The Citadel in Hue is a historical site which was constructed in 1805 under the Nguyen Dynasty. From then on, it functioned as the imperial seat of the ancient government. Over the years, new buildings were added to strengthen the defense over attackers. The Citadel was once compared to the Forbidden City in Beijing, China; however, it was hardly damaged in 1947 by the French.

After the American War, the Citadel was neglected since it was regarded as an embarrassing vestige of the imperial rule. However, in recent years, the government has paid much attention to the reconstruction and preservation of the Citadel as its value has been recognized. The construction has been in its process and will be completed in near future.

With its historical significance, the Citadel has attracted a large number of tourists every year.  

Many guidebooks hype the Citadel because of its historical significance, but after reading these over-blown descriptions of the place, tourists routinely show up to see it and are disappointed.

So, we investigated the best way to see the Citadel, visiting once on our own, and the second time, booking a guide at the office at the gate. We have to say this is one place where a guide really makes a difference. Our guide was well-informed, spoke English well, and the information really added a lot to the experience. It's affordable, at US$5 a pop plus tip, no matter the size of the group. If you hook up with a licensed tour guide elsewhere in the city, they should be able to visit the Citadel without paying for themselves, and should also be able to give an informative tour. The guide we used, Nga, can be contacted on her cell phone: (0914) 078 584

Our only complaint about the tour is that it didn't cover quite the entire Citadel and we saw a bit more when we went on our own. So, once your guide is done with you, hang around and explore.

You can enrich the experience by taking a look at the book Life in the Forbidden Purple City, by Ton Thai Binh, Danang Publishing House, 2003. It's not a particularly great book, but it will give some informed questions to ask your guide. It's available for 30,000 VND at most book stores in town.

There are half-hour cultural performances at the Royal Theatre, 4 times a day, as long as there are a dozen or so people available to watch. Start times are 09:00, 10:00, 14:30 and 15:30. If you're in a group, let them know you're coming in advance: (T: (054) 529 219, 514 989, (0913) 439 183)

You can get a picture of yourself in royal dress sitting on the Emperor's throne for 25,000 VND, more if you want two Vietnamese dressed as Mandarins to pose with you. A similar photo op is available at the Hall of the Mandarins.

If you decide not to go the guide route, it's still a pretty, peaceful place with a smattering of interesting buildings worth walking around and exploring on a lazy day.

More details

Opening Hours: Daily 06:30 to 17:00
How to get there: To get here from Le Loi, take the Phu Xuan bridge across the river and take a left. Take any right turn you please, and the entrance is behind the very-hard-to-miss gigantic flagpole. The tour guide office is on the right side of the central gate.