#1 Cost of Living
Western style accommodation in Saigon only costs $250-$350 for a small room. $1000/month will easily get you 2 bedrooms in many of the most luxurious high-rise apartments in the city if you’re running with a higher budget.
Food is also cheap. Buying food on the street in local restaurants will run you $1-2 for a meal at most places. Nicer western restaurants may cost a few dollars more. My favorite Indian food, Chicken Saagwala for example is $4. A pizza for two may cost $7-10.
There have been many months I lived on just $500/month. These days, however, I probably spend closer to $700-$800/month alone or $1,000/month with my girlfriend living with me. $1,000/month is probably a comfortable budget for single people under 40 who’d like to live in a nice apartment with a pool or hit the bars and clubs a couple times a week. You may need to budget more if you’d like to do both.
#2 Menial Tasks Outsourced
Outsourcing your menial tasks in Saigon is extremely affordable. You can hire people very cheaply to do your laundry, clean your room, cook for you , etc. While the lazy side of you will love having someone clean your room, the biggest advantage of this outsourcing is that it frees up time and energy for you to focus on more meaningful tasks.
Whether that’s generating more leads for your business, learning a new skill, or building a better dating life, having someone do your menial tasks will free up a lot of space in your mind and schedule to focus on more important things.
#3 Food Paradise
Aside from being cheap, the food here is also delicious. There’s lots of great choices for both local and international food. Local food is very healthy compared to the cuisine in other countries. The health movement has also picked up in the last few years.
The people in Vietnam are opening up more health shops selling supplements, organic foods, green smoothies and more. Although it’s usually more expensive to eat at the healthy restaurants, we’re not talking about anything too ridiculous. A decent sized green smoothie will set you back $2 while a buffet brunch/lunch at the Vietnamese equivalent of Whole Foods costs just under $10.
#4 Dating
Hahaha you know this one had to make it in the list. The women in Vietnam tend to be more feminine than their western counterparts. They’re also thinner. Whether you want to find a sweet loyal girl to marry or party it up as a young single guy, Vietnam is a good choice for you.
The female foreigners living here almost exclusively date other foreigners, however. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a western girl holding a Vietnamese guy’s hand. This is for many reasons, which I’m sure you could easily figure out for yourself.
Again I won’t comment for women, but as even an average socially adjusted man you’ll love your dating life in Vietnam.
#5 Close Proximity to Other Countries
Vietnam is just a hop away from several other interesting countries. With neighbors like Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Indonesia, and the Philippines all 3.5 hours or less away by plane, you’ve got a lot of great options for a long weekend getaway.
Cambodia in particular is very easy to reach by bus. 6 hours. That’s all it takes to go from Saigon to Phnom Penh. Well, that’s what they say at least…
Conclusion
As you can see there’s a lot of great things about living in Saigon. That’s one of the reasons I’m likely to stay there. I’d recommend you give it a shot too. It doesn’t get as much love as Chiang Mai, but after having lived in both, I’d say it’s just as lovable. Even more lovable to some.