SE Asia Tour Packages
§ World Heritage -
.. Indochina
§ Vietnam Complete
§ Laos Discovery
§ Cambodia Essence
§ Vietnam Essence

'Mix & Match' Tours
§ City of Hanoi
§ Pagodas & History
§ Ha Long Bay & Yen Tu
§ Ancient Capitals
§ Northern Highlands
§ Cao Bang & Lang Son
§ Central Highlands
§ Hue Monuments
§ Cham Discovery
§ Mekong & the South
§ Cu Chi & Tay Ninh
§ Ho Chi Minh City


Tell us about your particular interests, and we'll take you to places only the local guides know. Whether it's active travel, sun worship, study tours, Vietnam War sites, or satisfying your culinary curiosity, Mikeland welcomes a challenge!

Home > "Mix & Match" Tours > Hanoi City Tours

Hanoi, which first became the capital of Vietnam in the 11th Century, shows its age well, with its old quarter and historic buildings set against tree-lined streets and fabled lakes.

This is an entry point to Vietnam for many travelers, so if you're on vacation, we caution you not to try to do much in too little time. If you're staying at a hotel near Hoan Kiem Lake, you will probably be content taking an evening stroll around the park or into the side streets, which are a shopper's delight.

For your tour options, select from the following attractions--we recommend limiting yourself to two museums in a morning or afternoon. Lunch and dinner are flexible; please let us know if you would like us to make dining arrangements as a part of your city tour.

Focus on Traditional Vietnamese Heritage and Arts

  • The Museum of Ethnology, which opened in 1997, has quickly become one of Vietnam's most-admired attractions for those who take the time to find it. (The Museum is about 4-5 miles from the center of the city.) Through colorful displays, video installations, and detailed English-language signage, the shows the diverse customs and dress of Vietnam's 54 ethnic minorities. A promenade behind the Museum building winds through full-scale examples of the characteristic buildings of each group, including the towering thatched roof of a Bahnar dwelling and the explicit wood carvings that decorate a Giarai tomb.
  • Van Mieu, or the "Temple of Literature," was built by the Ly Dynasty in the 11th Century to honor Confucian learning and the mandarin tradition. Soon afterwards, the country's first national college was established next to the temple. This complex of courtyards is perhaps the oldest and best-preserved example of the imperial government of Vietnam.
  • The National History Museum's spacious open-air halls are home to an extensive collection of cultural artifacts and displays that tell the story of Vietnam from its very earliest Bronze Age cultures through the centuries of Chinese rule, to the legacies of the great ruling dynasties.
  • The Museum of Fine Arts devotes much of its exhibition space to postcolonial Vietnamese art, in addition to its outstanding collection of Cham sculpture, Buddhist art, and traditional dinh (community hall) carvings.

Focus on Colonial and Recent History

  • The Ho Chi Minh Museum and his tomb are within easy walking distance of each other. Visitors also enjoy the tranquillity of the stilt house (said to be inspired by the minority style) that Ho Chi Minh used from 1955-1969. As long as you're in the area, you should also stop at the "One Pillar Pagoda" (right), which dates back to the 11th Century.
  • The War Museum focuses on the French and American Wars--in particular, the victory against the French at Dien Bien Phu (1954) and the Tet Offensive (1968).
  • The Women's Museum is very popular with foreign travelers; particularly for its collection of minority textiles.
  • The Revolutionary Museum, opened in 1959, is devoted to the history of the resistance against the French colonial government, and the ensuing conflict in South Vietnam.

Pagodas

  • Tran Quoc Pagoda on the West Lake.
  • Bach Ma (White Horse) Pagoda.
  • Hai Ba Trung Temple.
  • Ngoc Son Temple.
  • Tay Ho Pagoda.

 

  • Hanoi is a great starting point for our tours of North Vietnam: Ha Long Bay, Ancient Capitals, Pagodas & History, Cao Bang and Lang Son, and the Northern Highlands.
  • An hour-long cyclo-ride is the perfect introduction to the 'Old Quarter,' which is a web of narrow streets just to the north of Hoan Kiem Lake, many of them dedicated to specific trades and crafts such as woodworking.
  • As an after-dinner treat, we highly recommend the water puppet show. The spirited music is good for the digestion, and the lively acrobatics of animal spirits, villagers, and mandarins paint a colorful picture of traditional village life in Vietnam.