Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens

The Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens is the green lung of central Ho Chi Minh City and one of the oldest zoos in the world. The botanical garden was founded in 1864 by the French botanist Jean Baptiste Louis Pierre, who ran it until 1877, and the zoo was commissioned the same year by Admiral de La Grandiere. It opened to the public on 17 February 1869. Today it covers about 20 hectares on the edge of District 1.

For many visitors the gardens are the real attraction. There are around 1,830 trees and plants of some 260 species, including orchids, cacti and bonsai, and some of the trees are more than a hundred years old. The garden paths give welcome shade, and with about 1.8 million visitors in 2023 it is one of the city's most visited green spaces. The animal collection includes a reptile house, a crocodile lake, bird areas and enclosures for herbivores and small carnivores, and there is a small amusement park for children.

Two other sights stand inside the grounds. The Ho Chi Minh City Museum of History holds tens of thousands of artefacts on the history, culture and ethnography of southern Vietnam, and is worth adding to your visit if you have time. The Temple of the Hung Kings, near the main gate, was originally built as a memorial to Indochinese soldiers who died for France in the First World War.

It is best to think of the site as a historic garden with a zoo rather than a modern wildlife park. Allow two to three hours for the gardens, zoo and museum together. Come early in the morning or late in the afternoon, when the animals are more active and the heat is easier, and bring water and insect repellent.

The main gate is at 2B Nguyen Binh Khiem Street, with another entrance on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street. Ba Son station on Metro Line 1 is the nearest stop, and the Jade Emperor Pagoda is a short ride away, making the two an easy combination for a morning away from the downtown traffic.