Make your way to The Café Apartments, a former residential building now home to eclectic coffee shops and boutiques. Once you arrive, choose a spot for a coffee stop to try one of the local specialties:

• cà phê sữa dá (iced coffee with condensed milk)
• cà phê trứng (egg coffee)
• bac xiu (milk-heavy coffee)
• cà phê cốt dừa (coconut coffee)

Stroll along Nguyen Hue Walking Street, exploring the blend of modern, traditional, and trendy stores. Unique cafes and fashion boutiques can be found here, as well as shops with a range of traditional Vietnamese items. Nibble on some street snacks, such as:

• bánh xèo (crispy pancake with shrimp, pork, and bean sprouts)
• bánh tráng nướng (“Vietnamese pizza”)
• chè (sweet coconut soup desserts)

Pair your snack with fresh coconut water from a street vendor.

Optional add-on: Afterwards, head to Saigon Square for bargain shopping.

For lunch, select one of the following iconic local dishes:

• banh mi (crispy baguette stuffed with pâté, cold cuts, herbs)
• pho (noodle soup with a rich, slightly sweet broth served with fresh herbs, bean sprouts, and various sauces)
• cơm tấm (broken rice with grilled pork, fried egg, and pickled vegetables)
• bún bò Huế (spicy lemongrass beef noodle soup)
• bún thịt nướng (grilled pork vermicelli with herbs and fish sauce dressing)

Highly regarded restaurants for pho and banh mi include Phở Hòa Pasteur and Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa, respectively. Pair your meal with nước mía (fresh sugarcane juice).

After lunch, explore Dong Khoi Street, which is known for luxury souvenirs, art prints, and silk scarves. Look for distinctive, high-quality Vietnamese lacquerware—an elegant traditional craft known for its deep gloss, layered resin finish, and intricate hand-painted designs. Consider stopping at a tailor for quick-turnaround custom clothing—many shops can measure and produce shirts, dresses, or suits within 24–48 hours.

From there continue to Ho Chi Minh City Book Street for cookbooks, stationery, and local gifts, as well as a café break.

Continue shopping at Ben Thanh Market, where you might bargain your way to a good deal on traditional Vietnamese clothing, handicrafts, or art, as well as coffee beans or Vietnamese coffee filters (phin).

Join a guided street food tour around Ben Thanh Market, tasting iconic southern Vietnamese dishes. You might encounter:

• gỏi cuốn (fresh spring rolls)
• bò lá lốt (grilled beef wrapped in betel leaf)
• hủ tiếu nam vang (southern noodle soup with pork, shrimp, and quail eggs)
• bánh khọt (mini crispy pancakes with shrimp)
• bún riêu cua (crab noodle soup)

After the street food tour, continue the evening at a taproom, microbrewery, or pub to sample some Vietnamese craft beer.

Grab bánh mì for breakfast en route to a Vietnamese coffee workshop. If you tried bánh mì yesterday, other common breakfast items include bánh canh (thick noodle soup) and xôi (sticky rice with toppings). Then take part in a Vietnamese coffee workshop, learning about traditional phin brewing, including iced coffee and egg coffee.

After the workshop, head to Cholon to explore Binh Tay Market, where you can shop for dried seafood, spices, tea leaves, snacks, and herbal ingredients. You might also want to snack on some tropical fruit or sesame sweets.

Continue your exploration of Cholon with a lunch of regional specialties:

• hủ tiếu (savory pork & seafood noodle soup)
• bún mắm (fermented fish noodle soup with seafood)
• bột chiên (pan-fried rice cakes with egg)

Next, explore An Dong Market for fabrics, wholesale fashion, and souvenirs.

Optional add-on: Afterwards, visit Tan Dinh Market, a good spot to find textiles, gifts, and packaged local treats.

Head to Nguyễn Thượng Hiền Street for a street food crawl. Be on the lookout for:

• tré trộn (fermented pork mix with herbs)
• nướng việt (grilled BBQ meat skewers, often served with tamarind or chili sauce)
• nước ep (fruit juices)

In case of inclement weaather, opt for an indoor sit-down meal instead of a street food crawl along Nguyễn Thượng Hiền Street.

Head to Ho Thi Ky Flower Market where you can browse vibrant flower stalls and small produce vendors. Consider trying thịt xiên nướng (lemongrass beef skewers), a popular breakfast option.

After you finish shopping at the flower market, head to a District 1 or District 3 colonial-style café for French pastries paired with coffee, such as RuNam d'Or or the Le Thanh Ton branch of the L'Usine cafe chain.

Then participate in a Vietnamese cooking class where you might prepare iconic dishes such as:

• bánh xèo (crispy pancake with shrimp, pork, and bean sprouts)
• gỏi cuốn (fresh spring rolls)
• pho (noodle soup with a rich, slightly sweet broth served with fresh herbs, bean sprouts, and various sauces)
• cơm tấm (broken rice with grilled pork, fried egg, and pickled vegetables)

This experience will demonstrate how Vietnamese cuisine is rooted in balancing five fundamental tastes—spicy, sour, bitter, salty, and sweet—using fresh herbs, minimal oil, and iconic flavor profiles.

Spend the afternoon browsing at the large, high-end shopping complexes in Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon Centre and Vincom Center Dong Khoi. In both, you can find fashion, lifestyle items, gourmet coffee, packaged snacks, and teas. While you shop, snack on café drinks and consider trying a durian dessert, such as durian ice cream, smoothies, or sticky rice with durian.

Head to Vinh Khanh Street for dinner where specialties include:

• coconut-fried snails
• garlic-grilled snails
• steamed clams with Thai sauce
• grilled scallops with scallion oil
• nướng việt (grilled BBQ meat skewers, often served with tamarind or chili sauce)

Optional add-on: Finish the evening with rooftop drinks at Landmark 81 to take in panoramic views of the Saigon skyline and river lights.