Visit museums to learn more about the formation and evolution of a country. Because a museum is a place where one-of-a-kind and valuable old papers and artifacts relevant to one or more fields, such as history, culture of a country, or a specific historical period, are displayed and preserved. You visit the museum to learn, investigate, or simply see what's new.
In Hanoi, museums are classified into two types:
- The theme of Vietnam's military history
- The theme of art - culture - society
Here are some of the most interesting museums in Hanoi that you should visit.
Vietnam National Museum of History
Opening hours: Everyday 8h00 to 12:00 | 13h30 to 17h00 (closed on every first Monday of the month)
Entrance fee: 40,000VND/person; 50% discount for: old people, veterans and disable people (confirmed card or certifiable); Free for children under 6 years old.
Address: 216 Tran Quang Khai, HoanKiem, Hanoi.
In Hanoi's finest buildings, you will find the best account of Vietnam's thousands of years of history. If other museums have overwhelmed you with propaganda and war, this museum, with its delightful setting and superb collection, will be a welcome relief.
Vietnam Museum of Ethnology
Opening hours: Everyday | 8:30 – 17:30 (except Monday & Lunar New Year)
Address: Nguyen Van Huyen street, Nghia Do, CauGiay, Hanoi.
The Vietnam Museum of Ethnology is an enthralling exploration of Vietnam's 54 ethnic minorities. In the last 20 years, Vietnam's capital city has undergone rapid transformation, and its streets are a chaotic, scooter-filled clash of old and new, where you're unlikely to see any of Vietnam's traditional ethnic culture in action. However, within the Museum of Ethnology, you can get as close to the religious and cultural ceremonies and everyday rituals of Vietnam's many different people as any tourist can. The Vietnam Museum of Ethnology is located a little outside of town, but it is well worth the extra taxi fare.
Vietnamese Women’s Museum
Entrance fee: 30,000VND/person
Opening hours: Everyday | 8:00 – 17:00
Address: 36 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi.
Even if you've been to hundreds of museums around the world, the Vietnamese Women's Museum will take your breath away. The Vietnamese Women's Museum is a hidden gem that includes a fascinating costume-heavy display on Vietnam's many ethnic minorities, a hard-hitting exhibition on women's role in wartime, and an exploration of the often-overlooked subject of family life and maternity.
The exhibit on the 'Heroic Mothers of Vietnam', which memorializes women who lost children during Vietnam's many years of warfare, is particularly moving, and space on the museum's top floor is reserved for an impressive schedule of temporary exhibitions.
Vietnam Fine Arts Museum
Entrance fee: 30,000VND/person
Opening hours: Everyday | 8:30 – 17:00
Address: 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Ba Dinh, Hanoi.
The Vietnam Fine Arts Museum, housed in a beautiful French colonial building formerly used by the French Ministry of Information, is a veritable treasure trove of traditional, religious, modern, and contemporary Vietnamese art. The museum can sometimes be completely empty, which is remarkable given the high quality of the work on display and the low entry fee of 30,000 VND.
Chronologically organized, the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum offers an easy lesson in the history of Vietnamese art and features ancient Champa carvings, 20th-century folk paintings, and 21st-century abstract works. The museum is so large and densely packed with artworks that you might want to make more than one visit to take it all in and be sure to take a moment to view the sublime effigies of Guan Yin, the 1,000-armed and 1,000-eyed goddess of compassion.
Vietnam Military History Museum
Entrance fee: 0-6 yrs: Free, 6-15 yrs: 10,000 VND/person, 15 yrs and above: 20,000 VND/person
Opening hours: Everyday | 08:30 – 11:30 & 13:00-16:30
Address: 28A Dien Bien Phu st, Ba Dinh, Hanoi.
If you're in Hanoi with kids, the outdoor displays of tanks, captured aircraft, including rusted US jets, helicopters, and artillery pieces make this a good bet, while inside the three buildings you can see everything from more weaponry to war propaganda, photographs, and documents. They cover not only the Vietnam (American) War, but also the wars with China and France. Climb the flag tower for panoramic views of the city. Military enthusiasts should also visit the Vietnam People's Air Force Museum, which is located on a disused airfield on the outskirts of the city and features MiGs, helicopters, army trucks, radar, artillery pieces, and more.
Ho Chi Minh Museum
Entrance fee: 40,000VND/person
Opening hours: Monday & Friday: 08:00–12:00
Others: 08:00–12:00, 14:00–16:30
Address: Ho Chi Minh Museum, Chua Mot Cot, Doi Can, Ba Dinh, Hanoi.
Visiting the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi could be one of the strangest yet most fascinating experiences you'll ever have. Combine a visit to see Uncle Ho with about an hour in the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hanoi, which is dedicated to his life and legacy.
While the majority of the museum is exactly what you would expect from a monument to Ho Chi Minh, the revolutionary leader of the Democratic Republic of North Vietnam, including a chronological account of his life, exhibitions on his military achievements, and a massive, gilded sculpture in his image, the upper level of the museum is, to say the least, surprising. A number of 1970s-era artworks, interspersed with historical documents and photographs, can be loosely described as postmodernist, pop art, and Soviet social realist-inspired installation art. The Ho Chi Minh Museum is fascinating, informative, and just plain strange.
Hỏa Lò Prison Museum
Entrance fee: 30,000VND/person. Students (with Identification): VND 15,000. Children (under 15 years): No Entry Fee
Opening hours: Everyday | 08:00-17:00
Address: 1 Hoa Lo, Tran Hung Dao, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi.
The ruins of this penitentiary, ironically dubbed the "Hanoi Hilton" by US soldiers held captive here during the Vietnam War, chronicle the experiences of prisoners of war in Vietnam, ranging from Vietnamese revolutionary martyrs who suffered at the hands of French colonialists to American POWs. A French guillotine, chilly cells with rusted iron stocks, and the flight suit and parachute of John McCain, a war veteran and later US Senator and Republican presidential nominee, are among the exhibits.
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