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I never imagined having a baby overseas.  It is daunting enough having a baby in our own home city.  But the baby bug had me bad and we finally decided to go for it.  In other words, I had finally convinced my husband!! Here is my experience of having a baby in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

I was pretty relaxed as it was my third pregnancy and have been through all the appointments and tests before.  Because of the Covid pandemic, it was not an option for us to go home.  Even still, I would have chosen to have the baby here anyway.   As I didn’t want to be apart from my family for too long and I couldn’t see going back to being pregnant and two other kids being easy. You really do mostly hear people having positive birthing experiences here in Ho Chi Minh City.

Which Hospitals are the best?

I had done a lot of research to decide which doctor and hospital to go with. The Saigon Internation Families group on Facebook is full of other mums giving their first-hand opinions and advice. This is really invaluable in this situation and why I love this community so much. From this research, I found there are two main options for ex-pats to deliver their babies in Ho Chi Minh City.  That being Hahn Phuc Hospital (Bihn Duong) and FV Hospital (District 7).  Other international hospitals that are available are the American International Hospital and Vinmec. Some international clinics offer Obstetrician services and then they deliver at their affiliated hospital. You hear quite good things about Obstetric care at CMI and Victoria Healthcare. All in all, it is a tough decision but at least there are lots of options to choose from.

My Journey

In the beginning, I wanted to go the lesser fancy and less expensive route and started off at Victoria Health care. The OB was a female and was very nice. The service was ok but in the end, I wasn’t happy as I never got a urine test and I ended up with an infection.  Later I realized it is not part of the routine testing here (oops!! I still don’t get why this is the case).  In Australia, we are tested every appointment.  This was really the only thing in the whole process that I found not good.

I ended up going with Dr. Tien at Hahn Phuc Hospital.  He is a senior OB with a wealth of experience. This clinic is highly recommended by a lot of the ex-pat community. Appointments are done in their district 2 clinics, very close to where we live. Delivery would happen at the main hospital in Bihn Duon, 40 minutes from the city depending on traffic. He has a lovely nature and although communication was a bit hard we got through it without any hassles. Every 4 weeks were appointments with scans and relevant tests. Most appointments cost 60-150 USD, very reasonable.

All in all the care I had was great.  I mean even at home things are not always perfect.  I was also lucky to have the perspective and experience of being a third-time mum.  The delivery was very quick and smooth (but bloody painful) and the aftercare was fine.  I felt great really and just wanted to go home!!  I could not wait to be with my little family and for us all to dote over our new family member.

This is just my story but I do hope it will help to hear my experience and to ease your worries if you have any.  Everyone’s personality, pregnancy, and circumstances are different but all in all, having a baby in Ho Chi Minh City was great!

The Birth Certificate Process

As a foreigner, the birth certificate process is something that you really need to plan for. If you or your partner don’t have a Vietnamese passport, you need to make sure your official documents are translated and notarized. Most of this can be done while you are pregnant.

This information is from our experience in 2022 for Australian nationals. Good luck!!

Post Natal Care

Postnatal baby care is done with the hospital you gave birth at. You will do a 4-week post-delivery check. For the baby, you will choose a pediatrician. This can either be done at the hospital you delivered at or at an international medical center. This care includes routine checkups and vaccinations. Hanh Phuc has a clinic with great doctors. However, the option we went with was Family Medical Practice, we go there as our regular clinic and it is close to our home. So it was an easy decision for us. The pediatrician also has a very good reputation. CMI and Victoria Health Care are other international clinics that a well renowned.

Useful baby shops:

• Mothercare
• Concung
• Bibomart
• H&M (great for clothes)
• Alberta VN
• Lazada (Sudo nappy cream, steraliing tablets…products that are hard to find in the shops you can usually find on Lazada).

Be sure to check out my other blog articles about having a family in Ho Chi Minh City here.

These must-have apps will definitely make your life easier living in Ho Chi Minh and Vietnam in general. The Vietnamese are certainly good at providing great door to door service.
They are all easy to use and most delivery apps you can link to your bank account or pay C.O.D.

