Suggestions for eating and playing on Nguyen Hue walking street

After 8 years of operation, Nguyen Hue walking street, District 1, is considered a familiar destination for both tourists and locals.

Nguyen Hue walking street is over 670 m long, starting from the headquarters of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee to Bach Dang Park and crossing several streets such as Le Loi, Ton That Dam, Ngo Duc Ke, Hai Trieu. The street is often the venue for major cultural and artistic activities of the city.

Nguyen Hue Walking Street operates all day. From Monday to Friday, vehicles are still allowed to pass through this area. On Saturday and Sunday evenings, Nguyen Hue Walking Street will ban vehicles from 6pm to 10pm, to reserve space for pedestrians.

According to Mr. Tran Duy Hieu, a freelance tour guide specializing in inner-city tours of Ho Chi Minh City, there are two suitable times to stroll around this area. From 8am to 10am, visitors will enjoy the slower, less bustling pace of life of the "city that never sleeps". After 7pm, the walking street takes on a different, more vibrant look, especially on weekend nights.

He also suggests that visitors can experience some of the following fun and entertaining activities when coming to Nguyen Hue walking street.

Move

Nguyen Hue Walking Street is located in the city center, so it is quite convenient to travel. If this is your first time in Ho Chi Minh City, you can choose to travel by technology vehicle (car or motorbike). During rush hours, the number of vehicles on the walking street is quite large because this area has many office buildings. This can prolong the travel time between destinations.

In addition, public transportation in the city is also quite popular. Bus routes to the walking street include 03, 04, 124, 152, 19 and 93. However, the bus station will not stop directly on the street, visitors need to walk an additional distance depending on each bus route.

Suggestions for eating and playing on Nguyen Hue walking street — **The parking lot is on Le Loi Street, located at the beginning of Nguyen Hue walking street.** Photo: Gia Minh

When arriving at the walking street, visitors can choose to rent public bicycles to travel to entertainment and dining spots. There are two bicycle rental points along the street at the beginning and end. The bicycle rental price is 5,000 VND for 30 minutes and 10,000 VND for 60 minutes. On weekends, this activity is chosen by many people, some places may run out of bicycles. Visitors should download the TNGO software to refer to bicycle rental points near them and rent a bicycle.

The most proactive option is to rent a motorbike. Most accommodations support motorbike rental. In addition, visitors can also choose from suggestions online. The daily rental price ranges from 100,000 to 200,000 VND depending on the type of motorbike. Along the walking street, there are many parking lots with a price of 10,000 VND per motorbike.

Fun activities

Walk around and take pictures at famous places

Walking along this street, visitors can easily find beautiful photo spots such as in front of the City People's Committee headquarters, the statue of President Ho Chi Minh, the apartment building at 42 Nguyen Hue, and the front of Ciao Cafe. These are destinations with typical features of the walking street, and are a must-see, especially for first-time visitors. The walking street does not have much shade, so visitors should bring a hat or umbrella if they come in the morning.

Saigon Skydeck Observation Deck

Saigon Skydeck is located on the 49th floor of Bitexco Financial Tower (Hai Trieu Street, District 1). This is the first observation deck in Vietnam at an altitude of 180 m. From here, visitors can enjoy a panoramic view of Ho Chi Minh City.

Saigon Skydeck is open from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. every day. Entrance tickets are divided into many types. Visitors can buy directly at the Bitexco Tower lobby or buy online through intermediary platforms. Tickets for adults are 240,000 VND. Children from 4 to 12 years old or people over 65 years old pay 160,000 VND. Children under 3 years old are free.

The observatory has 6 long-range binoculars, capable of rotating 360 degrees horizontally and 50 degrees up and down. In addition, there is a system of 6 touch-screen information screens arranged along the glass wall of the observatory. On each screen is an image corresponding to the outside scene. When visitors stand at the location of the screen, the screen will have display points that, when activated, will display detailed information about a scenic spot or historical site.

Double decker bus

Visitors can choose the double-decker bus to tour around the city on their first visit. The bus operates from 9am to 10:30pm every day. Tickets can be purchased directly at the counter at 92-96 Nguyen Hue, opposite the City Theater, or booked online.

The Ho Chi Minh City city tour by double-decker open-top bus is more than 13 km long, passing through District 1 and District 3 with 30 famous attractions such as Reunification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, and City Post Office. There are 22 trips per day, each trip lasting about 60 minutes, with a 30-minute interval between daytime trips and 60 minutes between night trips. The bus has an automatic multilingual commentary system to guide you about the places along the way, tourist maps, free wifi, and tour guides.

"This activity is quite popular with first-time visitors to Ho Chi Minh City. In the summer, evening trips are more comfortable, avoiding the heat and sudden rains," Mr. Hieu suggested.

Places to eat

Street food

Besides famous restaurants, along Nguyen Hue walking street, visitors can also enjoy attractive street food.

In the morning, the walking street is quite quiet, the most crowded are mainly coffee shops. Visitors can choose to sit and drink on the spot or buy to take away.

From the evening, the shops start to operate more. Ice cream, milk tea, cheese tart, bingsu... are some of the snacks that visitors can try when coming to the walking street.

In the evening, this area is also crowded with street vendors. However, the prices of these vendors are unstable and quite high compared to the general level. Tourists should ask the price before buying to avoid being "ripped off".

Apartment 42 Nguyen Hue

National Geographic UK once shared a photo of the 42 Nguyen Hue apartment building with the caption: "This is an old apartment building that has been renovated to become a coffee shop, restaurant, and workspace that attracts many young people." Located right on the front of the walking street, it is not too difficult for visitors to find this interesting place the first time they come to Ho Chi Minh City.

The apartment building has 9 floors. Visitors can choose to take the stairs or the elevator for a fee of 10,000 VND/trip. Each floor has many coffee shops or restaurants. According to the general comments of many visitors, each shop here has its own color, so it is quite interesting. In addition, some coffee shops also attract customers because of the balcony area with a view straight down to the walking street.

Minh Chi, a tourist from Nha Trang, commented that drinking coffee in old apartment buildings is quite an interesting activity in Ho Chi Minh City. Not only enjoying drinks, this is also an opportunity for visitors to learn more about the city's history as well as get impressive check-in photos from here.

However, because it is located in an old apartment building, the area of the shops here is quite small. On weekends, some famous brands can be sold out early.

Some suggestions for visitors when coming to 42 Nguyen Hue apartment: %Arabica, Boo Coffee, Saigon Oi Cafe, Poke Saigon, 21 Grams Vegetarian.

Saigon Garden

Saigon Garden is a complex located on the front of the walking street. The complex includes restaurants, cafes, clothing stores... and is open from 8am to 10pm every day. Mr. Hieu commented that for first-time visitors to the city, the complexes are a fairly safe entertainment option, meeting all needs from eating to shopping.

However, on weekend nights, this place is quite crowded. If you want to visit the famous restaurants in the complex at that time, visitors should proactively make reservations in advance. The dining addresses here are diverse, from Europe, Japan, Korea, Thailand, China and Vietnam.

The complex also impresses with its open design and green garden space. In addition to visiting famous restaurants, visitors can also come here in the morning to drink coffee and admire the walking street.

Diners can refer to some addresses after dining here: BeAn Vegetarian, Starbuck, Social Local, Koi Thé.

Note:

Nguyen Hue walking street bans motorbikes every Saturday and Sunday evening.

Take the initiative to protect your personal belongings when going to crowded places.

You should wear sneakers or flat shoes for convenience when moving around a lot.

According to vnexpress.net

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