Hue! Here and There

Are you thinking of visiting Hue? This city is a very unique diversification of Vietnamese’s religion, culture and education especially from year 1802 to 1945. Tourist to Hue will have chance to visit the relic of 13 emperors of Nguyen Dynasty such as the tombs, the Citadel, worshiping places and ancient architectural structures around the city.

How to get there?

Travelling by air is the fastest way to enter Hue. Vietnam Airlines have several flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City daily. Hue’s Phu Bai Airport is located 13 kilometres from the city or 30 minutes by driving. You also can chartered a sharing cab with VND50,000 per person. If you are taking Vietnam Airlines, there is a mini bus service from their office in Hue to Phu Bai Airport with VND25,000 per person.

If you are not in the rush, you may come to Hue by bus. Along the way you may enjoy the beautiful scenery either from the south or north way. There are two bus stations for travellers to Hue. An Cuu Bus Station is serving for southern destination and this station is located at Hung Vuong street. In the meantime, An Hoa bus station is located at northwest of the Citadel at Highway 1 is serving for northern destinations.

Optionally, you may take a open minibus trip which you may book the ticket from your hotel or tour agents. But anyway, I will personally recommend you to take flight or train if you are going for a long journey such as Hanoi or Saigon because travelling by bus can be very hectic and tiring.

MUST-VISIT-1: The Citadel

Hue’s Citadel or Kinh Thanh is located at the northern bank of Perfume River (Song Huong). This Citadel used to heavily bomb by American during the war. The construction of this Citadel began in 1804 by Emperor Gia Long. During the era, most of the emperor’s official fuctions will be held in the Imperial Enclosure or called as “a citadel within the citadel”. There is a Forbidden City (Tu Cam Thanh) which only reserved for the royal use only but now, tourist can have all-access to this Citadel.

MUST-VISIT-2: The Royal Tombs

There are so many tombs in Hue. You don’t have to visit all of them, but still, you can prioritize your visit to some important tombs. The Tu Duc’s Tomb Complex is a very big and beautiful tomb with Frangipanis, pine trees and a lake. 500 meters from the Tu Duc’s Tomb is Tomb of Dong Khanh, the smallest among all and it was built in year 1889.

You also may visit the most majestic tomb called Tomb of Minh Mang, who ruled Hue from year 1820 to 1840. Last but not least, Tomb Khai Dinh is a worth for a visit which come with a great combination of European and Vietnamese traditional architecture.

Entrance fee:

• Tomb of Tu Duc – VND55,000
• Tomb of Dong Khanh – VND22,000
• Tomb of Minh Mang – VND55,000
• Tomb of Khai Dinh – VND55,000

MUST- VISIT-3: Worshiping Places

Thien Mu Pagoda is located at Le Duan street is an octagonal pagoda and this is one of the most popular pagoda in Vietnam. This pagoda was founded in 1601 by Thic Quang Duc who was publicly burned in death on 1963 as his protest to President’s Ngo Dinh Diem’s policies.

Bao Quoc Pagoda was founded in 1670 by a Chinese Buddhist monk, Giac Phong. There are monks and students come to this pagoda to study Buddhism.

Notre Dame Cathedral was built between 1959 and 1962 is a mix of Asian and European structure also a good place for photo snapping.

NOT-SO-VISIT: Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) Tours

This place is not worth a visit if you are not into Vietnam War history. A mix group day tour with a tour guide will cost you USD15 and you can visit places such as Khe Sanh Combat Base, Truong Son National Cemetery and Vinh Moc Tunnel. All remember to hire a qualified guide as some places at the DMZ still have unexploded ordnance.