Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) International Airport
Getting to Saigon's Districts 1 and 3 from the airport
Chances are your hotel will be located in either District 1, or District 3.
These adjacent districts are roughly 5 km south of the airport.
If you pre-arrange a pick up from your hotel, you may be slapped with a charge of $12-20 USD, excessive, but convenient.
You may also use the taxi kiosk in the international terminal, which will charge you a flat fee of 120,000 VND (about $8 USD).
Cheap taxi alternative: Veteran travelers turn left when exiting the international terminal, then go 100 meters or so to the adjacent domestic terminal to use the local taxi stand.
At the domestic terminal, avoid the touts, and hire a metered taxi from the lineup in front.
Metered fare to most locations in District 1 is 60,000 VND ($4 USD).
District 3 will be less.
GPS coordinates for domestic terminal taxi stand: GPS N10°47.900' E106°39.320'
Returning to the airport from Districts 1 and 3 in Saigon
We recommend metered taxis when going to the airport.
60-70,000 VND should do the trick.
Traffic can be horrendous during rush times, so plan accordingly.
You will be charged a $12 exit fee when leaving the country.
Taxi scams to avoid: At our hotel, a red metered taxi had a doctored meter, and we were charged over $300,000 VND for a 60,000 VND trip.
We insisted on paying 60,000, plus the 3,000 airport fee charged to the taxi.
Avoid all solid-red taxis.
The following taxi firms have been recommended as having honest meters:
- Airport Taxi
- Mailinh Taxi
- Saigon Tourist Taxi
- SASCO Taxi
- Vinasun Taxi
