Driving A Car In Ho Chi Minh City
We rented a Mitsubishi Expander during our stay in Ho Chi Minh. It was exciting yet extremely challenging. In spite of this, we managed to travel with 2 toddlers and two elderly people without any scratches.
The following tips may be helpful to those who wish to self-drive in Ho Chi Minh City.
What’s the traffic like in Ho Chi Minh?
If you have never been to Ho Chi Minh before, below is a picture of what the streets are like. Cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, taxis, and any other vehicle coming from all directions and even in wrong directions. Generally, they don’t stop at the pedestrian crossing or zebra crossing. It’s amazing how the locals cross the street without a scratch simply by raising one hand and walking without hesitation.
#1 Familiarize Yourself with Road Signs in Vietnam
If you can’t read or understand Vietnamese, please have a glimpse of some of the road signs such as motorcycle lane only, no overtaking, no parking, no stopping etc.
Vietnamese road signs which are translated to English can be found here. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_signs_in_Vietnam
Caution. Do not enter the Motorcycle Lanes.
The lanes are sometimes as wide as car lanes and can found on the right-hand side of the highway.
It may get confusing at times when the lanes converge. So, when in doubt, drive in the middle lane.
#2 Car Parking Spaces are Limited And Difficult to Locate.
You can try parking in areas where they do not show the “no parking signs”. Sometimes, there might be a car attendant nearby. You may just need to pay a small fee from 20,000 to 50,000 VND depending on the place.
Below are the Parking Locations Near Main Attractions:
The links below are Google Maps drop pin parking location at the respective attractions.
- Saigon Central Post Office, Ho Chi Minh City Book Street, Notre Dame Cathedral of Saigon (all walking distance)
- Park along this road https://bit.ly/3Vz5y87
- Car attendants near you will charge a small fee
- Ben Nghe Street Food
- Parking at https://bit.ly/4cpQK1L
- Many tour buses are also parked along this road.
- Takashimaya Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon Square, Ben Thanh Market (all walking distance)
- Parking at https://bit.ly/3xi1sHc
- Saigon Centre Basement Parking Lot, same building as Takashimaya HCMC
- Pirate Ship Kids Playground @ Vinhomes Central Park:
- Parking at https://bit.ly/3PBeA0A
- Vinhomes Central Park -Park 7 Basement Parking
- As non-residents, to exit the basement car park, we were directed to walk up the car ramp to exit the car park. The same was done by locals visiting the park.
- War Remnants Museum
- Parking at https://bit.ly/3IQ9Ksu
- Along this road, you will be charge a small fee.
- Ben Dinh War Tunnels
- Parking is in the compound, pay a small fee when entering.
#3 Google Map as Navigator
We used Google Map to help navigate the places where we wanted to go from the Airport to the main city area and even to Ben Dinh War Tunnels.
It is good as a guide. However, we did have glitches once in awhile, and it brought us to the motorcycle lane. So best to be alert of the road signs than follow blindly the Google Map instructions.
#4 Beware of Traffic Police
So, what do they look like? They are dressed as below. Mainly patrolling in the main city areas rather than on the outskirts of the town. Follow the rules as best as you can. Once fined, it may cost a bomb.
#5 Estimate Petrol Cost
We paid 400,000 VND for a half tank petrol for our Mitsubishi Expander.
#6 Use Google Translate to Communicate
From our experience, most Vietnamese cannot speak and understand English, hence using Google Translate was essential for us to communicate.
#7 Car Rental Service
When searching for car rental services in HCMC, we found that most of them do not allow self-driving but provide a driver instead. Only very few allowed self-driving.
The car rental service that we use can be found here: https://beantravel.vn/en/
Price: 950,000 VND per day. Overall, the car rental service was quite acceptable. The staff were good at providing quick replies to any queries and even sending a mechanic to fix our flat tire. They could also communicate with minimal English. There was also no hidden cost included.
The only downside was the need to submit a large sum of cash deposit when taking the car, as they do not accept any online deposit transfer.
We would recommend the above car rental service from our experience.
Where to Stay in Ho Chi Minh as a Family?
Somerset Feliz Ho Chi Minh City
We had a wonderful stay at Somerset Feliz. We highly recommend this place as it provided everything we need as a family with young children and elderly people.
The facilities provided were swimming pools, children water splash area, hot water spring jacuzzi, sauna, tennis court and even an indoor children area. There was even Starbucks and grocery store (Annam Gourmet) located at the ground floor of our apartment.
In addition, our 3-bedroom apartment had a washer and a dryer which we used every day.
You may book here for a stay in Somerset Feliz.
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Finally, we hope these tips will be helpful and wish you an enjoyable and safe trip for your stay in Ho Chi Minh City.
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