Shopping Right in Vietnam

Posted by admin on August 25, 2010 under Shopping In Vietnam, Vietnam Travel Guide | Read the First Comment

My guide, Huong Lan picked me up at Le Residence Hotel where I was staying in Hue. “I’m sorry, I only have a motorbike,” she said. “But I have a helmet for you. I hope you don’t mind touring Hue this way.” Mind? I was thrilled. This was the primary mode of travel in Vietnam. I hopped on the back and we drove past a large building. “This is where I went to high school,” Lan said. “And so did Ho Chi Minh. That’s him.” She pointed out a large statue in the courtyard. We drove along the perfume river and turned onto a dirt path. Lan parked the bike and we boarded a small wooden boat which ferried people across the river to the Dong Ba Market. I anticipated the market would be a great place to shop for gifts. We walked through stall after stall selling every type of fruit including dorian, jack, dragon fruit and coconuts. We passed slabs of beef and pig and chickens and fish, then plastic housewares. We went upstairs and I looked at cheap T-shirts, kimonos and shoes. “Here, you can by everything from a needle to an elephant,” Lan said.But there was nothing I wanted to buy. We went backdownstairs where a gaggle of women fought over a large pile of conical hats. I thought the hats looked identical, but Lan said they were looking for a hat with no flaws. “The hat has to be perfect,” Lan said. We made our way through the endless rows of stalls, moving aside when a woman squeezed by carrying a stick across her shoulders from which dangled with two heavy hanging baskets. We stopped for me to take a photo of a group of women on their haunches, eating what looked like raw eggs. “That’s baby duck,” Lan said, “It’s delicious. Want to try some? I’d been warned about street food. So I passed, but Lan bought one. “The best part is the head and the feet,” she grinned as she cracked open the egg. It looked like a fetus to me. We took the little wooden boat back across the river. “I’ll take you to a special shop, Lan said as she parked in front of a storefront with a sign, “Healing the Wounded Heart Shop” which sells handicraft items produced by local artists. The proceeds go to fund health care, medical, and educational projects. So far, they’ve been able to pay for 250 heart surgeries for children of Hue, Lan said. I looked at colorful baskets woven from recycled telephone wires, stationary with Cham and Hmong pieces of embroidery, and gorgeous bags made from recycled plastic products. Each had a tiny red cloth heart which said “healing the wounded heart.” Everything was so exquisitely made I barely knew what to buy. And the best thing about it was that for the first time in Vietnam, even though I’d been used to bargaining, this time I happily paid full price.

Shopping in Saigon

Posted by admin on November 12, 2008 under Shopping In Vietnam | 3 Comments to Read

Since the monumental policy shift to create a market economy in Vietnam, buying and selling is as ubiquitous as breathing. Housewives shop the market by the day or even by the meal, rather than weekly.

Street-front shop houses abound and sidewalk vendors don’t hang their shingle, they just lay down their mat and display their wares. Everywhere!

[read more] You will fill your suitcase when shopping in Saigon. Read on and we will tell you all you need to know to get the best deals and learn about the best places to shop in Saigon. If you get hungry during your shopping spree, stop for some finger food or relax in one of the Saigon Restaurants along the city’s shopping streets. For things to see and do during your stay, our Saigon Destination Travel Guide will point you in the right direction. More general information about shopping around the country can be found at our Vietnam Shopping Guide .

Saigon Shopping Guide

The range of merchandise available in Saigon is truly fantastic. It’s true; if you can’t buy it here, you don’t need it! The list we have collected below should give you a place to start looking for that special something. We’ve divided into categories to make it easier for you to find a place in Saigon that sells what you are looking for.

Bargaining is still the most common way to buy things in Saigon. Some people relish bargaining, others loathe it. The rules are not very complicated if you think of it like this.

The whole thing is a harmonious Yin-Yang balance. You want the item. The vendor wants your money. Yin-Yang! The maximum price you are willing to pay is the value of your desire for the item. The minimum price the vendor is willing to accept is the value of their desire for your money. Yin-Yang! Bargaining is simply a search for the Yin-Yang balance between your desire and the vendor’s.

If items for sale have price labels there is normally no bargaining (the vendor might lose a cent or two on buying the labels!).

Antiques

Bags

Books and Journals

Clothing

Embroidery

Ready-made

Silk

Sportswear

Tailors

Crafts/Souvenirs

Glass/Crystal

Huynh Mai
32 Le Cong Kieu, Dist. 1, tel: 822-4316

Pottery/Ceramics

Cosmetics

Interiors

Jewellers

Music CDs, DVDs and VCDs

Shopping Centres

Food Stores

Vietnamese Covered Markets

Big shopping centers

• Tax Department Store – Intersection of Nguyen Hue and Le Loi Streets, Dist.1, HCMC
• Ben Thanh market – Dist.1, city center, HCMC
• Binh Tay market – Dist.5, one of the main markets of Cholon
• Diamond Plaza – 37 Le Duan, Dist.1, HCMC

Bags

Clothing

Silk

Crafts & Souvenirs

Pottery & Ceramics

Supermarket

Supermarkets

Shopping in Vietnam

Posted by admin on under Shopping In Vietnam | Read the First Comment

As a general principal, items sold in touristy areas, with no visible price tags, must be bargained for – expect the vendor to start the bidding at two to five times the real price. Tagged items may be negotiable, but more often than not the prices are fixed.

Please don’t buy souvenirs taken from historical sites, or made from endangered wildlife such as turtle shells. Read more of this article »