#CamNam : from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC)
15 - 19 October 2015 (5 days 4 nights)
2 pax
Itinerary
15 Oct (Thursday)
0645 - 0735 : Flight KUL to Phnom Penh
0735 - 0835 : Leave bag at Green Centre Point Inn. Buy bus tickets to Saigon (HCMC)
0900 - 1200 : Visit Choeung Ek
1200 - 1300 : Lunch at Ah-Man Green Restaurant
1400 - 1530 : Tour National Museum
1900 - 2000 : Dinner at Wau and back to hotel
16 Oct (Friday)
0600 - 0610 : Check-out
0630 - 1300 : Off to Saigon by bus
1400 - 1500 : Check-in at Ono Saigon Hotel and rest.
1700 - 1800 : Book tours
17 Oct (Saturday)
0840 - 1500 : Pick up from hotel to Cu Chi Tunnel.
Free and easy
18 Oct (Sunday)
0800 - 0900 : Breakfast
0930 - 1600 : Saigon city tour. War Remnant Museum, HCMC Museum, Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica
1900 - 2000 : Shop at Ben Thanh night market
19 Oct (Monday)
0700 - 0900 : Shop at Ben Thanh Market
1000 - 1030 : Breakfast
1200 : Check-out
1300 - 1400 : Lunch
1800 - 1900 : Get to airport
2110 - 2359 : Flight SGN to KUL
What I didn't do?
- Dinner at Wau. The restaurant moved from New York Hotel to a few blocks away from Ah-Man Green.
- Go out to book tours in Saigon. I booked from the hotel because rate was within my budget.
- Shop at Ben Thanh night market. Too lazy
- Shop at Ben Thanh market on Monday. Turned out I didn't like the market much so once was enough.
- We went to airport early. Right after check-out at noon.
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| Checking in at Green Centre Point Inn, Phnom Penh |
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| Choeung Ek Killing Field - the reason I returned to PP |
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| @whitelambchops | Instragram | posing in front of National Museum of Cambodia |
Transportation
Phnom Penh
Tuk - tuk. Hired the one we got from airport at USD 30 for the day.
Phnom Penh - Saigon (HCMC)
Cat Mekong bus. USD 15/adult including hotel pick-up to bus depot.
Saigon (HCMC)
Taxi with meter. Totally affordable.
Attractions in the city are within walking distance from each other. Traffic was a controlled chaos, really.
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| @whitelambchops on the bus to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) |
I bought the bus tickets from Cat Mekong's Orussey Market office branch a day earlier. Told them hotel's name for morning pick-up.
A van came in the morning and took us to Orussey Market. Gave passport to staff > given tickets > pass luggage(s) for keeping under the bus & given tags > journey started (passport will be collected again on the bus and returned at immigration)
Going through Cambodia immigration was a breeze compared to Vietnam's immigration. Our passports were taken to a counter and they called out names. That was the only annoying part. Scan luggage and then back on the bus to Saigon!
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| Vietnam's immigration building |
Cat Mekong bus stops at Pham Ngu Lao- tour agents are nearby so you might want to drop by and arrange for tours before heading to your hotel. My hotel was nearby so I ignored the taxi drivers and walked.
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| Ono Saigon: A delightful hotel hidden in an alleyway |
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| Cu Chi Tunnel |
I was too lazy to go back to Pham Ngu Lao to book a tour and the hotel I was staying in, Ono Saigon offered a Cu Chi Tunnel tour that was within my budget. Paid directly to the hotel, no receipt but no problem. Tour agent picked up from hotel the next day and issued us a paper when I said we didn't get any receipt from the hotel.
Other attractions can be visited on your own. Get a taxi to one and walk to others as they are pretty much near each other.
Mekong needs a whole day so I skipped that one.
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| War Remnants Museum |
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| HCMC Museum |
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| Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica |
To read on halal food in Phnom Penh, use #GoMakan #PhnomPenh or #CamNam #RepeatCambodia in this blog.
Halal restaurant in Saigon, Vietnam are mostly in the Nguyen Ah Ninh (dubbed the Malaysian Street) near Ben Thant. To read in this blog, use #CamNam or #GoMakan #HoChiMinhCity
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| Breakfast on the last day in Saigon. Yummy! |
Budget
RM 1886 for 2 pax (including flight, accommodation, transport, dining & attraction)
Cash brought for the trip USD 252
Actual Expenditure
Transport - USD 69
Attractions/Tours - USD 55
Meals - USD 74
Shopping & Massage - USD 12
Cash balance USD 42
Note: Flight and accommodation are paid in advance.
Finally, meet my favourite food in Saigon:
Fitting eh? In Cambodia, I stocked on Pringles and in Vietnam, I gorged on these chips! Sedap unlike any in Malaysia.
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