The concept of the “Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Mega City” is built upon a unique “triangle of identity.” Previously, Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, and Ba Ria – Vung Tau were three separate tourism centers, each with its own strengths. Following the administrative consolidation effective July 1, 2025, they now form a diverse and complementary “triangle,” laying the foundation for the creation of distinctive, more explosive, and more attractive tourism products for Ho Chi Minh City than ever before.

The “Unique Identity Triangle” of Ho Chi Minh City Tourism

The newly consolidated Ho Chi Minh City now possesses a comprehensive set of advantages:

• MICE Tourism (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions), Cultural-Historical Tourism, Street Food, and Regional/International Events.
• Industrial and High-Tech Agricultural Parks and Farms, creating potential for industrial urban tours (Factory Tours), riverside ecotourism, traditional craft village tourism, and creative urban districts.
• Beach and Island Tourism Centers, High-End Resorts, Spiritual Tourism, Golf, and Casinos, highlighted by areas like Vung Tau, Long Hai, Ho Tram, and notably, Con Dao.

This “unique identity triangle” is not merely an additive sum of resources but a multiplier of experiential value. It enables Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism sector to build distinctive and exclusive products, catering to all needs from leisure and business to cultural exploration and tech-ecological experiences, thereby creating breakthrough momentum for the city to ascend as an Asian-scale “tourism mega city.”

“Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Mega City” – Breakthrough with Signature Products

The greatest advantage of the expanded Ho Chi Minh City is its ability to create new tourism value chains, offering diverse experiences within a single itinerary. Beyond its established strengths in cuisine, historical culture, and night-time economy, Ho Chi Minh City tourism can now achieve breakthroughs with new products:

1. A Core Product Axis Harmoniously Blending Urban and Natural Elements

• Urban-Island Tours: Tourists can explore historical sites and enjoy culinary delights in Ho Chi Minh City’s central districts, then seamlessly transfer to high-end resorts in Ho Tram and Long Hai, or experience spiritual and ecological tourism in Con Dao, attracting both international and domestic visitors.
• Waterway Tourism: Developing inner-city waterway routes combined with riverside culinary experiences, then connecting directly to the sea via gateways like Can Gio and Vung Tau.

2. Industrial-Cultural Experience Journeys

New tours will connect urban and cultural tourism with Binh Duong’s industrial strengths:

• Urban – Factory Tour: Combining visits to Ho Chi Minh City’s famous landmarks with hands-on experiences at factories, high-tech industrial parks, and traditional craft villages in Binh Duong. This is a unique industrial tourism product attracting niche markets and MICE groups.
• Ecotourism – Golf: Combining ecotourism and riverside relaxation along the Saigon River (Binh Duong) with premium golf services, complementing MICE and resort tourism.

Ho Chi Minh City Tourism – Elevating the Destination Brand on the International Map

Ho Chi Minh City is steadily solidifying its role as Vietnam’s international gateway, first stop, and final destination on tour itineraries, thanks to its major international airport and integrated seaport and logistics systems. More importantly, it is becoming an “All-in-One” destination where tourists can experience everything from modern urban life and culinary culture to industrial tourism and luxurious beach-island resorts within a single consolidated region.

By integrating resources from beach and island resorts, craft and industrial villages, and cultural, historical, and festival tourism, the new Ho Chi Minh City has a powerful opportunity to reposition and strengthen its brand on the regional and global tourism map.

Ho Chi Minh City Tourism – Seizing Opportunities and Overcoming Challenges

To turn this potential into reality, Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism sector requires government support to complete inter-connected transport infrastructure and accelerate key transportation projects (expressways, Beltway 3, Beltway 4). This will shorten travel times and create seamless inter-regional tours connecting the three former areas of Ho Chi Minh City, Ba Ria – Vung Tau, and Binh Duong. Alongside establishing unified management mechanisms to leverage the benefits of centralized administration and create the most favorable conditions for tourism businesses post-consolidation, addressing the shortage of high-quality tourism personnel—especially for coastal and industrial tourism services—remains a critical task.

Overall, the administrative consolidation is a strategic national move, creating a Ho Chi Minh City tourism mega city brimming with potential. Through diversified resources and the formation of an integrated tourism space, the city’s tourism industry stands before a golden opportunity to craft unique and attractive multi-destination, cross-regional tourism products. This positions Ho Chi Minh City to become a leading tourism hub not only for Vietnam but for the wider Asian region and beyond.