Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
A view of Brașov’s Old Town.
Romania • 12 days, 11 nights
Legends of Romania: Castles, Ruins & Culinary Delights
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Side profile of the bomb prototype.
Petwood Hotel Bouncing Bomb
RAF Harrington
RAF Harrington
The Beaux-arts interior with Pool layout still visible.
Écomusée du fier monde
Village du Livre de Fontenoy-la-Joûte
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Cacio e pepe lasagna combines two classics.
C'è pasta... E pasta!
Spaghetto taratatà is named for the sound of rattling sabers.
Giano Restaurant
The gnocchi here get blanketed in a sugo with braised oxtail.
Cesare al Pellegrino
Romans insist you should feel the cracked peppercorns and cheese grains on your tongue.
Flavio al Velavevodetto
Tripe is fried to a crisp.
L’Osteria della Trippa
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Echo Park Time Travel Mart.
Atlas Obscura Presents: Traveling Back in Time for Coconut Cake With The Sporkful
about 15 hours ago
One of the PATH’s many entrances.
A Supposedly Boring Mall I Might Actually Visit Again
1 day ago
People paddling in their wooden canoes on one of the lakes near the Allagash Waterway in the north woods in Maine
The Allagash Abductions: This State Park’s Most Famous Visitors ... Are Aliens?
3 days ago
The rocky Revere Beach coast in Revere, Massachusetts, just outside Boston.
Which Places With Bad Raps Are Actually Worth Visiting?
4 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City Reunification Palace

Reunification Palace

Meant to be a lavish presidential home, the palace became a symbol of the fall of South Vietnam.

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Added By
TravelGal
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
  TravelGal / Atlas Obscura User
  TravelGal / Atlas Obscura User
  TravelGal / Atlas Obscura User
  TravelGal / Atlas Obscura User
Timeless Palace   MarkTimeTravel / Atlas Obscura User
  TravelGal / Atlas Obscura User
  TravelGal / Atlas Obscura User
  TravelGal / Atlas Obscura User
Fountain outside the Reunification Palace   katielou106 / Atlas Obscura User
Indoor garden   katielou106 / Atlas Obscura User
The cinema in the Reunification Palace   katielou106 / Atlas Obscura User
The F5E fighter plane is kept in the grounds of the Reunification Palace to commemorate the bombing raid carried out by Nguyen Thanh Trung.   katielou106 / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

This grand building was originally called Independence Palace, built for the president of South Vietnam during the American Vietnam War. It went down in history as something else entirely, after North Vietnamese communist tanks crashed through its gates during the Fall of Saigon in April, 1975.

The iconic scene of the arriving tanks, and a soldier draping a Viet Cong flag over the palace, was witnessed around the world as the moment that marked the end of the war. That November, the building was renamed Reunification Palace, and it has stood frozen in time ever since. Two of the original tanks are still parked outside.

The palace had been designed for General Ngo Dingh Diem, the president of South Vietnam at the time, who was so unpopular with the people that his own air force had bombed his previous palace. The new palace was thus equipped with a reinforced bomb shelter in the basement.

The building itself is grand, and rather typical to the architectural style of the 1960s in its plain, concrete simplicity. Complete with an in-house movie theater, library, games room, disco bar, and a helipad on the roof, the palace also boasts an underground section, that is probably the most interesting place to visit. The basement has not only a bomb shelter, commissioned by Diem, but a whole intricate system of tunnels, communication rooms, and command posts, complete with war maps and vintage communications equipment. 

Needless to say the president never got the chance to enjoy the new digs. He was killed by his own troops a year after the bombings, and three years before the completion of the Reunification Palace.

Related Tags

Palaces War History Vietnam War Presidents Tanks Military

Know Before You Go

The palace is open to visitors daily as long as there are no summits or conferences going on at the time. You can buy tickets at the main gate. Free guided tours are available in English, French, and other languages.

Atlas Obscura Adventures

Flavors of Vietnam: Fish Sauce, Pho & Royal Tea

Eating your way from North to South in Vietnam.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

TravelGal

Edited By

MarkTimeTravel, katielou106

  • MarkTimeTravel
  • katielou106

Published

August 21, 2018

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Reunification Palace
135 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street
Ho Chi Minh City, 700000
Vietnam
10.777171, 106.695503
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

War Remnants Museum

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

miles away

Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

miles away

Bún Riêu Gánh

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City

Vietnam

Places 14
Stories 2

Nearby Places

War Remnants Museum

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

miles away

Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

miles away

Bún Riêu Gánh

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City

Vietnam

Places 14
Stories 2

Related Places

  • A floating Valentine tank, note the turret in the middle of the canvas

    Dorset, England

    Valentine Tank Wrecks

    The site of a dress rehearsal for D-Day that ended in disaster.

  • The Ashford tank.

    Ashford, England

    Mark IV World War I Tank

    A rare example of this century-old British tank stands near the center of town in Ashford.

  • The Lao National History Museum is located in the former French governor’s mansion, built in 1925.

    Vientiane, Laos

    Lao National Museum

    American bombs, morbid memorabilia, and graphic photographs tell the story of the CIA-led “Secret War” from the Pathet Lao perspective.

  • Lumphat, Cambodia

    Tonle Srepok

    The river depicted in the antiwar film 'Apocalypse Now' was likely based on this Mekong tributary.

  • Majestic white exterior of the House of Wonders

    Zanzibar, Tanzania

    The House of Wonders

    In Zanzibar, a historic 19th-century palace is a reminder of the world's shortest war.

  • The balcony.

    Rome, Italy

    Mussolini's Balcony

    The spot where the fascist dictator made some of his most famous speeches including declaring war on Britain and France.

  • Tel el-Ful.

    East Jerusalem, Israel

    Royal Palace at Tel el-Ful

    The abandoned shell of what would have been the Jordanian royal family's summer palace.

  • The site of the second defenestration of Prague.

    Prague, Czechia

    Defenestration of Prague Window

    The palace window through which Protestant nobles flung two Catholic regents, thus sparking the Thirty Years' War.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.