South Vietnam was the setting for most of the American involvement in the Vietnam War, so war tourism is a big draw. The War Remnants Museum is in Ho Chi Minh City, and outside of the city is a war-history theme park based on the underground guerrilla base known as the Tunnels of Chu Chi. The city also boasts fine French colonial architecture and the main cathedral of the Cao Dai religion, with its mixture of Roman Catholicism, Buddhism and Taoism.

Nha Trang is one of the most favourite destinations in South Vietnam, about 200 miles northeast of Ho Chi Minh City. For those seeking to go off the beaten tourist path, Phu Quoc Island off the southern tip of South Vietnam is ringed with beaches and often overlooked. Although the region is quite wet, the Mekong Delta is also quite flat and therefore a popular destination for bike tours. The forests and rugged hills of the Central Highlands of South Vietnam are the setting for many trekking, rock climbing and mountain biking tours.

In South Vietnam, the dry season runs from December until April or May, with the monsoon lasting from May through November. Despite of the rain, however, the monsoon might be the best time to go. The monsoon season in Vietnam is characterized by partly cloudy or overcast days with a predictable downpour in the early afternoon. It rarely rains all day. By the middle of the dry season, on the other hand, temperatures are known to soar to over 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

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