Guide to city buses
(updated July 2015)
Buses from District 7
- 34: stops at Bến Thành bus station
- 102: stops at Bến Thành bus station
- 139: doesn’t stop at Bến Thành, but it does stop at Nguyễn Thái Học/Trần Hưng Đạo, and also Bùi Viện
- 68: From D7-->Chợ Lớn, doesn’t stop in District 1, so if you want to go to District 1 you should get off at Trần Hưng Đạo
Hours of operation
The first bus is usually around 6:00, and the last bus is usually around 18:00 or 19:00.
Ticket price (as of July 2015)
34: 5000 VND
102, 139: 6000 VND
You can usually get change for a 10,000, but it’s wise to have small bills ready in advance.
Where to get on and off
Look for the bus stop sign with the number of the bus you want to take.
If you need help finding a bus, ask someone at a bus stop. Not everyone in the city is familiar with the bus routes.
From D7-->D1
Bus #102
Get on in District 7:
- Option 1: On the corner of Nguyen Van Linh and Nguyen Duc Canh, by Burger King/Wrap & Roll
- Option 2: In front of Co-Op Mart
- You’re on the correct side if traffic is going away from Sky Garden and towards Crescent Mall
Get off in District 1:
- At Bến Thành bus station
Bus #34
Get on in District 7:
- Option 1: On the corner of Nguyễn Văn Linh & Nguyễn Đức Cảnh, by Burger King/Wrap & Roll
- Option 2: In front of Co-Op Mart
- You’re on the correct side if traffic is going away from Sky Garden and towards Crescent Mall
Get off in District 1:
- At Bến Thành bus station
Bus #139
Get on in District 7:
- Option 1: Across from Riverside Residence
- Option 2: On sidewalk of empty lot next to Parkson Paragon (across the street from the PMH Guard Station)
- You’re on the correct side if traffic is going away from Riverside and towards Parkson Paragon and FV Hospital.
Get off in District 1:
- At the corner of Nguyễn Thái Học and Trần Hưng Đạo (near the Coffee Bean) - or just before as the bus turns on to Trần Hưng Đạo - in front of Fanny Ice Cream shop.
- The bus keeps going for a long time, so if you miss the stop near Coffee Bean, get off at Bùi Viện or somewhere along Trần Hưng Đạo before you go too far.
Bus #68
Get on in District 7:
- Option 1: Across the street from Parkson
- Option 2: Across the street from SSIS
Get off in District 1:
- At Trần Hưng Đạo. You’ll have to walk a few blocks to get to D1. The bus keeps going all the way to Chợ Lớn, so if you miss the stop, get off at Bùi Viện or somewhere along Trần Hưng Đạo before you go too far.
- f you end up going all the way to Chợ Lớn, take Bus No. 1 (the blue bus) back to Bến Thành bus station. Bus No. 1 comes very frequently.
From D1-->D7
Note: stops for buses going in opposite directions are not necessarily exactly across the street from each other.
Bus #102
Get on in District 1:
- Option 1: On Calmette St. just before the hill that goes onto the highway
- You’re on the correct side if traffic is going away from Bến Thành Market and towards the hill/highway leading to D4
Get off in District 7:
- At the Hưng Vượng apartments (get ready to get off when you see Wonderland)
Bus #34
Get on in District 1:
- Option 1: On Calmette St. just before the hill that goes onto the highway.
- You’re on the correct side if traffic is going away from Bến Thành Market and towards the hill/highway leading to D4.
Get off in District 7:
- At the Hưng Vượng apartments (get ready to get off when you see Wonderland)
Bus #139
Get on in District 1:
- Option 1: On the corner of Nguyễn Thái Học and Trần Hưng Đạo
- You’re on the correct side if traffic is going away from Phạm Ngũ Lão and Bến Thành Market (you should be across the street from The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf)
- Option 2: At the many stops along Trần Hưng Đạo
- You’re on the correct side if traffic is going towards Nguyễn Thái Học St.
Get off in District 7:
- Option 1: At Parkson Paragon
- Option 2: At Riverside Residence
Bus #68
Get on in District 1:
- At Trần Hưng Đạo St.
Get off in District 7:
- Option 1: Near Parkson
- Option 2: Near SSIS
Getting on the bus
- If you see the bus coming, wave your hand to indicate that you want to get on.
- The front or back door may open. If you see a bus attendant waving from a window, board through that door.
- The bus might not come to a complete stop as you get on, so the bus attendant might take your arm to help you get on the bus.
After you get on
Not sure you’re on the right bus?
- Have a piece of paper with the name of the bus stop where you want to get off (e.g. Bến Thành) to show the driver or attendant.
- If the driver or attendant looks at your paper and signals for you to sit down, you’re (probably) on the correct bus.
- If there’s no bus attendant, the bus driver will probably only be able to talk to you for a few seconds, because they have to watch the road carefully.
- If you need help, high school and college students are most likely to speak English.
Buying a ticket
- If there’s a bus attendant (e.g. the 34 and 102 bus), find a seat and the attendant will come over to you to collect your money and give you a ticket.
- If there’s no bus attendant, give your money to the bus driver and the driver will give you a ticket.
- Even if there’s a box to put the money, drivers usually prefer that you hand them the money first.
- Sometimes you get on at the back of the bus and have to walk up to the front to pay the driver.
- Hold on to your ticket. The attendant might come around to check it later.
How to get off
- There is often a button on the handrails near the rear door for you to push when you want to get off. If you know your stop is approaching, push the button. You only need to push the button once.
- The doors will open to let you off. The bus will slow down, but might not come to a complete stop.
- Before you step off the bus, look both ways for motorbikes trying to squeeze between the bus and the curb. It doesn’t happen very often, but it’s not unheard of.
Where to learn more
The Xe Buyt TP HCM website includes the following useful pages:
- Thông tin tuyến: info about individual routes that you can download
- Trạm dừng nhà chờ: helpful map that overlays the bus stops on Google Maps
- Choose the bus number and click "Hiển thị lộ trình" to show the route
- Note the order of the stops--make sure that the order of the stops is going in the correct direction. If the stops are going the wrong way, check or uncheck the “Lượt đi” box to show the route going the opposite way.