Meals: Breakfast at hotel, Lunch at local restaurant and Dinner at halal restaurant
Accommodations: at hotel
Transfer: Private vehicle
Activities for today:
After breakfast, take Vung Tau city tour including Christ Hill (St. Jacque Janerio), 18 meters high Goddess of Mercy, Thuy Van beach and Whale Temple dedicated to whales considered as the rescuing gods for Vietnamese fisherman in the east sea. Lunch at local restaurant before returning to Ho Chi Minh city with visit to War Museum, China Town, Thien Hau Temple, lacquerware factory and handicraft center. Stop for shopping at Ben Thanh Market then having dinner at real local Halal restaurant. Overnight in Hochiminh.
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+ Christ Hill The Vietnam Catholic Association built the statue in 1974 and it was completed in 1993. The statue is the largest Christian statue across Asia since 2012, and since its restoration of 1993, it has been a major pilgrim destination for Christians across Vietnam as well as Christian vacationers.
+ The Whale Temple (Long Ong Nam Hai) is a temple to Whales which are respected like Gods by most fishermen. Legend has it that a massive whale was washed up on a Vung Tau beach and it was too big for the locals to do too much with it and they did not want it decomposing on the beach so they carried it to the site of where the Temple is now and burned the whale and then stored the bones in the Temple. Today if a whale gets washed-up on Vung Tau beaches then there is a big festival where the Whale is walked through the streets and the whale is burned at the temple for 3 days and the bones are also stored at the temple. Worth a look. Entrance is via Hoang Hoa Tham Street.
+ War Museum: War Remnants operated by the Vietnamese government, the museum was opened in September 1975. The museum comprises a series of eight themed rooms in several buildings, with period military equipment located within a walled yard.
+ The Thien Hau Temple was first erected 1760 by the Cantonese community in the city. It was saw major repairs or expansions in 1800, 1842 (and possibly also 1847), 1882, 1890, and 1916.
+ Ben Thanh Market: The market is one of the earliest surviving structures in Saigon and one of symbols of Ho Chi Minh City, popular with tourists seeking local handicrafts, textiles and souvenirs, as well as local cuisine
