Ho Chi Minh City Trip - Arrival n Gia Huy Hotel

Dah lama x update blog. So, since baru je balik from Vietnam vacation, terasa nak share about the trip. Trip kali ni pergi 5 girls: me, eisha, sureen, tim n nadirah..kitorg beli ticket dah lama, i think around end of 2011 masa air asia buat RM0 promotion. So, the ticket was really cheap RM146 for return..I think the original price is about RM300+..We pre-booked our hotel from agoda.com, a superior room with one extra bed (for 3 ppl) RM250 per person for 4 nights..

This was my first time visiting a country which has way too many numbers for their currency with a rate of RM1=VND6452..Got me a headache coz I didn't know how much I should expect to spend for a 4-day trip..So, I brought VND5,000,000(whoaa a millionaire!) and USD30 for the trip..


Arrived HCM at night, around 9pm..Took a cab that could fit 6 ppl from Saigon airport to Gia Huy hotel (15-20mins journey)..The cab drivers in HCM don't speak or understand English much..It's advisable to prepare the address of your destination (with their spelling) and show it to them..Along the way, sgt culture shock coz the traffic was crazy! The road was packed with motorbikes and mmg tak sah kalau tak ada bunyi hon..cab kitorg naik tu pun sentiasa hon2 kat motors or other cars..Kena charged VND200,000 even though kat meter dia cuma 139,000..Tapi xpe la, since it's just approximately usd2 per person..x igt cab ape yg kitorg naik..but it's advisable to take Vinasun cab..diorg x tipu n x charge lebih..harga sebenar tgk kat meter je..

So, sampai2 hotel, masing2 kagum coz bila tgk dari luar, nampak slim sgt, tapi kat dlm rupa2nya agak luas..Kalau tgk kat gambar bwh ni, satu column tingkap tu la the whole hotel..Ada 9 tingkat overall, with  4 rooms for each floor..

the front view of Gia Huy Hotel

Kitorang disambut oleh bellboy kat situ..dia tolong angkutkan semua bags..Rasa macam duduk 5-star hotel pulak..hehe..the lobby looks very nice..Tgk hotel rate dia berbaloi la, USD40 per night for standard room mmg berpatutan..Kalau directly book from them pun ok..Upon check-in, bilik yg kitorg book, superior room, dah penuh..so, they upgraded our room to luxury with no extra-charge..sgt besar bilik luxury nih!bertuah sungguh kitorg ni..

the lobby

room rate

tim, nadirah n sureen gathering information from the receptionist

our luxury room with one extra bed

tv, computer, fridge, vanity desk

bathroom..with multi-functional shower

view from our room..the left-most building is Ben Thanh market 

Eisha, tim n i stayed in the luxury room..sureen n nadirah got the standard room..it's smaller, muat2 utk 2 org, but very nice..let pictures do the talking..

the standard room

the bathroom and vanity desk at eisha's back

posing kat bilik air pun jadi la..hehe

location wise, very strategic if you plan to shop at Ben Thanh market..it's only 50m away..kalau dah shopping byk2 boleh hantar ke hotel n then sambung balik..their employees are friendly too..if you need any information about anything, you can ask the receptionist, she would be very helpful..Nak dptkan ticket for water puppet, book tours for Cu Chi tunnel n Mekong river; boleh directly deal with the hotel..x perlu susah2 cari sendiri..And their facilities are good..paling suka shower dia..rase mcm nak angkut balik rumah je..haha..breakfast also included..hari2 benda sama: (yg boleh dimakan) vegie fried rice, seafood noodles, deep fried fish fingers, french fries, bread, watermelon, dragon fruits, bananas, n scrambled egg..aku dpt makan buah2an byk2 pun dh puas hati sbenanye..

Further info:
Gia Huy Hotel,
26 Nguyen An Ninh Str. Ben Thanh Ward,
District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
Tel: (08) 3827-0175