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Ho Chi Minh City is the southern of Vietnam’s two big cities, with the capital Hanoi in the north being the other. The city was formerly called Saigon and is today named after Ho Chi Minh, who was the founder of the Communist Party of Vietnam and also the leader of North Vietnam until his death in 1969. The city bearing his name is located on the west bank of the Saigon River.
Ho Chi Minh City is well located in the area that has historically been influenced by many peoples and cultures before the city became part of Vietnam. Vietnamese rule really began in 1691, when it was formally recognized by the Cambodian king. The city grew as both a trade center and as a military support point for the region.
A new era began in 1859, when France, with Spanish help, conquered Saigon, and thus the city and the region came under French colonial rule with a governor at the head. During the French era, the city was developed according to the French pattern, with many of the buildings from that time that can still be seen today. During this time, Saigon was also established as both a railway hub and an important port.
Before its name change, Saigon was the capital of South Vietnam from 1954, and from that period you can also see a number of buildings such as the Independence Palace, where important events for the end of the Vietnam War took place. In recent decades, Ho Chi Minh City has developed with, among other things, the new high-rise district, which stands in beautiful contrast to the old French city.
The Independence Palace is a building also known as the Reunification Congress Hall/Hội Đồng Thống Nhất. The current palace was built 1962-1966 after the initiation of President Ngô Đình Diệm as a replacement for Saigon’s former Governor’s Palace, which had been bombed in 1962 as the residence of the South Vietnamese head of state.
During the construction, the president moved with his family to Gia Long Palace/Dinh Gia Long, which today is set up as Ho Chi Minh City’s city museum. The completed building was inaugurated on October 31, 1966 by General Nguyễn Văn Thiệu, then head of a military junta.
The Independence Palace served as Thiệu’s home and office from October 1967 until April 21, 1975, when he fled the country as the North Vietnamese triumphantly mounted the decisive attacks south in the battles for what was then Saigon. On April 30, North Vietnamese tanks rolled through the palace fence, definitively ending the Vietnam War.
The previous building on the site was the French Governor’s Mansion, built 1868-1873. It was a neo-baroque palace-style building that was meant to impress Saigon’s residents. French rule moved its seat to Hanoi in 1887, and thereafter the palace was used for representative purposes before becoming the South Vietnamese Presidential Palace in 1954.
Chợ Bến Thành is a popular market building located in the central part of Ho Chi Minh City. The market was formally established by the French colonial government in 1859, and it was based on a number of informal markets that lay along the Saigon River.
The market was moved from its original location to the current market halls in 1912. The old market buildings were preserved, which after the opening of Chợ Bến Thành was called the Old Market/Chợ Cũ. Today, you can buy a multitude of different goods at the market, which is transformed into an Asian night market in the evening.
The Cathedral of Our Lady in Ho Chi Minh City is a Roman Catholic cathedral that was built by French colonists as a replacement for the first Saigon Church/l’Eglise de Saïgon, built in 1863. The cathedral was built from 1877 to 1880, and its current name has been applied to the beautiful church since 1959.
In the early French colonial period, a small wooden church was built in Saigon. However, it was destroyed by termites, and therefore the church masses were moved to the city’s governor’s mansion. They also started the construction of the current cathedral, which was built with materials that came exclusively from France.
Bishop Isidore Colombert laid the foundation stone for the cathedral in 1877, and construction lasted three years. The two bell towers of the church were built in 1895 with a height of almost 58 meters, and with the placement of crosses on top of the towers, the height became 60.5 meters in total.
Today you can enjoy the sight of the fine neo-Romanesque cathedral with its beautiful exterior and large church space. In the interior you can see, among other things, some fine glass mosaics that were produced in Chartres, France, which is itself famous for its cathedral.
Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Headquarters is the long and official name of the city’s town hall and thereby the seat of the city government in Ho Chi Minh City. The building has had its current and formal name in various variants since 1975, when North Vietnam won over South Vietnam and introduced rule based on the North Vietnamese model.
The town hall stands as one of Ho Chi Minh City’s most beautiful buildings from the French colonial era. The town hall was built 1902-1908 in French colonial style according to the design of the architect Paul Gardès. The almost castle-like exterior is matched by a corresponding interior. It is worth seeing the town hall both during the day and in the evening lighting.
In front of the People’s Committee headquarters, there is a fine park that forms one of Ho Chi Minh City’s finest urban spaces. The facility stretches from City Hall southeast to the Saigon River. Immediately in front of the town hall you can see a statue of Ho Chi Minh. The entire complex forms the boulevard Đường Nguyễn Huệ, which was historically a canal to the city’s citadel.
Ho Chi Minh City Museum is, as the name suggests, a museum in Ho Chi Minh City where you can experience various exhibitions. At the same time, the museum building itself is both an impressive structure and a historically interesting place. The museum is located in the former Gia Long Palace/Dinh Gia Long.
