Bus
Autobús
Bus – There are benefits to taking local buses around Ho Chi Minh City, especially if you are an adventurous person and appreciate gliding around the city in air conditioned comfort. There are over 100 bus routes in Ho Chi Minh City (the bus fare is currently 300 VND, which is a cheap way to get around).
During heavy traffic periods, the bus can actually be faster as they have an informal right of way on the streets. Some of the city buses departing from Ben Thanh Market area do short looped runs between key sights of interest. Do your research first.
While schedules on the internet are written in Vietnamese only, there are colour-coded route maps that will at least give you a rough idea of the routes. A map of Saigon’s bus routes can be found at the Ben Thanh Bus Station. But to be warned — it is more confusing than the London Tube or New York Subway map. There are numerous privately operated bus companies that run mid length routes to destinations outside Ho Chi Minh City.
“BusMap” App: someone in Ho Chi Minh City saw the demand for English-language digital info on the city’s bus lines, and did something about it. The app “BusMap” lets English-speaking foreigners download this innovative app, so that they can type in their starting point and destination. The app then tells them which bus route (s) are ideal for them.
Like the “MTA Bus Time” app (and website) in New York and other public transportation apps elsewhere, “BusMap” in Ho Chi Minh City gives you GPS-driven info on the exact locations of all buses running on a given route (the GPS data is officially provided by Ho Chi Minh City Dept. of Traffic and Transportation). This cuts down on the language barrier that previously plagued foreigners who didn’t speak Vietnamese. Here is the web link to the app: