While Dong Xuan Market is a piece of culture in Hanoi, or Con Market attracts many tourists in Da Nang, Ben Thanh Market is one of the special features of Saigon that everyone should pay a visit.
Where is Ben Thanh Market Saigon
Address: Le Loi Street, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
Open time: 7 AM - 7 PM.
Phone number: 0283 829 9274.
Ben Thanh Market was established when the French colonial government came to Vietnam. It has four gates open to four different directions. The North Gate is on Le Thanh Ton Street, the East one is on Phan Boi Chau Street, the West Gate is Phan Chu Trinh Street. Finally, the South Gate, the main gate of this market opens to Quang Thi Trang Square with a clock tower. Recently, this market has ranked 15th in the top 45 best food markets in the world according to the USA Today News.
What can you explore in Ben Thanh Market Saigon
Ben Thanh is considered as the largest retail market in Ho Chi Minh City. There are about 1450 stalls retailing all kinds of items, from clothes, food to grocery stuff. No matter you like handicrafts or branded goods, this shopping center meets your demand.
The North Gate is crowded with flowers and fruits. The South Gate sells cloths and dry foods. Plus, the East one attracts customers with cosmetics, sweeties, and snacks. Meanwhile, the West Gate is the place women would love the most because of the variety of fashion items. Moreover, the surrounding area is full of stalls selling goods for tourists such as souvenirs, ready-to-wear clothes, silk fabrics, etc. Hence, don’t be surprised if you catch a seller speaking more than five languages!
Furthermore, when you entering Ben Thanh Market Saigon, you can bend through stalls full of goods and immerse in the variety of goods here. You can easily find small souvenirs such as necklaces, earrings, purses, scarves, and so on. Therefore, not only visitors but also locals come here for shopping.
Get lost in the food court
In addition to the shopping heaven, Ben Thanh market in Ho Chi Minh City also offers clients the paradise of Vietnamese street food. If you want to try most of the Vietnamese food but don’t know where to go, this market will help you out. The most significant dish is sweet soup. You will be overwhelmed with long lines of colorful sweet soup stalls including green of mungbean, yellow of bananas, white of coconut milk, purple of taro, etc. Especially, at Gate 7, there is an over 40-year-old sweet soup selling almost all of the Southern sweet soups. Besides, you can also find in the food court area Vietnamese traditional dishes such as broken rice, vermicelli with grilled beef, spring rolls, crispy pancakes, etc.
What’s more, from 7 PM, the surrounding area looks like it has just been “revived”, become much hustle and bustle. Every night, Ben Thanh Market welcomes nearly 1,000 visitors to shop, eat, or simply walk around. More than 170 stalls move outsides to Phan Boi Chau and Phan Chu Trinh Streets on the side of the market. People come here for fine art, souvenirs, clothes and especially street vendors of beer and grilled dishes. Plus, when night falls, restaurants around the perimeter of the market opens creating a vibrant street-side scene. One of Saigon’s oldest landmarks, Ben Thanh offers a great atmosphere that is absolutely authentically Vietnamese.
Tips for your trip to Ben Thanh Market
Saigon streets are always full of vehicles so you should watch out when passing the streets. If motorbikes frighten you, you can as the locals for help. However, since the crowd may prevent you from detecting the danger, please pay more attention to your belongings such as bags, phones, or jewelry.