The building was built 1885-1890 according to the design of the French architect Alfred Foulhoux, and it was supposed to be a kind of commercial trade museum, where you could experience different products from the South Vietnamese area. After a short time, however, the museum became the residence of the area’s French governor.
From 1945 and the following years, the mansion changed use several times. Among other things, it was the Japanese headquarters before the then Vietnamese state used it as a temporary government building from 1948. It also became the official residence of the state’s prime minister.
In 1966, the Supreme Court of the South Vietnamese state was housed in the mansion, and it had that function until North Vietnam’s victory in the Vietnam War. In 1978, the building was set up as the Ho Chi Minh City Revolution Museum, before taking its current name in 1999.
The mansion was built in classic Baroque architecture with European and Oriental influences. The floor, stairs and halls were in European style, while the roof was Oriental inspired. There are many motifs that characterize the decoration. For example, you can see a combination of Greek mythological symbols, iconic plants and tropical animals.
Ho Chi Minh City Theater is a beautiful theater building, also known as Siagon Opera House. Built during Vietnam’s French era, the theater was designed by French architects as a beautiful example of French colonial architecture. The theater was built 1898-1900 and opened as the Opéra de Saïgon.
It was Félix Olivier who was responsible for the design, which was carried out by the architects Ernest Guichard and Eugène Ferret. The architectural style was influenced by the flamboyant style of the French Third Republic, and the facade of the theater was shaped like the Petit Palais in Paris.
The theater was bombed by Allied attacks in 1944, and it then had to cease operations. The theater was reopened in 1955 as a lower house of the then Vietnamese state. From 1956 to 1967, the theater was the seat of the National Assembly of South Vietnam, and then of both the Lower House and the Upper House in a reorganized assembly.
After the North Vietnamese victory in 1975, South Vietnam’s political institutions ceased to exist, and the following year the Ho Chi Minh City Theater was reopened as a theater. In 1998, the theater was renovated, and today it stands in its former splendor with the beautiful French colonial facade.
Landmark 81 is one of the world’s so-called super-tall skyscrapers. The skyscraper was built in neo-futuristic architecture from 2015-2018, and with a height of 461 meters, Landmark 81 opened as Vietnam’s tallest building.
The skyscraper stands in the Binh Thanh district, which lies northeast of the city center and is characterized by modern high-rise buildings. In Landmark 81, there are observation decks on floors 79-81, and here you are at a height of approximately 370-380 meters above the city.
Saigon Main Post Office is a building that was built during the time when Vietnam was part of French Indochina. The post office was built in the years 1886-1891 in a style that draws on various architectural trends from Europe. The building was designed by the architect Alfred Foulhoux.
The post office stands out beautifully in the streetscape, and it is an impressive space you enter if you look into the building. Here you can see, among other things, two maps that were painted after the post office opened. One of them is a map of southern Vietnam and Cambodia entitled Lignes telegraphiques du Sud Vietnam et Cambodge 1892. The other is a map of Saigon and the surrounding area.
Miếu Thiên Hậu is a Chinese-style temple dedicated to Mazu, a Chinese goddess of the sea. The temple is located on Nguyễn Trãi Street, which is considered part of Ho Chi Minh City’s Chinatown.
The name Thiên Hậu is a Vietnamese transcription of the Chinese Tianhou, meaning empress of heaven with reference to Mazu in particular. The temple was built in its original form in 1760, but it has been rebuilt and expanded several times since then.
Công viện Tao Đàn is a park and green oasis in central Ho Chi Minh City. The park spreads over 10 hectares and is located on an area that was formerly part of the French Governor’s Palace complex.
In 1869, the French laid out a street that separated the mansion and the garden, thereby creating Tao Đàn Park. The garden got its current name during the Vietnamese era, when the governor’s palace had become the presidential palace.
The Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts is one of Vietnam’s leading art museums and is housed in a beautiful palatial building dating from the French colonial era. It was the French architect Rivera who designed the house, which was built 1929-1934 as a residence for the Hua family. The museum was set up in the villa in 1987.
At the museum you can see a significant collection of not least interesting Vietnamese art. There are, for example, works in sculpture, oil, silk painting and lacquer painting, and you can experience woodcut paintings in the styles of Hàng Trống, Đông Hồ and Kim Hoàng, Vietnamese ceramics and a collection of ancient Buddhist art.
The Ho Chi Minh City History Museum is an exhibition venue with fine collections that shed light on Vietnamese history. The exhibitions are structured so that you get an exciting insight into the country’s development over time, from prehistoric times to all the cultures and dynasties that have shaped the area and created the Vietnam you can experience today.
