The Beautiful Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon

Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon

The central Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigonl is one of the most famous landmarks in Ho Chi Minh City, thanks to its special architecture and rich spirituality.  It is located in the  crowded downtown District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City and is opposite the Saigon Post Office.

In 1962 the Vatican conferred the Cathedral status as a basilica and gave it the official name of Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica.

Established by French colonists who initially named it Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Saïgon, the cathedral was constructed between 1863 and 1880. All the original building materials were imported from France. The outside of the buildings was built totally of red bricks from Marseille without being plastered or cemented. It still remains fresh orange-red color until today.

The Notre Dame Cathedral is 133 meters long and 35 meters wide.

There are beautiful 56 stain glassed windows that depict characters and events in the Bible through which the sun shines onto the stone floor. These windows were made in France’s Chartres Province, France.

The interior includes he central nave, the 21m high chancel (main altar) in the middle separated by rows of pillars from two side chapels. Above the main entrance is the space of choir - which contains a handmade pipe organ, one of the oldest organs in Vietnam. The Cathedral can accommodate up to 1,200 people.

The stunning interior features high, domed ceilings framed with dark brown arches that crisscross over the ceiling and extend down to column the hallway. Elegant white trim adorns the columns while curved stained glass windows filter sunlight onto central portraits of Jesus Christ at the altar.

It has two bell towers, reaching a height of 58 meters (190 feet). Each tower has 6 bronze bells weighing 28.95 tonnes that still ring out loudly today. Between the bell towers, there’s a large clock. It was manufactured in Switzerland in 1887 and weighs 1 ton.

Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon

There is a park with four paths intersecting to form a cross in front of the Cathedral. There is a 4 metre Virgin Mary statue standing in the middle of this square that was added 

in 1959.

When I visited the Cathedral last month I could not go inside as it is currently undergoing large-scale restoration work. This includes a new tile roof, a reinforced foundation, repairing the bell system, replacing broken sheets of stained glass, replacing damaged bricks, and other general maintenance which is expected to be completed at
the end of 2019.

The Masses are still held weekly but visitors are not allowed at other times.

Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon
Address: 01 Công xã Paris, Bến Nghé, Quận 1, Quận 1 Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam