Hanoi

and classic French colonial architecture, this area has been the commercial heart of Hanoi since the 15 ^th century.

Visit the museum at Hanoi Hilton or Hoa Lo Prison, a former political prison that held Vietnamese revolutionaries while under French rule and American prisoners of war during the Vietnam War. It now stands discreetly at the base of the imposing Hanoi Towers. Join the faithful at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, the final resting place for the revered leader and a pedestrianised area of botanical gardens, pagodas, monuments and memorials.

Attend an evening performance by the famous water puppets on the Hoan Kiem Lake and visit the 1,000 year old Temple of Literature or the nearby One Pillar Pagoda. Take a cyclo ride through the crazed traffic to get an up close and personal glimpse of the local people cooking, eating, trading and celebrating on the streets in front of you.

Nearby Hanoi, you can visit the Perfume Pagoda in the Huong Tich Cave; a sacred site that features a maze of Buddhist temples built into the limestone cliffs. The main Perfume Temple contains Chinese writing that dates back to 1770. The Ba Vi National Park nearly two hours out of Hanoi, is a peaceful place to spend some time and is a popular weekend escape for locals. Visit the orchid and bird gardens, hike the rainforest covered slopes or climb the limestone mountain where you ll find a temple dedicated to Ho Chi Minh at the summit.