For travelers who want to "roughly cover the main spots in half a day" on a first visit to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), another option is being added. A new open-top double-decker bus route, "DL06," circling the city, begins operating on July 4, 2026. Starting from the Saigon Bus Terminal, it passes the backpacker district's Pham Ngu Lao street, Notre-Dame Cathedral, and the Nguyen Hue pedestrian street, covering about 27 km over roughly 110 minutes. This makes it the sixth open-top sightseeing bus in the city. Which route you use and how changes the density of your limited stay.
Overview of the new "DL06" route opening July 4
According to local reports, the new route is operated by World Travel Trading JSC. The vehicle is a 60-seat open-top double-decker bus. The start is the Saigon Bus Terminal and the end is toward Binh Trung; the distance is about 27 km, and one loop takes about 110 minutes. Operating hours are stated as daily from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. The report also makes clear that it operates as a non-subsidized route, not relying on city subsidies.
The route departs from Pham Ngu Lao street and runs along Tran Hung Dao street, Ham Nghi street, Ton Duc Thang street, Nguyen Tat Thanh street, Mai Chi Tho street, and Van Dan street, returning to the center via the Thu Thiem Bridge. Along the way it passes in front of classic spots like Notre-Dame Cathedral and the Nguyen Hue pedestrian street. The defining feature of this route's design is capturing both the central sights and the new urban scenery on the Thu Thiem side in your window view at once.
The frequency is designed to increase in stages
What's worth noting is an operating plan that ramps up frequency in stages rather than all at once. From the opening on July 4 through September 30, it's 5 trips a day. In October it increases to 10 a day, and from November 1 it's reported to expand to 15 a day. In other words, frequency is quite limited in the early opening period, with the plan to build up the operating structure toward the year-end peak season.
This design directly affects how easily travelers can plan. With the 5-trip schedule through the end of September, missing one trip means waiting a fair while for the next. If you're building a sightseeing bus into your schedule, in the early opening period it's realistic to check departure times in advance and plan your day's route around them. Conversely, from November onward the frequency triples, so it should be easier to hop on spontaneously. It helps to understand this as a route whose convenience changes greatly depending on when you visit, which improves the precision of your plan.
Comparing the difference from existing routes by distance and time
Before adding this DL06, Ho Chi Minh City had operated five open-top sightseeing bus routes. We sort out, as far as public information allows, how the new route fits among them. Note that frequencies and operating hours may change, so check the latest information before boarding.
| Line | Section / character | Distance / time guide |
|---|---|---|
| DL01 (since 2020) | Classic central loop | About 12.7 km |
| Saigon–Cho Lon line (since 2024) | Links the center and Chinatown | About 20 km / about 2 hours |
| DL06 (since July 2026) | Loops the center plus the Thu Thiem side | About 27 km / about 110 minutes |
Lining up the distance figures, DL06 runs about 27 km, longer than the existing routes, yet at about 110 minutes its time is not greatly different from the Cho Lon line's roughly 2 hours over 20 km. It reads as a route that flows along to some degree rather than a stop-and-tour type. A short-distance route like DL01 if you want to see only the center quickly, or DL06 if you want to widen the view to the new district across the river—that's roughly how they divide.
How locals and travelers receive it
Travelers who have used existing open-top buses have long noted that the cathedral seen looking up from the roofless upper deck, and the streetscape along the Nguyen Hue pedestrian street, make for open, "photogenic" views. Many also value the ease of taking in, seated, an area you couldn't cover on foot in a single day. On the other hand, since daytime Saigon has strong sun and heat, the roofless upper deck can get quite hot depending on the time of day, a point shared from firsthand experience.
Among local tourism people, there's a view that positively sees the route design, crossing the Thu Thiem Bridge to include the new urban scenery on the far bank, as a way to show "Saigon as it is now." The composition of showing the central historic architecture and the redevelopment scenery progressing across the river in one continuous sweep is felt to look fresh even to repeat visitors. Amid the river-centered urban renewal progressing, such as the waterfront development around Bach Dang Wharf,the Saigon River waterfront redevelopmentand how the sightseeing bus route overlaps with that flow are also talked about as future highlights.
Where it's useful for Japanese travelers
For first-time Saigon visitors, the biggest advantage of this kind of open-top bus is being able to get an overall picture of the city in one go while you still lack a sense of direction. Take one loop on your arrival day, and you'll grasp the relative positions of Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Nguyen Hue pedestrian street, and the Thu Thiem side, making it easier to plan "let's walk here again slowly" for the following days. The roughly 110-minute duration fits comfortably into a half-day in the morning or evening.
Heat measures are a practical key point. If you sit on the roofless upper deck, avoiding around noon when the sun is strong and choosing the relatively comfortable 8–9 a.m. window or flights after 5 p.m. lets you enjoy it comfortably. Bringing a hat, sunscreen, and water, and securing small items that could blow away in the wind, gives you peace of mind. If you also want to consider getting around the city by rail, checkingHo Chi Minh City's urban railand its development status makes it easier to map out a day combining the sightseeing bus with the metro and walking.
Ripple effects on tourism and transport infrastructure
The addition of a non-subsidized private route as the sixth can be read as a move where Saigon's sightseeing transport is broadening from "complementing public transit" to "a tourism experience as a revenue business." That the route extends not just within the center but to the new district across the river has the effect of widening travelers' flow into areas where urban renewal is progressing. If the flow of people heads across the river, ripple effects on the cafés, dining, and lodging along that route can also be expected.
From a traveler's viewpoint, having more routes to choose from means greater freedom to combine them for your purpose. It becomes easier to divide use—a day to see historic architecture quickly, a day to cross the river and take in the city broadly. There's also room to enjoy combining the bus loop with events around town, like gatherings where you can experience ao dai culture, and aligning the timing withSaigon's Ao Dai Festivaland similar limited-time excitement further heightens the density of your trip.
Practical information and related links
We sort out the practical points worth noting before boarding. Since ticket details aren't made clear in public information, check the latest fares and purchase methods with the operator, the bus terminal, or travel booking sites just before going.
- Start is the Saigon Bus Terminal. End is toward Binh Trung; a loop of about 27 km / about 110 minutes.
- Operates daily 8 a.m.–7 p.m. Frequency: 5 trips/day from July 4–September 30, 10 trips/day in October, 15 trips/day from November 1.
- Since frequency is low through the end of September, plan your day after checking departure times.
- The roofless upper deck is hot during the day. Choose a morning or evening trip and prepare a hat, sunscreen, and water.
If you also want to build food and cafés along the way into your plan, it's efficient to plan the route together with spots you can stop at while strolling. Marking a few cafés or eateries to rest at after getting off, by stop area, means you won't be at a loss for where to go once you step off the bus.
Summary: How to build it into your next trip
DL06 is the sixth open-top sightseeing bus, able to loop from central Saigon to the new district across the river in about 110 minutes. To build it into your next trip, keeping three points in mind makes it harder to fail: (1) since frequency changes by when you visit (5 trips through the end of September, 10 in October, 15 from November onward), check departure times first in the early opening period; (2) choose a morning or evening trip to avoid the heat; (3) take one loop on your arrival day to grasp the overall picture and use it for planning your strolls on later days. Use it as a half-day to survey, seated, a Saigon too vast to cover on foot.
