A Guide To Exploring The Best Hue Royal Tombs, Vietnam

Located approximately halfway between Hanoi and Hoi An in Vietnam and best known for its Imperial Walled City, no Hue trip would be complete without visiting at least one of Hue's Royal tombs.

I spent three nights in Hue as part of my two-week Vietnam trip, and I am so glad I did. Even though Hue was only Vietnam's capital for a brief spell, from 1802 to 1945, it is full of history. I spent my days exploring Hue Imperial City and its royal tombs and mausoleums and found them fascinating.

In this Hue guide, you will discover Hue’s famous royal tombs of Tu Duc and Khai Dinh and one very special pagoda, Thien Mu, situated on the Perfume River.

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How to get to the Royal Tombs

Hue Royal Tombs are primarily located in the west of the city near the Perfume River.

You can visit the Hue tombs by booking a private taxi for the day (your hotel can help you arrange it). The driver will take you from one tomb to the next and wait for you to explore in your own time.

You could hire a motorbike and venture out independently if you are confident on two wheels.

A boat trip along the Perfume River can be combined with a visit to some of Hue's top tombs.

If you prefer to take a guided tour of the main Hue tombs and learn about the history that surrounds them, you can book a Hue Royal tomb tour.

Hue Royal Tombs Map

Below is a map of all the mentioned royal tombs for handy reference.

A brief introduction to two of the best tombs in Hue

The Nguyen was the last dynasty in Vietnam and ruled for over 140 years. Hue was its capital.

Even though there were 13 emperors during the Nguyen dynasty, only seven tombs were built. These can all be visited in Hue and vary from simple to ornate structures.

The Royal tombs were all designed in line with feng shui principles.

Like the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs, Hue's royal tombs were under construction as soon as a new Emperor was crowned. If it had been a short reign, some were still being constructed way past death.

While called Royal tombs, they are so much more than simple burial chambers. Indeed, the 'tombs' visitors head to see in Hue are far from dull and not underground as might be expected. Instead, they are housed in ornate mausoleums and beautiful grounds fit for an Emperor's final resting place.

The Royal Tomb of Emperor Khai Dinh

The Royal tomb and mausoleum of Khai Dinh are in the Chau Chu Mountains, nestled between scenic pine forests and sugar cane farms. Thien Dinh temple is the main building of the Khai Dinh mauseleum.

In 1916, Emperor Khai Dinh ascended the throne at the age of 31. During his short nine-year reign, he built many royal palaces and tombs for himself and his family. He started building his Royal tomb and mausoleum in 1920.

The architecture of Khai Dinh's tomb is a mix of East and West. Materials from France, China and Japan were used in its construction. It took 11 years to complete and was finished by his son in 1931, six years after Khai Dinh's death.

Visiting Khai Dinh Royal Tomb

We arrived at Khai Dinh on a swelteringly humid afternoon in April.

Before you reach the tomb, you pass through five terraces. After climbing the first 130 stone steps flanked by ornamental dragons, we reached the main terrace. What a reward at the top. We were face-to-face with life-sized statues of warriors, horses, and elephants.

After three more flights of stairs, we arrived at Khai Dinh's mausoleum and tomb. The inside was highly ornate and colourful, in contrast to the white and grey exterior.

The tomb room is beautiful and decorated with porcelain mosaics, tiles, and purple, blue, and gold glass.

At its centre is Khai Dinh's tomb, with a statue of the King on top. The throne he sits upon is gold-plated copper, and an elaborate canopy hangs above the tomb.

The ceiling of the temple is filled with mystical dragon paintings.

Some of his possessions and photographs, showing how young this Emperor was, are placed around him. He passed away in 1925, aged 40.

The view of the surrounding mountains from the mausoleum courtyard is breathtaking.

The Royal Tomb of Emperor Tu Duc

Emperor Tu Duc ruled Vietnam for 36 years (1847-1883), the longest time of any other Emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty. He had over 100 wives and concubines but no children after suffering a childhood illness which left him infertile.

Tu Duc instructed his architects to build his tomb 16 years before his death, but he may not even be here. Fear of robbers looting his grave led to his final resting place still being a mystery.

