Haggle for bargains in Ben Thanh market

Ben Thanh market is one of the more exciting places to visit in Ho Chi Minh City. It’s a chance to truly get stuck in with the locals and test your bargaining skills. It’s a very different experience if you get used to fixed priced items that the idea of bargaining never comes to mind but after visiting a few markets, you almost start to limber up at the prospect of haggling your way through amazing bargains. 

 

Ben Thanh market, located in District 1 across from the bus station, is probably the best known. It is especially popular in the evening and at night, when food vendors set up stalls and locals and tourists alike gather to eat and shop.

Ben Thanh is possibly more regulated, so you may have to worry less about knock-offs or price gouging. That said, you should always be wary of knock-offs and gouging.

Shopping inside the market will require you to practise the art of bargaining and, as they commonly deal with unsuspecting tourists, the vendors at Ben Thanh are pros. A common practice is to inflate prices to double or triple their actual value, meaning you must work the price down to get a reasonable deal. A quick tip in bargaining at Ben Thanh is to cruise the outer ring of the market, where all stalls are fixed priced and most items are actually marked with a price tag. This will give you a good idea of what a moderate price will be when you go inside to haggle.



Bartering is the way to shop here, so jump right in, offer a price that you think is fair, and have fun. Be extra careful if prices are absent or not clearly marked – that goes for everything, everywhere, every time.

See more

  • Sip a Cocktail and Enjoy the View at Saigon Skydeck

    It’s hard to get a true appreciation for the scale of HCMC without seeing it from up above. You could just pay to go up to the tourist deck, or… you could skip...

  • Kite Surfing

    Kite surfing is one of the most famous adventure sports in Phan Thiet. Phan Thiet is an ideal place for kite surfing from November to March with strong winds to enjoy this...

  • Take a leisure walk

    Come to Hoi An, home back to the last century. The town was used for two hundred years as one of Vietnam’s most important trading ports. It had been occupied by the...

  • Ride a cyclo through Hue City

    Enjoy a leisurely cyclo ride through Hue , the former Vietnamese capital, including Hue Imperial Citadel —a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Cyclo ride is the...

  • Discovery Dinh Cau night market

    Dinh Cau night market is a famous attraction that you should not miss when traveling to Phu Quoc . Visiting Dinh Cau market, you can not only go shopping with different...

  • Exploring Thoi Long craft village

    Each region has unique culture, lifestyle, tradition and craft that express the characteristic of local people. Thoi Long craft village is one of the most famous craft...

  • Visiting Ba Be national park

    Visiting Ba Be national park is one of the most things that you should do when traveling to Bac Kan province. Ba Be national park has a diversification of flora and fauna so...

  • Take a Cyclo Ride

    Not the most efficient method of cruising through the city, but a very old and popular way of experiencing Saigon .

  • Reunification Palace

    Also known as the Independence Palace, this building marks, for many, the end of the Vietnam War. Free tours with an English-speaking guide can be arranged in the lobby.

  • Diving and snorkeling

    Nha Trang has a long and beautiful beach with the most colorful and beautiful coral reef and high biodiversity.  Nha Trang is one of the best and most affordable...

Most popular tours

Business info

  • Vietnam Local Guide

  • Address: 18th Floor, VTC Online Tower, 18 Tam Trinh Str.,Hai Ba Trung Dist., Hanoi, Vietnam
  • Email: info@vietnamguider.com
  • Phone: (+84) 0904989890
  • Hotline: (+84) 0904989890