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Jade Emperor Pagoda

Jade Emperor Pagoda

Place · Đa Kao and Tân Định

Photo: Wolfgang Weber, CC BY 3.0
Chùa Ngọc Hoàng (Phước Hải Tự)Đa Kao and Tân Định, Ho Chi Minh Citygogate: unknown

Half an hour of dark halls, carved figures and incense in a 1900s Taoist temple; go mid-afternoon, then walk to Tân Định for dinner.

Time on site25–35 minp95 50 min
PriceFreeadult, 2026 estimate
28″ bagsPainful WarningĐa Kao and Tân Định
Step-freePartial Warning
Sensory loadModerate3 of 5 · Moderate
  • Smoky halls
  • 30 minutes
  • Free
  • Free entry
  • Works with kids
  • Mostly indoors

Highlights come from Voykit's own data and desk notes, not from reviews. Hover a tag to see its source.

Rules in force · 9Drug trafficking can carry the death penalty in Singapore…Hold phones and bags on the side away from the road
  • Southeast Asia ↗Drug trafficking can carry the death penalty in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Brunei and Myanmar; never carry a bag or parcel for anyone.
  • Southeast Asia ↗Carry a passport valid for at least six months from entry with two blank pages; airlines refuse boarding on less.
  • Vietnam ↗Apply for the e-visa only on the official government portal; lookalike sites charge extra.
  • Vietnam ↗Crossing streets: walk slowly and steadily; motorbikes flow around you — do not stop or run.
  • Vietnam ↗Carry Vietnamese đồng in small notes; many stalls and taxis are cash-only.
  • Southern Vietnam ↗The Mekong's floating markets finish by about 09:00: to see one working, sleep in Cần Thơ or nearby and be on the boat by 05:30.
  • Southern Vietnam ↗Phú Quốc's 30-day visa exemption applies only to direct international arrivals on the island; connecting via Saigon or Hanoi needs a normal visa or exemption.
  • Ho Chi Minh City ↗Hold phones and bags on the side away from the road: snatch thefts by passing motorbikes are the city's most common crime against visitors.
  • Ho Chi Minh City ↗Leave for Tân Sơn Nhất before 16:00 or after 19:00 when you can: the evening rush can double the airport ride.
Hours unknown
More
Map & directions
Google Maps Apple Maps Street View
Directions
From where I am

Add your hotel to get directions from it. · stays in this browser; shared with the pocket card.

Plan

Open now, best time to go, opening hours

Go now?

hours and prices: check on the day
Open
Hours unknown
Crowds

Quietest Mon–Fri · busiest Sun · desk estimate

Tickets
  • Adult: Free
Time to spend
25–35 min · up to 50 min if you linger
Directions Add to a day →

Best time to go

Worshippers on the 1st and 15th of the lunar month and at Tết; couples and women praying for children at the Kim Hoa altar.

By weekday: quietest Mon–Fri, busiest Sun.

Opening hours
Note
Gate hours not printed until verified.
Hours note
Day hours, commonly early morning to early evening.

Which month is quietest

desk estimate · not counted
  1. Janpacked
  2. Febpacked
  3. Marbusy
  4. Aprbusy
  5. Maybusy
  6. Junbusy
  7. Julbusy
  8. Augbusy
  9. Sepbusy
  10. Octbusy
  11. Novbusy
  12. Decbusy

Quietest Mar–Dec · busiest Jan–Feb.

Estimate: lunar calendar and Tết patterns; not counted. Holidays and events move these weeks.

Weather here, next 7 days

Loading forecast…

Forecast: Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0), model data for this point.

Not checked in the last 12 months (no check date on file).

On the ground

Getting in, access, sensory load, what to bring, and where to go if it does not work

Getting in

Stop
73 Mai Thị Lựu, Đa Kao
Ticket
free · official site
Stairs
Not recorded
Shoes
Shoes on in most halls; follow signs.

