An Lam Retreats Saigon River

It is now in Ho Chi Minh City. The resort’s address is 21/4 Trung Street, Binh Hoa Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, because Binh Duong province merged into the city in July 2025. Before that it was written as Vinh Phu Ward, Thuan An, Binh Duong, and many maps, booking sites and review sites still use the old form. Nothing moved: both addresses point to the same riverside plot, about 14 km north of the city centre.

The resort runs a shared speedboat that is free for the standard number of guests in your room. It picks up at Saigon Waterbus Station (Bach Dang pier) in the city centre and at Binh An waterbus station in An Khanh, near Thao Dien, and the hotel puts the ride from Bach Dang at about 25 minutes. Boats follow the resort’s own timetable, so request a seat at least 48 hours ahead and ask for the times on your arrival day.

Yes. The hotel’s policy lists a surcharge for boat trips before 7 am or after 7 pm, and another for guests beyond the room’s standard occupancy. The amounts are not published, so ask for them when you request the boat. If your flight lands late in the evening, the drive is often simpler: about 14 km from the airport, or 30–45 minutes depending on traffic.

The resort is about 14 km by road from Tan Son Nhat International Airport, which takes 30–45 minutes depending on traffic. You can book the resort’s car (one booking-site listing showed VND 1,750,000 in October 2026; confirm the current price) or take a Grab or metered taxi from arrivals. The boat means first crossing the city to Bach Dang pier, so most guests arriving by air go straight by car.

Usually, but the last stretch runs through small lanes and some drivers miss the turn. Show the driver the old address as well as the new one — 21/4 Khu Pho Trung, Vinh Phu, Thuan An — and keep the resort’s phone number from your booking confirmation ready so reception can guide them. For the return trip, ask reception to arrange the car rather than waiting for an app driver to accept a long ride.

Not really. The resort sits at the end of quiet residential lanes, and the nearest town centre, around Lai Thieu market, is 4.9 km away by road. There are no restaurants, bars or shops that guests walk to, so plan on eating at the resort’s three restaurants or taking a car out. Khanh An monastery looks close on a map, but it stands on the opposite bank, 4.9 km away by road.

An Lam Saigon River has 35 suites and villas in eleven types, according to the hotel’s own website. Older articles quote 19, 36 or 38, because the resort has grown and been reconfigured since it opened as a private-residence-style retreat. Sizes run from 64 m² for the Garden View and Riverside Suites to 206 m² for the River View Signature Suite.

Five types are described as river-facing: Riverside Suite (64 m²), Riverside Executive Suite (85 m²), River View Signature Suite (206 m²), Riverfront Pool Villa (130 m²) and Riverfront Two-Bedroom Pool Villa (177 m²). The two Riverfront villas sit right on the bank. Some guests in river-view suites say trees screen much of the water, so if a clear view matters, ask the hotel when you book which unit you will get.

Five of the eleven types have their own pool: Garden Pool Villa (100 m²), Garden Pool Suite (107 m²), Riverfront Pool Villa (130 m², the only one described as infinity-edge), Garden Two-Bedroom Pool Villa (174 m²) and Riverfront Two-Bedroom Pool Villa (177 m²). Every other type, including the Presidential and River View Signature suites, shares the main outdoor pool.

Villas are standalone units at ground level, most with their own pool and deck. Suites sit in low-rise buildings of up to three storeys, so some are upstairs, and the Garden Pool Suite is the only suite with a private pool. Suites give more indoor space for the money; villas give privacy and direct pool access. Light sleepers bothered by footsteps overhead often prefer a villa or a top-floor suite.

Each of the three two-bedroom types has two bedrooms with their own bathrooms under one roof, and the Garden View Two-Bedroom Suite adds a separate living room. How the rooms open onto each other differs by unit, and at least one guest found the bedrooms reached separately. If you are travelling with young children, ask the hotel when you book to confirm the layout of your villa.

Check-in is from 2 pm and check-out is by 12 noon. Early check-in and late check-out depend on availability and carry a fee, so ask when you book, especially if you are arriving on a morning boat. Bring your passport with a valid visa or entry stamp (Vietnamese guests can use their citizen ID card), because the front desk registers every stay.

Yes, if you want the boat. The free shared speedboat must be requested at least 48 hours in advance, and the resort’s car needs booking too. Send your arrival time, the pier you prefer (Bach Dang or Binh An) and the number of guests as soon as you have a booking reference. It is also the moment to ask about early check-in, cots or a ground-floor unit.

It depends on the rate you book. One booking site states that the property asks for no deposit, another mentions a hold on a card or cash for extras, and some rates are fully prepaid. The terms shown next to the rate you choose are the ones that apply, so read them before you pay, and expect to settle spa and restaurant bills at check-out.

No. House rules do not allow outside food or drinks; anything you arrive with is stored by the hotel and handed back at check-out. That covers takeaway, snacks and wine bought in the city. Other rules worth knowing: music must be off after 9 pm, drones are not allowed, and professional photo or video shoots need the hotel’s permission.

Yes, through the resort’s One-Day Retreat, if you live or work in Vietnam. It runs Monday to Friday, gives day use of a villa or suite from 10 am to 6 pm, and includes the shared speedboat both ways plus a VND 2,000,000 credit for food, drink and spa treatments. It is arranged by the resort itself. Friends visiting in-house guests may use only the restaurant area, from 11 am to 9 pm.

It depends on the rate: some include breakfast and some do not, so compare the two lines on the booking page. Breakfast is served at Sen Bistro & Cafe on the riverbank from 7 to 10:30 am; booking sites list it as a buffet, and recent guests describe a self-service spread. Children up to five eat free when sharing their parents’ bed; for ages six to eleven the hotel charges VND 420,000 per child per day.

