A good choice when staying in Ho Chi Minh City.Good location. This picture was taken from beside hotel and inside my room.The room (and bathrooms) are a little bit old but clean, nice and comfortable.
Booked the Oscar Saigon Hotel through a travel agent in Bangkok. It is located in the more upscale area in District 1 along Nguyen Hue Street and just blocks from the Historical Museum. Good hotel for those not looking for backpacker or budget accommodations.
Could get a better room rate through the Internet or at the tourism booth at the airport. (The picture is courtesy of Asiatravel.com)
Outside Nguyen Hue Street hotels, there will probably be children selling all sorts of souvenirs. This doesn't occur as often in the backpackers' area. During my stay, there were a couple of the cutest little girls selling postcards, travel books (the copied Lonely Planet guides weren't bad for $2 or $3), picture cards. What surprised me most were that they spoke near fluent English and pushed the hard sell of 'I'm selling these to support my family.' Needlesstosay, we wound up buying more than our share of souvenirs.
Larger, more upscale hotels like the Oscar Saigon is the place to exchange money. As in other countries, the rates are better for higher denominated bills such as $50 and $100 instead of $10 and $20.
Its obvious but don't exchange $1 and $5, prices in Vietnam are quoted in U.S. dollars especially for tourists.
