Private Hue City Tour & Perfume River Cruise

Visit A UNESCO World Heritage Site Your private, English speaking guide will pick you up from your hotel. Once you’ve exchanged greetings, you’ll transfer to a comfortable air-conditioned vehicle for your exploration of this culturally rich region. The former seat of the Nguyen Dynasty and Vietnam’s capital city up until 1945, Hue is a fascinating city with much to explore! Our first stop is, of course, the Citadel where the last king of Vietnam, Bao Dai, stepped down on August 30th, 1945. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is guarded by an ancient moat and thick stone walls. The vast Citadel encompasses the Imperial City, Forbidden Purple City and the Royal Theatre, so stretch those legs and get ready for a morning of exploration!

Visit the tomb of King Tu Duc! Making our way well off the tourist track, we’ll visit some locals making Vietnam’s world-famous conical hats. Next up is the tomb of King Tu Duc, the most popular and impressive of all the royal mausoleums. It houses courtyards, pavilions, temples and chambers. Your tour guide will tell you all about its fascinating history and the king’s life of imperial luxury, from his 104 wives to the unfortunate ending for the 200 burial servants!

Cruise Down Perfume River! Just before lunch, we’ll visit Bunker Hill which overlooks the Perfume River and boasts amazing panoramic views. The area served as a great military vantage point by providing secret observation posts for the surrounding territory. Many bunkers still remain so you’ll have the chance to get up close and investigate them.

We’ll have lunch and recharge our batteries and then head off for our next destination: Tiger Arena. Tiger Arena is an ancient colosseum where tigers and elephants would fight to the death all in the name of royal entertainment. The final leg of our tour today takes us to the iconic seven-story Thien Mu Pagoda, the unofficial symbol of Hue city. From here we’ll board a classic dragon boat and cruise down the Perfume River back towards the city, where your guide will take you back to your hotel.