Free tour

🥇✅ Free Walking Tour Ho Chi Minh City – Highlights, Hidden Gems & Local Life

4.90

Excellent(1566)

Ho Chi Minh City

Duration: 2 hours and 30 minutes

Languages: English

Guru: Detour Asia

PRO

Verified quality

Registered on 23 April 2023

Detour Asia offers an alternative tour experience for travelers in Southeast Asia, guided by local experts who know their cities inside and out. Skip the typical tourist spots and immerse yourself in authentic culture, discovering hidden gems and local favorites. Explore with those who love and understand their cities' secrets and surprises. Make your next adventure unconventional. Proudly featured in Lonely Planet Travel Guide (2016 & 2019).

Free reservation and cancellation

Pay-what-you-want tour, no set price, reservation and cancellation are free

Tour description

New to Ho Chi Minh City? This is the tour most travelers book first.

In just one walk, you’ll see the city’s main highlights, uncover hidden details you’d walk past alone, and understand how local life really works today.

Led by a friendly local guide and rated highly by international travelers, this tour is relaxed, easy to follow, and designed especially for first-time visitors. No rushing. No scripts. Just clear stories, local insight, and time to enjoy the city.

⭐ Why Travelers Choose This Tour

Easy, central route — no transport needed
Small groups — you can hear, ask, and interact
Clear storytelling — not a history lecture
Free to join — tip only if you enjoy it
Perfect on Day 1 or Day 2 in the city

If you want to feel oriented and confident in Saigon, this tour is for you.

✨ What You’ll See and Do

📍 Bitexco Financial Tower – Meeting point & modern city icon

🌊 Saigon River – Stories of trade and transformation

☕ Local Cafés – Vietnamese coffee culture explained

🚶‍♂️ Nguyen Hue Walking Street – Saigon’s most vibrant public space

🏛️ Government City Hall – French colonial architecture

🎭 Saigon Opera House – History and elegance

🕵️‍♂️ Former CIA Building – Vietnam War stories (outside)

✉️ Central Post Office – One of the city’s most beautiful interiors

⛪ Notre-Dame Cathedral – A Saigon landmark

📚 Central Book Street – A quiet local favorite

📍 Meeting Point

Outside the main entrance of Starbucks Coffee at Bitexco Financial Tower

(Extremely easy to find — we’ll be waiting there)

🎯 This Tour Is Ideal If You Want To:

See Saigon’s highlights without feeling rushed
Learn the stories behind what you’re seeing
Discover small details and hidden corners
Get local tips you can use immediately

🎁 Extra Value

After the tour, we’ll send you a local insider guide with:

Best street food nearby
Rooftop bars locals actually go to
Tips to avoid common tourist mistakes

Free to book. No upfront cost. Tip what you feel it’s worth.

👉 Spots fill quickly — book now to secure your place.

Highlights

What will we see on this tour?

Meeting point:

36 Đ. Hồ Tùng Mậu, Bến Nghé, Quận 1, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

Meet outside the main entrance of Starbucks Coffee at the Bitexco Financial Tower. For more information, feel free to contact me on WhatsApp at +84 91 238 8676.

Outside visit

Saigon River Stories

Discover fresh perspectives on the old city as you unveil untold stories from its founding in the late 17th century to the arrival of the French.

Outside visit

The Bank of Indochina

The Bank of Indochina, a private French bank founded in 1875, controls the entire Vietnamese economy, it was located at : Quai de Belgique now Bến Chương Dương - Saigon

Outside visit

Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street

Nguyễn Huệ Street, a historic boulevard in District 1, downtown Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, has evolved through numerous transformations. As one of Saigon's oldest thoroughfares, it now stands as a vibrant and popular pedestrian street.

How much does this tour cost?

Free tours do not have a set price, instead, each person gives the guru at the end the amount they consider appropriate (amounts usually range from €15 to $50 depending on satisfaction with the tour).