6 Days: HCMC and Its Best Day Trips

Six days is the same five-day plan as before, Cu Chi and Tay Ninh, the Mekong, Vung Tau, a free city day, plus a genuine Can Tho overnight on top instead of pretending it fits into a single rushed day. Tighter schedule? The 5-day version drops Can Tho entirely. A full week? The 7-day plan adds the dawn Cai Rang floating market before heading home.

Book these before you go

Day 1: Land, settle into District 1

Tan Son Nhat Airport (SGN) sits 6-8km from District 1; a Grab car runs 110,000-250,000 VND (roughly $4-10), 25-45 minutes outside rush hour. Check in, walk Dong Khoi or Nguyen Hue in the evening, have dinner, and get an early night.

Day 2: Cu Chi Tunnels and Tay Ninh’s Cao Dai Temple

Early 7-8am pickup for the roughly 2-2.5 hour drive northwest to Tay Ninh, arriving by 11:15-11:30am for the noon Cao Dai ceremony. Continue to the Cu Chi Tunnels on the way back; Ben Duoc, at roughly 70km, beats the closer Ben Dinh on scale and crowds if your operator offers a choice. Entry runs 110,000-125,000 VND (~$4-5). Back in District 1 by early evening.

Day 3: The Mekong Delta at My Tho and Ben Tre

My Tho and Ben Tre sit 70-90km southwest, 1.5-2 hours by road: a sampan canal ride, a coconut-candy workshop, Vinh Trang Pagoda. Shared tours run roughly $25-70 per person, the honest single-day Mekong trip.

Day 4: Vung Tau beach

The Greenlines hydrofoil down the Saigon River takes 1.5-2 hours, roughly $10-15 (250,000-375,000 VND) one way; bus or car runs 2-3.5 hours instead. Treat Vung Tau as a beach-and-seafood day, not a bucket-list stop. The 32-metre Jesus Christ statue on the headland is worth the 800-plus steps.

Day 5: Use it on the city, not a fifth day trip

Spend day five on the city itself rather than a rushed fifth trip: the War Remnants Museum, Ben Thanh Market, Cholon’s Chinatown, none touched by this gateway plan. Our full Ho Chi Minh City guide covers it, or use its own 3-day city itinerary as a ready-made plan for the day.

Day 6: Travel to Can Tho, the right way to see the Mekong’s biggest floating market

Can Tho sits roughly 170km and 3-3.5 hours from HCMC by road, far enough that a same-day round trip only catches the tail end of Cai Rang’s real market energy. Leave District 1 by mid-morning, arrive early afternoon, and check into a Can Tho hotel, most overnight tours include this. Spend the afternoon at Ninh Kieu wharf and a local Can Tho dinner; the real payoff comes at dawn tomorrow.

Why does Can Tho need an overnight when Cu Chi and the Mekong My Tho trip don’t?

Distance and timing. Cu Chi and My Tho are both under two hours out, easy to reach and leave in a single day. Cai Rang’s wholesale boat trade runs roughly 5-8:30am and has largely wound down by mid-morning; a same-day coach from HCMC, 3.5 hours each way, would arrive well after the market’s best energy has faded. An overnight is the only way to actually catch it.

Is a six-day trip too packed with day trips?

Not with a rest day built in. Four day trips across days two through four plus six, with day five as a deliberate break in the city rather than a fifth trip out of town, keeps the pace realistic. Cutting the day-five break to add a second overnight trip is the one change that would genuinely overload this plan.

The day trips, side by side

Day trip Distance from HCMC Travel time What it costs
Cu Chi Tunnels (Ben Duoc) ~70km 1.5-2h 110,000-125,000 VND entry (~$4-5)
Tay Ninh, Cao Dai Great Temple ~90km 2-2.5h Free entry; built around the noon ceremony
Mekong Delta, My Tho and Ben Tre ~70-90km 1.5-2h Day tour roughly $25-70pp shared
Vung Tau beach ~90-100km 1.5-2h by hydrofoil, 2-3.5h by road Hydrofoil 250,000-375,000 VND ($10-15)
Mekong Delta, Can Tho and Cai Rang (overnight only) ~170km 3-3.5h one way Overnight tour roughly $60-120pp

Pack an overnight bag separately for day six rather than living out of your full suitcase in Can Tho; most tours only need one change of clothes and it saves hauling everything for one night.