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 Hanoi Sights
All information What you need to travel to Hanoi - Vietnam
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Hanoi do & don't
Museums
• Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
The city down south may have his name, but only Hanoi has the man himself, entombed in distinctly Lenin-esque fashion - against his wishes, but that's how it goes. No talking, short pants, or other signs of disrespect allowed while viewing; photos are allowed only from outside, in the grand Ba Dinh Square. Purses are allowed into the tomb, but expect them to be searched by several bored soldiers along the way.
• Ho Chi Minh Museum(19 Ngoc Ha St., Ba Dinh, Hanoi)
Right around the corner, this gleaming white museum and its gloriously ham-handed iconography are the perfect chaser to the solemnity of the mausoleum. The building, completed in 1990, is intended to evoke a white lotus. Some photos and old letters are on display on the second floor, but the main exhibition space is on the third floor. It is one of the more informative museums in Vietnam, and perhaps one of the oddest in the world.
• Fine Arts Museum, 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street.
Only party-approved art is shown here and there is no information in English and only little in Vietnamese. But it is an interesting museum at any rate, with pieces such as the wonderful pictures of soldiers on boats depicted on prehistoric bronze drums, Buddhist art, and revolutionary art of the 20th century wars.
• Temple of Literature (On Quoc Tu Giam St., south of the Mausoleum)
The Temple of Literature was founded in 1070 and established as the country's first university six years later. The courtyard features numerous stone tablets, each mounted on the back of a tortoise, with the names of graduates.
• National Museum of Vietnamese History (No. 1, Trang Tien Street)
This is a collection from Vietnamese history from about 1000 years back until 1945. From 1945 onwards, you can go to the Museum of the Vietnamese Revolution located just a five minute walk away.
It is housed in a colonial French building which was completed in 1932. The building, designed by the architect Ernest Hébrard is considered as a successful blend between the colonial French architecture and traditional Vietnamese architecture, called Indochina architecture. He created double-walls and balconies for a natural ventilation system and protection from sunshine.
• Museum of Ethnology, Nguyen Van Huyen St, Cau Giay district
It covers mainly the culture and ritual practices of the various ethnic groups in the whole of Vietnam - one of the key attractions of the museum is the open-air exhibition, which has houses of some ethnic groups, which even comes with inhabitants in costumes. The museum features actual explanations of the exhibits in Vietnamese, French and English.
Parks
• Hoan Kiem Lake
Hoan Kiem Lake is a pleasant park in the center of town, within easy walking distance from anywhere in the Old Quarter. It's the locals' favorite leisure spot, and a great place to watch people practicing tai chi in the morning or to sit and read in the afternoon. Hoan Kiem means "returned sword", and the name comes from a legend in which King Le Loi was given a magical sword by the gods, which he used to drive out the invading Chinese
• Ho Tay
Ho Tay, or "West Lake", is northwest of the city, and is mostly a residential hub of the well-to-do. Sofitel Plaza Hotel, one of the most luxurious hotels in Hanoi, is located on this lakefront.
Wartime sites
• Hoa Lo Prison ("The Hanoi Hilton"), 1 Hoa Lo, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi
This prison was built by the French at the turn of the 20th century, in classical French prison design. This is where the French imprisoned and executed many of the Vietnamese freedom fighters. The prison was also used to hold U.S. prisoners of war. Now a museum (2/3 of the prison was torn down to make way for the Hanoi Towers), the museum exhibits the brutal French colonial regime and the struggle of the Vietnamese people against imperialism in chilling detail.
Theatre
Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre (57 Dinh Tien Hoang St., across the street from the shores of the Hoan Kiem Lake). A visit to the water puppet theater is a real highlight of a trip to Hanoi. Live musicians accompany folk legends from Vietnamese history, told with wooden men, women and dragons, dancing and splashing on the face of the water. The narratives are sung in Vietnamese, but a list of titles is available in several languages.
Pagoda
• Tran Quoc Pagoda
This pagoda may be one of the oldest in Vietnam. According to legend, it was built during the Nam De Dynasty (544-548). The present pagoda still maintains a unique architecture so different from other pagodas. At the front, there is a visitor’s hall before entering the interior of the pagoda. At the rear there are two corridors and a bell tower. Inside the pagoda are various beautiful statues, the most notable of which is the wooden gilded statue of Shakyamuni Buddha. There are also stone slab steles, the oldest of which was built in 1639. There is a luxuriant Bo tree in the pagoda's current playground that was a monument presented by the President of India who paid a visit to the pagoda in 1959.
• Lang Pagoda
The Lang Pagoda is located in Lang Village in the Dong Da District of Hanoi. It was built during the reign of King Ly Anh Tong (1138-1175). Over eight centuries have elapsed since its original construction and its exterior has undergone numerous changes during repairs. Yet, it remains in its original location. It was last altered during the mid-19th century.
• One Pillar PagodaOne-Pillar Pagoda
Travelers find the One-Pillar Pagoda either charming and lovely or utterly pointless, depending on how many tour groups are crammed into the small grounds at the time of their visit. Either way, it's free.
• Ngoc son Temple
Handicraft village
• Van Phuc village
Van Phuc Silk Village is situated on the banks of Nhue Thi River, Nguyen Trai Road, near Ha Dong city, 8 km southwest of Ha Noi. It takes you only 30 minutes by motorbike to go there from the centre of Hanoi. The village has been much well known for its traditional sericulture, weaving, and silk products. Tourists coming here are lured by various beautiful shirts, crafts, ties, dresses and many other things made of silk available in the village. What is special is that the silk is made by very simple looms, which is the genuinely traditional Vietnamese way of making silk.
• Bat Trang village
Bat Trang is a village in North Vietnam about 13 kilometers south east of Hanoi, on the Red river. It has been famous for its ceramics for a thousand years, particularly dinnerware and ornamental ware. Perhaps the most outstanding strength of Bat Trang village is its tradition of making pottery. The people are very skilful and talented, producing a product that has a distinctive look. Bat Trang traditional quality pottery includes bowl, dish, pot, cup, wine pot, a big flower-vase, leg lamp, lime-pot, big-bellied jar with glazes such as ancient pearl blaze, crackle glaze, dark glaze, indigo-blue flower glaze, grey flower glaze, melt glaze... Craftsmanship developed over many generations.
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