Cho Ben Thanh and its clock-tower market hall
Published on 09/23/2026 at 23:19 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael MĂĽller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Cho Ben Thanh is a covered market in central Ho-Chi-Minh-Stadt, recognised by its yellow-ochre facade and clock tower. The present hall belongs to the French colonial period and was completed in 1914, while the market tradition reaches further back into Saigon’s history.
Cho Ben Thanh: a market organised around a clock tower
The clock tower rises above the main facade and gives Cho Ben Thanh its most recognisable outline. Beneath it, the building presents a broad covered frontage with arched openings, masonry columns, wooden structural elements and tiled roofs.
The hall covers about 13,000 square metres. Its large roofed interior contains trading areas arranged around passages, with stalls associated with food, clothing, household goods, souvenirs and other merchandise. The building is both a functioning marketplace and a visible piece of Ho-Chi-Minh-Stadt’s urban history.
From riverside trading to a French colonial hall
The name Cho Ben Thanh is linked to an older market near the Ben Nghe River and the approaches to Gia Dinh Citadel. A market existed in Saigon during the nineteenth century, before the present building occupied its central city location.
Work on the current structure began in 1912 under French colonial administration. The hall opened in 1914 as Les Halles Centrales, a name that coexisted with the local name Ben Thanh. This date connects the building with the period when Saigon acquired European-style streets, civic buildings and covered commercial spaces. the 1914 inauguration is recorded alongside the market’s relocation to its present site.
Brick, timber and tiled roofs in central Saigon
Cho Ben Thanh combines French colonial design with materials and forms suited to a tropical market hall. Brick columns support the building, wooden ribs form part of the roof structure, and tiled surfaces define the roofscape. The facade’s warm colour contrasts with the dark openings beneath the roof.
The market’s identity comes from the relationship between commerce and architecture. Produce, prepared food, fabrics and manufactured goods occupy a building whose clock tower, rooflines and broad entrances remain legible from the surrounding streets. The market therefore belongs to two histories at once: the history of everyday trade and the architectural history of colonial Saigon.
The present building was constructed between 1912 and 1914, with the contractor Brossard et Maupin associated with the project. the market’s building history also records the clock tower as a feature erected in 1914.
Visiting Cho Ben Thanh: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- Cho Ben Thanh stands in central Ho-Chi-Minh-Stadt, around Le Loi Street and the streets of Ben Thanh Ward. City buses, taxis and walking routes from District 1 connect with the market area.
- The market is an enclosed urban hall with paved passages, roofed trading areas and dense rows of stalls. The clock-tower facade provides the clearest external reference point.
- Vietnamese is the official language and the currency is the Vietnamese ??ng.
- Nearby streets lead towards the central commercial district, with the Saigon River and historic civic buildings within the wider city centre.
Searching for Cho Ben Thanh on social platforms
These links open searches for Cho Ben Thanh on each platform.Frequently asked questions about Cho Ben Thanh
Where is Cho Ben Thanh?
Cho Ben Thanh is in central Ho-Chi-Minh-Stadt, on and around Le Loi Street in Ben Thanh Ward. It belongs to the city’s central commercial district.
What can visitors expect inside?
The covered hall contains rows of stalls selling food, clothing, fabrics, household goods, souvenirs and other merchandise. Paved passages run between the trading areas beneath the large roof.
What makes the market distinctive?
The 1914 building combines a clock-tower facade, French colonial design, brick columns, wooden roof elements and tiled roofs. Its continuing market use places everyday commerce inside a recognised historic structure.
