Ho Chi Minh City's Best Private Day Trips

Thien’s English is really good and we learned so much about Vietnam while experiencing all kinds of adventures in the Mekong Delta. She is a bundle of energy and enthusiasm and is clearly well loved by the people we interacted with. We also appreciated her driver who was top notch. Highly recommend Thien and the Mekong Delta tour!

What an unforgettable day! Thien curated an incredibly engaging and authentic tour of the Mekong river, away from tourist traps and crowds and deep into local villages, experiences and culture. We saw bricks being baked, cooked rice paper pancakes, helped weave a mat, tried snake wine and at every step felt like we were making a genuine connection with the river and its people. In many of these instances we were the only "group" there helping make the experience feel deeply personal. Throughout, Thien - and her perfect English - provided us with real and unvarnished commentary on the history of and life in VietNam. She is funny, warm and a very dedicated host who takes immense pride in her work and helping the local community through her tours. We could not recommend this day trip more. We made memories we won't soon forget.

Thien was easy to connect with as soon as we hired her on with locals. She began messaging us and answering any questions we had regarding our travels in Vietnam. She met us at the airport, took us to our hotel and even made a stop at a local laundry to drop off our clothes. We had a city tour the first day of a Taoist temple, post office, book street and to a non tourist part of the city for the best pho. Before getting back to the hotel we made a stop for ban mi at a street food stand. The next day we went to the area called the US apartments , walked through the bustling markets where she helped us make some purchases and took us to a street side coffee shop recently reviewed in the New York Times where she knows the owner who gave us a private demonstration of her coffee making process. She arranged an excursion to the Mekong delta where we rode on a private boat through the delta to a coconut workshop for tea, fruit snack and a private musical performance and coconut candy tasting. Then on to a lovely open air restaurant right on the river for a lovely lunch. Thien arranged the day to locations where we were the only tourists. Then we continued on a rowboat to learn how to make rice paper wrappers. Next on to the tuk tuk to the home of an old woman who weaves fiber rugs where we were able to try weaving. The little children in the village came running to Thien for hugs and wanted to meet us . Our third day was to the cu chi tunnels. Thien has access to a non-tourist area. We saw the simulated village and how the people lived before the French and American soldiers came. I did not see any other tourists in the area. Then on to the tunnels . Again, Thien has access to tunnels where there are no other people. Just Thien and I and sometimes a park ranger guide through the tunnels. After a long drive back to the hotel Thien suggested a delicious restaurant near the hotel for our last night in Vietnam. Be sure to hire Thien. She is a smart woman with very strong opinions on life in current day Ho Chi Minh City.

Huyen took us around the delta in a comfortable large boat, a tuktuk and a charming rowboat. We experienced life in the area and learned about the history, farming and the delta life. She is both funny and knowledgeable and we highly recommend her.