Honestly, can you distinguish Tan Binh district and Binh Tan district when traveling to Ho Chi Minh City? They just have a simple switch in the sorting of the words, but actually, they are the two different districts in the same city. If you are going to live or travel to Ho Chi Minh City, I believe this post is for you. As a result, it won’t take you to a ridiculous situation as I was or create problems for you in navigation in the city.
Let My Story be the Start
So, I and my wife has been looking for a stroller for our daughter. After a while searching, we saw a store’s advertisement in Aeon Mall Binh Tan. We then decided to go to the mall and take a look at the stroller in real.
However, I don’t know why my wife misread the words Binh Tan to Tan Binh. Perhaps, it’s something that we call ‘stereotype’, which makes her think of the location of her mom’s house right in the first time she saw the words. As a result, we went to the Aeon Mall nearby Tan Binh, took hours to walk around to find the store, then realized that we went to the wrong mall the whole time, haha.
That wasn’t a big problem. Evenly, it brought me the idea of writing this blog post about the two districts so you may know it clear when traveling to Ho Chi Minh City.
Just in Case You Want to Know More about Aeon Mall
In 2014, Aeon opened its first mall at Tan Phu, Ho Chi Minh City, which is the one that we went to. Later, they opened one in Binh Duong province, and one in Binh Tan district, where we should go to.
Aeon Mall focuses on open its shopping centers in the suburbs of Vietnam. By doing so, they have enough space, which is about 50,000m2 on average, to run its One-Stop Shopping model. In fact, you can find all kinds of products at the mall from food to fashion, lifestyle, or household appliances. Many of them are from Japan.
Just a note that this part is for clarification about Aeon Mall. It’s not advertising.
Ok, about Tan Binh and Binh Tan Districts
Please tell me that you get my story! Because I’m going to tell you about Binh Tan and Tan Binh districts. Hopefully, the differentiation between the two districts will help you understand Ho Chi Minh City more for your trip to the city.
What’s in Tan Binh District?
If you come to Ho Chi Minh City by airplane, I believe you all check-in Tan Binh district. Yes, it’s where Tan Son Nhat international airport situated. As a result, many airlines and international companies located in the area for their convenience in operation. That leads to a lot of services for people who work and live there, including restaurants, cafes, accommodations, sports, and entertainment activities. All making Tan Binh a vibrant district in the city.
Karaoke, spa, massage, etc. are not hard to find in the zone. If you are well using your smartphone, you can find anything you want. And also with the phone, there are ways for you to catch transportation to go to the places such as Grab, Be, or taxi.
Hotel, Homestay, Or Serviced Apartment?
Ibis Saigon Airport Hotel is the only one that I think of in the area. In fact, this hotel brand belongs to Accor, so definitely it will bring to you high-quality services at acceptable prices. Its location is also in the center of Tan Binh District, which only takes you 5 minutes to walk to the airport. Furthermore, from the hotel, you can easily go to restaurants, shopping malls, or entertaining centers around.
The room rates are about $50 – $60 at Ibis Saigon Airport Hotel.
This is always the best alternative choice for a budget hotel. Honestly, I almost pick a homestay on Airbnb rather than finding a 1-2 stars hotel.
Truly, in Vietnam, homestay is a quite developed service with countless choices for travelers. Evenly, the owners make different themes for their house so you can both enjoy the tourist destinations and the stay at the same time.
Besides, the hosts are friendly to give you more travel tips and support while being in their house, which probably makes your trip more enjoyable and experienced.
Serviced apartment in Tan Binh district is also a typical type of accommodation that you should consider. As the serviced apartment is more suitable for a long-term stay, its rooms are usually larger than a hotel or homestay with even a kitchen inside. Some are fully equipped with a gym and a swimming pool. Alongside, you can enjoy all the room cleaning, dishwashing, etc. services attached to the house. There are some serviced apartments that I can recommend such as Saigon Airport Bluesky or The Art – Sunshine Apartment.
Best Restaurants in Tan Binh District
Have you found any dishes on the Saigon food menu that you want to try? There are Bún Mọc Sườn Út Tịch at 308 Hoang Van Thu street and Phở Khô Gia Lai at 4/C4 Thái Thị Nhạn street that you should come and have a try in Tan Binh district.
