West Lake is the largest lake and the most famous landscape in Hanoi – the capital of Vietnam. The road around the lake is nearly twenty kilometres long. It is a poetic and fresh year-round path that attracts leisure travelers. Here we provide you with top things to do around Hanoi West Lake for your Vietnam tour.
Introduction about the famous West Lake, Hanoi Capital
Beautiful sunset at the West Lake, Hanoi
In the olden days, West Lake was a part of the Red River left over after changing the river. Previously, the lake also had other names such as Dam Xet Cao, Ho Kim Nguu, Lang Bac, Dam Dam, and Do Ho.
The feudal dynasties all took West Lake as the center of entertainment and relaxation of the kings and courtiers. Over many dynastic dynasties, West Lake is still a crowded place for people to gather. Around the old lake, there were 21 wards, the most famous of which were Thuy Khue, Thach Lam, Bao An and Ho Khau,… Around the lake, many magnificent and magnificent castles were built around Tu Hoa and Cung Dam palaces. Dam, Thuy Hoa palace in Ly dynasty, Han Nguyen palace, Ngoc Dan palace in Tran dynasty.
The West Lake is large and empty, so there are often whirlwinds. Blue lake water mixed with a little brown because there are many phytoplankton in the lake. Previously, the West Lake had many lotuses, in the summer bloomed, giving aromatic fragrance, but now not as much as before.
Best time to visit West Lake
Going to the West Lake at any time of the year is also beautiful and interesting. Each season brings a completely new and different experience. Any free time you can spend with family, friends and lover here to have fun, sightseeing.
Vehicles to wander around West Lake
Choosing different means to take a walk around West Lake will bring excitement to the insiders. The most popular and most maneuverable is still a motorbike, you will not take too much time and can actively stop at your favorite place. Next comes the green means – trams, bicycles.
Although it has just been put into operation, the West Lake tour by tram has become an indispensable option for many domestic and foreign tourists. You will feel the ease in the journey to explore the spacious space of the largest lake in the capital.
With bicycles, the road along the lake is not only a heritage road but also a place to practice the health of many people in the city. Every morning, afternoon and evening, the road around the lake is bustling with streams of people back and forth in the cycle of cycling, making this place feel alive all day long.
Best things to do around West Lake, Hanoi
1. Immerse yourself into West Lake Waterpark
Certainly not to be missed is Ho Tay water park when visiting here. On hot days in the North, this place is considered the most ideal destination. Coming here, you can join your family and friends to participate in many interesting and unique water entertainment activities such as: tubing, jumping, speed skating, rowing, rowing, etc. Small need full equipped life-jacket swimming standards to ensure absolute safety for you!
2. Row SUP new sport between the capital
SUP, also known as paddle boarding, is a new and favorite sport of Ha Thanh youth this summer. The plus point of this water sport is that you are completely entitled to stand and sit freely without being restrictive. For first-time contact with SUP, it only takes 15 to 20 minutes to know how to control the board and move on water.
3. Check in at the very hot West Lake flower valley
If you have the opportunity to visit Hanoi, you should definitely visit the West Lake flower valley at least once. Ho Tay flower valley belongs to Nhat Chieu and Tay Ho junction. It is only about 600m from the water park.
You can combine the journey of exploring water parks and flower valleys which will be very time-saving. In the valley of flowers, there are many kinds of flowers of different colors such as lavender, chrysanthemum, rose, green coronary flower,…
This place also attracts visitors, groups of friends, families, couples thanks to the delicate planning, interwoven many windmill houses with swings, farm gardens,… Come here you can comfortably check -in save many best moments. Don’t forget to buy a quality, compact travel camera for taking lots of photos!
4. Walk around Trinh Cong Son walking street, Thanh Nien street
Trinh Cong Son Walking Street, Thanh Nien Street are two ideal destinations that anyone who comes here wants to experience. In Trinh Cong Son Walking Street, there are many stalls designed in the style of the ancient town of Hoi An. And Thanh Nien road has a lot of shady trees and a beautiful view of West Lake. You can join your family and friends to explore these 2 interesting destinations and capture the most unique and interesting moments.
5. Go to the temple ceremony, visit the monuments at West Lake
West Lake not only attracts people thanks to the poetic landscape of the lake surface but also owns many places to go to pagodas and visit famous monuments.
If you come to West Lake, visit and explore the long-standing traditional culture of the nation with the following locations: Tran Quoc Pagoda, Dinh Nghi Tam, Phu Tay Ho, Quan Thanh Temple and Ba Danh Pagoda. These places are also listed in the top 25 most sacred temples in Hanoi. Coming here, you can both visit and leave the hustle and bustle life to relax your soul into the sacred, spacious space.
