What to see in Dan Sinh market in Ho Chi Minh city?

Dan Sinh Market, or Yersin Market, was named after the French biologist and adventurer Alexandre Yersin. Specializing in a wide range of war surplus and camping items, this market houses a lot of stalls offering industrial-sized electrical appliances as well as imported machinery.

Where is Dan Sinh market?

Dan Sinh Market is surrounded by 4 streets: Yersin, Nguyen Thai Binh, Nguyen Cong Tru, and Ky Con, with an area of more than 5,000 square meters

With only 1 km from Ben Thanh market, Dan Sinh market is a convenient spot that you can easily find your way to it.

The history of Dan Sinh market

Dan Sinh Market is one of the oldest markets in Ho Chi Minh city until now. The neighborhood of Dan Sinh market today is believed to be where the Kim Chung Casino was built on. As opposed to the largest casino at the time, Dai The Gioi Casino, Kim Chung was the place mostly for the middle and low-income to gamble their luck with the hope of changing their lives.

In the last year of the French army when in Vietnam, 1954, after a transfer of authority, Kim Chung Neighborhood had been renamed to Dan Sinh neighborhood. And the people here started to sell military equipment for US soldiers. Most of them are used items made in foreign countries. But when Vietnam trading opened to the world, people could get commodities from overseas more easily, and thus Dan Sinh market eventually stepped into a period of decay.

The market is no longer the main source to find non-domestic goods, but it is still a place that brings memories of the old Saigon and sells a lot of antiques. If you are a collector of antiques or want to find some rare and unique items, Dan Sinh market is the place you should check out.

What to expect when coming to Dan Sinh market

You would be surprised by how the Dan Sinh market, after going through decades, still sells the same kind of commodity from its old glorious time. Machinery components, military supply, and old items, everything is still there like things gave never changed. You can find most of these things when coming through the No.3 gate on Yersin Street.

One of the items in the Dan Sinh market that can’t be found elsewhere is military equipment and war memorabilia such as hats, boots, and suppliers that American soldiers used during the war. In particular, these things were listed as souvenirs, therefore, the price would be the most expensive in the market. Ex: the price for a pair of boots is VND 2,000,000 VND. Besides, you can easily find old pictures and memories of daily life in the past.