360 Best Sights in Vietnam

This imposing three-story palace just north of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum testifies to France's dedication to ostentatious architecture in Indochina. Constructed from 1900 to 1906, the bright, mustard-yellow building served as the living and working quarters of Indochina's governors-general. When Ho Chi Minh returned to Hanoi after the defeat of the French in 1954, he refused to live in the palace itself but chose the more modest quarters of the palace electrician. He did, however, offer use of the palace to distinguished guests during their visits to the capital. Today the building is used for formal international receptions and other important government meetings. You can view the structure from the outside but cannot enter the palace. Surrounding the building are extensive gardens and orchards, as well as the famed Mango Alley, the 300-foot pathway from the palace to Ho Chi Minh's stilt house.

Busy scenes in lacquer, ceramic, gold, and wood illustrate traditional Chinese stories at this pagoda, built in 1816 by a congregation of Fujian refugees from China. Many legendary and divine beings, some dressed in elaborately embroidered robes, are portrayed, as are some simple rural scenes representing the birthplaces of the original members of the congregation. This is still one of Cholon's most active pagodas.

Founded in 1653 by the Chinese community, this impressive temple is dedicated to Quan Van Truong, a revered general of the Chinese Han dynasty. The temple is divided into four parts: the front hall, the left and right sections, and the main sanctuary. The entrance leads through a large garden to the temple, where the main altar is, along with a gilt-and-papier-mâché statue of the general standing between two life-size, jolly-looking horses. Quan Cong lends itself to contemplation and meditation, and you get a real sense of that in the rear courtyard, gazing up at the unicorns and dragons perching on the colorful ceramic tiled roof or watching the small school of fish that happily dart around in the pond out front. The carp, symbolic of patience in Chinese mythology, is displayed throughout. Every year, on June 24 of the lunar calendar, Hoi An organizes a ceremony for Quan Cong, and pilgrims, especially merchants, come to the temple to make offerings.

Sunseekers disappointed by northern Vietnam's relative lack of good beaches will find succor at the beautiful stretch of sand at Minh Chau beach on the northeastern coast of Quan Lan. The water is too chilly for most during the winter months, while the summer months see a mass influx of Vietnamese tourists. Other points of interest on the island include a 200-year-old pagoda in Quan Lan Town. Beyond beach bumming, the main activities here include forest walks and leisurely cycling along the island's quiet byways.

A large black bronze statue of the Taoist god Tran Vu is housed here, protected on either side by wooden statues of civil and military mandarins. Built by King Ly Thai To in the 11th century, this much-made-over temple was once known as the Temple of the Grand Buddha; its present name translates into "Holy Mandarin Temple." An important collection of 17th-century poems can be seen in the shrine room. On the right side of this room is an altar dedicated to Trum Trong, the master bronze caster who oversaw the construction of Tran Vu's statue. Note the red, gold-stitched boots in the center of the shrine room; although such boots customarily appear in temples with figures of civil and military mandarins, Emperor Thanh Thai presented them in a vein of humor to Tran Vu's shoeless statue. Above the ornamented main gate is a 1677 replica of the bronze bell that supposedly lured the West Lake's legendary golden calf from China. Huge mango and longan trees drape over the courtyard, keeping the temple and its environs cool and somewhat dark, even at midday. Two mounted stone elephants, symbols of loyalty, flank the entrance here. Go in the morning to avoid the afternoon crowds.

One of Hoi An's ancient family homes, Quang Thang was built about 300 years ago by the current owners' Chinese ancestors. This house has some beautiful wood carvings featuring peacocks and flowers on the walls of the rooms that surround the mossy courtyard. These were sculpted by the craftsmen from the Kim Bong carpentry village, who are renowned for their intricate craftsmanship of the Hue garden houses. It's a beautiful and very well-preserved example of a trader's house, popular with large tour groups.

If Quang Thang House is busy, wait it out with a coffee at Lantern Town restaurant across the road.

