Saigon: bui vien street hotels.
So there we are. After my little stay at madame cuc I finally went to find something better. The most amazing thing, is that I did not spend much time to find something decent in te same area. the hotel I came across and stayed at was the hotel phoenix 74 in the bui vien street in saigon.
That hotel has got all the good things you might want when you are staying in the backpackers area and it is in middle of everything actuallly very close to Madame cuc 64 :O)
This hotel is more or less a one stop shop like many out there, meaning that they have a tour and travel service and the hotel itself. Note that the reception and the tour and travel service are not at the same desk which is quite handy. at the reception the hotel is claiming on a little board: “high standard at a resonable price”. I started to understand that statement when I first came to visit a room and I saw to my surprise that there was a lift in there :O)
The lift in all its glory! trust me that is luxury in backpacker land.
No need to tell you that a lift in the backpackers area of Saigon is more than rare, especially for a budget hotel. After that the second good surprise I got, was that when I entered the room (located on the street side). virtually, it was all quiet. I could just hear a little bit of the mayhem from oustside but really it was very quiet compare to all the other hotels I had checked. The reason for that is that the windows of this hotels have been design to be soundproof and it is a nice addition, especially in Saigon. For the rest, the room was nicely decorated and furnished, equipped with the usual cable tv fridge and air con. The furnitures in the room are all practical and well placed. for instance the tv is set righ in front of the bed at the right distance and not sideways like you’ll find a lot of time in other hotels. Surprisingly it is the first room that actually felt like a proper hotel, with nice attention to details like the “do not disturb/make the room please” leaflet to hang outside your door, proper thick wooden doors for the entrance and bathroom, two mirrors in the bedrooms, set of glasses for drinking on a little table, complemetary soap and tooth brushing kits, slippers for the shower ect… even the lighting system has not been forgotten. instead of the common big bright neon light you had one main light source from the ceiling as well as dim lights near the bed plus an extra side bed reading light.
Of course, none of this hotels are perfect and this one has also some minor flaws like the aircon outside unit placed in the middle of the window and ruining the “view”. a little ventilation gap communicating with the bathroom next to you (meaning that while in the bathroom, you can hear everything that is going on in the other bathroom and vice versa). and also the breakfast area that is just a big table in a small overfurnished living room.
However this is Saigon and for 15 dollars a night a at the phoenix 74 hotel you get a nice double room that is cosy, clean and quiet, a lift so you don’t have to climb up and down all the time, a small breakfast made of one egg, coffe, tea bread and jam and banana and free internet. as a bonus one of the pc downstair has a dvd writer you can use which is very handy for photos backup ect…
Conclusion: I really think that everyone have to take the time and explore the nearby streets in order to visit all the little hotels in and around bui vien since a lot of them are not mentionned in any travel guide but are way better that the one you are staying at. Just go out and visit any hotel. it’s fun to do and you’ll have a much rewarding stay in saigon.
The critical Frenchman.
Tags: guesthouse, hotels, opinion, saigon.bui vien street, tips, Vietnam, Tag Index