Vietnam Attractions

There are a number of Vietnam attractions. If you are planning to stay around the country for some time, you will have plenty to see. The attractions in Vietnam centre around Hanoi and the Ho Chi Minh City since these were primarily the centres of war and human brutalities over a long period of time.

Coming over to the city of Hanoi, the imposing Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum cannot be missed by the traveller in the city. Ho Chi Minh was the towering Communist Leader and Statesman who was later on the Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The year 1954 saw his being overthrown by a military siege of the country but he remained the people’s leader for years to come. The Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum was built much against his wishes to be cremated and his body lies embalmed in a special casket made for him. The Mausoleum has a set of strict rules for visitors and silence is the first prerogative when moving in the precincts of Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum.

The Old Quarter Hanoi is one of the prime spots that every tourist would want to visit. This attraction in Vietnam is one that cannot be missed by any tourist in Vietnam. The old quarter Hanoi has a history covering 2000 years long before Vietnam came into existence. In those days, the Chinese used the area to marshal all their supplies from local craftsmen who moved in and formed small villages. These men supplied their wares to the local Chinese population, which was later transported to mainland China. There was a system of heavy taxation on the earnings of these artisans and people having shops with living quarters were the most heavily taxed. The people to avoid taxes moved their houses at the back of the shops and the structure of these houses were peculiar. They were generally 3 meters in width and about 60 meters long. The Old Quarter Hanoi is now a shadow of its distant past with business picking up and newer and wider shops replacing some of the earlier pagodas and temples. However, the charm of the Old Quarter Hanoi still remains with some shops still functioning the way they did as the ancestors of the present day owners wanted them to.

There are a set of interesting network of tunnels known as the Cu Chi tunnels in Vietnam. Again, a relic of the war, these tunnels was the shelters for the war soldiers during the day. They would often come out in the night and engage in bitter battles – some never to return ever to the shelter. The Cu Chi tunnels were said to be extremely low on ventilation and had a swarm of poisonous insects and spiders spread throughout the network.

The Halong Bay is another iconic tourist spot and is famous for the excellent view it provides out into the South China Sea. Halong Bay consists of around 3000 small islands and some of them are still inhabited. The ancient bay is reputed for the ancient limestone cliffs that have been looming across the bay for millions of years.

Another landmark in Vietnam is the One Pillar Pagoda built about a thousand years ago by Emperor Ly Thai Tong who wished to have a son. The pagoda came up in his dreams and he was soon gifted with a baby son. Overjoyed, he built the one pillar pagoda in the centre of a lotus pond, which is now a great tourist attraction in Vietnam.

Finally The Perfume River is a must see for all tourists in Vietnam. The river, which runs through the Central Vietnamese Province of Thira Thien Hue, is said to follow a course through a flower garden and orchard in Hue. In autumn when the flowers fall in to the river, there is a misty perfume that arises from the waters and hence it has the name of the Perfume River.