Besides those, there are some places that you must come for the great foods in the area:
- Phở‘s fans have one of the best choices in the city at Phở Phú Vương, 335 Le Van Sy street, ward 1.
- If you love Bún Thịt Nướng, don’t forget to spend a visit to Hải Đăng restaurant at 149 Chan Hung street, ward 6.
- Ngọc Trâm restaurant will bring to you the taste of Middle Vietnam with its unique dishes such as Bánh Bèo, Bánh Bột Lọc, Bánh Ít Ram, etc. The address is 572/22 Au Co street, ward 10.
- Thành Ký Mì Gia has its special Chinese style-noodle that you must visit at 199 Nguyen Hong Dao street, ward 14.
- One of the most well-known street foods in Ho Chi Minh City, the pork offal or Phá Lấu, that you can come to in the area is at 230 Nguyen Hong Dao street, ward 14. It could be a side dish after you finished a bowl of Thành Ký Mì Gia above.
What’s in Binh Tan District?
The most populous district in Ho Chi Minh City. Indeed, Binh Tan district has a fast urbanization rate because it’s the residence of people from other provinces who come to find a job and live.
On top of that, when talking about Binh Tan district, people think of the factories in the area, which also is the main attraction to many people from other places. Therefore, don’t expect that you can find a tourist destination in this zone. Yet, there are places that you can go if you wish to explore this part of the city:
- Aeon Mall Binh Tan, the place that I should go to buy the stuff I need instead of Aeon Mall Tan Phu. Yes, that could be one of the biggest places for entertainment in this area plus eating, drinking, and shopping activities. It has a cinema too.
- Ut Phuong fishing area is truly an attraction of the zone. Because it’s not easy to set up a place for fishing, Binh Tan does it well. Hence, if you want to find something to relax softly, fishing at Ut Phuong should be on top of your mind.
- Mien Tay Bus Station, or Western Bus Station, is where you can find buses that take you to different destinations in the Mekong area of Vietnam. It’s also the place that I got a bus to Chau Doc and Tra Su Melaleuca forest, An Giang. I believe this info will be useful for you. So now you know about this bus station.
Staying in Binh Tan District
Are you sure to stay at a hotel in this area?
You must be kidding me if you take the decision of finding a hotel in Binh Tan district. Of course, there are vast choices of hotels for you in the area. However, Ho Chi Minh City has many good hotels in other sections for you to choose from. Then you can simply catch a taxi or ‘xe ôm’ or anything to go exploring this district. In my opinion, that’s much more ideal.
Foods in Binh Tan
This is something that you can discover. Every section in Ho Chi Minh City has great foods for you to try, so does Binh Tan district. Here, alongside the street-food of the city, there are dishes in this area that I can recommend to you:
- To some people, Bún Riêu Cua Đồng could be ideal for an afternoon snack, but some choose it as a main dish. Anyway, don’t forget the one from Sương Sương restaurant at 157 street no. 10, Binh Hung Hoa ward.
- If you love Bánh Mì, the bread, you should go to 158 street no.1, Binh Tri Dong B ward.
- Bún Bò O Huệ at 385/28 Chien Luoc street, Binh Tri Dong A ward. That’s the spicy beef noodle soup if you need a description.
- You shouldn’t miss the goat dishes. Let visiting Dê Tươi Đức Huy restaurant to try. The address is 52 street no. 1, Nam Hung Vuong residential area, An Lac ward.
Just a short note that street no. means ‘đường số’ in Vietnamese, which is a way to call a street. If you want to use Google Maps or Apple Maps, perhaps using Vietnamese is better to find the right location. Or at least, you can show it to the taxi driver or type in a ride-hailing app.
Finally
From my story and the info in this post, I hope you can now differentiate Tan Binh district and Binh Tan district. With their own attractions, surely you will find something that matches your interests to explore. And if you figure out anything new, please don’t forget to tell me, I would like to add it to my blog. Enjoy and happy traveling!
IF YOU FIND THIS POST INTERESTING, DON’T FORGET TO ‘PIN IT’ NOW!