Accessibility

  • PartialStep-free entrance
  • PartialWheelchair
  • PartialStroller · caution

Sensory load

  • Sensory load3/5 Medium

Exposure: low

What to bring and the rules

  • Footwear that suits the rule · Shoes on in most halls; follow signs.

Rules and prices change: check the official site before you go.

Bailouts

  • heat: Café row on Mai Thị Lựu (AC)

Nearest rescue anchor: A — Jade Emperor Pagoda courtyard (shade)

Not checked in the last 12 months (no check date on file).

Map and nearby

Where it is, how to get there from your hotel or from where you stand, and what is around it

Jade Emperor PagodaJade Emperor PagodaSaigon Central Post OfficeNotre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of SaigonWar Remnants MuseumIndependence PalaceBánh Xèo 46A Đinh Công TrángPhở Hòa (260C Pasteur)Hum Vegetarian (Võ Văn Tần)Bến Thành Street Food Market

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Map layers
Show only
Google Maps Apple Maps Street View
Directions
From where I am

Add your hotel to get directions from it. · stays in this browser; shared with the pocket card.

Nearby places

Eat nearby

More detail

Everything else we know about this place

Tickets, prices and entry

Tickets & entry

2026 estimate · check the posted board
Where to buy
  • No ticket needed.

Official site ↗

What's closed
  • Festival dayscheckPacked at Tết and on the Jade Emperor's day (9th of the 1st lunar month).

“Check” dates move year to year: confirm on the official page for your date.

TicketPriceNote
EntryFreeDonation box.

What to see, in order

01

Jade Emperor altar

The Taoist ruler of heaven with guardians, in the smoky main hall.

02

Hall of the Ten Hells

Carved wooden panels of punishments in the afterlife.

03

Kim Hoa (goddess of fertility) hall

Figures of women and children; visitors pray for babies.

04

Turtle pond

Released turtles in the front courtyard.

How to do it well

  1. 1Mid-afternoon; 30 minutes is enough.
  2. 2Walk 15 minutes west to Tân Định church and market afterwards, or ride.

Facilities

toilets
Check; use cafés.
Time on site, inside and your plan

Time on site

minutes

Minimum

20min

Worthwhile

25min

Typical

35min

p95

50min

How much time do you have?

from the time-on-site figures above

Enough for a typical visit (35 min).

Nothing else in our notes is a short enough walk from here for the time that is left.

Visit times are typical figures, not promises; queues and closing times can change them.

Inside, in order

highlights in walking order

  1. Jade Emperor altar

    The Taoist ruler of heaven with guardians, in the smoky main hall.

  2. Hall of the Ten Hells

    Carved wooden panels of punishments in the afterlife.

  3. Kim Hoa (goddess of fertility) hall

    Figures of women and children; visitors pray for babies.

  4. Turtle pond

    Released turtles in the front courtyard.

Step-free check, who it suits, facilities

Step-free check

wheelchair: caution
  • Step-free entrance: partly · partly
  • Wheelchair: partly · partly
  • Stroller: partly · partlycaution

Thresholds and low steps between halls.

With kids

kids: okstroller: caution
with kids
Turtles, carved figures; the hells panels may scare small children.
Combine with

Combine with

nearest first
  1. 14 minBánh Xèo 46A · eat
  2. 15 minTân Định church

Walk the Đa Kao and Tân Định area · the cluster page has the walking order, rescue stops and after-dark notes

Best photo time

Deep dive

Questions, photos, and where our facts come from

Questions and answers

Questions and answers

answered by Voykit editors · dated
Did Barack Obama visit?

Yes, in 2016, which put it on many tour itineraries; it is still a working temple.

Checked 2026-09-28 · Voykit desk

Answers come from Voykit editors, not from other travellers.
Photos

Photos

1 · free licences, credited
Deep dive

Sources

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Directions
85 pages, for the metro and roaming-off days
Not saved offline