6. Enjoy the coffee by the lake at the splendid beautiful cafe
If you are a coffee lover, enjoying coffee by the lake will be very interesting. The delicious cafes in Hanoi have beautiful space; You will not only taste the typical coffee flavor but also have a great view of West Lake.
Vietnamese famous egg coffee
7. Sip the favorite snacks on the banks of the Lake
The cuisine around the lake is also very diverse and rich. Coming here, you will enjoy Thuy Khue spring rolls or famous West Lake Shrimp cake on Thanh Nien street. Especially, there are many restaurants with 3 regional and Asian – European cuisine styles such as Thang Loi and Sen Ho Tay restaurants, etc.
8. Get busy-shopping in West Lake area
Around the roads along the lake there are many famous shopping streets such as Yen Phu, To Ngoc Van, Xuan Dieu,… Especially every Saturday morning market at To Ngoc Van Street focuses on many food stalls and furniture. drink, clothes, cosmetics, you can choose to buy many lovely handmade souvenirs.
Other interesting check in locations
- In addition to flower valleys, Ho Tay water park, Trinh Cong Son walking street,… you can check in at other ideal entertainment places such as Korean Harbor or lotus lagoon.
- Experience West Lake in a different way.
- Coming to West Lake, you should definitely experience other interesting activities such as cycling around the lake. This is an activity that enhances your health and helps you admire the peaceful, poetic natural life and the life of people around the lake. Besides, duck riding or scooter riding is also a popular activity for families and couples.
- West Lake brings a peaceful and gentle beauty to help people relieve worries and pressures of daily life. This weekend, come with your relatives and friends to come and explore the ideal destinations!
Top 5 must-try activities in West Lake, Hanoi
1. Have fun at the water park
West Lake is a destination where many entertainment activities attract a large number of visitors every weekend. First is the water park. In the summer – the peak season here usually falls from May to July. From August onwards the number of visitors will be sparse, but it is still an extremely interesting entertainment address. You can immerse yourself in cool water or try out adventure games such as sliding pipes, chute, giant wheel,…
Not far away is the focus of the duck game. Compared to the game areas around Hanoi, West Lake is the most ideal location. Because the space is very airy and spacious. If you like romance you can choose a yacht located at the intersection of Thuy Khue and Thanh Nien streets to stroll around the lake. In addition, around this area, there are many cafes that are the favorite place of many young people. Cheap sidewalk coffee is often located near the water park. Also prefer solemn and polite you should go to the cafes along the road along the lake parallel to Thuy Khue.
2. Go sightseeing
The West Lake area has many ancient temples, temples and pagodas. And this is considered a famous heritage road in Hanoi. There are more than 20 historic sites around the lake that you can stop by. That is Tran Quoc pagoda, Vong Thi pagoda, Kim Lien pagoda, Tao Sach pagoda, Ba Danh pagoda, Quan Thanh temple, Tay Ho palace, Quote Sai temple, Yen Phu communal house,… full moon or 1st. On normal days, you will feel extremely peaceful and quiet here.
3. Go shopping in the West Lake
Shopping in every location is indispensable. One of the activities in West Lake is shopping for pretty souvenirs. Roads along the lake are close to the dykes of the Red River such as To Ngoc Van, Xuan Dieu and Yen Phu. It is the place where many unique shops selling goods mainly serve tourists. The Western market meets every Saturday morning on Tô Ngọc Vân street. A place frequented by many young people and many tourists coming to Hanoi. The stalls here are quite diverse from foods, drinks, books, cosmetics, old clothes, handicrafts,… Along the street there is a very strange To He shop with all kinds of products. fashion, housewares,…
4. Taste the specialties
Culinary discovery is one of the activities in West Lake. The cuisine around this area is also very diverse. First you can taste Ho Tay ice cream, shrimp cakes on Thanh Nien road. If you come over here at peak times. You will see a long line of people waiting in line to buy. West Lake is also home to many luxurious restaurants with European – Asian cuisine styles such as Sen Ho Tay, Thang Loi, Sumvilla,…
5. Take a tram ride around the lake
New electric cars were put into operation for tourists here not long ago. But it has become a quite interesting option for domestic and foreign visitors. You will feel leisurely in the city with a journey to explore the largest lake in the capital.
Visit and experience strange pleasures with activities in West Lake. Will bring you extremely interesting weekends. Spend free time with family and friends coming here. To understand more about the historical values this place brings to Hanoi and to love this beautiful land more.
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