Shopping in Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is one of the most attractive tourist destinations in Vietnam. Beside the beautiful sceneries, the unique architectures and numerous delicious dishes, the shopping centers and bustling markets also fascinate visitors everywhere when coming to this dynamic city.

Thanks to the rapid development of modern and well-equipped shopping centers with famous brand names in fashion, cosmetics, and more besides traditional markets, Ho Chi Minh City is an ideal venue for international and domestic shoppers. Ho Chi Minh City is a true paradise for shopping with a large number of big markets, supermarkets, outlets, and shops. Goods in Ho Chi Minh are abundant in colors and categories, from ordinary items used in daily life to specialties in areas, from domestic products to the world’s reputable brands.

A shopping mall in Ho Chi Minh City

Shops are decorated beautifully with eye-catching colors. All these will certainly bring interesting feeling to you when shopping in Ho Chi Minh City also named the shopper’s paradise.

This city has a good selection of silk, fashion, lacquer, embroidery, and housewares. Prices are higher than elsewhere, but the selection is more sophisticated, and the cosmopolitan atmosphere makes it somewhat easier to shop, meaning that shop owners, especially in more upscale boutiques, aren't immediately pushing you to buy.

Stores are open 7 days a week from morning until night. Credit cards are widely accepted (often with a charge of 3%-5%), except at local markets and street-side places.

District 1 has the most shopping centers, markets, and fashion streets in town, including Ben Thanh Market, Diamond Plaza, Parkson Saigon, Saigon Square Shopping Center, Miss ‘Ao Dai’ Building, Tax Department Store, and Saigon Centre which offer a multitude of choices for shoppers to buy fashion products, cosmetics, and other necessities.

Ben Thanh Market

If you are in Ho Chi Minh City with a limited time frame, you can visit Ben Thanh Market, Saigon Square, or An Dong Plaza for a one-stop-shop experience. Keep in mind that Ben Thanh Market, albeit convenient, can be much more expensive than the other markets due to its central location and frequency of tourist shoppers. When shopping at Ben Thanh Market, you should start with 40-50% of the original asking price and negotiate from there. If the store owner doesn’t accept the lower price, you can just easily go to the next stall.  In comparison, you should expect to get no more than 10% - 20% discount on goods that you purchase at Saigon Square. You will see more locals shopping at Saigon Square or An Dong Plaza. Wherever you choose to shop, you will be impressed with what Vietnam offers.

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