About 40 km (25 miles) west of Quy Nhon, the Quang Trung Museum is dedicated to Emperor Quang Trung, one of the leaders of the Tay Son Rebellion, which began in 1772 as a peasant uprising and eventually led to the temporary overthrow of the Nguyen rulers in Hanoi. The museum has limited signage in English and is only really of interest to committed historians, given its out-of-the-way location.

Haiphong's pagodas are tucked into the city's alleyways or off in the suburbs; no major religious structures except the city's main Catholic cathedral stand out in the middle of town. The cathedral was built in 1880 by missionaries from Spain. Regular Masses are still held.

This white-sand beach is a long crescent dotted with basket boats that runs along An Duong Vuong Street. Like many parts of Vietnam, trash is a problem, but as of the present day the town seems to have made a real effort to look its best, and it's working. You can walk to the southern end of the beach, then up and over a headland to get to the more secluded but rocky Queen's Beach, then farther on to the Quy Hoa leper colony. Allocate half a day for this hike—it's a good 6 km (4 miles) or so. Amenities: food and drinks. Best for: walks; sunset; sunrise.

The largest reclining Buddha in Southeast Asia is on Ta Cu Mountain, which dominates the skyline in an otherwise low-lying landscape. Located about 28 km (17 miles) southwest of Phan Thiet, the 49-meter-long and 18-meter-high white concrete Buddha is at the top of a large temple complex, past a range of other deities, and offers stunning views of the surrounding land. Access is via a cable car that provides stunning views of the area and then a long haul up some steep stairs. There are usually plenty of pilgrims praying and lighting incense for all of the deities, including the reclining Buddha (Thich Ca Nhap Niet Ban), depicted as he enters Nirvana and shown with the most serene smile on his face. Several years ago, when renovation work was underway, every visitor to the site was asked to carry two bricks to the top of the complex for general absolution as well as to assist the construction workers.

Learn the secrets of Vietnamese cuisine at this cooking school located beside Thu Bon River. Half- and full-day cooking classes are available and include a market tour, boat transportation, and either lunch or dinner. Courses cost $23–$59 (550,000d–1,300,000d) and commence at Hai Café in Old Town, where they also run evening cooking classes daily (111 Tran Phu Street).

Take your bathing suit and grab a hammock by the pool; complimentary access is offered to all diners and students.

Around 15 minutes from the tourist strip of Mui Ne, the Red Sand Dunes are a very strange sight in a country renowned for its jungles, and provide great sunrise and sunset views. However, these are peak times for busloads of tour groups, so if you're after some more quiet, visit around 4 pm when the weather begins to cool a little and the sea breeze picks up. Children offer plastic mats for rent so tourists can slide down the dunes. Mats cost roughly 20,000d for an hour, plus tip.

Once an important observation point for the U.S Marines, the Rockpile (a 755-foot karst formation know in Vietnamese as Thon Khe Tri) was used for tracking the north Vietnamese army crossing in to the south and directing U.S military fire at their suspected positions. Other than the Rockpile, nothing remains in memorial to the site, but it's worth a stop for the scenery alone if you are traveling onwards to the Khe San Combat base.

The Royal Library, a wooden structure east of the Forbidden Purple City, is one of the few largely intact buildings in the Imperial City. The delicately carved architecture has survived, although there are no books or other library-like objects left. 

For more than 100 years, people in this little village on the southern bank of the Tien River in Sa Dec have grown flowers, herbs, and ornamental plants, transporting them to markets around the region by river. The flower farms line a 2-km (1-mile) stretch of road, and most are open to the public. The village is at its most spectacular in the lead-up to Tet, the lunar new year.

This is a very typical Mekong Delta market where locals come to stock up on groceries, clothing, and homewares. To see how people really shop and earn a living, this is the place to come, and get here early. There's a wide variety of fruit and vegetables here, as well as snails, fish, eels, eggs in several sizes, chickens and ducks squawking and quacking, dry goods, and spices. Stop by the fruit stalls in front of the market, or wander inside for a bowl of something cheap and tasty.

