Hanoi Half Day City Tours – 3 Options

Option 1: Hoan Kiem Lake – Old Quarter Area – Hoa Lo Prison – Temple of Literature

8.00: Our driver and tour guide will pick up at your hotel and start a half city tour.

Our tour will start by taking a short 1-hour cyclo (xích lô) tour around Hoan Kiem Lake and Hanoi Old Quarter. You can enjoy some of the 36 tree-shaded streets of this historic district named after the commodity produced and sold at each street, such as sugar, bamboo, leather or silver, etc. Even though some of the streets had their name changed, many of them still keep that characteristic nowadays.

9.15: Proceed to Hoa Lo Prison. The Hoa Lo Prison, later known to American prisoners of war as the “Hanoi Hilton”, was a prison used by the French colonists in Vietnam for political prisoners and later by North Vietnam for prisoners of war during the Vietnam War.

Then we will continue to visit the Literature Temple and Quoc Tu Giam – Vietnam’s first University, constructed in 1070. Its gardens and well-preserved architecture offer a relaxing glimpse into Vietnam’s past.

We will stop at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and admire the beauty of this building from the outside. You can understand the architectural and historical aspects of Uncle Ho’s final resting place. The tour will end at around 12.30.

Option 2:  Vietnam History Museum – Hoan Kiem Lake – Old Quater Area – Temple of Literature 

8.00: Our driver and tour guide will pick up at your hotel and start a half city tour.

We start at Vietnam History Museum at Tran Quang Khai Street. On the way to the museum, you can come across our majestic Hanoi Opera House. Consisting of two floors, the museum provides us with an overview of the history of Vietnam from the prehistoric era to the day when President Ho Chi Minh read out the Declaration of Independence to give birth to Vietnam.

Next, we will take a short 1-hour cyclo (xích lô) tour around Hoan Kiem Lake and Hanoi Old Quarter. You can enjoy some of the 36 tree-shaded streets of this historic district named after the commodity produced and sold at each street, such as sugar, bamboo, leather or silver, etc. Even though some of the streets had their name changed, many of them still keep that characteristic nowadays.

Then we will continue to visit the Literature Temple and Quoc Tu Giam – Vietnam’s first University, constructed in 1070. Its gardens and well-preserved architecture offer a relaxing glimpse into Vietnam’s past.

Option 3: Van Phuc Silk Village OR Bat Trang Ceramic Village

Pick you up at your hotel at 8.30A.M or 2.00P.M, we then drive about 15 kilometers North-West of Hanoi to the Van Phuc silk village. Upon arrival, you have a great chance to visit many silk shops and shopping for silk products at a very good price. See most working stages to produce handmade silks: from spinning, and gluing, through to weaving and finishing of the silk wares. Further inside the village, we can enjoy an ancient view of a Northern Vietnamese village, with a communal house and well, lotus pond, ancient banyan tree, and a market…all alongside modern houses. We spend time shopping around the shops before return to your hotel in Hanoi. Get back to your hotel around 12.30P.M or 6.00P.M. The trip ends.

Bat Trang Ceramic Village is a village that is located in the center of Red river delta, north of Vietnam. It is 13 kilometers away from the center of Hanoi and a part of Bat Trang Commune, Gia Lam District, Hanoi. It has been famous for its ceramics for a thousand years, particularly dinnerware and ornamental ware. You can have a chance to discover the small, hidden alleys of this village and visit a local workshop to interact with the craftsmen and observe the complete production cycle, from preparing the clay to shaping the products, painting them and firing them in the kiln. Buy some ceramics so you can enjoy your Hanoi Bat Trang Ceramic Village experience at home. Get back to your hotel around 12.30P.M or 6.00P.M. The trip ends.