The museum was opened in 1929 in the museum building designed in an Indochinese style by the French architect Auguste Delaval. The museum was previously called the Musée Blanchard de La Brosse, as it was named after the French governor of French Cochinkina, Paul Blanchard de La Brosse. French management of the museum ended in 1956.
The Museum of Preserved War Material is a war museum that depicts the First Indochina War between the French Union and the Viet Minh under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh and the later Vietnam War that raged from 1955 to North Vietnam’s victory in 1975.
The museum was established in 1975 with the aim of exhibiting the war crimes committed by foreign powers on Vietnamese soil. After several name changes, the institution got its current and quite neutral name compared to before.
There are many effects in the exhibitions, not least of which are displays of various American military equipment from the Vietnam War. You can also see descriptions of dark chapters in the war such as the My Lai massacre, the use of napalm, phosphorus bombs, Agent Orange and other chemical weapons.
The Saigon Zoo and Botanical Garden are wonderful facilities that are the largest of their kind in Vietnam. The botanical garden was laid out in 1864 by Jean Baptiste Louis Pierre, and the garden and the zoo opened in 1869. The facilities thus have a long history since Admiral Pierre-Paul de La Grandière initiated the work.
With the lush climate in Ho Chi Minh City, it is naturally a wonderful experience to take a walk in the green surroundings, which include many species of orchids, and in the zoo you can experience many different animals from Vietnam and many other places in the world .
You can also see the fine Temple of the Hùng Kings/Đền thứ Vua Hùng in the complex. It is a temple that was built in 1927-1929 and dedicated to the Hùng kings who were the regents of Vietnam during the Hồng Bàng dynasty. The temple was designed by the French architect Auguste Delaval. Originally, the elegant temple was called the Temple du Souvenir Annamite and commemorated Vietnamese soldiers who fought from France during the First World War.
Vũng Tàu is a port city located in southern Vietnam on the South China Sea. It was known as Cap Saint-Jacques during the country’s time of French colonial rule, and the French left their architectural mark on the town between the 1880s and 1930s, where a number of buildings were erected, such as the town’s post office, hotels and a lighthouse.
Vũng Tàu is today a favorite excursion destination from the big city of Ho Chi Minh City because of the city’s lovely beaches, which already made the city popular during the French era. The city is located on a peninsula that stretches out into the sea, and the southwestern part with Front Beach is the most famous recreational area where you can enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of Vũng Tàu.
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Overview of Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City is the southern of Vietnam’s two big cities, with the capital Hanoi in the north being the other. The city was formerly called Saigon and is today named after Ho Chi Minh, who was the founder of the Communist Party of Vietnam and also the leader of North Vietnam until his death in 1969. The city bearing his name is located on the west bank of the Saigon River.
Ho Chi Minh City is well located in the area that has historically been influenced by many peoples and cultures before the city became part of Vietnam. Vietnamese rule really began in 1691, when it was formally recognized by the Cambodian king. The city grew as both a trade center and as a military support point for the region.
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Ho Chi Minh City Museum is, as the name suggests, a museum in Ho Chi Minh City where you can experience various exhibitions. At the same time, the museum building itself is both an impressive structure and a historically interesting place. The museum is located in the former Gia Long Palace/Dinh Gia Long.
The building was built 1885-1890 according to the design of the French architect Alfred Foulhoux, and it was supposed to be a kind of commercial trade museum, where you could experience different products from the South Vietnamese area. After a short time, however, the museum became the residence of the area’s French governor.
From 1945 and the following years, the mansion changed use several times. Among other things, it was the Japanese headquarters before the then Vietnamese state used it as a temporary government building from 1948. It also became the official residence of the state’s prime minister.
In 1966, the Supreme Court of the South Vietnamese state was housed in the mansion, and it had that function until North Vietnam’s victory in the Vietnam War. In 1978, the building was set up as the Ho Chi Minh City Revolution Museum, before taking its current name in 1999.
The mansion was built in classic Baroque architecture with European and Oriental influences. The floor, stairs and halls were in European style, while the roof was Oriental inspired. There are many motifs that characterize the decoration. For example, you can see a combination of Greek mythological symbols, iconic plants and tropical animals.
Ho Chi Minh City Theater is a beautiful theater building, also known as Siagon Opera House. Built during Vietnam’s French era, the theater was designed by French architects as a beautiful example of French colonial architecture. The theater was built 1898-1900 and opened as the Opéra de Saïgon.
It was Félix Olivier who was responsible for the design, which was carried out by the architects Ernest Guichard and Eugène Ferret. The architectural style was influenced by the flamboyant style of the French Third Republic, and the facade of the theater was shaped like the Petit Palais in Paris.
The theater was bombed by Allied attacks in 1944, and it then had to cease operations. The theater was reopened in 1955 as a lower house of the then Vietnamese state. From 1956 to 1967, the theater was the seat of the National Assembly of South Vietnam, and then of both the Lower House and the Upper House in a reorganized assembly.
