Entree Kibbles: Saigon Skydeck @ Bitexco Financial Tower in Ho Chi Minh City [Vietnam]

There are two observation sky decks in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC); an older one at Bitexco Financial Tower (completed in 2010) and a much newer one at Landmark 81 (completed in 2018).

While the Landmark 81 was much taller at 470 meters and classified as a supertall skyscraper, we opted for convenience as Bitexco Financial Tower was much nearer to where we stayed.

A short GRAB ride and we had arrived at the entrance of Saigon Skydeck at Bitexco Financial Tower. Although the tower was 262.5 high, the skydeck is at a much shorter height; on 49th floor, at just 178 meters.

Got our tickets; priced at 200,000 Dong (about S$11.76) each.

Proceeded to take the lift; an obvious process as I don't think anyone would be crazy enough to climb all the way up to an observation sky deck!

Got out on the 49th floor; the lift was said to travel at seven meters per second. Is that considered fast? I don't really keep track unless we have a window view that allows us to better feel the rapid elevation.

View in front of us! I have always enjoyed checking out observation decks; the helicopter views on all the buildings, roads and trees beneath our feet, and the humans and motor vehicles moving like ants.

Some even took advantage of the viewing binoculars' stand by using it as seats to enjoy the view ahead of them. I think sky deck operators aren't that keen in providing many comfortable chairs as there's a high risk of customers staying there for hours.

That tall building was Landmark 81; it should be on my to-go list on my next trip to Ho Chi Minh City. Despite a population of over nine million people, you don't see that many skyscrapers in the city. In fact, as you can see from the above picture, there were still plenty of undeveloped land on the right!

Remember this area, that I visited on Day Two of my trip?!

That's the happening Nguyen Hue Walking Street!

I didn't know Bitexco Financial Tower was so near!

From Google Map, it's less than one hundred meters way.

Saigon River which runs for 225 kilometers from Southeastern Cambodia, until it merges with another river by the name of Soài Rạp for another 20 kilometers until the South China Sea.

Looking more like a abandoned construction at a prime location, this was Saigon One Tower which was supposed to be completed in 2012 when the developers went bust! Now revived as IFC One Saigon and taken over by a new developer, construction restarted in 2021 for the mixed used development.

Sometimes, it's a matter of getting use to the fear. I have a phobia for height since young but that fear had reduced as I age. In the past, you wouldn't see me so close to the window at such high height!

Rach Ben Nghe canal - Quán Ụt Ụt; the American BBQ restaurant we patronized the day before was along the same stretch and actually faced the same canal.

That historical, imposing building was the State Bank Building; constructed in 1928, it has been added to the list of national relics for Vietnam. Don't you think it looks like a building within a building?

The above would be a view I am most familiar with!

Aside from staying in the area, we had been walking all over the place too! I bet you can also spot the tourist famous Ben Thanh market in the picture above.

What else can you glimpse from the above? I spotted the Independence Palace and People's Committee Building, including the blurred image of the Ho Chi Minh statue along Nguyen Hue Walking Street.

The hotel had such nice pool; for your reference, it's the 4-star Au Lac Charner Hotel. Pricing was out of my budget though as it's on average, above S$150 a night.

Other photographs for your viewing pleasure; the thing about Ho Chi Minh City is that buildings were generally long yet narrow from the front. This is likely to be a result of some taxation rules in the past, when buildings are taxed based on width and not depth.

Pity we didn't get to see a glorious sunset! Nevertheless, we shall still be blessed with both day and night views! Poor my friends though; as they would have to continue to wait for me...

Good thing is that I am not adept with night shots.

And without a tripod, many photos didn't make the cut.

I did get a not bad shot for Nguyen Hue Walking Street. As mentioned in my post, the pedestrian street popular with the locals gave out a relaxed, chill out vibe. Maybe also because it happened to be quite windy when we visited and it was such a comfortable walk.

Ho Chi Minh City Opera House, where we caught the The À Ố Show. This picture didn't do the opera house any justice as it was stunning. Check out my post here for more photos!

The now eerie State Bank Building.

One thing I regretted I didn't do was to walk along the promenade alongside Saigon River. Known as Ben Bach Dang Park, don't you just love those mesmerizing lights, like little flower petals?!

After all the beautiful scenic photographs, let's now talk about the interior of Saigon Skydeck. I do have some negative comments that I shall be sharing in this post.

Remember to get your complimentary water from the souvenir counter!

Nice yet souvenirs for sale! I almost got a set of that Buddha statues; hear not, see not, speak not. Virtues that are no longer practiced in the current social media era.

The usual list of tallest buildings in the whole world. In this case, it would be the top 20 iconic buildings selected by CNN Go. Bitexco Financial Tower was ranked 5, and I believe its uniqueness came from the jutting out helipad at a height of 191 meters.

Information panel about the history of HCMC, including its transition from the old name of Saigon. Did you know the city was only founded in 1698 and established itself as the capital of the capitalist South Vietnam? Even though it's not the administrative capital of the unified Vietnam, HCMC is often said to be its economics capital. There was also information on lotus, the national flower of Vietnam.

The Ao Dai exhibition!

For more photos, click here.

Interactive panels which you can use to check out the iconic buildings in the view in front of you. That pink church looked interesting; the name is Tan Dinh Church at District 3 of HCMC.

Decorations due to the upcoming Halloween then.

The cyclo - similar to the rickshaw we have in Singapore, this was designed by a French man in 1939 and was a common mode of transportation up to early 1990s before motorbikes took over the city. Personally, this design put passengers at risk!

I was a cyclo rider for a few minutes. Must take advantage of such photo props, especially when there wasn't anyone to compete with us!

More random photos.

Now, on the negative things about this skydeck. The glass was too reflective and I had to angle and sometimes, block the surrounding of the lens so that I don't get the reflection of the interior in the my photographs.

What's worse was the LED strips on the floor; it's even harder to avoid them when night falls! For someone who takes tons of photographs, my frustration was maxed, especially after sunset.

Taking a piss! I love the design of this urinal.

Lesser chance of spillage and dripping onto the floor.

Apparently, we forgot to take the picture in front of the green screen on the ground floor. Oh well, not that it matters as we wouldn't buy anyway. p.s. unless it's like S$2 a photo?

Lastly, a time-lapsed video!

Notice those bloody reflections?!

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