Ho Chi Minh City

Yes. Pre-arranged private cars through hotels or vetted Vietnam-based operators run roughly $80 to $130 round trip for the day. Shared shuttle services organized at the terminal run $25 to $40 per person. Grab (Vietnam's Uber equivalent) will quote about $35 to $50 one way but drivers often cancel long inter-province jobs, so don't rely on flagging one from the pier. Whichever option you pick, build in a two-hour cushion for the return — traffic on QL51 backs up unpredictably in the late afternoon.

Yes, and it is the one place in District 1 that most cruise passengers say afterward they would not have skipped. The exhibits are direct about the American war from the Vietnamese side and the photography wing is among the more affecting museum experiences in Southeast Asia. Allow 90 minutes minimum. Entry is around 40,000 VND (under $2). It can be combined with the Reunification Palace next door in a single half-day on foot.

If this is your first visit to Vietnam and you have any interest in 20th-century history, Cu Chi. The Ben Dinh site is the cruise-default — closer, more developed, more crowded. Ben Duoc is 15 kilometers further but quieter and the tunnel sections are not widened for tourists. Either way, budget 6 to 7 hours door to door from Phu My. If history is not your thing, stay in District 1: the city's texture — markets, coffee shops, motorbike traffic, French colonial architecture — is the actual draw.

Skip it. The standard cruise-excursion version takes you to My Tho, the closest Delta town, which is another 70 kilometers past Ho Chi Minh City. You spend 10 hours on a bus to look at coconut palms and ride a sampan for 30 minutes. The real Mekong Delta — Can Tho's floating markets, Chau Doc, the deeper distributaries — is a two-day trip minimum and not compatible with a port call. Save it for a land tour.

Both, honestly. The day market is mostly souvenirs, knock-off goods, and pushy vendors; prices start at 3 to 5 times what locals pay and serious haggling is expected. The food stalls at the back are reasonable and the produce side is real. The night market that spills onto the surrounding streets after the indoor section closes at 6pm is more fun. If you want a working market without the cruise crowd, walk 15 minutes south to Cho Cu (Old Market) on Ham Nghi Street.

Vietnamese dong (VND). USD is accepted at many tourist-facing places but the exchange rate they give you is poor; you lose roughly 5 to 10 percent versus pulling dong from an ATM. The most useful denominations are 50,000 and 100,000 VND notes (about $2 and $4). ATMs at the airport, in District 1, and inside the Ben Thanh area work with foreign cards; expect a 50,000 VND withdrawal fee on top of your home bank's fees. Carry small bills — taxis and street vendors will not break a 500,000.