After Tu Duc died, his adopted son became the new Emperor of Vietnam. He only got to rule the country for seven months before being poisoned. With so little time on the throne, no tomb was built for him. Instead, he was buried near one of the Emperor's favourite wives in a small corner of Tu Duc's tomb.

The tranquil grounds of Tu Duc's mausoleum and tomb are lovely to stroll around. The area is delightful and filled with trees, koi carp ponds, and pavilions in an area of scented pine trees.

Tu Duc used to write poetry and spent his time in the gardens composing prose, and once you have visited, you can understand why he loved this space.

Visiting Tu Duc Royal Tomb

Arriving at Tu Duc, we immediately felt it was a different design from Khai Dinh's.

The grounds of Tu Duc were extensive, with many pagodas.

Beautiful lily-pad ponds, bridges and pagodas filled the area, and secluded shaded seating in the shadows of the enormous pine trees was a peaceful reprise from the sun.

Like Khai Dinh, we found stone Mandarin warrior statues standing on guard in Tu Duc's gardens.

Without a guide, we couldn't quite locate where the Tu Duc's tombs were, but we had a pretty good idea they were these ornate structures in the corner of the grounds, embedded with shells.

Thien Mu Pagoda

While not one of the Hue Royal tombs, the Thien Mu Pagoda (Heavenly Lady) is the city's oldest religious structure and the official symbol of Hue. It is also a Unesco-protected site.

The first ancient pagoda was built in the 16th century. Its purpose was to worship the legend of a local woman with spiritual connections.

The current seven-storey tower (Phuoc Duyen) was built on the orders of King Thieu Tri between 1844 and 1846 and is considered a must-see on any Hue itinerary.

Visiting Thien Mu Pagoda

Steps led from the river directly to the pastel-coloured seven-storey octagonal tower, the tallest pagoda in Vietnam. Each pagoda floor houses Buddha statues, and a spiral staircase leads to the top. Sadly, on our visit, the pagoda was closed to visitors.

On our visit to Thien Mu, we arrived just in time to see one of the Buddhist monks who live on the grounds arrive by boat. The pagoda was a significant place of Buddhism during the Nguyen Dynasty, which is why monks are still there.

After admiring the pagoda, we wandered along the red brick pathway through the manicured gardens. All around us, we could hear birdsong and the shrill of cicadas.

We went inside the Dai Hung temple in the garden and saw offerings on the altar. Quite a few statues of deities and Emperors line the courtyards.

We passed a pastel-pink single-story house on the grounds surrounded by bougainvillaea of the same colour. Its roof was ornately tiled and featured ceramic dragons, a familiar sight in Hue.

Strolling around the grounds, we sensed that the monks here liked gardening as we saw a few tending to the bonsai trees in the courtyard.

At the end of the garden is a smaller version of Thien Mu, and behind it, you can see the Perfume River.

Five more top Royal Tombs in Hue you must visit

• Minh Mang
• Dong Khanh
• Thieu Tri
• Gia Long
• Duc Duc

I did not visit these tombs; however, adding one or two of them to your Hue Royal Tombs itinerary is a good idea if you have the time.

Last thoughts on visiting the tombs of Hue

While we hired a driver for the day and enjoyed wandering around each location and taking photographs, in hindsight, I would have loved to know more about each tomb and get some local information that can't be grasped from guidebooks.

With this in mind, I recommend you book a guided tour of the Royal tombs of Hue, so you know what you are looking at.

Also, remember to bring plenty of water, sunscreen, a hat and comfortable shoes. The day we visited the tombs, it was unbelievably hot.

Our elderly driver even gave us his fan and bought us water as he thought we looked hot and bothered. He was right; we were overheating in the April sunshine and welcomed his kind gesture.

This is an example of how kind and gentle the Vietnamese people can be, which is why Vietnam is one of my favourite countries.

Where to stay in Hue

Like most Vietnamese cities, there are plenty of places to stay in Hue that suit all budgets.

I stayed outside the city centre in the 5-star Pilgrimage Village Boutique Resort and Spa and can say it was fantastic. Comfortable accommodation and a beautiful pool are set in manicured gardens, and the food is delicious.

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