

• Notre Dame Cathedral – An iconic 19th-century landmark featuring French colonial architecture and red bricks imported directly from Marseille.

• The Central Post Office – Designed by Cochinchina’s Chief Architect Marie-Alfred Foulhoux, this active architectural masterpiece features soaring vaulted ceilings, ironwork, and preserved historical maps.

• The Secret CIA Building – A notable downtown site famous for the iconic photo capturing one of the final helicopter evacuations during the fall of Saigon in 1975.

• Reunification Palace (Exterior viewing) – The historic landmark where a tank crashed through the gates on April 30, 1975, signaling the end of the Vietnam War.

• Tan Dinh Market – One of Saigon’s oldest traditional markets, offering a vibrant look at everyday local commerce and traditional street trading.

• The Burning Monk Memorial – A powerful monument commemorating Thich Quang Duc, the Buddhist monk whose self-immolation in 1963 drew international attention to Vietnam.

• Ho Thi Ky Flower Market – A bustling, maze-like neighborhood in District 10 that serves as the city’s primary wholesale flower trading hub.

• The Hidden Underground Weapons Arsenal – A covert secret bunker tucked inside an ordinary local home, used by the Viet Cong to store weapons before the 1968 Tet Offensive.

• The Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda – A breathtaking, multi-story temple hidden in District 5’s Chinatown, named for the thousands of tiny gilded Buddha statues lining its interior walls.

Because Saigon can get quite hot during the day, we also provide light snacks and cold drinks on the tour to keep you cool and refreshed!

We can easily cover the same number of sites in 3.5 hours that would require a full day on most other Ho Chi Minh city tours. Our pace is still very leisurely, so you will not be rushed. At each stop, you will be allowed to get off the bike and walk around so you will have plenty of great photo opportunities. We also won’t take you to the typical tourist traps to try sell you overpriced souvenirs.

We only run the “XO Sights of Saigon” tour in the morning, when the weather is coolest. The local markets are also busiest in the mornings so it’s the best time to experience all the hustle and bustle!

How many people in a group?

Please note that this tour is offered on a join in basis, so there may be other guests joining you on the tour. Our maximum group size is 8 people. For guests that do not want to go in a group, we also offer a private tour option for an extra charge.