I visited Bui Vien Walking street as part of my 7 day trip in Vietnam, which includes a 3-day adventure in Da Lat as well.

The night portion of day 1 took me to the heart of Saigon's nightlife scene - Bui Vien Walking street! Before you even arrive, prepare yourself for the crazy traffic around the area. If you want a taste of Vietnam traffic, this would be a good place to be in. Expect to get caught in heavy traffic if you're travelling by car, therefore I highly suggest taking a Grab bike into the area. If you're in a group of 4, then get 4 bikes - Do it, it's worth the time (and price).

The entrance is easily recognizable with a huge LED board latched between 2 buildings. You can also roughly tell based on the direction which the blaring music is coming from.

I arrived at around 7pm, which was clearly peak hour, given the endless stream of people slipping past each other in a messy tangle of human traffic.

If you've been to Bangla Road in Phuket, you'll find Bui Vien walking street strikingly similar (Though Bangla Road has a much wider walkway)

Flanked by rows of bars and pubs on both sides, the street was thriving with energy. As you walk down the street, as with many touristy spots, expect shop owners to pester you to dine in at their establishment - One even followed me for a good 10 - 20 meters (Are solo travellers easier to entice? I'm not sure, but don't be pressured if you're really not interested).

Many bars also feature gogo dancers showing flashy moves atop a podium outside the club to entice customers to enter. One of the bars I entered even had a stage in the middle of the bar - Sitting there brings you within contact distance of the gogo dancers themselves.

If you get lucky, you can get a chance to witness fire blowing street performances, where performers put flammable liquids in their mouth and ignite it right in front of your eyes. While that added to the atmosphere, it is common practice for them to approach spectators for tips afterwards.

In short, I had 2 rounds of dinner - First at a small noodle shop by the side of the street and a slightly bigger shop, where the staff looked shocked to see a single diner ordering items off their menu which were meant for sharing.

The entertainment and sound of blaring music continues on another good few hundred meters before gradually dissipating into the background, which signals that you've reached the end of Bui Vien Walking street.