You'll regularly catch glimpses of the Saigon River, which snakes its way through many districts of Ho Chi Minh City, while you're sightseeing. A Saigon Waterbus trip is a cheap and comfortable way to view the city from the river, and the "kissing bridge," aka Thu Thiem Bridge, has stunning views of the city at night. Sadly, the ancient shade trees that used to line part of the river along Ton Duc Thang Street were chopped down to make way for a new bridge.

This is one of Phu Quoc's prettiest beaches, but it's also one of the island's dirtiest. The northern tip of Sao Beach tends to be much cleaner than the rest, with crystal clear water and fine white sand. Make sure you take the third, northernmost entry to the beach—the first two entrances are where the tour buses go, so the beach gets crowded and noisy with Jet Skis buzzing about. To the north of all this activity, you'll find Paradiso Beach Club, which has free showers, food and drinks, and a massage service upstairs. Amenities: food and drink; showers. Best for: snorkeling; sunrise; swimming; walking.

Now housed in a less-than-pleasant building near the bus station, the Sapa market is still the best place in Vietnam to purchase textiles. H'mong and Red Dao women are the primary sellers, and you can rest assured their products are handmade. Most sellers walk in from surrounding villages, while a few catch rides on the backs of motorcycles. They are often dressed in their finest traditional garb: richly embroidered vests and dresses, aqua-and-black cotton shirts, finely detailed silver necklaces and bracelets, and elaborate headdresses that tinkle with every movement. Many of these women have picked up a few French and English words or phrases. The real selling goes on upstairs, so skip the ground floor.

Part of the fun is bargaining, but don't express too much interest up front. Hold out for as long as you can, and then ask to see the good stuff. You'll likely be shown fabric of quality superior to what was offered only moments before.

The market is at its peak on Saturday, when tourists from Hanoi flood into Sapa; you may actually find it quieter and more fun on weekdays.

The first floor of this small museum is called the Sapa Minorities Handicraft Shop, and you can indeed purchase beautiful gifts here. For the information, head up the large wooden staircase and peruse the slightly dusty exhibits. You can get a useful crash course in the ethnology of the area and view photos and artifacts used in traditional celebrations.

About 6 km (4 miles) north of downtown Pleiku, Sea Lake is a flooded crater of an extinct volcano. A pine tree–lined road leads to a viewing area, which includes a female Buddha statue. It's clear why it's called Sea Lake, given that it's more than 200 hectares in size. Locals say the lake is at its best in the early morning when covered in fog that looks like strips of silk.

This long skinny park at the end of Ho Chi Minh City's backpacker district was built on the site of the city's former train station, which was demolished after the last war. The lush park, with its tall trees, is a pleasant spot to rest awhile after a long day of sightseeing. There's a small children's playground, a duck pond, and walking trails, which are full of locals exercising in the mornings and evenings. After dark, the park is where young couples sneak a bit of privacy, sitting on their motorbikes and cuddling. In the weeks leading up to Tet (Lunar New Year), the park is a blaze of color, with a temporary flower market selling potted flowers and shrubs, including bright yellow chrysanthemums, apricot blossoms, and miniature kumquat trees, as well as depictions of dragons and other animals made from fruit and flowers.

The park's proximity to the backpacker area makes it popular with scammers, who try to open a conversation by asking to practice their English or claiming to recognize you. The conversation usually moves on to offers of card games, visiting bars, or going to their home. Never accept any of these offers.

