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- The things to buy in Vietnam ranges from wooden items to
musical instruments, embroidery, jewelry, paintings, clothes, pottery,
metal figures, electronics etc.
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 Shopping in Vietnam is a favorite leisure activity of the locals as well as the tourists. The country has numerous shopping areas that have a diverse range of shops selling a wide variety of items. The big cities like Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi consist of huge western-style shopping malls. Besides, there is a large number small shop that sell traditional Vietnamese handicrafts.
Shopping in Vietnam is more than pleasure. It is an experience. The streets of the Vietnamese cities abound in shops which makes Vietnam shopping an interesting and easy affair. The huge quantity of shops in Vietnam and the large variety of things sold makes it difficult to choose what to buy.
The choices vary in quantity and quality and with so many things the shops in Vietnam are sure to overwhelm any shopper. The things to buy in Vietnam ranges from wooden items to musical instruments, embroidery, jewelry, paintings, clothes, pottery, metal figures, electronics etc.
Shopping in Vietnam includes shopping for handicraft items, embroidery items, gold chains, earrings, silver jewelry, various kinds of paintings including those in oil, clothes like silk garments, scarves, crowns etc, music CD, DVDs etc. Vietnam is a haven for shopaholics especially those interested in traditional.
Shopping in Hanoi
If you're particularly enthusiastic about quality textiles, clothes and handicrafts, shopping in Hanoi will not disappoint.
The city also has a good range of day and night markets, both indoors and outdoors and you'll find that night markets are more of a social than shopping occasion but that doesn't preclude finding bargains at night.
There's a good arts scene alive in Hanoi and let's face it; in a city this size with a shopaholic population you're going to find a lot to buy but under less stressful conditions than frenetic Ho Chi Minh City.
Markets
Hanoi's Dong Xuan Market
You'll find everything under the sky for sale at Dong Xuan Market. If you've ever been to Ben Tanh Market in Saigon, this is Hanoi's equivilent. There are silk bags here for less than US$10 here. A three-storey market located in the Old Quarter, 900m north of the Hoan Kiem Lake.
Weekend night market
There are around Dong Xuan Market morphs into a night bazaar at the weekend. This is much more a social occasion than a shopping one and if you are seriously looking after bargains with little time to spare perhaps this is not the best destination. Be wary of pickpockets.
Hang Da Market
Smaller than Dong Xuan, Hang Da offers imported food, wines, flowers with upstairs stalls selling fabrics and off-the-hangar clothing and even watches. Located at the intersection of Yen Thai and Hang Da Street, Hang Da Market is a three-story indoor market, attractive with its white and multi-perforated façade.
Souvenirs
T-shirts, bandanas, wall hangings, tribal handicrafts and weavings – they're all to be had downtown old quarter Hanoi.
You'll have to be willing to use your bargaining skills in most of these shops and stalls to get prices down.
Air-conditioned Hanoi Moment (101 Hang Gai Street) comes highly recommended above the sometimes grimy street markets.
Designer boutiques
There are a good number of these in Hanoi, often dealing in silk creations catering to Hanoi's Beautiful people. However, tourists also buy ao dai's (Vietnamese traditional long dresses) to fit their size. Many young local designers cleverly mix Vietnamese and western styles which make the Vietnamese fashion industry even more attractive.
Galleries
If there's one thing Hanoi has no shortage of it is art galleries and most are conveniently located in the old quarter. Young hopeful artists make full use of Hanoi's many private art galleries – most situated on Pho Trang Tien, between Hoan Kiem Lake and the Opera House.
Typically the galleries are open until 21:00 and bargaining is expected.
Wooden products
There are so many natural woods that this results in a broad range of handicraft products in Hanoi. These are transformed into carvings, statuettes, chopsticks and boxes.
Look out too for water puppet figurines, hand-carved for centuries in traditional artisan villages. All these are available in countless souvenir shops in the Old Quarter.
