Ho Chi Minh Shore Excursions: Explore Past & Present Vietnam

A fascinating glimpse of Vietnamese life and culture awaits you on Ho Chi Minh shore excursions offering trips to nearby rural provinces like Ba Ria and Vung Tau, as well as explorations of the sights and sounds of the frenetic city popularly known as Saigon and officially known as Ho Chi Minh City.   

From your port of call at Phu My, Vietnam, excursions to close-by sister towns Ba Ria and Vung Tau offer a window into local culture and religion. At Ba Ria, see traditional and modern Buddhist temples and visit local homes where making rice wine and rice paper are still done by hand. From your Asia cruise, tour the seaside town of Vung Tau to explore the Bay of Boats and the Whale Temple. See the statue of Jesus atop Mount Nho, and take in the bay views from White Villa’s spectacular gardens.  

A stop on your cruise to Ho Chi Minh City reveals its everyday fast pace and fascinating French Colonial past on Ho Chi Minh shore excursions to the city’s most important sights: Ho Chi Minh Square, surrounded by buildings in the French colonial style, the Cao Dai Temple, Reunification Hall, formerly the Presidential Palace, the impressive Notre Dame cathedral, and the War Remnants Museum, recognized by the United Nations as a “Museum for Peace.”

Adventure awaits on a boat trip down the Mekong Delta, a network of canals where you’ll see the area’s agriculture like rice paddies, coconut palms, and fruit orchards. As your guide paddles down the canals, you’ll see how daily life moves with the rhythms of the delta.

The specialized art of creating beautifully designed lacquerware is the focus of Ho Chi Minh shore excursions to a factory that welcomes sharing the art and process with visitors. Watch teams of artisans at work and shop for inlaid boxes, plates, bowls, and decorative pieces. Continue to shop ‘til you drop as you stroll Dong Khoi Street and stop for a banh mi (baguette sandwich) or pho (hearty soup), then mingle with the crowd of daily shoppers at the Ben Thank Central Market.

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