Ho Chi Minh City Walking Tour: 5 Trade Streets in Chinatown

Walk through five historic trade streets in Saigon's Chinatown on a guided English tour showcasing Chinese-Vietnamese daily life.

Getting started

Meet your local guide at the designated meeting point in Ho Chi Minh City and join your chosen option, either the Group Guided Tour in English or the Private Guided Tour in English. After a brief introduction to the route, you begin a guided walking tour through five trade streets in Saigon. The walk follows a steady urban pace, so plan comfortable footwear for city sidewalks.

What to expect

Soái Kình Lâm Street (Fabric Street)

This first stop focuses on Soái Kình Lâm Street, known as Fabric Street, at the heart of Saigon's Chinatown. Here you see how textiles play a central role in local commerce and traditional clothing.

Features

• Guided commentary from your English-speaking guide explains how Soái Kình Lâm Street became a hub for fabric trading and how it serves both everyday customers and local businesses.
• You walk past colorful fabric shops that line the street, observing bolts of cloth stacked from floor to ceiling and patterns associated with Chinese-Vietnamese celebrations.
• This visit is part of your guided tour of five trade streets, included in both the Group Guided Tour in English and the Private Guided Tour in English options.

Hải Thượng Lãn Ông Street (Traditional Medicine Street)

Next, the route leads to Hải Thượng Lãn Ông Street, also known as Traditional Medicine Street. This area highlights herbal knowledge and long-standing medical practices within the community.

Features

• Your guide points out herbal medicine stores filled with dried roots, bark, and preserved ingredients, explaining how Hải Thượng Lãn Ông Street became associated with traditional remedies.
• You observe shopfronts displaying jars and drawers of herbs used in Chinese-style treatments and hear about the beliefs that shape local approaches to health.
• The visit to Soái Kình Lâm and Hải Thượng Lãn Ông is included as a specific component of your guided tour of five trade streets, regardless of whether you book the group or private format.

Lương Nhữ Học Street (Decoration Street)

The walk continues to Lương Nhữ Học Street, often referred to as Decoration Street. This stop focuses on objects used to mark festivals, rituals, and family occasions.

Features

• Along Lương Nhữ Học Street, your guide introduces decoration shops that supply symbolic items for events in the Chinese-Vietnamese calendar, linking products to local traditions.
• You see displays of decorative pieces used in Chinatown for celebrations and temple offerings, gaining insight into how visual symbols appear in daily life.
• Visiting Lương Nhữ Học is part of the included itinerary that covers Lương Nhữ Học, Trần Hưng Đạo, and Triệu Quang Phục within the guided tour of five trade streets.

Trần Hưng Đạo (Chợ Lớn section) (Gold & Jewellery Street)

You then reach the Chợ Lớn section of Trần Hưng Đạo, known as a Gold & Jewellery Street. This area highlights another side of local trade focused on value and craftsmanship.

Features

• Your guide explains how gold shops and jewellery businesses developed along this stretch of Trần Hưng Đạo in Chợ Lớn, connecting trade to family-run enterprises.
• From the street, you can observe gold shops and jewellery displays, seeing how designs reflect both Chinese and Vietnamese influences.
• The inclusion of Trần Hưng Đạo (Chợ Lớn section) as a Gold & Jewellery Street forms a core part of the visit to Lương Nhữ Học, Trần Hưng Đạo, and Triệu Quang Phục that is built into your guided tour.

Triệu Quang Phục Street (Local Wholesale Street)

The final main stop is Triệu Quang Phục Street, recognized as a Local Wholesale Street. This segment of the walk brings together earlier themes of trade, supply, and community networks.

Features

• On Triệu Quang Phục Street, your guide outlines how wholesale activity supports smaller shops throughout Saigon's Chinatown and beyond.
• You move past local wholesale outlets and storage-fronted businesses, observing how goods move through the district before reaching retail streets like Soái Kình Lâm or Hải Thượng Lãn Ông.
• The visit to Triệu Quang Phục completes the guided tour of five trade streets, provided in English as a group or private guided tour according to the option you select.

Wrapping up

Your walking tour concludes in the Chinatown area after Triệu Quang Phục Street, where you can continue exploring independently or arrange your own transport from there, as transport to and from the meeting point, along with food and drinks, is not included.