Gondolas will no longer be solely the symbol of Venice, reports Tuoi Tre.

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On Tuesday, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism and Saigon Boat JSC officially launched two new boat tours in Saigon. Traveling the length of the Nhieu Loc-Thi Nghe canal, passengers can enjoy a pleasure cruise on conventional, motorized ferry-style boats or spring for a slightly more personal experience on a manually-rowed gondola.

The trip will take tourists along a 4.5-kilometer stretch of the canal, which runs from District 1 to Phu Nhuan and Tan Binh, for a price of VND110,000 VND per one-way trip. Tickets can be purchased at several stations along the canal.

For increased enjoyment, passengers will also have the option of having food and drinks served on board while the tour guide manually rows the boats. Having completed professional tourism and English language courses, these guides have extensive knowledge of the city’s many sights and will give passengers a new view of Saigon. Let’s just hope they can be heard over the rumbling and honking of the thousands of bike engines alongside the canal. 

[Photos via Thanh Nien]