Đồng Khởi Street (

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...

: ''Đường Đồng Khởi''), formerly known as Rue Catinat and Tự Do Street, is a street in District 1,

Ho Chi Minh City Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...

, Vietnam. The street stretches from Nguyễn Du Street, across from the Paris Commune Square, to Tôn Đức Thắng Boulevard and

Bạch Đằng Quay Bạch Đằng Quay () is a wharf and park with an address No.2 Tôn Đức Thắng Boulevard, Bến Nghé in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, District 1, downtown Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. It stretches along about of the Saigon River from the Th ...

Saigon River The Saigon River () is a river located in southern Vietnam that rises near Phum Daung in southeastern Cambodia, flows south and southeast for about and empties into the Nhà Bè River, which in its turn empties into the South China Sea some no ...

waterfront.

History

The street was originally named after the French Warship Catinat that participated in the mid-19th century attacks by France when that country was intent on seizing control of Viet Nam. The ship itself honored

Nicolas Catinat Nicolas Catinat (, 1 September 1637 – 22 February 1712) was a French military commander and Marshal of France under Louis XIV. Life The son of a magistrate, Catinat was born in Paris on 1 September 1637. He entered the Gardes Française ...

, a 17th- and 18th-century Marshal of France; but application of name to prominent street was intended to remind strollers of the first step toward control of a vanquished nation by a colonial power before its present incarnation as Đồng Khởi visitors to Saigon will remember Tự Do Street, as it was called by the Vietnamese after the French departed.

Buildings

Đồng Khởi Street is the location of numerous famous buildings from colonial to modern period, some of notable buildings: *

Hotel Continental Saigon The Hôtel Continental, or also known as Khách sạn Hoàn Cầu in Vietnamese, is a hotel in District 1, the central district of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The hotel is located at the corner of Đồng Khởi Street and Lam Sơn Square, by t ...

, the old foreign journalists' hang-out. Restored somewhat earlier than the other hotels, it has a more Vietnamese feel and is cheaper. The outdoor bar is gone, but the lobby one is furnished in rattan. * Hotel Majestic, located where the street meets the

. Built in 1925, with a central courtyard and a roof bar. French restoration, French prices. *

Caravelle Hotel The Caravelle Hotel Saigon is located in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The hotel was opened to the public on Christmas Eve 1959, when the city was known as Saigon. It was named after the Sud Aviation Caravelle, a jet airliner operated by the hotel' ...

*Seaprodex Building, previously the place of Café de la Rotonde * Grand Hotel, on the next corner in from the Majestic. A very French restoration—cream stucco and white marble dark mahogany, liveried attendants. The original building, the home of Fowler and Phuong in ''

The Quiet American ''The Quiet American'' is a 1955 novel by English author Graham Greene. Narrated in the first person by journalist Thomas Fowler, the novel depicts the breakdown of French colonialism in Vietnam and early American involvement in the Vietnam ...

'' may be seen among the photos in Norman Sherry's biography of the author. * Palais Cafe, a bar, also renovated.http://www.literarytraveler.com/literary_articles/graham_greenes_vietnam.aspx * Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture and Sports * Bông Sen Saigon Hotel *

Lam Sơn Square Lam Sơn Square () is the city square surrounding the Municipal Theatre of Ho Chi Minh City in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, District 1, downtown Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The square extends from Đồng Khởi Street to Hai Bà Trưng Street, ...

Saigon Opera House Saigon Opera House (, ), officially named Ho Chi Minh City Ballet, Symphony, Orchestra and Opera (), is a municipal opera house in downtown Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Like other French-built opera houses during French colonial period, including ...

* Opera View of Artex Saigon * Sheraton Saigon Grand Opera Hotel * Saigon Times Square / The Reverie Saigon Hotel * Saigontourist Plaza * Vincom Center Đồng Khởi / Chi Lăng Park * Saigon Union Square / Mandarin Oriental, Saigon, previously the place of Passage Eden * Metropolitan Tower

History

Buildings

Notes and references

See also