Ben Thanh Market Place guide

The market is famous in Saigon and forms the heart of District 1. In this city, the market is lively and productive from early in the morning to late at night. Are you the type of traveler eager to haggle down to the lowest price possible? Or would you like to experience a different kind of shopping, away from the usual shopping centers? If you said yes to either of these questions, then Trip Guru highly recommends a visit.

The Ben Thanh market is quite large and, aside from being a place of commerce, it also has various modes of transportation. There is an intersection in front of the market and it is where Le Loi, Ham Nghi, Tran Hung Dao and Le Lai and a bus station are located. Inside, you'll find that Ben Thanh has a variety of wares for sale that explains its size. You can find shirts, bags, shoes, tailors, fabrics, lacquer art, handicrafts and even nodding golden cats.

And of course, a market is not a market without its food. While walking, you can already sample different kinds of jerky and coffees. There are also vendors that would be more than happy to serve some of Vietnam's most popular street food. If you're hungry for fish, there is a wet market available from morning until lunch. Shopping in the market is exciting, as you can haggle with the vendor to get the best price possible as some of the prices are already inflated. After the day market closes at 4:00pm, Ben Thanh will transform into a night market, now offering beer. Keep your wits about you, and have a good time hunting for the best bargains in town.

The day market's opening hours are from 5:00am to 5:00pm, and the night market is open from 5:00pm til midnight. To get to the market, it's walking distance from Pham Ngu Lao Road. You can also take an airport bus no. 152 for the backpackers heading to Pham Ngu Lao street from the airport, or walk for 20 minutes to Cong Hoa street. Head south on the main road until you get to a park, and catch the no. 4 bus to Ben Thanh from there. The bus runs until 8:00pm, and the bus stop is at the southern portion of the triangle, formed by a park.