Rex Hotel

This is a tale of two hotels in Ho Chi Minh City. We spent the last two weeks of October 2011 in Saigon. It was our first trip to Vietnam. Let me make this simple. This trip didn’t meet my expectations it exceeded them! That includes the hotels. The city is full of history & the youthfulness of these beautiful people made us appreciate this unique culture. [70% were born after 1974.] I ended up splitting between the Grand & the Rex because I couldn’t get the 15 days consecutive. Thought that was foolish at first, now I’m happy to have experienced both hotels.

The first 6 nights of our trip we stayed in the Grand Hotel. We reserved a suite in the old section & enjoyed the staff & services. The morning breakfast never ceased to amaze me. Pho in the morning! I’m still trying to overcome the jolt from the morning coffee. God I thought Starbucks over roasted. Like most Americans, we found the Gloria Jean’s four block west of the hotel. I should mention that the hotel is about to complete a massive expansion. It will be interesting how the remolded new section will rate. So for history sake; book the old section just for the turn of the century charm. At any given moment we were transported back to the 1920’s. I would recommend this hotel. If your spouse likes to shop avoid this area. There are too many good and interesting shops. We both had shorts & shirts custom tailored.

The next 9 nights of our trip were spent at the Rex. Again the staff & the services were first class. We spent many an afternoon at the rooftop pool. We also used the Spa for a message & the spousal unit for a facial. It was great. The breakfast was excellent, very much like the Grand, right down to the over roasted coffee. We booked a premium room in the new section that faced the courtyard. No street noise and the rooms are comfortable. The Rex is basically two hotels. Like the Grand they have an original section and a new section. Reviewers had stated the old section is dark but the rooms are much larger. An excellent coffee shop and lunch café is out the back door to your left called “Bloom”.
The Rex’s proximity couldn’t be better for sightseeing. Again I would recommend the Rex.

It is at the best location. Also the staffs are very friendly. I would like to return again in the near future.