Locations in Thừa Thiên Huế · 6 found
Do Quyen Waterfall (Rhododendron Waterfall)
Thác Đỗ Quyên (Rhododendron Waterfall) in Bạch Mã National Park drops nearly 400 metres through primary mountain forest - reached by 689 stone steps or via an adventure package with via ferrata, zipline, and suspension bridge. One of the tallest waterfalls in central Vietnam.
Imperial City
Huế's Imperial City (Đại Nội) is the former seat of the Nguyễn Dynasty - a 3km² walled citadel of palaces, gates, pavilions, and ceremonial halls built 1804-1833, UNESCO World Heritage since 1993. Yellow roofs mark imperial authority; blue-green roofs mark secondary structures. Allow 3-4 hours minimum.
Khải Định Tomb
Khải Định Tomb (Ứng Lăng) is the most visually striking of Huế's royal mausoleums - a dark concrete palace fusing Vietnamese, French, Gothic, Roman, and Hindu architectural styles, covered inside with intricate porcelain and glass mosaics. Smallest in footprint but most costly and time-consuming to build of all Nguyễn tombs.
Minh Mạng Tomb
Minh Mạng Tomb (Hiếu Lăng) is regarded as the most architecturally perfect of Huế's royal mausoleums - an 18-hectare complex of nearly 40 symmetrical buildings on Cẩm Khê mountain, where the Hữu Trạch and Tả Trạch rivers join to form the Perfume River. Built by the second Nguyễn emperor, an administrator at the height of imperial power.
Thiên Mụ Pagoda
Thiên Mụ Pagoda is the oldest and most iconic religious site in Huế - a 21-metre seven-tiered tower, officially recognised as Vietnam's tallest ancient octagonal pagoda tower, on a hill above the Perfume River, founded in 1601 and part of the UNESCO-listed Complex of Huế Monuments.
Tự Đức Tomb
Tự Đức Tomb is the most garden-like of Huế's royal mausoleums - a romantic complex of pine forests, lotus ponds, and wooden pavilions built by Vietnam's longest-reigning Nguyễn emperor, who spent years here composing poetry before his death in 1883. Often ranked the most beautiful of Huế's four major tombs.
Local Food You Must Try
Bún bò Huế
Vietnam's most complex noodle soup - thick round rice noodles in a lemongrass and shrimp paste broth with sliced beef, pork hock, and chả cua crab cake, the balance of spicy, sour, savoury, and aromatic is unlike any other Vietnamese noodle dish and has never been successfully replicated outside Huế itself
Bánh bèo Huế
Steamed rice flour saucers in ceramic cups - topped with dried shrimp powder, crispy pork crackling, and spring onion oil, eaten in sets of eight to ten cups with a sweet-salty dipping sauce, one of dozens of small Huế snack dishes developed in the royal kitchens for the emperor's afternoon tea
Bánh nậm
Two royal Huế dumplings eaten together - bánh nậm is a flat steamed rice flour parcel with shrimp and pork in banana leaf, bánh lọc is a translucent tapioca dumpling with whole shrimp and pork fat, both served together as a set, delicate enough to have been served to Nguyễn emperors
Cơm hến Huế
Cold rice with tiny Perfume River mussels, pork crackling, fermented shrimp paste, and a tangle of fresh herbs - the mussels are harvested at dawn from Cồn Hến island in the middle of the river, served cold on leftover rice with a dozen condiments, Huế's most democratic dish eaten by everyone from street vendors to university students
Bánh canh Nam Phổ
Thick tapioca noodle soup from Nam Phổ village - cooked in a rich crab and shrimp paste broth with annatto oil giving a deep orange colour, topped with whole shrimp and pork, a Huế specialty distinct from the royal court dishes, eaten at dawn at village stalls that have operated the same recipe for generations
Cơm âm phủ
Hell rice - a Huế specialty of broken rice served with a dramatic arrangement of grilled pork, shredded chicken, fried egg, pork skin, and pickled vegetables on a black plate, named for its association with the underworld offerings, eaten at night at old Huế restaurants that specialise in this theatrical presentation
Hến xúc bánh tráng
Stir-fried Perfume River baby mussels scooped up with crispy sesame rice crackers - the mussels from Cồn Hến island are stir-fried with lemongrass, chilli, peanuts, and fresh herbs then scooped onto crackers, a Huế street snack eaten at riverside stalls along the Perfume River at dusk
Bánh khoái
Crispy sizzling rice crepe unique to Huế - smaller and crispier than the southern bánh xèo, stuffed with shrimp, pork, and bean sprouts then eaten wrapped in mustard leaves and rice paper with a thick fermented soybean and peanut sauce that is the soul of the dish
Bánh bột lọc
Translucent tapioca dumplings filled with whole shrimp and pork fat - the Huế original, wrapped in banana leaves and steamed until the filling glows through the semi-transparent dough, eaten with a sweet chilli fish sauce, one of the royal kitchen's most delicate creations now sold at every Huế street stall
Vả trộn Huế
Wild fig salad unique to Huế - unripe cluster figs sliced thin and tossed with shredded pork, prawn, roasted peanuts, sesame, and fresh herbs in a tangy fish sauce dressing, the figs providing a firm, slightly astringent texture found in no other Vietnamese salad, eaten at Huế restaurants as a signature appetiser
Nem lụi Huế
Spiced pork paste grilled on lemongrass skewers over charcoal - the Huế version is finer and more aromatic than the Đà Nẵng adaptation, eaten rolled in bánh tráng with fig leaves, star fruit, green banana, and cucumber then dipped in a thick peanut and fermented soybean sauce, a street food staple along Huế's Đập Đá bridge
Chè Huế
Royal Huế sweet soups - a world of over a dozen varieties from chè bắp corn pudding to chè đậu ván butter bean soup to chè hạt sen lotus seed sweet, developed in the imperial kitchens and now sold at dedicated chè stalls throughout the city, eaten cold in layered glasses at Huế's famous Đông Ba market
Bún giấm nuốc
Sour vinegar noodle soup unique to Huế - rice vermicelli in a tangy pork and fermented vinegar broth topped with pork slices, fried shallots, and fresh herbs, the sharp sourness distinguishing it from all other Huế noodle soups, eaten at tiny specialist stalls in the old city that open only for the morning meal
Gỏi tiến vua
Royal tribute salad from the Nguyễn imperial kitchen - a refined composition of shredded chicken, lotus stem, pomelo segments, fig, and fresh herbs dressed in a light lime and fish sauce dressing, historically prepared as an offering to the emperor and now served at Huế's heritage restaurants as the most elegant salad in Vietnamese cuisine