Should you go Ben Thanh Market?
Ben Thanh Market is an old market located in Ho Chi Minh City which is around 113 years old according to Google.
My general feeling about the market is that if you live in a developed country, you probably won’t see these kinds of markets in your country. Even if there is, it won’t be many of them.
But if you lived long enough to see your country developing into a more modernised society, more city-like, then this market will probably bring you back to your childhood days especially if you live in Asia.
In some Asian countries, market layouts like these actually do exist even as of now, but the only difference is that I don’t think those markets are as big as this market.
Although the market is big, quite a number of stalls are selling the same things with price being the only difference.
There is somehow a standardized way of them setting up stores. The stores that sell the same things are usually placed close to each other.
Probably some business tactic, like how you would always see a KFC nearby Macdonals or due to some requirements from their landlords.
How to go Ben thanh market?
Ben Thanh market is in the middle of Ho Chi Minh city district 1. So what you can do is to stay in a hotel in district 1 and just take grab.
The Grab fare is affordable and you can get around most places within 2 to 3 USD.
Incase you don’t know what is Grab, it is the asian version of Uber in the west.
What food can you find in Ban Thanh Market?
The most common foods you can find in Vietnam are beef, prawns, pork and spring roll. Not just in this market but markets in other areas as well.
The food they sell is not too expensive, but definitely more expensive than other areas in Vietnam because somehow this areas became a semi tourist spot.
I would say it is more expensive than average Vietnam food but less expensive than the actual tourist spots in Vietnam.
You can find at least 1 of this kind of food in each stall. Some stalls sell desserts which you can eat after your meal.
There are many different food stalls inside the market itself. You can sit on a small stool and use another stool as a table to put the food.
There are also “tables” where you can sit, it looks more like an unused area than an actual table. The space is really small.
What do they sell in Ben Thanh Market ?
There are hundreds to a thousand shops in the market place. You can take a look at what they are selling before deciding whether you want to go over for a visit. While it looks massive, the things they sell more or less falls into the followings and the things they sell are repeated in different stalls.
Luggage bags
You can buy luggages at the market if you need to. Usually for unlucky people who got their luggage damaged during the trip, if not there’s little reason to buy a luggage there.
Quite a variety of designs for you to choose from and some “branded” brands are available as well.
Sunglasses and watches
If you want to shop for some traditional watches or glasses, a few shops do sell such items. Some are “branded” goods that you can buy if they are not available in your country.
You can even ask them if they repair watches. If you prefer smart watch, this shop has little to nothing to offer.
Buddha Sculptures
Quite a number of stalls sell buddha and other religious sculptures. If you are not a religious person, this kind of stall probably has nothing much to offer for you.
And if you are a religious person I seriously doubt that you would buy it here also. You would probably have gotten it in some temples where the priest there has already enchanted those sculptures you use for your prayers.
So other than looking at it in an artistic view, that kind of shop probably provided limited value for tourists.
Clothes
The amount of T-shirts they have available will probably confuse you when you glance through their shop. They have so many designs that you don’t even know what you are looking at.
Their T-shirt designs suit young punks more than adults. So if you are an adult that goes for class, the T-shirt shops here won’t suit you.
Shoes
I have no idea why they need to install so many light bulbs to sell shoes. The quality of brightness in the shop is surprisingly good.
It is so bright that you might need sunglasses to look at their products without damaging your eyes.
The shoes are placed in a surprisingly neat manner and it is all pointed to the same direction. The owner probably has OCD.
Accessories
They sell jewelry which mainly consists of necklaces and bracelets made using “jade” and “pearls”. The designs of these jewelry are more suitable for older people than youngsters.
They have probably been selling the same designs for the past 50 years.
Coffee
They sell a bunch of coffee beans with different flavour. It ranges from traditional Vietnamese coffee to coffee Luwak and Blue mountain.
But whether the coffee beans sold are authentic according to their stated flavours, it remains a question that probably only true coffee lovers can differentiate.
An authentic coffee Luwak probably would have cost way more than what they are selling.
Hand bags
Most of the hand bags that are sold here are “branded”. Basically, whatever hand bags under LVMH is selling, you can see it there.
If you don’t know what is LVMH, then the “branded” handbags here probably won’t be of interest to you.
A word of caution, if what you buy happens to be fake, you might get caught or asked to throw away at the airport.
Dress
They do sell raw fabric and they are able to make a dress within one day.
Ao Dai is a national Vietnamese wear that can be worn for important occasions in Vietnam. Basically the Vietnamese version of formal wear.
But wearing it outside Vietnam as a non Vietnamese makes you look out of place if you go for formal occasions out of Vietnam.
Suits
Similar to making Ao Dai, they can make suits for you within one day.
Dried food
They do sell dried food such as prawns, cuttlefish and nuts. Setups like these are very common in Asian countries but not so in the western countries.
Nothing too special about it since Asians can get it in their own country while Westerner’s regular diet seldom contains food like these.
Figurines
They do sell a bunch of figurines of popular anime characters from dragon ball to demon slayer and sailormoon.
Although the stall is located in a market, the figurines that are sold are from popular anime that I mentioned above. They look pretty well made from a distance.
I was quoted 1 million Vietnamese dong for a 30cm dragon ball figurine which I obviously did not buy. At this price, I could have bought another figurine at a more authentic source which has more resale value.
Should you go to Ben Thanh Market ? Final thoughts
Well if you want to visit traditional places, then you can come and visit. Mostly just for sight seeing only, you probably won’t have anything to buy there other than some food.
There is nothing much for you to do here as well and you probably would have spent at most 1.5 hour walking around. The number of shops while massive, they are repeated and you won’t stop by every shop as well.
So I think, for average walking speed, you probably would take around 1.5 hour to walk around and get bored after that.
