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).
We’ve had a great time with Hazel. She speaks English, has a lot of stories on both locations we visited. She’s patient and is also keen on answering all the question we might have on the Vietnamese culture and traditions!
We had an amazing experience exploring Hanoi with Giang (nicknamed Kokonut:)) He is a very patient and knowledgeable tour guide, we learned a lot during our tour This was a very interesting tour and a great way to learn about Vietnam Would recommend Kokonut to everyone!
Emma was very kind and lovely person. Her knowledge was very impressive, she easily explained the history for us, we’ve learned a lot. We fully recommend this experience! ☺️
Quynh was a great guide. I would recommend her.
Emma was very nice and considerate. We had a great exchange of storys and customs in our home countries. She was fun and had a lot of knowledge. We love her.
Amazing tour, Kokonut was excellent very knowledgeable and friendly to be around, speaks perfect English as well ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A brilliant morning touring the Ho Chi Min museum and temple of literature with local student guide Kokonut. He was enthusiastic, funny and very knowledgeable. He alsovery kindly gave us a ride between the sites. The communication was really good, meaning arranging pickup was easy. Would highly recommend this tour.
Quynh gave us an excellent tour of the Area around the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Museum after which we visited the beautiful Temple of Literature. On top of the historical and religious facts, she added very interesting side notes and personal anecdotes. She helped us take photos, gave recommendations for the rest of our trip and even taught us some Vietnamese. We enjoyed the tour very much and having Quynh to answer our many questions was brilliant. Cam on Quynh!
~Quỳnh Trần( Alice) was wonderfull guide . She was communicated with very good English , she was very cheerful and pleasant with good knowledge about the area and very patient .we recommend her
I went to a history/old quarter tour with May. It was honestly one of the best things of my whole Vietnam trip. She knew so much about the history and all the places. She was also a great person to be around. I cannot recommend this tour enough. It is so interesting to talk to a local and get shown around. She even gave me restaurants recommendations and tailored the tour to my requests. Worth every cent!! I will definitely do this again if I come back. Thank you again May! Best regards, Zoe
Guide is good, good knowledge, language
We had a fantastic tour with Camille! She was extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and spoke fluent English. Her great energy made the experience truly enjoyable. Highly recommended!
Pamela was a brilliant host, we had a great time!
It was very fulfilling experience. Tour guide Quynh was very friendly and supportive and explained everything with lots of care. Really enjoyed it.
Quynh was absolutely amazing! She is genuinely one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. She is incredibly knowledgeable. She taught me so much about Vietnam, its culture and its fascinating history throughout the tour. We visited the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, One Pillar Pagoda, and the Temple of Literature, and she made every stop really fun. I had such an amazing time exploring Hanoi. If you’re visiting Vietnam, I highly recommend booking this tour 🇻🇳
Hazel was amazing. Highly intelligent and knowledgeable, she is passionate about history and it makes for a great experience The sites themselves were fascinating, so much rich history and to have a guide like hazel to fill in the contextual gaps in my understanding was excellent. Very memorable experience, the weather did not deter hazel from being committed, curious and enthusiastic!!
Great walking tour with Pamela. She was very knowledgeable and attentive and answered all of our questions easily. We did HCM mausoleum, Madison Central, Train Street (and saw a real train) and some other key neighborhoods. Highly recommend her and the tour!
We did the mausoleum and prison tour. Giang (Kokonut) was such an amazing guide. Super friendly, well-spoken, very knowledgeable. Gave us an insight into Vietnamese history and culture we never could have gotten otherwise. Highly recommend!
Emma was a very well experience in introducing the site visit and we had a wonderful time because of her professional to tell us a lot of Vietnam history and the stories and it was exciting to know that. Since of the Emma as our leader , we had a good impression in Hanoi. I am sure we will come back to Hanoi again.
★★★★★ We had a wonderful half-day tour of the Ho Chi Minh Complex and the Temple of Literature. Our tour guide was very friendly, knowledgeable, and professional. They explained the history and cultural significance of each place in an interesting and easy-to-understand way. The tour was very well organized and gave us a great insight into Vietnam’s history and culture. The Ho Chi Minh Complex was impressive, and the Temple of Literature was absolutely beautiful and fascinating. A fantastic experience and highly recommended for anyone visiting Hanoi! Our Trip Guide are Kokonut
Quỳnh was a fantastic guide, her warmth and knowledge made the experience 10/10. She’s a young university student and went to the next level to ensure our tour was abundant and insightful. I’m so glad I got to meet her and spend time listening to her stories and getting to know her well. I feel lucky to have met her and had a fantastic experience.
