This is the list of things we did in Hue:
1. Stayed at Hoang Giang hotel:
It is located right next to the famous Perfume river. You can book this hotel for about $34 USD/night on Agoda. The staff was very nice and welcoming. The room was nice and clean and had a window looking out at the river. Internet was provided to guests.
One neat thing about this hotel: it was the first hotel to make Royal dishes that were served to the kings and queens back in the good old days. When you sign up for the meal, you get all the special treatments that the Royal family would have gotten. This include wearing the gown (if you want, of course), getting your own server and sitting on the Royal dining area.
2. Checked out the restaurants at night:
We were wondering around our hotel at night and stumbled upon this cool neighborhood that had rows of restaurants and bars. The name of the street is Pham Ngu Lao. As you walk down the street, expect to be called over by all the restaurant workers. We found that not looking at them was an effective method to avoid being awkwardly yell at.
This street had an impressive array of restaurants and bars. Very tourists friendly. Most of the workers knew English and there are hostels located on this street so you will see alot of other tourists there.
3. Got Chè:
Chè translate to “tea” but sometime in Vietnam, tea doesn’t really mean just tea. Sometime chè would be eaten as a dessert. There are millions of different chè in Vietnam, some of the most common ingredients include red/green/blue/whatever beans, some sort of jello, syrup, and top off with ice. I love chè, but then again I love all foods. They are simple, cheap and refreshingly cool. If you come all the way to Hue and don’t try this, something is wrong with you.
The secret hotspot you HAVE to try when visiting Hue is a place call Chè Hẻm. The address: 17 Hùng Vương.
The tea there are 7000 VND aka 0.50 USD.
This place is hidden away in an alley. A little hard to find at first, but don’t be afraid to ask the locals.
I took this picture while we were standing on the main street looking in the alley. You should be able to see a small, brightly lit sign sticking out in the middle of the road walkway.
4. Checked out the night market in Hue:
Phố Đêm Huế was the name of the night market. It was located on Nguyen Dinh Chieu street. This was not just a place for tourists but locals also go here. If you had no luck looking for Chè Hẻm, there will be plenty of vendors that would sell Chè here as well. There were an impressive amount of vendors. You can find sweet food, salty food, clothes, souvenirs, etc.
Side note: for all the anime lovers out there, I found and bought a Doraemon figurine keychain here. Felt like a giggly ten year old when I did it…
5. Visited the Imperial city:
The citadel with the walls up to 2 kilometers high surround the imperial city. And inside the imperial city is the forbidden city. Lots of history. Definitely something you have to see when visiting Hue.
6. Visited Thieu Mu pagoda:
This is where the Buddhist monk live and work. Sometime you can see the monks meditate inside the temple. I always think that is such a neat practice. I have been trying to practice meditation myself because I have heard alot of good benefits from it. Not as easy as you would think. Meditation required your mind to be…well…mindless. You don’t really realized how much you are thinking about until you try meditating. Anyways, this is a cool place to go and see…so do it!
7. Ate traditional Hue food:
There are so many food that originate from Hue that I might just have to do another article just for foods in Hue. But I am just going to list out a few down below that I think really sums up well what Hue has to offer:
a. Cơm Hến
—> Where: intersection of Truong Dinh and Pham Hong Thai – MAP
b. Bún Bò Huế
—> Where: intersection of Nguyen Du street and Chi Lang street – MAP
c. Bánh bèo and bánh nậm:
—> Where: Bà Đỏ restaurant, 71 Nguyen Binh Khiem – MAP
Warning: I can only give you vague description of where you could find good restaurants that serve the food I described. Most vendors sell the same food on the same street. Also, this list is just my opinion on which food you have to try when coming to Hue IF you can only have a few. But keep in mind that there are so much more!
Thanks for reading! Happy Travel!
-Trang-
