Ho Chi Minh City Beyond the Sunbed: Speedboats, Tunnels, and Skyline Pools with Teens
Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) is a sensory overload in the best possible way. With millions of motorbikes zipping through the streets, towering skyscrapers, and buzzing markets, the energy here is infectious.
🗺️ Planning a family trip? This guide is part of our complete, step-by-step [2-Week Vietnam Family Itinerary]. Head over to the main guide to see our full route and travel map!
For families traveling with teens, it is a brilliant place to start. It offers a fascinating, rugged history of the war mixed with fast-paced city life. We spent two nights here, which was the perfect amount of time to dive into the history, hunt for bargains, and relax by a rooftop pool.
Here is our honest guide to conquering Ho Chi Minh City with teenagers.
⚡ Quick Look: Our Top Ho Chi Minh City Hotel Pick
Finding a hotel in a massive city like this requires two things: a great location and a way to escape the heat.
- Where We Stayed: Kin Hotel Thi Sach Edition – This hotel was a fantastic urban base for us. The absolute highlight is the lovely rooftop pool and bar overlooking the city skyline. While the deck isn’t a massive space, it is more than big enough that we always found room to relax, chill out, and enjoy a well-earned cocktail while the boys swam.
🚤 The Cu Chi Tunnels: Speedboats, History, and Shooting Ranges
Visiting the historic Cu Chi Tunnels is a must-do bucket-list item, but taking a long, sweaty bus ride with teenagers can be a slog. Instead, we booked a guided tour that took us there by high-speed speedboat along the Saigon River—and it was easily the best decision we made.
The tour company collected us from our hotel in a comfortable, air-conditioned minibus. Literally a few minutes later, we arrived at the port, boarded our speedboat, and zoomed off along the waterways. The company looked after us incredibly well, laying out fresh water, croissants, pastries, and fresh local fruit for us to enjoy as we sped along.
Into the Jungle
Handy tip: Do not forget your insect repellent! We completely forgot ours and had to quickly buy some as soon as we arrived at the site.
Once in the jungle, our guide was absolutely brilliant. He brought the history of the Vietnam War to life and really made us realize just how horrific many aspects of it were for both sides. We had the opportunity to crouch down and go into the actual underground tunnels. They have been widened slightly for tourists today, but it is still a tight squeeze (you can easily skip this bit if you don’t like small spaces). Seeing where soldiers and locals spent years living entirely underground was eye-opening for us all.
At the end of the tour, there is an option to pay extra to visit the shooting range. All the boys chose to shoot real AK-47s, which they absolutely loved.
A Peaceful Lunch
After the tunnels, we hopped back on the speedboat and traveled down the river to a peaceful, beautiful spot where a delicious local lunch was laid on for us. It was a lovely, relaxed setting, and it was great fun to chat and swap travel stories with the other families on our tour (there were 10 of us in total). We were zipped back to the city by early afternoon, leaving us plenty of time to head straight up to the Kin Hotel rooftop pool to unwind.
🛍️ Markets, Pho, and Cheap Rides: Our Evening Routine
Once the sun went down and the city cooled down slightly, we headed out to experience the famous local street life.
Navigating Bến Thành Market
From our hotel, we took a short walk over to the famous Bến Thành Market. It is huge, packed to the rafters, and there is so much to see. It is the ultimate place for the boys to hunt down clothing and souvenir bargains, but you need to be prepared to haggle and check the quality of what you are buying before you hand over cash.
Money Tip: If you need cash, I generally found ATMs a little tricky to spot in Ho Chi Minh City, but there are reliable ones located right inside the main market entrances.
Dinner with a View at Soul Ben Thanh
After buying lots of bits and pieces, we wanted to escape the hot, crowded aisles. We retreated to Soul Ben Thanh Restaurant & Bar for dinner, and I highly recommend it. It spans multiple floors, giving you gorgeous views over the bustling streets below while keeping you slightly removed from the chaos. The traditional Pho there was fantastic, and it is a must-try while you are in the city.
Equally, as this feast shows, the food everywhere in Ho Chi Minh was delicious!
Playing “Guess the Price” with Grab
To get back to the hotel, we used Grab (the Southeast Asian version of Uber). You download the app on your phone, and it is super secure and unbelievably cheap. We turned it into a family game called “guess how much the Grab was,” and our cheapest ride of the trip came out to less than £1 GBP! It is the absolute best way to get around the city safely with tired teens.
🎒 The Verdict on Ho Chi Minh City
I am so glad we included Ho Chi Minh City in our itinerary. It gave the boys a profound look into modern history and a taste of big, buzzing city life before we headed north into the quiet countryside.
Next up on our Vietnam loop, we catch a flight north to Hanoi and head straight out to the spectacular jungle and limestone peaks of Ninh Binh.
👉 Click here to read our Guide to Tam Coc & Lan Ha Bay: Bikes, Boats, and Jungle Lodges.
🗺️ The Master Plan: Head back to the [Ultimate Vietnam Overview Guide] to tweak your route.
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