Rice paper
Hanoi's ethnic greetings cards, watercolor and folk paintings, bamboo-bound notebooks and vogue table lamps are all made with 'Do' paper (rice paper) made from the bark of the Do Tree.
Rice paper cards with embroidered squares cost around $2, bamboo bound notebooks $1.50 and hemp covered notebooks, from $2. Shops along Hang Gai and Hang Bac Street sell rice-paper products.
Ethnic Minority Products
Vietnam has more ethnic minority groups than any other Asian country (about 54). Most of them hail from mountain villages in the north.
Each has their own style and colours of clothing, with distinctive embroidery and weaving patterns.
With the surge of tourism, many of their handicrafts and clothes are now sold in craft shops, especially in Hanoi.
Silk
Hang Gai, or Silk Street, is the best place to shop for silk in Hanoi. Located on the edge of the Old Quarter near Hoan Kiem Lake, Hang Gai consists of two or three blocks of small shops that all specialize in silk and embroidery. The merchandise at the various stores is similar but the prices, selection and service vary.
Shopping in Saigon
Ho Chi Minh City is a fun place to shop for bargains. Some goods can be unique and fascinating – old propaganda posters, for example; we found one that exhorted people to plant garlic for export.
Clothing includes silks and hand-woven fabrics with a reputation for high quality. Vietnam is also famous for handicrafts including bamboo ware, ceramics and lacquer.
There are, too, all the usual holiday souvenirs such as T-shirts and beaded handbags at prices that are hard to beat.
Where to Shop
District 1
There are plenty of ways to begin shopping in Ho Chi Minh City but many people chose to go to District 1 for its many fine shops, particularly in Dong Khoi Street, where designer shops sit cheek-by-jowl with boutiques, galleries, antique shops and jewelry stores.
Markets
For those who enjoy bargaining, try Anh Dong Markets in District 5 (the Chinese district) for kitchen essentials such as spices. The lively Ben Thanh indoor market in downtown Saigon abounds with postcards, T-shirts, silk scarves, ethnic print coin purses, embroidered bags, satin slippers, throws, carved figurines and much more.
Saigon Duty Free Shop
This store is at 102 Nguyen Hue Blvd in District 1, and specialises in the usual duty-free items such as perfumes and colognes. It is open from Monday to Friday
Diamond Plaza
The multi-floor Diamond Plaza, in the Central Business District, is where you can find cosmetics, leather goods, ornaments, footwear, fine wooden artworks, clothing by Vietnamese designers and interior decoration materials. There is also a restaurant, a bowling alley, snooker tables and video games.
Tax Department Store
The Tax Department Store is a mall with air conditioning and escalators. It has cheap CDs and DVDs, and other goodies such as lacquer ware, silk scarves and T-shirts, along with a supermarket on the second floor. It is at the intersection of Nguyen Hue St and Le Loi St in District 1.
Shopping in Mui Ne & Phan Thiet
The tourist industry is quite new for the fishing villages of Mui Ne and Phan Thiet, but they are catching up fast, with souvenir shops opening almost every week.
Products include handicrafts such as embroidery, paintings, lacquer ware, blankets, scarves, handbags and ceramics. Many of these products are created in the ancient Cham style, making them unique and special.
It is also fun to explore the local market. Don’t forget to try favorite local fruits such as Dragon Fruit.
Mui Ne Handicraft
Mui Ne Handicraft at Java Restaurant is a recent addition to the Mui Ne shopping scene. Stop by to watch deaf children create sand art or shop for hand-woven textiles with traditional Cham patterns, then get the local tailor to turn them into clothes at bargain prices. Java Restaurant is on the road into Mui Ne, on a hill just above the town.
Other restaurants that also carry interesting souvenirs include The Hot Rock, which carries an eclectic selection of locally-inspired jewellery and handbags using local fabrics and traditional designs; and Forester Shop, which stocks Cham ceramics, crocodile leather and assorted high-quality souvenirs.
