Saigon Central Post Office: Unique Constructions in Ho Chi Minh

Saigon Central Post Office (Vietnamese: Bưu Điện Trung Tâm Sài Gòn) is one of the typical architectural works in Ho Chi Minh City, located at No 2, Công Xã Pari (Public Square of Paris), District 1. This building was built by French in about five years (1886–1891) with European style according to the design project of architect Villedieu and his assistant Foulhoux. The post office is in a Western-style architecture combined with Eastern decoration.

• Location: 2 Cong Xa Paris, Ben Nghe, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
• Opening Hours: Daily 07:00 – 19:00
• Telephone Number: +84 83 822 1677
• Entrance Ticket Cost: Free of Charge

Outside, the front of the building is decorated with rectangular boxes, on which the inventors of the telegraph and electricity industries are listed. On the boxes are covered with images of men and women wearing a laurel wreath, on the arc of the house with a large clock.

Inwardly, on both sides of the high walls are two historical maps named: Saigon et ses environs (roughly translated: Saigon and its surroundings), 1892 and Lignes télégraphiques du Sud Vietnam et du Cambodge (roughly translated: Telegraph line of South Vietnam and Cambodia), 1936.

Architecture of Saigon Central Post Office:

• Exterior of Building:

The architecture of Saigon Central Post Office is a combination of Western and Asian styles. When you come to the main entrance, there is a giant clock hanging above the entrance with the years of construction 1886 – 1891.

Between the old green windows of construction, there are names of the French inventors who devoted to telegram and electricity: Benjamin Franklin, Alessandro Volta, and Michael Faraday.

• Interior of Building:

When you enter this place, you can see the dome roof covering the whole length of the construction. The pillars supporting the roof are propping up the front dome, and the halls’ domes are supported by rows of pillars on the two sides.

Above booths of the international telephone near the entrance, you can see two very large maps; one shows the telecom system of Cambodia and Vietnam in the year of 1936, and the other map describes Saigon and its surrounding areas in 1892.

On the left and right wings of construction, there are two staircases leading to the souvenir shops along the halls. At the end of the central hall, there is a portrait of President Ho Chi Minh hanging above.

See Also:

• List of Best Things to Do & Top Places to See in Ho chi Minh

• Best Local Restaurants That Should Not Be Missed in Saigon

Adventure Journey Vietnam