Introduction:  Cruising Cambodia and Vietnam
Review:  JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach
Review:  Business Class SilverKris Lounge Singapore Airport
Review:  Singapore Air Business Class – Singapore to Hanoi
Review:  Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel Hanoi
Review:  Paradise Elegance Cruise
Review:  Vietnam Airlines Economy – Hanoi to Siem Reap
Review:  Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra Golf & Spa Resort
Review: AmaWaterways Riches of the Mekong Cruise
Review:  Sofitel Saigon Plaza
Review:  Le Saigonnais Lounge (International) Ho Chi Minh Airport
Review:  Changi Airport Crowne Plaza

_____________________________________________________________________________

Once we disembarked from our river cruise, we were bussed to Ho Chi Minh City. Our accommodations for the post-cruise portion of the land package was the Sofitel Saigon Plaza hotel.

The hotel had a selection of restaurants and bars:

• Boudoir Lounge – Cafe and bar located off the lobby.
• Mezz Restaurant – Breakfast and Lunch buffet.
• ST25 by KOTO – Vietnamese cuisine. This restaurant is actually in the same space as Mezz Restaurant, but at night they have a menu of Vietnamese food instead of a buffet.
• Le 27 Bistro – French bistro.
• “S” Pool Bar & Dining – Poolside bar serving drinks and light food.
• Solicious – Pastry cart in hotel lobby for pre-ordered cakes and pastries.
• Ministry – Concept bar
• Habanos Specialist – lobby store selling premium cigars, single malts and whiskey.

There is also a club lounge called Club Millésime on the 18th floor . Club Millésime is for guests in the club rooms and suites. We did not have access to the club lounge with our room.

When we arrived, we were directed to the Mezz Restaurant on the second floor for a buffet lunch while we waited for our rooms to be ready. Like the other hotels on this trip, the buffet for both breakfast and lunch was amazing with all sorts of different stations and types of food.

At breakfast time, there was a gal that also came around to the tables with croissants.

Shortly after lunch, we were given the keys to our room – which was #1506. We were booked into a Luxury Room, which has the following features:

• 30 m² of stylishly designed space
• Located on the 14th and 15th floors
• Panoramic windows
• Plush Sofitel MyBed offering King or twin bedding
• Pillow menu
• Coffee- & tea-making facilities
• Complimentary Wi-Fi, 37-inch LED TV, generous workspace
• Writing desk & chair
• Minibar
• Armchair
• Walk-in closet
• Spacious bathroom with luxury bathroom amenities
• Iron
• Hairdryer
• Safety deposit box
• 24-hour room service

Upon entering the room, there was a closet and a bathroom to the right.

In the main part of the room there was a bed with a chair and table next to it.

Across from the bed was a desk area along with coffee and tea amenities. One nice thing about the desk area was that there was the ability to have 2 people working on their laptops at the same time. The lower part of the desk and the stool worked great for me.

Underneath was a mini fridge.

There was a view of the city from the room.

Our first night at the hotel we ended up eating at ST25 by KOTO. We shared a plate of crab fried rice and fried chicken. Both were very tasty.

On the 18th floor was the pool and pool bar. There was some very interesting artwork (which lit up at night) just before you walked out to the pool area.

A few of us had drinks at the pool bar one night. They have a pretty nice cocktail menu, but a fairly limited food menu.

The hotel also has a fitness centre, a barbershop/lounge (Barbaard), Bremiere wellness centre and Nhut Bespoke Tailoring. The fitness centre was on the 3rd floor of the hotel.

Also on the 3rd floor was the “hidden” concept bar called the Ministry. This bar was down a hallway behind a door with a large “M” on it. It had a speakeasy feel and was very cozy to have a few drinks. It also had a nice cocktail menu as well as a large selection of whiskey.

The hotel was right next to the British Consulate and there were also a number of shops and restaurants within walking distance. Like the other accommodations on the land package, this hotel was a very nice place to stay. I hadn’t really stayed at any Sofitel brand hotels before, and I was quite impressed with all the Sofitel hotels on this tour. Would definitely stay here again.