It was
built where once the Dai La city raised up, on the right bank of Song Hong (red
river) and it is the capital of the unified Vietnam. When it fell in the
French’s hands, in 1882, it underwent a great transformation and modernization,
but the soul of the old Thang Long city is still alive in the historic center
dating back to the XV c., when it was known as a city composed of 36 streets and guild locations. The streets still present
the name of the articles that were sold there. You can’t miss the temple of
literature, the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum and the colonial quarters.
The Hué
city was the capital of Vietnam from
1802 to 1945, during the reign of the 13 emperors of the Nguyen dynasty. The
main attractions are, indeed, the emperors’ tombs, the numerous pagodas and the
ruins of the ancient city built in 1687, where the Perpetual Forbidden city is
nowadays, old residence of the imperial family. Situated on the banks of the
river of the perfumes, at only 15 km from the South China Sea coast, it is one
of the main touristic attractions of the country.
Not far
from Da Nang, it was once a flourishing commercial harbor and a big cultural
exchange center between East and West. Harmonious set of old temples, pagodas,
clan’s houses and shops it boasts numerous interesting points: the covered
Japanese bridge, built in the XVII c., with a curved form and a wavy roof with
green and yellow shingles; the Chua Phuc Kien pagoda (1792), meeting point of
many generations of the same clan, dedicated to the cult of the Thien Hau
woman; the Puhc Thanh (XV c.) and its particularly beautiful statues; Nguyen
Thai Hoc Street, the most typical one of Hoi An, a mixture of the Chinese,
Japanese and Vietnamese style.
Situated at
80 km as the crow flies form the coast, it
extends on the right bank of the Saigon river. The presence of the French is
still felt in the colonial architecture and in the long boulevards. You can’t
miss the Post Office and the Thien hau pagoda, the Chinese market.
Other
must-visits are the Cu Chi, at 35 km northwest of Saigon, an area that acted a
role of primarily importance in the wars against the French and the Americans,
thanks to its 200 km of galleries, a real underground village, used by the
Vietcong warriors.
It is a locality
of the province of Phu Kanh, south of the country, and a seaside touristic
locality of Vietnam thanks to the beautiful and long beaches stud with tropical
scenarios and the 71-islands archipelago with its barrier reef, where it is
possible to have journeys to snorkel and dive. In the surroundings you can
visit the old Pasteur Institute, the Oceanographic Institute, the warm Truong
Xuan springs, the Long Son pagoda and the Cham tower of Po Nagar.
The state
capital is a lively small city and the nearest locality to Saigon (about 3
hours by car). In addition to some resorts there is the best golf course of
Vietnam, the Ocea Dunes Golf Club.
It is found
in the Siam gulf and is reachable by plane from Saigon. It has beautiful
white-sand beaches and it’s recommended as a quiet destination at the sea after
the end of the tour.
The small
archipelago of Con Dao is situated south-east of Vietnam and is reachable in 45
minutes by plane from Ho Chi Min. The main island is Con Son and the capital is
So Muoi. Con Dao is a national park, that includes one part of the island and
one of the surrounding sea. Con Son is an ideal destination for sea vacation
for divers and nature lovers; its marine park is known for its richness of
ecological biodiversity, among which there are some endangered species like the
marine green turtles and the dugongs, and the biggest collection
of giant clams of the world. The forests
of the island are equally worth visiting, where you can see almost 300 types of
trees, among which 44 ones do not exist in other
places of Vietnam.
A trip to
the northern part of Vietnam can’t be considered complete without visiting the
Quang Ninh province: adjoining China northward, it hosts what not only the
Vietnamese consider the 8th wonder of the world, the Halong bay,
maybe the most spectacular place in the whole country. With its 3.880 kmq
dotted by a thousand of islands of calcareous origin, this bay is also famous
for the unique sculptures in the rock made by the atmospheric agents.
The most
modern city of the Mekong delta, it is the only one that hosts a university.
Important commercial center and river port, it is situated on the banks of the
Hau river, the most southern tributary of Mekong. It is also an excellent
starting point to visit the delta.
State
capital of the Nghe An province, it is one of the most popular provinces of the
country. Docking point for the river excursions in the area of Mekong delta.
This old
mountain station was established in 1922 at the foot of the Phan Si Pan mount,
that, with its 3143 m, is the highest mountain of Vietnam. This center raises up at 1600 m o.s.l. in a spectacular mountain landscape covered
by a green and thick vegetation. In the area there are a lot of ethnic
minorities with their colorful traditional clothing: they live cultivating
rice, fruit trees and medical herbs and trading the hand-woven fabrics. From
Sapa, at about 300 km from Hanoi, you can participate to numerous excursions by
foot in the surroundings, along the paths that go through the terraced paddy
fields. It is the paradise for photographers in love with landscapes and close-ups.
