Best Weekend Getaways from Ho Chi Minh City for Active Travelers

Ho Chi Minh City is electric — but it's also relentless. The motorbike traffic, the heat, the constant buzz. After a long work week, the best thing you can do for your body and mind is get out of the city entirely.

Southern Vietnam is blessed with incredible diversity within a short drive. You can be on a quiet countryside estate in Dong Nai, playing pickleball among gardens, in under 1.5 hours. A beachfront resort in just 2 hours. A mountain retreat in half a day. The trick is knowing where to go — and having a plan that balances activity with genuine relaxation.

If you want to combine sport with a full countryside escape, Sportkation is purpose-built for exactly that. Located in Dong Nai Province, the 6,000 m² estate has private pickleball courts, wooden cabins, an outdoor sauna, BBQ pavilion, pool, and gardens.

The ideal weekend looks like this: arrive Friday evening, settle into your cabin, and kick off with a casual BBQ. Saturday morning, play pickleball while the air is cool, relax by the pool at noon, explore Dong Nai's orchards and countryside in the afternoon, then round out the day with sauna and dinner. Sunday morning, one last session on the courts before a leisurely drive back to Saigon.

Sportkation is particularly good for groups — birthday weekends, friend reunions, or couples who want an active escape without the cliché resort experience. Packages start from weekend rates and include accommodation, court access, sauna, and BBQ facilities.

For pure beach time, the Ho Tram and Vung Tau strip is the closest coastal escape from Saigon. Carmelina Beach Resort in Ho Tram stands out for active travelers — it launched the first pickleball courts in the Ba Ria–Vung Tau region, letting you combine beach lounging with court time.

The 2-hour drive on the Ho Chi Minh City–Long Thanh–Dau Giay expressway makes this one of the easiest getaways to pull off, even for a single overnight. Several 5-star resorts line the coast, but the area also has boutique guesthouses and homestays for those on a tighter budget.

Best from November to April when seas are calm and skies are clear. Avoid the peak holiday weekends (Tet, April 30th) when prices spike and beaches get crowded.

Can Tho is the Mekong Delta's largest city and the gateway to its most iconic experiences — floating markets at sunrise, fruit orchard tours, and village homestays along the canals.

The Legacy Mekong Can Tho resort on Con Au Islet has recently added a pickleball court as part of a wellness retreat program, combining Pilates reformer sessions, yoga, and pickleball in a 4-day package. It's a peaceful island property accessible only by boat — about as far from Saigon's chaos as you can get in 3.5 hours.

For the quintessential Delta experience, wake up at 5am for the Cai Rang floating market (the earlier you go, the more authentic it is), then spend the rest of the day cycling along the rivers or cooking traditional Delta dishes with a local family.

The golden rule for Saigon weekend escapes: leave early on Friday evening or Saturday morning to beat traffic on the expressways. The first hour out of HCMC is always the slowest.

For car rentals, services like Grab offer convenient private vehicle hire, or you can book through your resort. Domestic flights from Tan Son Nhat to Can Tho take just 45 minutes and can be surprisingly affordable if booked in advance.

Budget roughly 2–5 million VND per person for a weekend (including accommodation, transport, and activities), depending on your style. Sportkation packages offer good value since accommodation, courts, sauna, and BBQ are bundled together.

The most important thing? Actually disconnect. Leave the laptop at home, put the phone on airplane mode for a few hours, and let the countryside, the courts, or the ocean do what they do best — recharge you for the week ahead.