Ho Chi Minh City Museum

The Ho Chi Minh City Museum is located in District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City, on the Ly Tu Trong Road. Local taxis and cars are a good form of transport, as are the local buses such as bus numbers 4, 18, 31, 36, 42, 52, 90, 109 and 152, getting off at the Ly Tu Trong station, which is a mere 50 meters from the museum. A well-connected area, the Ho Chi Minh City Museum is close to other major landmarks of the city, such as the Reunification Palace, Ben Thanh Market, Saigon Central Post Office and other popular tourist sites.

The Ho Chi Minh City museum is a relic of Vietnam's rich and tumultuous history and occupies a special place in the country. It houses the memories of Vietnam's independence struggles, taking you back in time to the country's colonial past. It remains a tourist favourite and continues to draw large crowds with its enigmatic and nostalgic collection of artefacts.

The Ho Chi Minh City Museum has a rich collection of artefacts and has something to interest every person who visits it. Some of the rare collections and highlights of the museum include Resistance sketches, war weaponry, old flags, artefacts related to historical figures, XVII century zinc coins and other silver bullions, folk worship statues and other traditional artefacts.

Ho Chi Minh City Museum was built by the French in the late 19th century, designed by the French architect Alfred Foulhoux. It displays the classical Baroque style, with inspiration was drawn from European and Oriental influence. There are many interesting motifs adorning the palace walls, such as grotesques on the roof, Greek mythological symbols,  different tropical birds and animals. The museum is surrounded by a beautiful trapezoid shaped garden.

The Ho Chi Minh City Museum also preserves a series of tunnels and the bunker used by former president Ngo Dinh Diem, which was built to protect him during the coup of 1963.

The Ho Chi Minh City Museum has a variety of exhibitions and displays. The outdoor exhibition includes a collection of fighter planes and jets from the wars - such as A.37 Fighter, F.5 Fighter, as well as cannons, M41 tanks and vintage cars.

The indoor exhibitions at the Ho Chi Minh City Museum include artefacts and relics from the Vietnamese revolutions of the 1930s and 1950s, archaeological relics, and a section dedicated to traditional handicrafts such as pottery, jewellery and wood carvings. A section dedicated to souvenirs of war resistance including sketches, resistance badges and other personal items of the soldiers. Other items of interest in the museum include ancient Vietnamese currency and other Vietnamese cultural artefacts. The museum also hosts many special exhibitions throughout the years on various themes like revolutionary uprisings, modern political events and others. Some of the special exhibitions worth checking out include Gong music of the Central Highlands, Vietnamese ceramics, and 45 years of the Mau Than Thet Offensive 1968.