HOI AN to HO CHI MINH — Train, Bus, Flight? ☀️
9 min readAug 26, 2020
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) — the most important and economical hub of southern Vietnam.
- Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) is one of the most visited cities in southern Vietnam. It is the most important economical site of Vietnam and also an important transport hub for tourists heading to Cambodia. Ho Chi Minh City is the largest metropolis of Vietnam. It lies in the south of the country near the Mekong Delta. Although the city used to be called Saigon, today it is named after the communist dictator Ho Chi Minh, who enforced his regime in the early second half of the twentieth century with harsh violent repression that resulted in the deaths of millions of innocent civilians. Today, Ho Chi Minh City is more of a modern metropolis with a diverse economic, cultural and industrial life. The city is divided into several districts. The most important is area 1 - called Saigon. This district includes the original city and today is the center of Ho Chi Minh City. The center of the western part is Pham Ngu Lao Street with cheap hotels and restaurants. It is similar in the Chinatown in Cholon. In the center of the city, near Dong Khoi Street and Saigon River, there are expensive hotels for demanding clients and also for foreign tourists from all the world.
🥇 You can book tickets or flights from Hoi An / Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City easily online on Baolau or 12go.asia
- The population is constantly increasing, currently over 9 million live here. Ho Chi Minh City has a tropical climate that brings with it a heavy rainy season from May to October, but you can visit this city through the all year. You will also find completely commercial districts with giant cinemas, amusement parks and electronics stores, Saigon is also a modern city. Ho Chi Minh City has long been an obsolete communist metropolis, but a developed modern city. There are 3 ways how can travel from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City - direct flight (the fastest option), bus+train via Da Nang or sleeper bus. It is a good idea to visit Saigon, because from Saigon you can travel via Bavet border crossing to Phnom Penh - the capital of Cambodia, it takes about 6 hours by bus from Saigon to Phnom Penh, or you can also go to Siem Reap in Cambodia. There are also various direct flights from Ho Chi Minh City to another sites and countries in southeast Asia, e.g. to Thailand, Malaysia, Laos...
From Hoi An / Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City by plane, sleeper train or sleeper bus.
Flights to Ho Chi Minh City:
- Travel distance from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City is about 930 km by land (by the coast road). The most fastest and best option how to reach Ho Chi Minh City from Hoi An is to travel by bus/taxi to Da Nang Airport and from this airport you can take a direct flight to Saigon. Travel by bus+plane via Da Nang Airport takes about 3.5 hours and if you want to skip another sites in southern Vietnam, it is a good idea to use this option, it is also a cheap way of transport. Travel by bus+plane from Hoi An to Saigon via Da Nang Airport costs about $35+/pp (low-cost flights). Da Nang International Aiprort is about 25 km from Hoi An ancient town.
Sleeper train to Ho Chi Minh City:
- Another popular option is to travel by train via Da Nang. And you can take a train from Da Nang Railway Station to Saigon Railway Station in Ho Chi Minh City. Travel by train from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City takes about 16–19 hours, so totally it can take up to 20 hours by bus+train from Hoi An. Travel by bus+train from Hoi An to Saigon via Da Nang costs about $20–60/pp. There are seats or sleeper berths in these trains to Saigon. The most cheapest are seats, but it is not a good idea to spend a lot of time on the seat, take a sleeper berth.
Tourist buses to Ho Chi Minh City:
- The last option how to reach Ho Chi Minh City from Hoi An or Da Nang is to travel by sleeper tourist bus. There are some modern sleeper buses from Da Nang, but this option is not comfortable, because it takes a lot of time, about 21–23 hours. And you do not want to spend about 1 day in the bus. Travel by bus is the most cheapest way of transport to Saigon from Hoi An, it costs about $15–20/pp. But if you want to explore another cities in southern Vietnam, you can travel by bus at the coast, e.g. from Hoi An to Quy Nhon, Quy Nhon to Nha Trang… Read carefully the instructions how to go to Ho Chi Minh City from Hoi An below.
How do I get from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City?
1. BUS + TRAIN from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City
A) BUS or TAXI from Hoi An to Da Nang
- bus companies: April Adventure, TheSinh Tourist, Hanh Cafe, Hoi An Express (or local buses)
- travel by bus from Hoi An to Da Nang takes about 1–1.5 hour
- new, comfortable and modern tourist buses or minivans
- one-way bus ticket from Hoi An to Da Nang costs about $4.30–8/pp
- private taxi/car from Hoi An to Da Nang costs about $16–35/pp
- come 30–60 minutes before departure and present voucher to board bus
- you can read this article: How to reach Da Nang from Hoi An?