The Son My Memorial is dedicated to the victims of the massacre at My Lai and lies about 10 km (6 miles) east of National Highway 1A, just north of the town of Quang Ngai. The memorial itself is in the former hamlet of Thuan Yen, where many of the worst crimes occurred. The village, which was burned down after the attacks, has been re-created to look as it did immediately after the massacre, with the paths between the rice paddies containing the imagined footprints of the victims and their booted attackers, giving a chilling sense of the frenzy of killing that occurred. The nearby museum recounts the events of the day in vivid detail, with explanations in English and very graphic color photographs of some of the victims. English-speaking guides are available at the museum. In striking contrast to the terrible events that took place here, the memorial and the museum are located in a quiet and pastoral area. To get to the memorial, you can take public bus No. 3 from Quang Ngai bus station, or you can hire a taxi in Quang Ngai. Expect to pay around 200,000d each way for the taxi ride, and it's probably best that you ask the taxi driver to wait at the memorial.

The imposing square towers of this cathedral rise up from a small square near Hoan Kiem Lake on the edge of the Old Quarter. French missionaries built the cathedral in the late 19th century and celebrated the first Mass here on Christmas Day 1886. It feels as though nothing has changed since then—the liturgy has not been modernized since the cathedral was built. The small but beautiful panes of stained glass were created in Paris in 1906. Also of note is the ornate altar, with its high gilded side walls. The government closed down the cathedral in 1975, but when it reopened 10 years later the number of returning devotees was substantial.

This colorful temple, built in 1932, sits on top of a hill 4 km (2½ miles) east of Duong Dong Town. Access is via 40 stone steps, and it's more of a working temple than tourist destination.

For the best panoramic views of the city and the coastline beyond, forget the expensive skybars and instead take a ride on the Sun Wheel in city-central Asia Park. Scaling 110 meters (it's the 10th biggest in the world) and designed by famous U.S. architect Bill Bensley, the Sun Wheel is a great way to view the geography of Vietnam's fastest-growing city. Beside the all-time favorite Ferris wheel, there are other entertainment spots worth trying.

  If you are in Danang on either a Friday or Saturday night, time your ride to coincide with the fire-breathing display at the Dragon Bridge at 9 pm.

The highlight of this mountainside compound of attractions is a cable car system, which is 6,292.5 meters (20,645 feet) long and a stunning 1,410 meters (4,626 feet) high. It is the longest nonstop three-rope cable car in the world and allows anyone to get to the top of Mt. Fansipan in just a few short minutes. Designed by Doppelmayr, a German-Swiss-Austrian group, this cable car takes you through the mountain mist over beautiful rice terraces and valleys, and delivers you to the Sapa Station where you can take a funicular or walk 300 steps to the top. Many visitors have complained that the restaurants and shops at the top are an eyesore, but the construction shows true ingenuity.

This giant theme park has taken over much of Halong City bay and runs a cable car over the ocean next to the Bai Chay bridge. There are two main areas to the park: a beach water park and the Mystic Mountain complex, which includes the large Ferris wheel you can see from the boats. Tickets for the cable car and sun wheel are 300,000d.

This pretty stream and waterfall, about 6 km (4 miles) east of Duong Dong Town, suffers somewhat from its own popularity and has a serious litter problem, resulting from its use as a picnic spot among locals and Vietnamese tourists. If you want to visit, don't plan to swim.

Believed to be the world's only Buddhist-themed amusement park, Suoi Tien (the name means Fairy Stream) is certainly one of the quirkiest. On the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City, about 20 km (12 miles) from District 1 and behind a giant pair of tusks, it's a vast, sometimes downright odd, complex that contains an amazing diversity of attractions, from waterslides, crocodiles, and dolphins—thankfully, not all in the same place—to graphic depictions of hell, though there are not many signs in English to explain the more bizarre exhibits. There's also an ice palace, 4-D movie theater, fun fair rides for smaller kids, a go-kart circuit, and quad biking. Allocate a whole day to exploring the complex, and arrive early to get the land-based activities done before things heat up too much, then cool down in the water park, with its range of slides and pools to suit all ages. Food and drink kiosks can be found throughout the park.

The small zoo is depressing and best avoided.

Doing the water park and then exploring the theme park is going to be a huge day out, so it's probably better to choose one or the other for a day trip.