After the North Vietnamese victory in 1975, South Vietnam’s political institutions ceased to exist, and the following year the Ho Chi Minh City Theater was reopened as a theater. In 1998, the theater was renovated, and today it stands in its former splendor with the beautiful French colonial facade.
Landmark 81 is one of the world’s so-called super-tall skyscrapers. The skyscraper was built in neo-futuristic architecture from 2015-2018, and with a height of 461 meters, Landmark 81 opened as Vietnam’s tallest building.
The skyscraper stands in the Binh Thanh district, which lies northeast of the city center and is characterized by modern high-rise buildings. In Landmark 81, there are observation decks on floors 79-81, and here you are at a height of approximately 370-380 meters above the city.
Saigon Main Post Office is a building that was built during the time when Vietnam was part of French Indochina. The post office was built in the years 1886-1891 in a style that draws on various architectural trends from Europe. The building was designed by the architect Alfred Foulhoux.
The post office stands out beautifully in the streetscape, and it is an impressive space you enter if you look into the building. Here you can see, among other things, two maps that were painted after the post office opened. One of them is a map of southern Vietnam and Cambodia entitled Lignes telegraphiques du Sud Vietnam et Cambodge 1892. The other is a map of Saigon and the surrounding area.
Miếu Thiên Hậu is a Chinese-style temple dedicated to Mazu, a Chinese goddess of the sea. The temple is located on Nguyễn Trãi Street, which is considered part of Ho Chi Minh City’s Chinatown.
The name Thiên Hậu is a Vietnamese transcription of the Chinese Tianhou, meaning empress of heaven with reference to Mazu in particular. The temple was built in its original form in 1760, but it has been rebuilt and expanded several times since then.
Công viện Tao Đàn is a park and green oasis in central Ho Chi Minh City. The park spreads over 10 hectares and is located on an area that was formerly part of the French Governor’s Palace complex.
In 1869, the French laid out a street that separated the mansion and the garden, thereby creating Tao Đàn Park. The garden got its current name during the Vietnamese era, when the governor’s palace had become the presidential palace.
The Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts is one of Vietnam’s leading art museums and is housed in a beautiful palatial building dating from the French colonial era. It was the French architect Rivera who designed the house, which was built 1929-1934 as a residence for the Hua family. The museum was set up in the villa in 1987.
At the museum you can see a significant collection of not least interesting Vietnamese art. There are, for example, works in sculpture, oil, silk painting and lacquer painting, and you can experience woodcut paintings in the styles of Hàng Trống, Đông Hồ and Kim Hoàng, Vietnamese ceramics and a collection of ancient Buddhist art.
The Ho Chi Minh City History Museum is an exhibition venue with fine collections that shed light on Vietnamese history. The exhibitions are structured so that you get an exciting insight into the country’s development over time, from prehistoric times to all the cultures and dynasties that have shaped the area and created the Vietnam you can experience today.
The museum was opened in 1929 in the museum building designed in an Indochinese style by the French architect Auguste Delaval. The museum was previously called the Musée Blanchard de La Brosse, as it was named after the French governor of French Cochinkina, Paul Blanchard de La Brosse. French management of the museum ended in 1956.
The Museum of Preserved War Material is a war museum that depicts the First Indochina War between the French Union and the Viet Minh under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh and the later Vietnam War that raged from 1955 to North Vietnam’s victory in 1975.
The museum was established in 1975 with the aim of exhibiting the war crimes committed by foreign powers on Vietnamese soil. After several name changes, the institution got its current and quite neutral name compared to before.
There are many effects in the exhibitions, not least of which are displays of various American military equipment from the Vietnam War. You can also see descriptions of dark chapters in the war such as the My Lai massacre, the use of napalm, phosphorus bombs, Agent Orange and other chemical weapons.
The Saigon Zoo and Botanical Garden are wonderful facilities that are the largest of their kind in Vietnam. The botanical garden was laid out in 1864 by Jean Baptiste Louis Pierre, and the garden and the zoo opened in 1869. The facilities thus have a long history since Admiral Pierre-Paul de La Grandière initiated the work.
With the lush climate in Ho Chi Minh City, it is naturally a wonderful experience to take a walk in the green surroundings, which include many species of orchids, and in the zoo you can experience many different animals from Vietnam and many other places in the world .
You can also see the fine Temple of the Hùng Kings/Đền thứ Vua Hùng in the complex. It is a temple that was built in 1927-1929 and dedicated to the Hùng kings who were the regents of Vietnam during the Hồng Bàng dynasty. The temple was designed by the French architect Auguste Delaval. Originally, the elegant temple was called the Temple du Souvenir Annamite and commemorated Vietnamese soldiers who fought from France during the First World War.
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