- you will receive your bus e-ticket to Da Nang by email, ready to print or carry in your mobile phone or tablet and present at the stations in Hoi An
B) TRAIN from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City
- popular option is to travel by sleeper train from Da Nang to Saigon
- travel by train takes about 16–19 hours from Da Nang to Saigon
- there are about 7 trains every day of Vietnam Railways to Saigon
- one-way train ticket from Da Nang to Saigon costs about $15–50/pp (seats, sleeper, 1st + 2nd class)
- trains arrive to Saigon Railway Station (01 Nguyễn Thông)
- trains depart from Da Nang Railway Station (202 Hải Phòng, Phường Tân Chính)
- read this article: How to reach Saigon from Da Nang?
- this is a top frequented railway route from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City, it is recommended to book your train tickets online!
- you will receive your train e-ticket to Ho Chi Minh City by email, ready to print or carry in your mobile phone or tablet and present when boarding the train in Da Nang Railway Station
2. FLIGHTS from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City
- Da Nang International Airport is the closest airport to Hoi An
- it is about 25 km from Hoi An ancient town, from Hoi An you can travel by bus or minivan/taxi to this airport, you can search and book tickets online
- there are about 20 of direct flights from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City
- airlines from Da Nang to Saigon: VietJetAir, Vietnam Airlines, Jetstar Pacific, Bamboo Airways
- flight from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City takes only about 1 hour 15 minutes
- direct flight from Da Nang to Saigon costs about $30–120/pp
- direct flights from Da Nang International Airport
- flights to Tan Son Nhat International Airport
- direct flight is the fastest option how to reach Ho Chi Minh City
- read this article: How to reach Saigon from Da Nang?
3. BUS from Hoi An / Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City
- there are also sleeper tourist buses from Da Nang or Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City
- bus companies from Da Nang / Hoi An to Saigon: Hoang Long, Phuong Trang (Futabus)
- there are new, comfortable, modern and new sleeper buses
- travel by tourist bus from Da Nang to Saigon can take about 21–23 hours
- bus ticket from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City costs about $15–20/pp
- you will receive your bus e-ticket to Saigon by email, ready to print or carry in your mobile phone or tablet and present at the ticket counter of the station before boarding the bus in Da Nang
Frequently Asked Questions — Travel route from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City:
How long does it take from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City?
- Travel by bus+train to Hoi An from Ho Chi Minh City takes about 18–20 hours.
- Direct flight from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City takes about 1–1.5 hour.
- Travel by bus from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City takes about 21–23 hours.
How far is Ho Chi Minh City from Hoi An?
- Travel distance from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City is about 950 km by train/bus and about 600 km by plane from Da Nang Airport.
How much does it cost to travel from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City?
- Travel by bus+train to Ho Chi Minh City from Hoi An costs about $30+/pp.
- Flight from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City costs about $30–120/pp.
- Travel by bus from Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City costs about $15–20/pp.
What is the best way of travel from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City?
- The best and fastest option of transport from Hoi An to Saigon is to travel by plane from Da Nang Airport. There are direct flights to Saigon.
Is it possible to travel from Hoi An to Da Nang Airport?
- Yes, you can travel by bus or limousine from Hoi An to Da Nang Airport directly from Hoi An. You can book bus tickets or private taxi online.
What is the cheapest way of transport from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City?
- The most cheapest option of transport to Saigon from Hoi An is to travel by sleeper tourist bus, but this option is not so comfortable.
Is there an airport in Hoi An?
- No, there is no airport in Hoi An town, but you can travel by bus or taxi to Da Nang International Airport, it is about 25 km from Hoi An ancient town and it is the 3rd largest airport of Vietnam.
Where to travel from Ho Chi Minh City?
- From Ho Chi Minh City you can travel to various interesting sites or islands in southern Vietnam. The most frequented travel route is from Saigon to Phu Quoc, or you can travel by bus/train or taxi to Mui Ne in Phan Thiet.
Hanoi to Dong Hoi｜Chau Doc to Saigon｜Halong to Phong Nha｜Mai Chau to Ninh Binh｜Krabi Airport to Ao Nang｜Surat Thani to Khao Sok｜Mae Sot to Chiang Mai