Markets
There are a number of good markets in the area. In Phan Thiet, you might want to start at the Co-op Mart on the corner of Nguyen Tat Thanh and Tran Hung Dao, for souvenir and jewelry shops.
Phan Thiet Central Market, which is the largest in the province, is the place for local stuff such as fresh fruit, coconut candies, dried seafood, and sand paintings.
Mui Ne Village Market, too, has a range of fresh fruits.
Shopping in Hoi An
For most people who visit Hoi An, the two main shopping allures are the Central or Riverside Market and the plethora of cheap tailors downtown.
With the sheer number of tailors available Hoi An is definitely a buyers' market and the visitor who doesn't bargain down the price of a suit or silk shirt is really missing out. Of course, many other items are on sale in Hoi An and the ancient charm of the town makes an afternoon or evening out shopping a delight.
Tailors speak both French and English – most stores are open from 08:00 to 21:00.
Women's clothes
Located 43 Trang Hung Dao Street, The 'Trang' tailor shop comes highly recommended. With a team of 25 tailors and a meticulous attitude to measuring and fitting, this shop is one of the leaders in a very crowded field.
Tailors' Market
Pass the Central Market and carry along riverside until the Tailors' Market. Here you will be spoilt for choice and cheapest certainly doesn't mean best. Take your time and go for as many fittings as you can. Good tailors will welcome them whereas bad ones will try to fob you off with as few fittings as possible. The tailors have hundreds of photos to help stimulate your imagination as to what exactly it is you want.
Silk
Hoi An is a veritable Mecca for silk lovers and the quality and range on offer here is the best in the country
. Again, many think that tailors who advertise that they can provide a silk suit within 24 hours must be good but in fact it's quite the opposite: the tailor who takes his time is the tailor you need to frequent.
Be choosy about your cloth, or go to the market and buy it yourself (Hoi An Cloth Market is at 01 Tran Phu St.), and haggle. It's not a bad idea to bring an actual suit or piece of clothing that you'd like a copy of.
Art
Besides silk art, many art galleries line Hoi An's streets. This shows that the locals are really gifted in the area of art. Visiting these art galleries would make you realise that the local artists enjoy water and oil painting. The subjects of the art pieces generally revolve around scenery of Hoi An, local ladies in 'ao-dai' or the Vietnamese traditional costume and flowers. A typical example is the 155 Art Gallery located next to the Japanese covered bridge at 155 Tran Phu Street.
Shopping on Phu Quoc Island
 Markets selling a wide range of fruit, vegetable and seafood are the main shopping venues in Phu Quoc, not necessarily what tourists want to buy but very interesting to see all the same.
For tourists, shopping opportunities come in the form of handicrafts expertly made by locals and pearls which are farmed locally.
Markets
Local markets sell a colourful variety of fruit and vegetables of all shapes and sizes in addition to seafood and other foodstuff. Markets can be busy places but don't let that put you off.
Some markets are one or two days a week however the main one in Duong Dong is a permanent fixture, you might want to avoid it when a cruise ship is in port though.
Dinh Cau Night Market
The night market is the palace to buy souvenirs, all kinds of crafts are on sale in addition to the usual fresh produce and seafood. This can be a good place to buy pearls… while the kids are occupied in the playground.
Duong Dong Shops
There are several shops that sell most basic items such as toothpaste, soap, beer, biscuits etc in Duong Dong, laundries are also here which are much cheaper than resort prices. There are a couple of pharmacies dotted around and the odd basic clothes shop, not high fashion obviously, but you'll find the basics that you need.
Pearl Shops
High quality items featuring South Sea pearls can be purchased from one of the island's pearl shops – the price tags match the quality of the pieces.
One such shop is Treasures from the Deep in Duong To which is run by a New Zealand company
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- OBTAINING A VISA TO ENTER VIETNAM
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