Sài Gòn in two days: markets, the old centre, Chợ Lớn and street food

Sài Gòn is loud, fast, hot and always hungry. Its official name has been Hồ Chí Minh City since 1976, but almost everyone still calls it Sài Gòn. Two days is enough to see the old centre, learn some of its history, get lost in Chinatown and eat at a lot of small plastic tables.

Day 1, breakfast: broken rice and iced coffee

Sài Gòn often starts the day with cơm tấm: broken rice with a grilled pork chop and a little bowl of sweet fish sauce. Our cơm tấm guide explains how to order it. Then find a stool on the pavement for a cà phê sữa đá, strong coffee with condensed milk over ice.

Day 1, morning: Bến Thành Market

Walk to the clock tower of chợ Bến Thành, the city’s most famous market, in the old centre: District 1, as most people still call it. Inside are fabric, coffee, souvenirs, dried fruit and a food section with stools. Prices are aimed at visitors, so bargain with a smile. Our Bến Thành guide has the words to use.

Day 1, late morning: the old centre

• The cathedral (Nhà thờ Đức Bà): red brick and twin towers, finished in 1880. The story goes that the bricks were shipped from France.
• The Central Post Office (Bưu điện Trung tâm): right beside it, with a grand arched hall and old painted maps. It is still a working post office, so send a postcard home.
• Nguyễn Huệ walking street: a wide pedestrian boulevard from the old City Hall towards the river. Save it for the evening.

Day 1, afternoon: the war and the palace

The afternoon is the hottest part of the day and, in the rainy season, the time of the big downpours. Spend it indoors with the city’s recent history.

• The War Remnants Museum (Bảo tàng Chứng tích Chiến tranh): photographs and objects from the war, including the effects of Agent Orange. It is hard going, and many visitors find it the most moving thing they see in Việt Nam.
• Independence Palace (Dinh Độc Lập), also called Reunification Palace: a 1960s building of meeting rooms and bunkers. On 30 April 1975 a tank crashed through its gates, and the war ended.

Day 1, evening: the walking street

When the sun goes down, Nguyễn Huệ fills with families and couples, and the city cools off a little. Walk down to the river, then go and find dinner. Our Sài Gòn street food guide has thirteen dishes to choose from.

Day 2, morning: Chợ Lớn

Head west to Chợ Lớn, Sài Gòn’s old Chinese quarter.

• Chợ Bình Tây: a big wholesale market in a Chinese-style building, selling mostly to shopkeepers. Go early, when it is busiest.
• Chùa Bà Thiên Hậu: a temple to Thiên Hậu, the Chinese goddess of the sea who protects sailors. Look up at the giant incense coils hanging from the ceiling.
• The side streets: shops of dried herbs and traditional medicine, red lanterns and old shophouses. Wander without a map.

Day 2, afternoon: do as Sài Gòn does

Eat a long lunch, then disappear for a few hours: a nap, a pool, a café with a fan. If the sky turns black, wait it out. In the rainy season the storms are often heavy but short.

Day 2, evening: a night of small plates

Sài Gòn eats late and in many small rounds. Cross the canal to District 4 for a table of snails and a cold beer. Here is how to order ốc. Then keep going: a bánh xèo here, a chè there, until you simply cannot.

Good to know

• Heat. Sài Gòn is hot all year. Start early, rest at midday and carry water.
• Rain. The rainy season runs roughly from May to November. Keep a light rain jacket in your bag.
• Getting around. Distances are bigger than they look. Take a taxi or a ride from a ride-hailing app between areas, then walk.
• Bags and phones. Snatching from passing motorbikes does happen. Keep your phone on the side away from the road, and your bag in front of you.

Eat Sài Gòn with us

Two of our experiences fit neatly into these two days. On day one, swap the market on your own for the Market-to-Wok Cooking Class: shop Bến Thành’s back lanes with a market auntie, then cook four southern dishes in her home kitchen and eat lunch together. And on the evening of day two, ride pillion on the Back-of-the-Bike Food Night: a licensed local driver takes you through District 4 and District 5, with six stops and six stools, from bánh xèo to snails to chè, drinks included.