Facebook

The granddaddy of them all!! Facebook is not only for social use but is used heaps for communicating with all types of businesses here. Whether it be asking questions about a product or placing an order for take away dinner. It can be used for so many things.

There are heaps of local one-man suppliers. People that bake cakes to people that propagate plants to people that make their own products like jewellery.

It is also an amazing resource with local groups. With endless information about living here. You can post a question or search the group for common topics already discussed. Foodies Saigon is a group to keep up to date with the best food in the city. Along with other Expat groups that help each other with any issues that arise. These include Saigon International Families and Expats in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Vietnam

Grab

Grab is the major transport app of Vietnam. The equivalent to Uber in South East Asia. You can order a motorbike or car service to get around the city using their simple interface. It is really easy to use. You can also arrange pick up and delivery of items as a courier service and they also have a food delivery service, GrabFood.
You can pay with cash, card or your virtual wallet that you top-up in advance.

Other Transport Apps include Vinasus Taxi App and Gojek (formally Go Viet)

GoDee

A new must-have app on the scene for living in Ho Chi Minh is GoDee. Go-Dee has an amazing philosophy and is different from the other transport apps. It is a minivan that you book and rideshare with other people.

The app is easy and simple to use. You book the ride, get to a Godee stop, wait for the minivan to pick you up and share your drive with up to 15 people. You can us the app to can check how far the van is from you and you can also book,change and cancel your ride if you need to. To change the booking it costs 30,000 VND.

It is super affordable and in most cases with be cheaper than a Grabbike! Not only is it affordable and convenient it is good for the planet. Give it a go and download the app here.

We want to provide Vietnamese daily commuters with a transportation option that combines the comfort and efficiency of ride-hailing services on the one hand, and the cheap costs of public transportation on the other.

– GoDee

Chopp

This is a grocery delivery service. You can order from all different food stores around the city. You get assigned a “Chopper” (haha…get it shopper vs chopper!!). This “Chopper” goes and does your shopping for you. Bliss!!! You can select them to call and ask questions if something you want is out of stock. Then it is delivered straight to your door.
This a great service the only downside is that sometimes certain items are out of stock. It always happens to be that one thing you need for that night’s dinner recipe!!
Other grocery apps include MarketOi and Farmi (organic goods).

Vietnammm

Another App another amazing name!! Mmmmmmm! This food delivery app is a must-have. You enter your address and it shows up with restaurants close to you. All types of restaurants are on there from local casual eateries to fancy fine dining restaurants. Order, track your meal and wait for it to arrive!! Simple!! Mmmmm…..
Also check out Foody, NowVN and of course McDelivery for other food delivery apps that are a must-have in Ho Chi Minh city!!

Lazada

You can pretty much find anything on Lazada. It is kind of an equivalent to Amazon or eBay in the west. Most of the vendors are located in Vietnam and China, so products arrive pretty quickly. Great for kids toys and board games, household items and everything really! You can use the phone app or the website. Often the website is easier to use because google translates the text. You can link your bank account or pay C.O.D. They also have a really easy and reliable returns service. Incase something shows up and it is different from what you expect.
Also, check out Tiki and Shoppee other great shopping apps.

Ding

This app is super convenient to use to top up your phone credit. Simple and easy to use just add your phone number, the amount you want to top up and pay with Paypal or credit card. It tops up the phone straight away. You can also top up other phone numbers that aren’t your own for family and friends. Download it here.

AirVisual

AirVisual up to date pollution levels with this awesome app. Unfortunately, the pollution is pretty bad in Ho Chi Minh City somedays. By using this app you can see that current reading of pollution in your area, past readings and a forecast for the coming days. It helps you to decide your plans for the day and whether or not it is safe to play outside. It is a great app for wherever you live. You can see the levels for most countries around the world.

Culture Trip

Culture Trip is one you can use all over the world. It is a travel website and app and they have the best articles! So well written and they don’t always show the really common places to go. It shows you places that are popular with locals and tourists alike and highlights places that are on the road less travelled! Be sure to check this one out!

Thanks for reading and be sure to check out more tips on living in Ho Chi Minh City, here.