Saigon Food Tours Review
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is famous for its food, but finding the best places is difficult because there are many choices, so we decided to try some Saigon food tours to see if they’re worth it.
Here’s a list of what we tried!
XO Tours
The company offers a premium food tour called The XO Foodie, where you journey around much of the central part of this bustling city and try at least ten different dishes.
We tried out this tour and had a blast.
Our tour guides were professional, friendly, and incredibly knowledgeable. Besides trying different delicious dishes, we learned a lot about Saigon’s history.
Saigon Adventure
We gave the Saigon nightlife and food tour from Saigon Adventure a try on a Saturday night.
Our tour guides were friendly and informative, explaining the history of Saigon throughout the trip.
We started by having a drink on a rooftop bar that overlooked the whole city, then moved to different sightseeing spots and restaurants.
Like the tour guides from XO Tour, they also drove us around the city in traditional Ao Dai. Their driving skills were excellent, and we felt safe along the way.
A highlight was visiting the shrine of Thích Quảng Đức, where our tour guides explained this significant location very thoroughly.
Saigon Kiss Tours
With the slogan #GirlPower, Saigon Kiss Tours also offered us a fantastic experience in Saigon with guides in Ao Dai.
Besides hopping on and off the bike to try different dishes, we had a great time visiting the old apartment buildings and especially enjoyed seeing District 1 from the other side of the river.
Our tour guides were fluent in English and had excellent driving skills.
Saigon Street Eats
Unlike other food tours on this list, Saigon Street Eats focuses more on one area, and we had lots of time walking around and exploring.
If you’re a bit of a scaredy-cat when it comes to riding a motorcycle in Vietnam, this is a good choice.
Mr. Lam, our guide, was the highlight of our tour. He was very informative, friendly, and professional.
Our tour group was especially interested, and Lam answered every question clearly with great cultural insight.
We had unlimited food and drinks, and we finished the tour satisfied!
Scooter Saigon Tour
We had a private street food tour with Scooter Saigon, and we enjoyed it.
Our guides, Navi and Ramsey, were energetic and had a great sense of humor. They introduced us to delicious Vietnamese dishes and took us to different local hidden spots in the city.
We especially love the Broken rice stop. The owners were friendly and smiling, and the dish was delicious.
Saigon Vibes Tour
Saigon Vibes Tour offers budget food tours around Ho Chi Minh city. Although the fee is slightly cheaper than other tours on this list, the quality remains good.
We visited different street food stops in this tour, where we sat on tiny chairs and experienced Saigon like a local.
Most of the places we visited had been in the business for more than 20 years, some over 50! The dishes tasted amazing.
Street Food Man
We decided to try the food tour that ranked GetYourGuide’s Best food and drinks tour 2019, and we were happy with the experience.
We visited some local restaurants and sampled different dishes while learning about Vietnamese food culture and the interesting stories behind each dish.
Also, we enjoyed discussing the city’s history when visiting sightseeing spots.
Conclusion
So is a food tour worth it? We think definitely yes. We discovered many new places that serve the most delicious Vietnamese food.
The more you pay, the better the experience, as with most things. We found this generally true. The pricier tours had full-time staff, who were more informative and professional. They also usually offered unlimited food and drink.
The cheaper tours typically have part-time student tour guides. Their English was always good, but their knowledge and explanations were sometimes lacking. Food and drink were also usually limited.
All in all, if you want to try good food, the cheaper tours are still a great option. However, if you’re a bit of a culinary, history, or cultural nerd who wants to ask many questions, perhaps a more expensive option is better.