Hazel was an excellent guide! She explained the history of Vietnam at the Temple of Literature and Ho Chi Minh’s acts as Father Ho. She was great company and even took me on her motorcycle to the temple.
We had an amazing tour of Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum and the museum with May and Hazel today. They were both incredibly friendly, welcoming, and made the experience so enjoyable. Their English was excellent, and they answered every question with confidence and great knowledge, making the history easy to understand and engaging. I can honestly say they are the best tour guides I've come across. Thank you both for such a memorable experience. I would highly recommend them to anyone visiting Ho Chi Minh City!
Excellent guide who met us at the jail and guided us through the information with insights into the life of a prisoner.Emma then took us via cab to the Ho Chi Minh complex. This area was interesting and Emma was knowledgeable in sharing information.
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
Super friendly guides,informative conversations.
Excellent. Knowledge,kind.
Went on this tour with my fantastic tour guide lilly! She was amazing and the tour was really informative and interesting! I feel like i learned alot! An amazing way to spend the morning!
Yesterday I had the good fortune to meet Dean, who was both accommodating and knowledgeable. Though I needed to cancel the first part of this tour, Dean was flexible and made it easy for me to find him at the Temple of Literature, where we spent over an hour, with Dean explaining the important symbolic animals—the phoenix, turtle, unicorn, and dragon. Dean showed me the Hall of Turtles, where ancient mandarin scholars are honored still today, the wells or ponds in the middle of the many courtyards that reflect the heavens, a perfect place for meditation, and the dragons atop gates that shoot water, not fire, to provide for the people. This Temple site honors Confucian scholars, so the temples show beautiful offerings to the top teachers/disciples of the 11th c. Don’t miss the student chairs, where 48 hour exams took place! Most important, don’t miss meeting Dean, a scholar himself, who embodies a love of Vietnam’s father, HCM, and the important Vietnamese values of strength and flexibility, symbolized in bamboo!
Had a wonderful informative tour round the HoChiMin complex and Temple of literature this morning with the very knowledgeable Minh ( Arthur ) Really glad I did this tour as Minh taught me a lot and I would have missed the inside of the mausoleum otherwise. Impressive.
Our tour guide Serene was super nice and knowledgeable and walked with us the whole tour even though it was super cold and rainy… Thanks and best regards from Germany :)
Camille (Phuong Anh) was a great guide and provided us with all the knowledge we could have asked for. She was patient and answered all our questions. She even directed us to a great coffee shop at the end of the tour and provided us with great food recommendations. This tour was better than some of the tours we have paid for in our trip to Vietnam. Highly recommend this tour!
We visited the Ho Chi Minh complex a Temple of literature. Arthur was our guide and he was very friendly and knowledgeable, we had a wonderful time.
The tour with them was a success! The guide was very kind and gave us all the details about what we visited. Definitely worth every cent!
The tour was excellent. My guide, Ling, was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about teaching the history of Ho Chi Minh and the complex, etc. She was very thorough and took the time to answer all the questions I had. Thanks for such an enthusiastic and informative tour!
We visited the Ho Chi Min Complex deserves to be visited. Thanks to our guide Arthur, we learned a lot of things about the Vietnamese history and the relevance of the visited places. Strongly recommended!
Himona spoke well, had great conversations with her. We learnt a lot from each other, despite it being her first Temple of Literature tour. We also visited the Ho Chi Minh complex, but the mausoleum is closed on Mon and Fri. Himona still made an effort to take us around the surrounding landmarks (e.g. One Pillar Pagoda).
Arthur was very kind and friendly and I felt very comfortable walking and talking for a few hours. He shared interesting facts about the country and culture and in the end we went to a nice cafe with an amazing view. He was ready to answer any question or request
The tour was very interesting and a good length of time to experience the HCM complex and temple of literature. Jaenie was a great tour guide!
Darcy was very knowledgeable and friendly, and showed me around much of the city. I would absolutely tour with her again.
Great tour with Albert (female Tour Guide). She explained us the sights in detail, cultural Back ground, but also have us insights in the life of a Vietnamese student.
Monday through Friday 9 am to 7 pm EST
Reach us by phone
Reach us by email