The breakfast buffet had a wide variety of selection and the dining area is pretty. Location was central in District 1. The room was spacious and the hotel felt like it had historic significance.

The reception staff were not very welcoming. The water pressure in the shower was poor and the toiletries were small and low quality. The location was in a fairly commercial area a bit of a distance from good street food vendors. The “garden view” was more of a view of some pot plants and air conditioning units.

Elegant historic hotel in a great central location. Within walking distance to all the main sites of interest including the War Remnants Museum, Independence Palace and Ben Thanh Market. A classic hotel with a history dating back to 1878. We chose to stay here for our last few days in Vietnam after previously having cocktails and a meal at the outdoor terrace. We were lucky enough to be upgraded to a junior suite. The room was huge with a sitting area and view over the Saigon Opera House. It was spotlessly clean and the bathroom was also large with the shower over the bath. The decor is in keeping with the historic nature of the hotel so if you like slick and modern this is hotel is not for you. We found the water hot, the bed and pillows comfortable and the air conditioning cold- great to come back to after the outside humidity.A breakfast buffet is served in a lovely courtyard and the choices are huge.The staff are lovely and can’t do enough for you. We would definitely stay here again.

Nothing

I love this place. I have been staying here for 30 years and it is like staying in a museum...there is history everywhere. Not the most modern place in town but that is the appeal. Awesome breakfast, giant room (218) with a sitting area and the best location in town looking out onto the theatre and Dong Khoi. The staff is awesome and the doormen seem to remember every guest...it's uncanny. It is the one sui generis place in the city that retains some of the quirky charm of the old days.

Nothing

This is the higher end of accommodation in Saigon / HCMC but you get what you pay for and the charm and ambience of this hotel far exceeds the generic experience provided by the Hyatts and Sheratons of this world. The rooms are exquisite, spacious and a perfect blend of antique charm and modern facility. The beds are creaky but comfortable. The buffet breakfast is a varied mix of western and eastern food and of good quality. We stayed over Chinese New Year and there were nice little touches that the hotel laid on for its guests, such as a calligrapher writing free messages and a dancing dragon troupe.

There was WiFi in every room but it wasn't secure. In a hotel of this quality, the WiFi should be password protected. When leaving, I asked the concierge to get me a taxi. I wasn't going far but I had a bad leg and luggage. I could tell that he was not keen to order one for me and complained that it would take two hours. I walked to the end of the block and there was a taxi there right away with its green light on which the concierge could have found for me. I think that it's one of the few jobs of a concierge to hail a cab for their guests. Bad final impression on an otherwise great stay.

Beautiful historic hotel in the heart of Saigon. Wonderful breakfast included.

With the heat a swimming pool would have been good, but unfortunately this hotel doesn’t have a pool.

If you are looking for a hotel with the grandeur and charm of days gone by, then this is the property for you. A grand lobby area with live piano music, columns, archways, wide corridors and very spacious rooms. The furnishings are typical old world style but still solid and very functional. The service is of a very high standard and the staff are professional and efficient. Having worked in high end hospitality (Accor Sofitel), I would prefer to see the staff being a little more friendly and engaging with the guests – here they tend to come across as being a little staid and aloof (just a perception). The breakfast buffet is fantastic and has a great variety that will suit every taste. I was disappointed that guests are permitted to smoke in the eating area – this severely detracts from the dining experience, if you happen to be seated near them. Overall, a great hotel in a perfect location. Highly recommended.

I didn't like that guest were permitted to smoke in the breakfast area. This severely detracts from the dining experience, not to mention being very unhealthy.

What can zi say. I had such a fantastic time at the superbly furnished and comfortable rooms being greeted like royalty by the staff. I will be returning. I had such a good time. Thankyounfor making me feel so welcome.

The bathroom was such a disappointment to the rest of the quality of the room. The step from the tub to the floor for a 6'1 male is simply unsafe thebpoor silicone job on the fixings and faucets and the simply old and chipped tiles with years of embedded grime were a start difference to the sheet beauty of the rooms provided and then to have that as a bathroom was dissapointing to say the very least.

Lots of history. The hotel has been there since 1880 and Graham Green mentions the hotel extensively in A Quite American. Great location, friendly and helpful staff and it is very clean.

Hot water takes an age to come through and the WiFi can be a bit patchy.

Best location in Saigon, right next to the Opera. Large Room with bathroom that had good plumbing! We enjoyed staying in the oldest hotel in Saigon and learning about its history and walking to a show we had pre-booked at the Opera House.

We booked a Deluxe Garden View room with balcony so we would not be disturbed by the road noise (we know Saigon can be very noisy). We were upgraded to a City View room without a balcony. Asked to see a garden view room with balcony and was given the keys to view an altertive room with two single beds (staff did not accompany us). We were not offered an alternative when we returned to reception and pointed out that we had booked a deluxe room with large bed and were not interested in moving to a smaller room with single beds. Fortunately the road noise was not as bad as some other hotels we have stayed in and there were no nightclubs or Karaoke bars close.

I wished to relive the ambiance of the Continental I had in my memory, when I first stayed at the oldest hotel of Saigon 33 years ago, while reading again A Quiet American on the spot it had been written. In this respect my expectations were entirely fulfilled. Beside a lovely and attentive staff, we were pleasantly surprised by the renovated facilities, amenities, equipments and sound isolation from the road. While this would probably not match those of neigbouring recent fives stars international chains establishments, they absolutely guaranteed a fives nights comfortable stay in Saigon. You will nowadays not find a room of equivalent size in recent hotels. 3.5 or more meter ceiling, Over 40 sqm room size. Just wonderful. And the location! Right at a historical centre. Just perfect, unless you would insist on river view and would then need to stay at the Majectic or on a rooftop bar and then stay at the REX, with the Continental all three owned and well managed by Saigon Tourist, i.e the (local) government. After all Vietnam is still a communist country... Highly recommended unless you are fan of modernism and adverse to the smell of old fashioned decor and ambiance. Warning: I may be a bit biased because of my attraction to the past and history... ps: Graham Greene's room was the 214....

The only disappointment (and surprise): on New Year's eve, the hotel put huge speakers on their terrace on the street facing the Opera Hall and played very loud pop music, which to me was not in tune with the spirit of the hotel and the nature of its guests. But that was just on one evening.