Ho Chi Minh Complex & Temple of Literature Tour (half day)
Description
Experience Hanoi like a local and tour the city’s attractions with the kids who live there. Explore Hanoi with 2 famous destination: Ho Chi Minh Complex & Temple of Literature Tour . See the main city sights, that all provide a great way to get culturally connected.
Tour Options
Itinerary
We can start the tour at 9:00 AM or 2:00 PM depending on your booking. Our tour guide will welcome you at your hotel and then take you to the Ho Chi Minh complex – the huge construction to express the pride of Vietnamese people to the very first president – Ho Chi Minh (or Uncle Ho), the National Liberation Hero, who founded the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. You can take the chance to visit: 1. Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum. The Mausoleum, which was made of marble and granite, features a three-stored structure. In the second store places the famous President’s body, lying as if he were sleeping in the simple clothes worn when he was alive. Notes: Opening time: 5 days per week, except Monday and Friday. Cold seasons (from November to March) 8:00 a.m – 11:00 a.m Hot seasons (from April to October): 7:30 a.m – 10:30 a.m Closed once per year in October/ November/or December for the body maintenance No camera, cell phone, bare-shoulder T-shirts, or mini skirts are allowed inside
2. Ba Dinh square This is where Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum lies, is a historical site where President Ho Chi Minh read the Independence Declaration of Vietnam on September 2nd, 1945.
Refusing to live in the Presidential palace, President Ho Chi Minh lived in a normal electrician’s house nearby. The house has two floors and the beloved President lived here from 1958 until he passed away.
4. One Pillar Pagoda An ancient pagoda built in 1049 under the Ly Dynasty. There’s an interesting legend referring the construction of the pagoda, telling that King Ly Thanh Tong had this pagoda constructed in the shape of a lotus, based upon his fairy dream, thanks to which he was given a baby boy. Notes: Opening time: The pagoda is open daily from 8 a.m to 5 p.m. Entrance is free. Remember to wear full-length clothes when you visit any pagoda.
5. Ho Chi Minh Museum The museum was built in the shape of a white lotus flower, which is nearly 20m high, including 3 floors. More than 2,000 documents and show-pieces are displayed, systematically reflecting President Ho Chi Minh’s life and revolution cause since late 19th century. Coming here, tourists can share a part of Ho Chi Minh’s tough life.
After that, you will have time to visit the Temple of Literature – the first University of Vietnam and also the place to worship the Confucius. This is often cited as one of Hanoi’s most picturesque tourist attractions. Originally built as a university in 1070 dedicated to Confucius, scholars and sages, the building is extremely well preserved and is a superb example of traditional-style Vietnamese architecture. This ancient site offers a lake of literature, the Well of Heavenly Clarity, turtle steles, pavilions, courtyards and passageways that were once used by royalty. Visiting the Temple of Literature you will discover historic buildings from the Ly and Tran dynasties in a revered place that has seen thousands of doctors’ graduate in what has now become a memorial to education and literature. Tour ends around 12:00 PM (for the morning tour) or 5:00 PM (for the afternoon tour).
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(55)
I unknowingly booked the Ho Chi Minh tour for the day of his birthday! The Walking Tour club let me know when they confirmed my reservation. Also, because I had also booked the War Sites tour with them earlier in the week that had an itinerary overlap, they adjusted my schedule for me! May was my tour guide this day and she was a delight. She contacted me the night before to let me know meeting time and place and dress code. She walked me through the history of Ho Chi Minh while we visited the mausoleum, complex, and museum. Her English was quite good. And afterwards, she drove me on her motorbike to a nearby banh mi shop. I highly recommend supporting the Free Walking Tours!
Excellent half-day tour covering the Ho Chi Minh Complex and the Temple of Literature. The itinerary was well-paced and gave a great balance of history, culture, and local context, making it easy to understand the significance of each site. A special thanks to Kokonut, who made the experience even better. Very knowledgeable, engaging, and approachable—explaining details clearly while keeping the tour enjoyable and interactive. You can tell they genuinely care about giving guests a meaningful experience. Highly recommend this tour if you want a deeper understanding of Hanoi in a short time.
This is the second tour with Kokonut, my favorite local guide. I chose to visit the temple of literature and Hoa Lo prison from 9 am to 12 noon. Kokonut helped explain details of the architecture and the cultural importance of the national figures. What impresses me the most is how the resilience of the Vietnamese people manifested throughout the course of their history. The interaction with the real local person will offer you more than what any travel book can do.
Nobody told me that the Ho Chi Minh complex was closed on the day of the tour until i was ready to go.
Quang was a fantástic guide, we went to Ho Chi Minh mausoleum and walked around buildings there before heading to the Temple of Literature. Quang was knowledgeable, warm and good company. Highly recommend!
Our guides were lovely and very educational. Could not recommend them enough!
Excellent tour. Pamela was our tour guide. She is energetic, patient and shown willingness to give us a wonderful tour. She explained all the visiting sites in details to us and even took extra step to take us to visit Hoa Lo prison which was not in the tour itinerary. Both myself and my wife had a fantastic time with her and even met her twin sister, Tracy, who is equally a nice person and excellent tour guide 😀😀
We had a wonderful experience on our tour, despite a small scheduling change on our end. We had to shift our start time from 2pm to 3pm as we were returning from Ha Long Bay, and Tracy was very accommodating and understanding about the adjustment. Tracy, a young student, was an excellent guide—friendly, enthusiastic, and incredibly knowledgeable. She took us around the Ho Chi Minh Complex and shared insightful information that really brought the history and significance of the site to life. Overall, Tracy’s helpful attitude and deep knowledge made the tour memorable. We truly appreciated her flexibility and would recommend her to anyone looking for an engaging and informative guide.
Giang (Kokonut) provided a lot of information on historical buildings, political influences, and the religious aspects of many sites inside the park. Additionally, liked that I could enjoy the tour at my pace and deviate as necessary from the different sections of the park. Lastly, I most grateful for Giang's help at the beginning of my tour! Thanks!
Very knowledgeable and flexible
