You might wonder, ‘why Hillary’? No, it’s not named after Hillary Clinton at all. Hillary is a word derived from the Latin hilaris or hilarius meaning "cheerful, noisy and merry”. Now, if we forget about the ‘noisy’ part (neighbors would hate us) we would love you to feel both cheerful and merry while staying at our homestay ‘Hillary Saigon’.
So, what do we have to offer in order to ensure you experience ‘hilaris’ with us?
· A real taste of Vietnamese living. And by ‘real’ we really mean it! Hillary Saigon is nestled in one of the most typical Vietnamese city alleyways, crisscrossed by numerous small pathways.
At one end of the alley is a 100+ year-old wet market where you can find fresh meat, seafood, veggies, fruits and household goods. And not to forget, delicious local food & drinks from early morning until late evening. You will never starve living in this alley :). Local services on the streets include manicure, pedicure, hairdresser/barber and even a spa. Our alleyway is colourful and full of hardworking people just a few steps away from our home stay.
At the other end of the alleyway you will see the more prosperous & wealthier lifestyle evolving in Saigon with 3-4 storey houses. The area is much quieter and tranquil with several ‘green’ themed cafés and restaurants. This end of the alley also leads to Nguyen Canh Chan & Nguyen Trai area which was historically called the silk road of Saigon.
· We welcome you: when you stay at Hillary Saigon you will stay in a home, not a house or a hotel. As avid travelers, you are likely very familiar with the self check-in & check-out, talking to hosts/owners by phone or via email without ever meeting them or knowing who they are. This is not how we treat you here. You will meet and talk to your hosts in person. We will always be there to support you, to say hello or simply to smile to you :) From the moment you arrive until you leave, you will always be treated as a family member.
· We care about you and the environment: at Hillary Saigon, we try to be eco-friendly as much as we can, from the way we design the interior and chose which personal care products for ourselves and our guests, to how we try to reduce single plastic use and energy consumption. If we all do just a little, it will help a lot.
Does this sound like a perfect place to stay? Hold on, because we need to tell you what we are not able to offer to you:
· We don’t provide hotel-like services: this is because we’re a homestay of course. So,there’s no daily room cleaning or bedsheet/towel changing. Depending on how long you are staying with us, we will agree on a reasonable schedule for room cleaningand towel refreshing. We wanted to ensure Hillary Saigon is affordable and we priced the stay fees based on each guest taking care of basic cleanliness and tidiness of their room.
· Our motto is DIY because we believe it is more fun. DIY of course means “do it yourself”. After all, this is your home for the duration of your stay so relax and make yourselves at home. We provide all the ingredients for you to prepare your own breakfasts, cook your own meals and wash your own dishes! Feel it at home and remember there is no dishwasher here :).
· No loud booze parties please: Many Vietnamese people are awake and working from 4am so they go to bed quite early at about 9pm. So, in order to respect other guests and the neighbors, we recommend not to party at our homestay. There are still many other ways to have fun :)
That’s pretty much our story and the story of Hillary Saigon. We welcome you to our cosy homestay, we welcome you to Saigon and we welcome you to Vietnam. See you soon :)
‘When at Hillary Saigon, be hilarius!’
