Morning, take a full day city tour beginning with Ho Chi Minh Complex which features the life of Ho Chi Minh, the nation’s founder. At the complex, visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, where the nation’s founder’s body is preserved (closed on Monday, Friday and through October - November), the colonial Presidential Palace, originally the French Governor Office and a fine example of French architecture in Hanoi, and the rural style Ho Chi Minh’s house on stilts where Ho Chi Minh lived and worked. Stop at the One Pillar Pagoda, built in the 11th Century in dedication to Buddha of Compassion and reminiscent of a lotus blossom rising from a pond. Continue to the Temple of Literature, known as the first university of Vietnam built in 1070 by the Ly Dynasty to honor Confucius, sages and outstanding Vietnamese scholars. Lunch with traditional food.
Afternoon, continue the tour to one of the following museums of choice namely the Museum of Fine Arts, the National Museum of Vietnamese History, the Museum of Revolution, the Museum of Military History or the Museum of Ethnology. Take a cyclo tour through Hanoi’s downtown to sightsee the Old Quarter of 36 ancient streets, the Trang Tien Plaza shopping center, the colonial French-built Opera House, an elegant architectural landmark of Hanoi modeled after the Palais Garnier opera house in Paris and visit an antique Vietnamese-style house at 87 Ma May Street. End the tour by relaxing over a cup of coffee at a rooftop café and enjoying the full panoramic view of the legendary Hoan Kiem Lake (The Returned Sword Lake whose name comes from a legend of a sacred sword) at sunset.
Evening at leisure.
Note: You can change tourist attractions to replace as the list below;
(1) Temples: Ngoc Son Temple, Tran Quoc Temple, Quan Thanh or Phu Tay Ho Temple
(2) Museums: The Museum of Vietnamese History, the Museum of Vietnamese Women or Museum of Vietnam Ethnology (Except Monday)
(3) Cyclo tour: Water puppet show or Thang Long Royal Citadel (NEW)
City