There are three. Sen Bistro & Cafe on the riverbank serves Vietnamese and Italian dishes from breakfast through the afternoon. Sen Vietnamese Dining focuses on southern Vietnamese food at shared round tables, 5–10 pm. Riva Dining & Lounge serves Mediterranean and Italian dishes in a copper-domed room, with the lounge open 4–11 pm. Private dinners can also be set up by the pool or on a deck.

Last orders are at 9 pm at both Sen Vietnamese Dining and Riva, which close at 10 pm; the Riva lounge stays open until 11 pm for drinks. With no restaurants within walking distance, that is effectively the end of the evening for food, so if you arrive on a late boat or car, tell the resort in advance and ask what can be served after hours.

Vegetarian dishes appear on the menus and the kitchen can adapt others, but guests note that breakfast has few vegetarian choices. Vegan, gluten-free, halal or other strict diets are on request: ask the hotel when you book and remind the restaurant on arrival, because there are no outside restaurants nearby to fall back on.

Yes, one shared outdoor pool in the garden, with a wooden deck, loungers and woven daybeds; five room types also have private pools. The hotel does not publish the pool’s size or opening hours, and some guests find it smaller than they expected for a resort, so if swimming laps matters, a pool villa is the safer choice.

Jungle Wellness and Spa is open from 9 am to 9 pm. It has three treatment rooms, a beauty room, a sauna, a steam room, a jacuzzi, a yoga and meditation sala and a fitness centre. Treatments include an An Lam signature massage and coconut body scrubs. Prices are not published and guests describe them as high, so ask for the menu when you arrive and book evening slots early.

Some sessions are included and others are charged, and the schedule changes. The resort has a yoga and meditation sala and runs yoga, meditation and sound-healing sessions, and recent guests mention morning yoga as part of their stay. Ask reception for the day’s programme on arrival and which sessions are included in your rate.

Paid activities include a 45-minute private sunset cruise on the river (VND 4,536,000 for two in October 2026), a 45-minute Vietnamese cooking class (VND 1,020,000 per person, minimum two) and river fishing between 9 am and 4 pm. There is also an organic garden and the spa. Beyond the gate there is little nearby, so many guests pair two quiet days with one trip into the city.

It works for families who want space and quiet more than a kids’ club. Three two-bedroom types sleep up to five, the resort runs craft sessions for children, and babysitting can be arranged for a fee. There is no children’s pool or kids’ club listed, though, and the resort’s style and most of its guests lean towards couples.

Children up to five stay and eat breakfast free when they share their parents’ bed. From six to eleven, breakfast costs VND 420,000 per child per day and an extra bed VND 520,000; from 12 a child counts as an adult, at VND 1,670,000 per day for an extra bed with breakfast. These hotel charges are paid at the resort, on top of the rate you book.

No. The shared pool, the private villa pools and the riverbank decks are open, without fences or gates. With toddlers, consider a suite rather than a pool villa, ask the hotel when you book whether any barrier can be arranged, and keep children within reach near the water and on the boat jetty.

Yes, babysitting is listed as a paid service. The hourly rate is not published, so ask the hotel when you book and give at least a day’s notice, particularly if you want an evening at Riva or a spa treatment for two. Cots are available on request; one listing says they are free and another that they may carry a charge.

Yes — it is the most common complaint in guest reviews. The resort sits in a dense, damp garden beside a river, so mosquitoes are part of the setting, especially at dusk and in the May–November rainy season. Beds in many rooms have mosquito nets. Bring a repellent you trust, wear long sleeves for dinner on the decks, and ask housekeeping what they can do for your room before evening.

Usually, yes: guests often remark on how quiet it feels for a city address. The exceptions are weddings and events on the lawns, karaoke carrying across the river from the opposite bank, and footsteps from upper-floor suites. Music at the resort must stop at 9 pm. If sleep matters most, ask the hotel when you book whether an event is planned, and request a villa or a top-floor unit.

Yes. The resort traded as An Lam Saigon River Private Residences and later An Lam Saigon River before taking its current name, An Lam Retreats Saigon River, and some booking-site addresses and older articles still use the earlier names. It is a different property from An Lam Retreats Ninh Van Bay, the brand’s resort near Nha Trang, so check the address before you pay.

Not within walking distance. The nearest town centre with banks and shops is around Lai Thieu market, 4.9 km away by road, and Gigamall in Thu Duc is 8.8 km away. Bring enough cash, any medicines you need and a plug adapter with you, and ask reception to call a car if you need anything outside. The resort has a small boutique shop on site.

Rooms run on 220 V. Sockets in Vietnam mostly take two round pins (type C) or two flat pins (type A), so travellers from the UK, Australia or Singapore need an adapter, and a universal one is the safest choice. Rooms have a desk, and booking sites list free Wi-Fi throughout the resort, though no speed is published.

December to April is the most reliable: it is the dry season in southern Vietnam, with sunny days that suit the boat, the pool and evenings on the decks. The hotel itself recommends October to April. From May to November afternoon downpours are common, the garden is at its greenest and mosquitoes are at their worst, but rain usually comes in short, heavy bursts.

Yes. Christmas, New Year and Tet (the Lunar New Year, which falls on 6 February in 2027) are the busiest weeks, with city residents taking short breaks alongside international guests. Pool villas and two-bedroom types go first. If your dates fall in these periods, book a few months ahead and request the boat as soon as you have a booking reference.

It can. The hotel does not publish weather or tide rules for the speedboat, but storms in the rainy season can delay a crossing. Ask the hotel the day before you travel what happens if the boat cannot run, keep your arrival plans loose by an hour, and have the road address ready as a fall-back.